NOS Sport•
In a snowy landscape in Brabant, Jeffrey Herlings looked ahead to the new season in the MXGP this week. The sun is shining again for the motocross rider, after he was unable to take action last year due to a broken foot.
“A year off the bike, that was intense, you know,” says 28-year-old Herlings. “But I’m doing well, very well. I’m back, it’s about to start again.”
The first race of the new season will be held in Argentina this weekend. And the two-time world champion is fully fit again at the start in Patagonia.
Herlings is back on the bike: “Have the time, don’t have to eat fries”
But still, a year of injuries has had an impact. Herlings noticed this in preparation crosses at the start of the MXGP season. “The first match was a bit of a one reality shock. I really wasn’t driving fast enough. Fortunately, things went a bit better in the second game.”
Everyone riding in a heap
And so the Brabander hopes to return to the top level step by step. To the level of 2018 and 2021, when he was the best motocross rider in the world. He will not yet reach that level in Argentina.
“I’m going there to get better. That just takes time and I give myself that time,” says Herlings. “Five years ago I went to Argentina with the aim of driving everyone together. Now I want to progress and get as many points as possible.”
“Winning or the podium is not realistic. But the top five maybe. Of course, it’s not in my genes to say: I’m going for fifth place. But if I finish fifth on Sunday, then I’m happy with that. Because I know my potential.”
New contract
At the end of January, Herlings signed a new contract with KTM. The crosser is fixed with the Austrian team until 2025. And that gives peace, after a year of absence. “We have agreed together that I will slowly build up the season. It does not have to be full fries right from the first game. I have the time.”
Later, a fifth place will no longer be his goal. “I’m sure in a few weeks I’ll just be competing for the win again,” says Herlings, correcting himself immediately: “At least that’s what I expect.” It still takes some getting used to, not to go too fast.
Extended calendar
What speaks in favor of Herlings is that the MXGP calendar has expanded considerably. There are not forty, but sixty rounds on the program this year in which World Cup points can be earned. For example, qualifying on Saturday also earns points from now on.
“For me that’s fine,” says Herlings about the longer season. “Although those extra races also entail more risks.”
After all, the chance of serious injuries in his sport is in a small corner, as Herlings has experienced in recent years. He will try to drive with “a little more sense” next year and sometimes cut his losses instead of pushing the limits.
He will not encounter his main competitor, the Slovenian Tim Gajser, for the time being. The world champion recently suffered a broken hip. That offers opportunities for Herlings.
“Ten world titles (the record of the Belgian Stefan Everts, ed.), that will no longer be the case for me. But I want to grab the record number of GP victories this season anyway.” Herlings is at 99, Everts has 101 victories to his name.
