Motocross
Five-time world champion Jeffrey Herlings now has the record for the most MXGP wins in history. Let's take a look at some of the milestones on his journey to the top.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider Jeffrey Herlings set his new record with back-to-back race wins at the Spanish GP to take his tally to 102 Grand Prix victories ahead of the legendary Stefan Everts.
In Spain, the Bullet was unstoppable all weekend. In Race One, he was involved in a thrilling battle with Red Plate rider and title rival Jorge Prado, competing on home soil for GASGAS. Coming from fourth place, 28-year-old Herlings found his rhythm in the dirt of Arroyomolinos to trade places with Prado until he could make a pass stick. Then he chased down Jeremy Seewer, who had taken the hole shot, and Mattia Guadagnini to finish on the top spot ahead of Prado.
In Race Two, Herlings unleashed his “Beast Mode” to scythe through the field. Once again he faced a stiff challenge for second place from the impressive Guadagnini but passed the Italian and made short work of a tiring Ruben Fernandez to take the lead and win by eight-seconds.
“I am super happy to break the MXGP wins record. The rest of the guys have such a high level so I did not dream to come back so quick,” said Herlings.
With 61 GP wins in MX2 and 41 in MXGP in 43 different race tracks, Jeffrey's MXGP win record is a just reward for arguably the greatest rider of his generation but one who has been beset by injuries throughout his career. His win-at-all-costs approach to racing – keeping the throttle open and riding on the edge from the gate to flag – has earned him trophies, fans and plaudits around the world but he has also had to fight back from a series of injuries. “I don’t crash much but when I crash, I break bones,” said Jeffrey, hitting the nail on the head.
The 2021 MXGP World Champion was sidelined for the entire 2022 season while he recovered from corrective surgery on both legs. He posted on Instagram: “My only goal is to get my body right, get pain-free and think about preparation for 2023. It feels like a long way away but I know it will also come quickly.”
With three wins this season, The Bullet is back and hungry for another world championship. But let’s take a look at some of his most momentous victories...
01
MX win #1 – MXGP of The Netherlands 2010
His promise was clear from his debut as the 15-year-old Herlings was chosen to be team-mates with defending World Champion Marvin Musquin. It also marked the start of a fierce rivalry with rising star Ken Roczen. From his first season to now, no rider is faster in sand than Herlings and so it was fitting that his first-ever GP win came at Valkenswaard in the Netherlands – a 20-minute drive from his home in Geldrop – and just two weeks after his debut in Bulgaria.
02
MX win #16 – First MX2 title – European MXGP 2012
Herlings wrapped up his first MX2 title with his 16th GP win at the European MXGP in Faenza, Italy. His 50-point haul established an unassailable lead over Britain’s Tommy Searle.
03
MX win #30 – second MX2 title – MXGP of the Czech Republic 2013
The pundits were reaching for the superlatives as Herlings blitzed the competition in his most dominant season so far. At Loket, he took his second world title and his 30th GP win. “Everything is going so fast – three years ago I took part in my first Grand Prix and now I have already won 30 Grands Prix, two MX2 World Titles and I’ve been on the podium so many times,“ he said. ”It is an amazing feeling, but maybe only when I’ll be older I’ll realise what I have accomplished.”
04
MX win #50 – MXGP of Europe 2016
Easter Monday and Jeffrey returns to his home turf to take a momentous 50th Grand Prix win at Valkenswaard – his seventh straight win on the track and six years on from his first victory at the same location. The numbers stack up impressively for the 21-year-old, two-time champion: it’s his third clean 1-1 moto victory of the season out of three and he already has a 38-point lead in the MX2 World Championship. The result saw him match the great champion of the 1960s Joël Robert’s record and put him third on the all-time list of winners.
05
MX win #63 – Third MX2 title – MXGP United States West 2016
Herlings all but seals his third MX2 World Championship on home soil, this time in the deep sands of Assen before putting it beyond reach at the following round in Charlotte, North Carolina. Before the end of the season, he puts the cherry on the cake with yet another spectacular victory, this time at iconic Glen Helen in the USA to finish 114 points ahead of his nearest rival Seewer. That year also sees him triumph with Team Netherlands at the MX of Nations in Italy.
06
MX win #85 – First MXGP title – MXGP of The Netherlands 2018
The stats for Herlings’s run to his first World Championship make for jaw-dropping reading. Coming back from injury, he simply blew his competition away in only his second season in the premier class. The Bullet triumphed in 31 out of 38 races on his way to winning 17 out of 20 Grands Prix. And this was while going wheel to wheel with the great Tony Cairoli, beating the Sicilian legend by 151 points. In the run-in to the end of the season, he took eight wins in a row. While Herlings’s skills on sand are famous, he took 1-1 results on such diverse circuits as Loket, Czech Republic, (hard-packed with few overtaking spots), Lommel, Frauenfeld, Germany, (rutty, soft soil) and Sevlievo, Bulgaria (dusty, bumpy and with steep hills). He wrapped up the title in Assen on home soil. “My mum and I had tears in our eyes this morning. It was definitely emotional.”
07
MX win #94 – Grand Prix of Sardegna 2021
Pole position and two wins meant another maximum haul for Herlings as he matched the great Cairoli’s record of 94 GP wins, and in his backyard of Riola Sardo. A true competitor, the man from Geldorp said the shine was taken off the achievement because Cairoli and defending champion Tim Gajser were both sidelined. “With the injuries to Tim and Tony it’s a sad way to take this red plate. It means nothing at the moment. I know what injury is like, so hopefully they will get healthy before the next GP.”
08
MX win #99 – Second MXGP title – MXGP Città di Montova 2021
One of the greatest finishes to an MXGP season of all time. Herlings arrived in Italy trailing Romain Febvre and defending champion Gajser but he took an emphatic win in Race One, to leave all three level on points in a race to the final chequered flag of the 2021 season. Prado took the hole shot ahead of Febvre, Herlings and Gajser. The Frenchman took the lead but lost it to Herlings and then allowed Gajser through after a fall. The Slovenian champion pushed Herlings, at times lapping faster even than the Dutchman but ultimately the win and the world title went to Herlings. “I’m super happy but at the same time I feel gutted for the two next to me,” he said on the podium. “I know how it feels, I had it in the past. I want to thank both of them for a great championship.”
09
MX win #100 – MXGP of Sardegna 2023
One of the most epic comebacks in motor racing history. After a year out, the question was whether Herlings could still race at the front. He answered emphatically in the second round of the 2023 season by taking a win in Race One and second place in Race Two as he wrapped his 100th GP victory. “I’m very happy with this win," he said. "I didn’t have the best starts but I push myself and it was tough because the track was very fast but I was feeling good and I kept pushing.”
10
MX win #101 – MXGP of Portugal 2023
Herlings draws alongside moto’s all-time most successful rider Everts as he takes his 101st GP win in Agueda, Portugal. No one could catch the Bullet as he set the fastest lap of a GP for the second time in a row after Trentino in Italy. ”It was so great to come here and have another win after the long road I came from,” he says. “I feel it’s coming step by step.”
His ambition to be the best has been clear ever since his debut as a hungry 15-year-old and so with 102 wins, what's next for Herlings? “I hope I can win a couple more world titles in my career and then I’ll lay on the beach knowing I’ve done enough.”