We asked a few legends what they think of the 15 year old German rider.

Frenchman Jacky Vimond is the 1986 World 250cc Motocross Champion and has been trainer for many of the leading French riders from the last decade. Names like Tortelli, Vuillemin, and Paulin have all worked with Vimond.

“I was not young when I won my first Grand Prix. I was World Champion when I was 25 years old, back then it was more like this, it was more like older guys were fast. After me came Strijbos and Van Der Berk, they were much younger like 16 and 19 years old, but in my time riders were older.

“It’s a new guy coming a new kid, he is just 15 years old and to see him riding like that is great. He looks a bit like Gautier (Paulin) when he first came onto the scene. He is coming onto the World Championship and its just fun and you are riding more free when it is like that, and somebody like Roczen he is enjoying himself and his style is good and he doesn’t have any pressure.

"He shows so many things this year, but I think next year he will have more trouble, because then the pressure will be on him. At the moment he just has fun. I learnt from Gautier two years ago, he didn’t have pressure and his results were good, but then the year after struggled a little. You can see Roczen is having fun and he is happy, but Gautier was the same the first year, then he found it difficult. I think Roczen he will have the same problems."

Two World Motocross Championship and nine GP wins place Dutchman John Van Der Berk in amongst the legends. He also trains leading Belgian rider Kevin Strijbos and is at all the Grand Prixs. Van Den Berk has been impressed with Roczen for some years now and isn’t surprised by his success.

“I saw him in the European championship in Bulgaria back in 2007. The first time I saw him I thought this kid is already a top rider. It’s like Jeff Herlings, they are only kids, but already they have the speed of the leading MX2 riders. I am not surprised by his speed, I am not surprised he won a Grand Prix.

“That kid is a professional from the time he was six years old. He has his own track in his garden, everything he needs he has. What impresses me is the fact he is so strong in the head and so professional. He comes to the Grand Prix and he expects to win, it wasn’t a surprise winning the Grand Prix in Germany, he wasn’t even that excited to do it, did you see that, I mean that is amazing, his first Grand Prix victory and he just gives a little smile.

“He is already fast, people look at his age, but you shouldn’t look at his age. He has been racing in America, he has far more experience than most of the young riders in the MX2 class, so you shouldn’t look at his age, because he has been a top rider now for years.

“Dave Strijbos (the youngest GP winner prior to Roczen)won his first Grand Prix when he was 16 and he was prepared for that, Strijbos knew he would win that Grand Prix, while I was surprised I was second. He was more advanced than me in everything, and he was really strong, he would ride through a brick wall, Roczen is like that I think. This kid is 15 years old and I think he has something left, he could have gone faster and won the second moto in Germany, but he chose to slow down and take second place in the moto and the overall win.

“My first Grand Prix win, I wasn’t that young. I was second in a Grand Prix when I was like 16, but I didn’t win my first Grand Prix until I was like 18 or something. My strongest point was being consistent, but not winning GP’s. For me winning a Grand Prix wasn’t the important part, for me the end result, the World Championship was the main result. I wasn’t talented enough to win a Grand Prix with one finger in my ass like Roczen did.”

Italian Andrea Bartolini won a World 500cc Championship in the Joel Smets times and was a classic racer. He also won the Motocross of Nations with Italy on two occasions, and has “I saw him in the first three races in the European championship. I have to be honest though, I think there are many riders who are fast from those kids in the European Championship. Roczen wasn’t dominant in the European, he got beaten by a lot of these kids. Roczen has a strong mentality and his style is so smooth.

“In Germany, he was like an old rider, he had everything under control. If I was battling for a Grand Prix, I would have tried to win the Grand Prix, but only when I was more experienced. Roczen reminds me a lot like Cairoli. I think Roczen can win many races and he just doesn’t have problems with nerves it seems. Most riders struggle with that, but he seems to have stronger nerves.”

A four time World Motocross Champion, 23 Grand Prix victories and father of Stefan, Harry Everts kept Belgian Motocross happy for many years. Harry knows a thing or two about talent at a young age. And while didn’t win a GP until he was much older than Roczen, and helped his son Stefan win titles and races all over the World when little Stefan was just a teenager.

“When Roczen won that Grand Prix in Germany he wasn’t even trying, he was playing with Musquin. He could have passed him at any time, but he just sat behind and watched, learnt from Musquin, and didn’t want to get into a fight and lose the GP. Maybe I would have tried to pass, but he was just playing and having fun. Can you imagine the pressure that kid was under, but he didn’t show anything, not normal how he did that. His home Grand Prix and he was playing and just riding around, like it didn’t matter.”

“Roczen has a technique that is new to the sport, similar to the American’s. I think Roczen is better at this stage than a Pourcel, and better than Stefan, but you have to remember, this isn’t a rider who just started, when Stefan was 15 he hadn’t been riding that long, at least not competition outside Belgium. Roczen has a lot of experience for a 15 year old, it isn’t like he just turned up and raced.

 “I was 22 years old when I won my first Grand Prix, it was in 1974, and I was World Champion a year later, so I was on old man compared to Roczen. I saw him riding two years ago in the junior World Championship in Finland, I saw him sometimes riding in Lommel, he has a good technical skill, also on hard pack, he riders a bike like an American.”

“Stefan was also good as a young boy, but this is totally different. Stefan was doing the Masters of Motocross and everyone was talking about him back then, but he didn’t race the amount of races Roczen has done before he got into the Grand Prix scene.”