Jeffrey Herlings interview - Alpha Male

Posted on September 09, 2021

With two GP wins within a week and picking up 15 points on the man with the red plate, Tim Gajser, you could say that the week in Turkey was a good one for Jeffrey Herlings of the Red Bull KTM Factory team.

Going 1-2-1-2 in the four rounds in Turkey fits nicely with his 1-1-1-1 from the previous four races in that country. While the four-time World motocross champion is 35 points down on defending champion and series leader Gajser, the battle between these two has just began, and the final half of the 2021 MXGP championship might just be one of the greatest fights in the sports history, as these two lock handlebars time and time again.

Despite being handed the defeat in two motos from Gajser, it was clearly a massive victory for the Dutchman in Turkey and now as they head to Sardinian, for the deep sand of Riola Sardo, you can be sure both Herlings and Gajser will be on their A-game.

With his 93rd GP victory and 241st moto win, Herlings is slowly climbing to the very top of the all-time list for moto wins and GP wins. He is now equal with Tony Cairoli in GP wins and just eight GP wins away from equalling Stefan Everts tally of 101 GP wins. In race wins, Cairoli is the man with 273 moto wins, so "The Bullet" has some work to do, with another 32 moto wins needed to move to the top of that list.

We caught up with “The Bullet” soon after his victory yesterday and asked him a bunch of questions.

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MXlarge: Congratulations. You seem to be able to deal with not going 1-1 all the time now and can accept really well even when somebody is just plan faster than you, as Tim was in that second moto?

Herlings: It felt like Russia, the track got so hard and slick and as you could see at the back of the track it was just blue groove. He is damn good at that. In Russia he came from last to third and here again he rode well. When the track is so hard and slick, I think he thinks he is back in Slovenia on a hard and slick track. I was really struggling with grip, but I was happier than I was in Russia and closer to him, so that was okay. I used my joker in Oss, and I am now 35 points down and the championship is still open. I am close to second and let’s try and hunt Tim down.

MXlarge: There were several moments when you and Tim were racing really close, I mean that charge down the wave section side by side was breath taking, but you guys don’t seem to ever get dirty with each other and there seems to be a lot of respect between you both?

Herlings: When you race each other every weekend, you better respect each other, because if you ride dirty or clean him out, he will do it to you the next week and you both lose points. I respect everyone and I hope it is the same for them. When you race once a year, maybe you can ride a little more aggressive and take somebody out, but when you race as much as we do, in these types of conditions and at such an intense level, you better have respect for each other. Having nine races in two months, you can’t clean people out. It is just a game, and we started this as a hobby and some of these guys have kids walking around now and families, so lets just keep it clean and respect each other.

MXlarge: As you mentioned in the press conference, starting inside of Jorge, as you mentioned he drifts everyone out wide and you got up the inside, but do you also like to get inside of him, because he can cut across guys, like he did with Tim a couple of times?

Herlings: Yes, he does do that, not to me, but I have seen him do that to other guys. The thing is, going into the corner, you have to open up a little bit, otherwise you might hit the berm on the inside, so I knew he would open it up and go wider. He is the holeshot and you can’t deny that.

MXlarge: Starting next to him, does that also help your reaction, because he obviously gets out very quickly?

Herlings: In the second one we were side by side all the way, so my start did improve. Gambling is gambling, but he is the King of starts.

MXlarge: That also brings me to qualification, because that has been so intense this year, with all you guys really trying harder than ever to get pole. It is a little like who wants to be the alpha male from the group. Can you explain how qualification feels for you lately?

Herlings: On this track, I felt I missed out last Sunday, so for today, I felt I had to keep charging until I had that inside gate pick. The inside was such a benefit and I think we need to do that more often, because we have the qualification race, but it doesn’t seem to give a benefit. They do it in F1 and MotoGP and I think they should do it at all the races.

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MXlarge: 93 GP wins and two in a week, that is probably nearly double what you have had in 18 months (laughing).

Herlings: Yes, for sure and now with GP wins I am equal with Tony for second and I am also second to Tony for moto wins in our careers, I have two moto wins down on Tony, so you should hook up the moto and GP wins and check where we are at.

MXlarge: You have two sand races coming up with the Sardinian race and then Mantova for the Nations, before going to Germany for the GP there, do you like the German track?

Herlings: Depends, at that point of the year, we are looking at October, it could be anything from a mud fest, to grippy. Normally I do well there but let’s first get these two sand races out of the way. I won in Germany in 2018, battled with Tony in 2017 and won there in 2016, but lets first get these two sand races out of the way.

MXlarge: As you mentioned when we were talking before, Tim is being very consistent, which means getting points on him is really difficult. So, you have to keep beating him.

Herlings: Yes, he has been, but I think from the races I have finished, or started, I am the only guy who has been on the podium in every race. Apart from Oss and Loket where I missed, I have been on the podium, and I feel pretty confident. I closed the gap 15 points, from 51 to 34 and what happened to me can happen to Tim and of course I don’t want that, but in our sport, anything can happen.

MXlarge: That first moto, it was just one of the best races I have seen in a long time a really intense race with so much going on. How was it to be involved in such a race?

Herlings: Yes, I think nobody really wants to be in that spot. You hear bikes at the front, and at the back and everyone is pushing each other. It is nice, and watching it back, I really liked watching it, but the level, these are the fastest guys on the planet and the speed is so high and you are taking risk at this level, but it felt good to race like that.

Ray Archer images