So, with another GP, we have another ratings feature and the MXGP class once again produced crazy, wild and dramatic racing. We have gotten used to this amazing class, and its athletes, but it never gets old as the best motocross riders in the World bang bars and bring the crowds a live.

The MXGP of the Netherlands was without question a return to old school, with the circuit a little small for the big 450’s, but such an amazing atmosphere with the crowds pushed up against the fence, similar to how it was back in the day. Call it dangerous, or not, I still remember so many GPs in the past where riders raced close enough to the fans that the fans could actually touch the riders, as they often did.

Stories of the crowd hitting the non-local riders with bits of wood, or in the case of Georges Jobe in England, getting covered in beer as he passed the fans on his way to chasing British legend Dave Thorpe. Dangerous it is, but what a great memory this event brought some of older media types.

I remember visiting the Oss circuit in 1998 when Alessio Chiodi won on his way to his second of three World 125cc championships and really loving the place and that hasn't changed in the last 23 years. It is still a beautiful little place in the middle of The Netherlands. 

But back to my ratings. 

Jeffrey Herlings 10. I am going to really go out on a limb and give “The Bullet” a 10, because racing with a fractured shoulder blad, and winning, DAMN!!!!! As I mentioned yesterday, I spoke to several present or former GP riders, and they said racing with a fractured shoulder blade is one of the most painful things you can endure. Tim Gajser mentioned when he rode with a fractured shoulder blade back in 2017 and that it felt like somebody was sticking him with a shape knife every move he made. I also spoke to Roger Harvey from HRC, and he mentioned the fracture of Tim’s shoulder was so minor that it took several x-rays to find it, yet still the pain was unbearable. Yes, Jeffrey Herlings deserves a 10 for his single moto finish.

Tim Gajser 9. Tim Gajser gets an 9 for his 3-2 effort, and while his championship is rolling along perfectly, and you have to admire his consistency to be smart, sharp and just roll with the punches, he will himself admit, as he actually did to us on Sunday night, that it is unusual for him to win a GP without a moto win. Still, he isn’t the most successful rider of the last five or six years for nothing. Maybe we need to start calling him Timely Tim from now on.

Antonio Cairoli 8. That old guy Cairoli continues to impress, so he too gets an 8. What hasn’t he shown us already? His second moto run down of Gajser, a rider some 10 years younger was impressive. Catching and passing the HRC man, who actually looked in a nice rhythm shows that Tony is a long way from finished and maybe his new training methods have improved his endurance, something that he seemed to lack over recent years. If the Sicilian can continue on this way, then he will be waiting for a Gajser mistake to pounce. 10 titles aren’t out of the question for the Italian legend.

Romain Febvre 8. Romain Febvre gets an 8 from Oss. The friendly froggy has been so quick in 2021, at times the quickest rider on the track, but he makes far too many mistakes and until he gets rid of those errors, he will struggle to win GPs or World championships. The Frenchman complained that the track in Oss was a carnival track, too small and too narrow and I don’t think too many people would disagree but staying on the track seems the best logic for not hitting the fence. Still though, the former World MXGP champion is showing enough to think if he can get some momentum, then Gajser and Cairoli have a big problem, because Febvre also has the will to win another championship, he just needs to stay on the track, but I think he knows that much better than me sitting on the sidelines. 

Glenn Coldenhoff 8. The other Dutchy inside the top ten ratings deserved so much more from Oss, his home race. We give him an 8 for his first moto run, but a crash in the second moto drops that to a 6 as he had to fight from the back and I mean not just the back, but a long way back. Such a pity, as he has started getting a lot of momentum and I still think he wins a GP within the next month. He looks at one with the bike and is as smooth as silk in his riding, but bad luck like that second race crash just doesn’t help his cause.

Jorge Prado 7. The Redbull KTM rider with his 6-3 gets a 7 was probably at his best so far, and looked capable of making his first podium of 2021, but he was also just off the pace of the top guys and that must be worrying for him. Complains from both Cairoli and Gajser about the Spaniard makes it seem maybe the KTM rider is riding a little over his head and taking risks. He will eventually get there, but you have to wonder why it is taking him so long. Many of us, me included figured he would be a regular podium guy, with some GP wins, but until now, he has been up and down and really not the Jorge Prado from the middle of 2020.

Ben Watson 6. How about Ben Watson and a 6 in Oss. The Brit is really warming into his MXGP ride and as we have said all along, a podium is just around the corner. I think most people in the paddock want to see him achieve that and then start to really battle with the guy’s up front. The Yamaha rider is a breath of fresh air in the MXGP class and with little pressure in his rookie year, anything is possible.

Jeremy Seewer 6. JW91 is slowly getting there, and he gets a 6 from his Oss performance. He talks of some issues he has, and he also had some issues in 2020, so hopefully he can resolve the problems and start putting together the results from 2020, when at one point he was the man to beat. Getting run over by Cairoli and Monticelli in the second race didn’t do him any good, but like so many motocrossers, he is a tough guy and can bounce back quickly. Considering his sand skills are not that of Gajser, Cairoli, Herlings or Prado, he did pretty well on the little circuit of Oss.

Brian Bogers 5. With Dutchies seventh, eight and ninth in the top ten overall results (Bogers, Vlaanderen and Herlings), it was the GasGas factory rider who gets a 5 for his strong second moto. The forgotten Dutchman with both Herlings and Coldenhoff getting a lot of interest, everyone seems to forget that Bogers has finished well up in MXGP and MX2 motos in his career, and his seventh overall wasn’t a fluke. With a few sand tracks coming up in the next few weeks, I think we will see more of Bogers name inside the top ten.

Calvin Vlaanderen 6. Vlaanderen was the best privateer inside the top ten and for that he gets a 6 rating. The South African born Dutchman continues to improve, and it must be hard work against the factory efforts, and you know that with some solid top ten finishes, he might be able to make his way into a factory team, because to be honest, that is where he belongs. You know the factory teams resources are miles ahead of the privateer teams and as a former HRC rider you just know Vlaanderen knows that. 13^th in the World standings, but just a handful of points off the top ten, his eyes will be firmly set on Ben Watson in 10^th place. 

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