This Sunday will mark the MXGP of Flanders. Round number fourteen of the 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship, the Grand Prix will be set to be staged at the treacherous Circuit de Lommel in Lommel, Belgium.
A wicked 1.149mi circuit consisting of astonishingly deep, unforgiving and strength sapping sand, Lommel is regarded by all as one of the most difficult and demanding motocross circuits in the entire world. Straight out of nearby Geldrop, Netherlands, Lommel and the MXGP of Flanders is something of a home race for current 2026 FIM Motocross World Championship leader Jeffrey Herlings. A five-time World Champion, Herlings, the racer with the most Grand Prix wins in the entire history of the 70-year World Championship, still wants more and is very much out to snag another world title. Flourishing in his first year as a Honda HRC Petronas rider after a sixteen-year stint with the Red Bull KTM organization, Herlings is in a very good spot and totally looking forward to Lommel this weekend.
Words | Eric Johnson
“Actually, right now I am at home because this week we have the GP in Lommel, which is obviously kind of a home GP because it is actually an hour away from my home,” explained Herlings from his homebase in Holland on Thursday afternoon. “Yeah, just home and testing this week with the team and obviously getting ready for Lommel.”
And the sinister, teeth chattering sand circuit is special to one of the absolute best racers in the history of the sport.
“Yeah, for sure Lommel is quite special and unique because it’s SO rough,” noted Herlings. “Like in America, they all obviously think that Southwick is a deep sand track. Man, the guys have to really come out to Lommel or tracks like that. That’s the next level of sand. You can see it. Like when Sacha was there to race, he went 1-1 by a big margin. You could see we Europeans are used to different kind of sand than the Americans. Lomel is a very unique place. It’s a unique event because Belgium has been the capitol of the sport in Europe. Most of the teams are based around that area. Yeah, it’s like A1 a bit, you know? It’s probably one of the most unique events of the year.”
After a phenomenal 1-1-1 performance at the recent MXGP of Czech Republic at the Loket circuit, Herlings took repossession of the red plate for the first time since the second round of the 2026 season at the MXGP of Andalucia.
“It feels damn good to have the red plate, but at the same time it also brings some pressure because we now have six rounds left,” said Herlings. “Our schedules are a bit different than the U.S. because we have three motos a weekend and a lot of points up for grabs. Yeah, we changed the thing around at Loket, man. We went from minus sixty-eight points to plus forty-nine points in eight days. Obviously I was a bit luck and unlucky because I had a couple of DNFs with bike failures, so I lost a lot of points. At the same time now, my biggest competitor, Lucas Conen, got hurt in England and he missed the last six motos, so that’s why we got the points lead. Like I said, I was a bit lucky, but also unlucky because of DNFs I had in races before that. Once again, it’s racing, you know? In racing you have so many parts on the bike. I prefer to get a bike failure instead of an injury. An engine can be fixed, but if you break your leg or do your ACL, that’s not fixed in the same day. Sometimes it’s a pain in the ass when things like that happen, but like I said, it’s a mechanical sport and things like that can happen. Yeah, it just happens every now and then.”
In a recent interview Herlings and this writer completed, the Dutchman stated of being in possession of the red plate, “I know I have the red plate right now, but I also know that it doesn’t really mean anything and that I have to keep performing like this for the last six rounds.” Herlings spoke about his red plate mindset.
“Yeah, my mindset is to keep going every single race. I’m not looking at a championship. I just want to perform every weekend and good as I can. Especially in the upcoming races because you see that Lucas, with a 68-point lead, he was already everyone’s champion. But you see how quick things turn around in eight days. He went from plus 61 points to minus 49 points. You have to keep being focused and fight for every single point because eventually you might end up needing them, you know? I’ve had bad luck so many times, man. That’s a tough pill to swallow. I was in the World Championship lead three or four times in the past. Twice I was leading it with around 100 to 150 points, and one time I was leading with over sixty points and I got hurt. Should of, would of, could have… I should have won four or five more championships, but I never got to that point. Yeah, it’s part of racing, man. It can be cruel.”
With six Grans Prix yet to be run at Flanders, Sweden, Netherlands, Turkey, China and Australia before the big velvet curtain drops on everything in late September, Herlings weighed in on how he’ll approach it all.
“I’m just going to approach the races like every single race I have approached all season long. Just go out there and be consistent and try to stay healthy and try to be smart. An accident or crash or injury can always happen but try to make the risk as small as possible. I want to just try to go out and win. I’ve won a lot of the last few races. I won the last two. In the last five or six GPs, I’ve just missed out on one. Yeah, I’m feeling good and I’m feeling comfortable and I’m feeling confident. Yeah, I just want to try and keep winning!”
All things considered, Jeffrey Herlings is quite positive and comfortable with his Honda HRC Petronas surroundings. A profound move coming at such a late point in his seventeen-year racing career, thus far all has worked out quite well for the flying Dutchman.
“Oh yeah, it’s been lovely,” enthused Herlings. “Besides some of the mechanical problems that Ive had along the way, everything has been going really good. I really enjoy my time with the team and I’m feeling really good with the team. They work their asses off every single time. The HRC side and also the Japanese, they work their butts off. They work so hard and try to keep providing me with better product, better material, faster bikes and faster engines. Yeah, it has been going really good. I’ve got zero regrets of making the move after seventeen years in orange of KTM. I’m happy I did it. Yeah, I’ve got no regrets.
“it’s a big change being at Honda,” furthered Herlings. “Coming from working with Austrians and working with Japanese, they’re way different. They’re different in different ways. Not everything is better, but a lot of things are better. Some things are a bit different and you have to get used to. In Austria, for example, things go way quicker and they are taking more risk, while the Japanese are making sure everything is really, really dialed-in before they do any racing with their product. The development might take a little bit longer, but they are really sure of what they are doing and they’re very, very respectful people. It’s just way different. Their culture is different. It’s good fun, man. I really appreciate their hard work and I really enjoy it.”
Despite achieving so much on a global level throughout his spectacular career and really having nothing else left to prove, can Jeffrey Herlings, once again, nail down an MXGP World Championship in 2026?
“Yeah, my last championship was in 2021,” said Herlings. “2023 and 2024, both times, I was quite close. It’s been a hell of a ride. I want to just keep fighting and keep trying. I think the main thing is to just not get hurt. It’s a risky sport and things happen really quick and we just try not to get hurt. Yeah, it would mean the world after achieving so much in the championship, it would be super-sick to win it again, dude.”
