The reigning MX2 World Champion doesn’t see too many obstacles in his way to a repeat…
If Jeffrey Herlings‘ start to the 2013 MX2 World Championship was anything to go by, then the Red Bull KTM Factory rider looks set to dominate the category and defend his title in style.
Back-to-back GP wins in the opening two rounds of the season in Qatar and Thailand were the hallmarks of a dominant start to the campaign from the Dutchman, and he’s confident heading to his home race at Valkenswaard in just over a fortnight.
“I did what I had to do and that’s winning races,” he told redbull.com after his victory in Thailand. “I haven’t lost so much this year, just one Qualification Race (in Qatar) because I had a crash, but it seems I have got way more speed than everyone else on MX2 bikes so I’m looking forward again to the new races coming up.
Valkenswaard is going to be my home GP, and I feel ready and strong.
“I think I have around a 20-point lead or something like that, so it’s looking really good at the moment and I’m happy with the situation and how the bike is.
“Red Bull KTM are working really hard so we have the best MX2 bike in the paddock, I think, so I’m really happy about it.”
Herlings holds an 18-point lead over Frenchman Romain Febvre after two rounds, and when asked if he sees a stiff challenge coming from anywhere Herlings said he will always be prepared for the unexpected.
“Until now I’m not having too much competition, but you never know,” he said. “Nobody expected Febvre to be second, so new faces are coming up, old faces are going, and you can always expect the unexpected in motocross.
You never know what’s going to happen.
“It shouldn’t be too difficult to win the Championship this year, but we’ll see about that.”