Jeffrey Herlings - Phenomenon

Jeffrey Herlings goes into next Tuesdays Grand Prix of Russia with a lot of pressure on his (still) young shoulders. At 23 years of age, no single rider has had the records that the Dutchman has at the same age. Not Stefan Everts, not Antonio Cairoli, not Roger Decoster, in fact, the Red Bull KTM Factory rider is something of a phenomenon when it comes to what he has achieved in the last eight years.

When you consider at 23 years of age Stefan Everts had just a single world motocross championship and maybe a dozen GP wins (at best). Antonio Cairoli had two world motocross championships and 21 GP wins to his name. Herlings who won't turn 24 until after the season ends has every chance to have four world titles and a bunch of extra GP wins to his name, while still 23.

Like Herlings, both Everts and Cairoli struggled injuries in the early part of their careers, and both could have won so many more GPs and titles with a little luck.

Herlings has three world titles and a stunning 71 GP wins. He can score his 72^nd in Russia on Tuesday, and that old 72 number of Stefan Everts while not important in terms of GP wins, is a number we all relate to SE72, the greatest GP rider of all time.

While Herlings started his 2018 season with a DNF in the opening pre-season race in Italy, and we all thought, “oh, no, not again”, he has proven that he isn’t the crasher of his previous seven or so seasons. A very much polished performer now, and with pre-season and GP weekends combined, his race results are DNF-1-1-1-1-1-1-2-1-1-1-2-2-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1. I can tell you, without even having to look at the record books, NO rider has started a GP season (in the premier class) in such sensational form, and for sure not as a 23-year-old.

I do know in 2006, Stefan Everts at the age of 35, was nearly unbeatable, and his was only loss that year was to Josh Coppins in the GP of Ireland, but even the great Everts GP season started with a second place finish in the opening GP at Zolder (beaton by Seb Tortelli) and a third in the next round in Spain (beaton by Kevin Strijbos and Tanel Leok). With all respect to the King, he wasn’t racing a nine-time world champion, and his biggest rival, Josh Coppins missed the opening seven rounds due to injury. Up until now, Herlings has only lost to Cairoli, a much tougher opposition than anything Everts faced.

Yes, be sure, we are seeing something special with these performances of Herlings. In my opinion, he will become the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time. His championships and GP wins will easily pass both Cairoli and Everts, and his domination will be Ricky Carmichael like for the next 10 years.

All I know is for now, that victory number 72 awaits him, and that fourth world title, while a long way off, another world title will place him along the likes of Harry Everts, Torsten Hallman, and Heikki Mikkola. At the age of just 23 years old, that is just amazing.

If I had to bet my house on the form Herlings is showing, he might even end the season (and before his 24^th birthday) with more than 80 GP wins, and be right on the tail of Cairoli in the all-time GP winners list.