 Red
Bull KTM's Herlings rides to glory in home MX2 GP in Valkenswaard
Jeffrey Herlings, the newest and the youngest of the Red Bull KTM
Factory Racing riders rode two perfect motos in front of his home crowd at
Valkenswaard on Sunday to pick up his first career GP at just
15-years-old.
The young Dutchman put in a stunning performance on the track to take
the first moto by a margin of 11.5 seconds and the second by 12.1 seconds
leaving no doubt that he was not only the MX2 rider of the day but also
one that will be carefully scrutinized by the opposition from now on.
Victory for Herlings in only third GP
It was only Jeffrey's third ever GP and follows on from his first GP
podium in the last round in Mantova, Italy, when he was third. The 50
points also consolidates his third place in the championship standings
behind Ken Roczen of Germany and his own factory teammate Marvin Musquin.
"It was an indescribable feeling," Jeffrey said. "Just
amazing, I had two good starts from not a very good starting position. But
one GP is not the whole season so I am just going to try to be consistent
and take it one race at a time." Herlings did admit to being a little
nervous the night before the race but he also said he felt confident.
"Maybe it was that confidence that let me win my first GP," he
said.
Difficult weekend for Marvin Musquin
If Herlings was the outstanding KTM rider in Valkenswaard, then Marvin,
the reigning MX2 world champion, was probably the unluckiest. He put in
two heroic rides on Sunday after being banged up in a mega crash in
qualifying on Saturday and certainly rode with his share of bruises. To
add to his bad day Marvin got tangled in some netting in the first moto,
which affect his rear brake. "The problem was with my crash
yesterday. I had no energy and I was very tired in my legs and my arms. In
the first race I came eighth and in the second it was better, I was fifth
and I came back to third but I crashed two laps before the end and
finished fifth." Marvin still picked up good championship points and
although he sacrificed the red plate he is still only one point behind
Roczen in the championship standings with a long season ahead of him.
Simpson fourth overall
His teammate Shaun Simpson who missed the first GP through injury was also
on form on his KTM 250 SX-F finishing overall fourth while bagging a handy
34 championship points. The Scottish rider is now sixth in the standings,
having garnered 87 points from the four motos he has so far contested.
"It was a tough weekend and I had to put in some speed. The other two
KTM guys were very fast so I had to think a bit and be consistent and do a
good result. My pace and rhythm was really good in the first race so I
just stuck with that for third. Then I did a really bad job of the first
two or three corners of the second race and was back at about eighth. I
just had no rhythm and about ten minutes to go I was burnt out. But I
finished fourth overall and just a few points off the podium so its coming
back," he said.
Valkenswaard offered conditions that were tricky and challenging for the
riders and thrilling for the huge crowd that turned out to cheer on the
new Dutch star, who has clearly listened intensely to his mentor, 10-times
world champion Stefan Everts, team boss of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Team.
KTM has surged ahead in the Manufacturer's Standings having now won all
six motos in the three GPs held so far for a perfect scorecard of 150
points. It is a record they will be trying to hold on to when riders
gather at Agueda in Portugal in two weeks time for the next event on the
calendar.
 Results
MX2
1. Jeffrey Herlings, Netherlands, KTM, 25-25—50 (first career victory in
only third GP)
2. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki, 22-22—44
3. Steven Frossard, France, Kawasaki, 18-20—38
4. Shaun Simpson, Britain, KTM, 20-14-34
5. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM, 13-16—29
6. Joel Roelants, Belgium, KTM, 14-15—29
Other KTM
12. Dennis Verbruggen, Belgium, KTM 17-13—20
14. Jake Nicholls, Britain, KTM 1-11—12
Championships standings after Round Three Valkenswaard
1. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki, 130
2. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM, 129
3. Jeffrey Herlings, Netherlands, KTM 122
4. Steven Frossard, France, 107
5. Arnaud Tonus, Switzerland, 90
Other KTM
6. Shaun Simpson, Britain, KTM, 87
7. Jeremy van Horebeek, Belgium, 80
11. Jake Nicholls, Britain, KTM, 59
12. Joel Roelants, Belgium, KTM, 54
13. Dennis Verbruggen, Belgium, 47
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