When Jeffrey Herlings crossed the finish line at the Grand Prix of Argentina, and won his 68th Grand Prix, it wasn’t so much as just a win, but a very important mental edge over his rivals, particularly Antonio Cairoli.
After Saturdays qualification race, it was easy to think Cairoli still had the Dutchmans number, but Sunday changed all that within nine minutes.
Sure, with 18 rounds still to go, it is easy look at a single GP win at the start of the season as just a small milestone, but the way Herlings did it was very reminiscent of his domination in 2017—when he was clearly the fastest and best rider in the world. In many ways Herlings out Cairoli’ed, Cairoli.
We caught up with him and talked about his weekend.
Firstly, amazing what you just did. Did you know how far ahead Antonio was?
Yes, I did. I saw him getting further and further away until he was just a small orange spot in the distance, but then the spot got bigger and bigger towards the end. I mean, we worked hard and we did everything we could. I think it was a very strong moto. In the beginning it was tough to pass those guys, also the two Yamaha guys. They were riding good, and then also Clement [Desalle]—he was riding good. By the time I got into second it was like 10 or 15-minutes left and I didn’t think I could catch up, but you see our work has paid off.
What does this win mean?
It’s just the opening race, and Tony is smart and consistent. It’s just the first race of 19 rounds. We are equal points, so we start all over again in Valkenswaard.
Still, saying that, had you gone into Valkenswaard with 2-2 and also after your qualification race on Saturday, you might have gone in with a little less confidence, or not?
Yes, sure, but wearing the red plate at my home Grand Prix, that brings a lot of pressure. We will just do our best. That is all we can do. I think we will improve as the season goes on, and usually I struggle a little bit until I get race rhythm then I am starting to feel better. I think we will work from here, but it’s a good start and I am happy.
You mentioned that you are a slow starter in the season and also in the races. Is it difficult to know that, but you still want to win every single time.
If I want to win this championship, I have to realize I can’t win every time. If I want to try and win every time, then I will end up in hospital, and that isn’t what I want. This is such a gnarly class, and not just me and Tony but also the rest of the guys. This weekend Tony and I had the better hand, but we need to be totally focused and committed. W will see going into the next races what to expect. We are feeling strong right now, but it’s a long season and still six months of racing. To win this championship we need to be consistent. I learnt how to lose last year. It was the hard way last year in Ottobiano. I thought I had to win and ended up in the hospital with a broken hand. I need to beat Tony on a lot of weekends. He is a really good starter, and has a great bike. He is a great rider, has a great team and he is very consistent. To beat that isn’t an easy thing to do.
You mentioned you were sick, what did you have?
I think because I had been traveling to Spain a lot—flying—and once you get into an airplane, you get a bigger chance of getting sick and temperatures go from 20 degrees to -5 and maybe I got sick because of that. I had a bit of flu. During the week I was pretty sick—headaches, blocked nose and that type of thing. I have been feeling a bit better.
I mean you have won a bunch of Grand Prix’s and I know its just the first round, but this one must be a little special for you? I mean, I was already writing my intro that Antonio went 1-1 and won the Grand Prix, then on your last two laps you made up like eight seconds and win it.
Yes, but this one, I worked very hard for. I didn’t get this one for free, you could say. It was a tough one. Right down to the last second of the moto, so we got this one done you could say. First moto, I had a good start—was fourth or fifth, both starts were good—but I got pushed wide. First moto, I caught Tony and he deserved to win it. Second moto, I was like 10th and I had some battles and Tony had a big lead. To close the gap was very difficult.
Ray Archer images
