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00:0015-second board goes up here for the second race of the afternoon, MX2 and open, 30 minutes plus 2
00:04laps, Milan to the inside, a lot of the 250s will be to the inside, as I would imagine, as
00:10they were in the first race, see all the riders there all queering up, 17, Zanke in gate number 1,
00:16racers alongside him, Kitchen is next on that Kawasaki, gate number 3, he gets a good jump, he's hanging off
00:22the motorcycle, the 450s coming from the outside once again, and it's Villal, who else, who leads the way, 14,
00:28France, Pekulai goes down,
00:29or might have been Osak actually, the other rider for Slovenia, but it's Villal who leads the way, oh, who
00:37is that, all whisky, down in the corner, might have been Herlings, you know, Herlings is there, maybe Ludwig then,
00:47because Herlings right there in second, it was a German who went down, Villal leads, and Herlings there in second
00:52position, just as they've done on so many occasions with those Honda HRC, oh, machines, wow, Villal,
01:00is out, well, I'll tell you what, he's picked himself up, but he, did he scrub too hard, because he
01:06caught a foot peg, he went over the bars, straight out, I want to say the front door, he went
01:11out the moonroof, that's how big he went, the French are out of it now, that's it, that's it, if
01:15he can't get into this, and climb back through the field, it's over for the French,
01:20that brings me no joy to say, but those are the facts, you simply cannot have two DNFs, and pretend
01:25to be at the front, well, no, because even if he gets himself back into it, watch this here, scrubbed,
01:29caught the foot peg, and he tried to save it, and Jeffrey Herlings, look how close he was,
01:36Unbelievable effort to get out of the way, massive, massive instincts there, to move out of the way of that,
01:41but France on lap one, has not been kind for them, here in Ernau this time around, and as you
01:46say, JT, France are out of the running now, for the overall victory, surely.
01:51Wonder how damaged he is, as a motorcycle, like, there's a chance he could climb back to the top 20
01:56here, if everything is still workable, but, what a huge get off.
02:00And that's it, you're looking at it, like, you've already thrown away 40 from Valant, if it stays like this,
02:06plus then you, whatever result, nah, he's out.
02:10Who's the other rider there, that's the 45.
02:13That's Ludwig.
02:14Yeah.
02:14You just had to imagine, that bike cartwheeled about six times, the damage it took there.
02:19And Vial, about 26 times, he was still moving, when we were on the, on the drone camberts, you know,
02:25he, like I say, out the moonroof.
02:29So, Herlings leads the way.
02:33Frederic Vial there, surely thankful his son's okay, but also devastating for the team.
02:39Herlings leads the way for the Netherlands, Adamo second for Italy, Jonas third for, uh, for, uh, Latvia.
02:44Ferez, again, the lead MX2 rider, he's going to be picking up the MX2 class award.
02:49Just keep it simple on, yeah, scrubbing and all the rest of it, the ruts on the jump.
02:53You saw how cautious he was on the takeoff there?
02:55Yep.
02:57And they've watered the track a little bit in the break as well, they need to, because it's a bit
03:01breezier than it was yesterday.
03:02It's going to be slick now with that water on top, but that wasn't the reason why he crashed.
03:06He came in, scrubbed too hard, given the conditions, and you just saw that left foot peg drag the top
03:11of the jump with him.
03:13And, uh, for a moment, I think he thought he could save it.
03:15Then he realized he was going to go way past the downside.
03:19But Jeffrey Herlings now, you see, look, just a little bit of, uh, darker dirt here on this part of
03:24the racetrack.
03:25Herlings leads.
03:25And if you're, if you're Herlings now, considering who's left in this field, there's no fear for him.
03:30But, like, Vial was really the main competitor for him now.
03:34Adamo, Pauls Jonas, none of those for 35 minutes can really challenge him.
03:38So he can be as cautious as he absolutely wants to be.
03:41And you're, you're seeing him execute that.
03:43A big crash like that right in front of you will definitely change your approach.
03:46So the French then with Vial not completing a lap as he was riding off the side of the track.
03:52We'll get the first official lap completed now.
03:54The gap between Herlings and Adamo is around 2.2 seconds.
03:57Herlings with a 150.8, a 51.6 for Adamo.
04:00Jonas a 52.6.
04:02Perez, though, what a fantastic couple of starts he's had from the inside for Triumph, for Spain.
04:06He is the lead Spanish rider at the moment.
04:09Where is his teammate, Garcia?
04:11He's in 13th place at the moment.
04:13So Spain, who had a nice low score a minute ago, 2-4.
04:17They're now 4-13 added to that.
04:19So 23 for them.
04:20Belgium on 32.
04:21The Netherlands on 35.
04:23Jeffrey Herlings in the press conference on Friday was downplaying even.
04:27A possible, you know, podium being a possibility.
04:30Well, here they are in that third place at the moment.
04:32I was trying to pump him up.
04:33I just know how crazy this race is and he didn't want to hear it.
04:36But he's also played really coy all year as well.
04:39So.
04:39Liam Evertz for Belgium in yellow.
04:40Cooper Webb to the outside of him for the USA.
04:42Go in respectfully.
04:45But then Evertz just runs it a little bit too wide.
04:47He realized he slightly made a mistake there as well.
04:49But he manages to hang on to that sixth place that he's just found his way past Webb.
05:01But another opening lap full of chaos for the French here this weekend.
05:05Just behind these guys, you've got Enzo Lopes in there.
05:11The Brazilian on the Honda.
05:1248.
05:13Ben Watson.
05:14What a great ride in all the carnage and chaos.
05:16We've forgotten that Ben Watson for Team GB is there in that fifth position for the British team.
05:22Enzo Lopes putting some pressure on Cooper Webb here.
05:26The MX2 rider is Ben Musto.
05:28He's in 26th position at the moment.
05:31Of course, our scorecard at the moment will show all races live.
05:35It's not until the opening lap has passed in the final race where you start to click off that worst
05:39score.
05:42And I think if you're Webb, you know every point counts, right?
05:45So maybe he doesn't have the pace to go with Leon Evertz here.
05:49But if you could get Ben Watson, keep Lopes behind you.
05:52Top five, top six in this race.
05:55Garcia is out.
05:56So more drama for Spain then.
05:58Wow.
05:59So talk about expect the unexpected.
06:02As we said at the start of the broadcast, Jason, we are getting that in abundance here in the second
06:06race.
06:07And the first race for that matter.
06:08Yeah, it's always like this at this race.
06:10And sure, we've had years where a certain country dominates and it's over before it begins.
06:14But more times than not, it is just like this.
06:17DNFs, bad starts, crashes dictate the outcome.
06:201,000 fans more than we had last year.
06:23Last year was a record.
06:24This 104,000 over the course of the weekend.
06:27105,000 this time around.
06:29As Cooper Webb chases Liam Evertz.
06:34Evertz chasing Ben Watson.
06:36Watson having a great opening race here.
06:38In this, as the open class rider.
06:4214 GB.
06:44And just throw the flag out now.
06:46Belgium go to the top on 31.
06:48They've got 3, 12, 10 and 6 scores.
06:5110 and 6 in this race.
06:52The Netherlands jump up to second on 35.
06:55Spain now with Garcia going out of the race.
07:00They are on 46 points.
07:02And then Latvia on 51.
07:03USA on 56.
07:05Italy on 57.
07:07This is still open for debate.
07:09Yeah, and Spain is virtually in the same spot that France was in race 1.
07:13They've used their throwaway.
07:15They have chances to be top 5 or better in race 3 with both of their riders.
07:19But I think the pressure falls on Garcia now.
07:22We know Prado is going to be fantastic.
07:23He almost always is.
07:24But Garcia in their race 3 could determine whether they get their first win or not.
07:29And a lot of people talking about if it's close between France and Spain after two races.
07:34And you go into the final race.
07:35You put your money on France just because you've got Vial and Fevre.
07:39Two great starters.
07:40Two great finishers.
07:41Probably two of the strongest 450 riders in the world at the moment.
07:44Garcia just the unknown in that they'd probably be at the disadvantage in terms of the start position with Prado
07:50being the top man.
07:51Prado we know can be a race winner.
07:54And therefore, you know, certainly a top 3 performer with other things going on around him with the two French.
07:58With Jeffy Herlings in that final race.
08:00But then Garcia, the unknown.
08:01So you just think the French edge it.
08:03But with Villain out in race 1 and Vial out in race 2.
08:07No, it doesn't matter in terms of the French score.
08:10They could just be there just like a pain in the backside for everybody else out there now.
08:13Yeah, and what's going through the mind of Garcia.
08:15This is three motos in a row at Motocross Nations events where he's really underperformed every other race of the
08:20year.
08:21So the pressure has to be incredible on Garcia going to race 4.
08:24Well, we've got an update on Team Spain's Francesco Garcia.
08:27His teammate here, Gil Perez, continues to sit there in 4th as a lead MX2 rider.
08:32But let's go down to Lisa with an update on his teammate Garcia.
08:38I'll tell you what, it's all happening this weekend.
08:40We just saw Francesco Garcia retire from the race.
08:44I just had a quick word with Team Spain, just asking what the issue was.
08:47Francesco's absolutely fine.
08:49There's no issues with him.
08:50But it's the bike.
08:51He had a technical problem with the bike, which is so unfortunate for them.
08:56That means that the pressure is really on for Guillain-Ferres in this race.
08:59And also the pressure will be on with Francesco in that third race.
09:03But it's all happening here and it's not going to be over until it's over, that's for sure.
09:09Never a truer word spoken.
09:11It ain't over until it's over.
09:12And there's some big numbers on the screen already.
09:15You know, you put the six points from Spain in race one and then you add this four, there's ten.
09:22Irrespective of what, you know, and that's the reality that we are looking at at the moment, aren't we?
09:27We've got, yeah, two, four, four, yeah, eight, ten.
09:31You throw away the 36.
09:32If they're on a good lap in race two, race three, the Spanish, then, of course, they can still salvage
09:37something massive here.
09:39They're still on a very, very low score.
09:40But as it stands right now, it's Belgium on 30, the Netherlands 34, Spain 36, Latvia 51, USA 56.
09:47One point ahead of Italy.
09:49Got it.
09:50Some of it comes down to this final race.
09:53You know, who was in the final race?
09:54You mentioned it was going to be Febvre and Vial, such a strong way to finish.
09:58You have Garcia, unproven on the 450.
10:00Sure, fantastic season in 2026.
10:03But for him to go up against the likes of Vial as the counterpart, that's a really difficult task.
10:08And if anybody needed a race on a 450 around here going into that last race, it was this race
10:14here, race two.
10:15And that's Francesco Garcia.
10:16Still unfamiliar with that 450.
10:18Yes, he's been riding it and training and maybe done a couple of French races on it, but that's not
10:22the Nations.
10:23Yeah, he can't match the experience of those he's trying to beat.
10:26There's no way.
10:27You know, really, the only comparable is really Liam Everts.
10:29That would be probably the closest.
10:31And Everts going after Ben Watson.
10:32Ben Watson still there in that fifth position.
10:34Of course, he was a class winner when the Nations was held in Mantua in 2021.
10:39Of course, they got on the podium.
10:45But that's the number 11 over on the right-hand side, isn't it, of Sasha Coonan.
10:50Yeah.
10:51So, Sasha in ninth.
10:53Pretty calm.
10:54We haven't seen him a lot, but I've been kind of monitoring his lap times and slow and steady.
10:58Why don't I say slow, steady, which is the key for him.
11:01He's capable of turning in some of the best lap times of anyone, but it's the inconsistency through the results
11:06that could cost his team,
11:07but not so much today, which is good to see.
11:09Yeah, the last time that Team GB got on the podium was that third overall in 2021.
11:17When was the last time they won, Paul?
11:19I'll have to check the database there, but I think it was sometime in the 90s, maybe around 94, something
11:24like that.
11:25That sounds right.
11:26Is that about right?
11:26Yeah, that sounds right.
11:28You get a bonus point if you name the team.
11:32Anyway, five laps in the books.
11:34When we hit the line now, Ben Watson continues to hang on to that fifth place with Liam Evertz of
11:38Belgium.
11:39Just hounding him down.
11:42It's a strong ride from Watson.
11:45You get a lot of that type of performance in Nations, right?
11:47It brings out some of the best and the worst in people.
11:50You know, you never know which you're going to get, but this is kind of that type of performance.
11:54Remember Max Anstey, Matterley 2017.
11:57Just, you know, not saying Ben Watson's winning, but he's kind of out-sized performances.
12:03Yeah, I mean, when you think of, you know, sort of podiums and stuff like that, you know, Belgium haven't
12:08had a podium since Asin back in 2019 as well.
12:11So, you know, we're getting on it here, aren't we, in that respect.
12:14Belgium, their last win was at 2013.
12:18That was in Germany.
12:22So there's a lot on the line here.
12:24Can they pull together as a team?
12:26You know, when you look at Spain with 2-4-4 with Prado and 2-4s there from Guillaume Férez
12:32at the moment.
12:33Spain are looking very, very strong.
12:35The unknown, though, is Francisco Garcia, as we said a moment ago.
12:37And Belgium, of course, we've got Evertz going again in the last race with Lucas Koonen.
12:43How are the fitness levels there with Koonen?
12:45Yeah, he gets the longer break between the races, being the MXGP rider going out in race one and race
12:50three.
12:51But, of course, coming back off the couch from injury.
12:54And we're just hoping that he holds together long enough just to be able to bring them a result, a
12:58podium at the very, very least,
12:59because they are in contention for that at the very, very least.
13:02Tell you what, we haven't talked about him much.
13:04We haven't really seen him much, but Paul Jonas running around comfortably in third, kind of all by himself.
13:09Well, he actually has Férez right on him, but they're sitting fourth, that sneaky effort.
13:15We talk, listen, the Reiswitz brothers, incredibly talented, on the rise in the sport.
13:19And then you throw in Paul Jonas, who's a veteran.
13:22Not that surprising that they're in conversation for a podium, but not a lot of people were talking about that
13:27coming in.
13:27We spoke about it on the podcast, on the MXGP podcast, about they are potential podium contenders
13:33with the two racialist brothers and, of course, Jonas, if things go their way.
13:37We just saw Everts a moment ago at the bottom of the long down.
13:40He'll try and sneak up the inside of Watson.
13:42It didn't work.
13:43It's worked on this occasion.
13:44A handful of corners later, the Belgian Everts moves up into fifth place.
13:50Yeah, and for Lavia, it's not, you know, the pick doesn't jump off the page.
13:53But if you really dig down into the strength of their team overall, it should.
13:58And that's showing up on Sunday.
14:01A couple of back markers just to deal with there for the riders.
14:04But Everts has just been very, very patient here.
14:07That's going to be another point to the good for them as they extend another point clear of the Netherlands
14:13when we hit the line next time around.
14:16But Everts now with a bit of clear track.
14:20The next rider ahead of him is going to be Guillem-Farrez about four seconds further up the track.
14:25You'd think 450 power would outmuscle the 250.
14:28But, of course, as we discussed in the first race, JT, you've got some good long straights on the 450.
14:33You've got some tight, twisty turns.
14:34And it's starting to get choppy as well.
14:36Some of those lines may just play into the hands of the 250s.
14:39Let's look at Cooper Webb here.
14:41Cooper Webb is in seventh place at the moment.
14:43The lead American rider, Levi Kitchen, his teammate, he is in 16th place.
14:52The eighth best MX2 rider at the moment.
14:55They would have given him, well, he went to the inside gate.
14:57But, of course, if you don't get the jump, you get pinched to the inside.
15:00And then you get pushed to the outside through that first and then second turn.
15:04There you see the first turn and second turn sequence just there over on that right-hand side.
15:10But Jeffrey Herling is leading the way for the Netherlands.
15:12He is 12.6 seconds clear of Italy's Andrea Adamo.
15:17And Adamo doing a great job because, obviously, his teammate in race one with Albi Ferrato picking up a fantastic
15:25sixth place.
15:26This is what happened to Tom Vial at the start of the race.
15:31He scrubbed too energetically there.
15:34He went down the cartwheel.
15:36Look how close Herlings was to hitting that motorcycle of his normal regular teammate just there.
15:42He had to take massive evasive action.
15:45Watch that left foot peg.
15:47Just too much scrub on the opening lap.
15:49Maybe too much showboat in front of the fans.
15:50I think it's just a search for intensity.
15:53Right.
15:53You're pushing so hard, so much energy from the fans.
15:55And, yeah, you just, this is a track you have to respect above all else.
15:59Herlings' heart was in his mouth at this moment because you don't know if this bike is going to bounce
16:02left or right or go straight on.
16:04He probably even drops his right shoulder as he went through.
16:09And then that was the three of Aaron Tanti on that same, on the next jump.
16:16Gautier-Paulin looking on.
16:18He knows that a victory is over now.
16:23They can just go out and try and perform.
16:24And that's exactly what Valen is trying to do.
16:26A little bit of national pride.
16:28He is in eighth place, the second MX2 rider.
16:32But it's going to be Guillem-Farrez who's going to be picking up the MX2 individual class award with what
16:38would be two wins in the category, which were two fourth place finishes as it stands right now.
16:43Still got a long way to go, though.
16:44Thirteen and a half minutes plus two laps.
16:46Sacha Kunin, he's there in that ninth place on the number 11.
16:50He's the second rider for Belgium.
16:51So both riders inside the top ten.
16:53That's why they are on 29 points at the moment.
16:56A three from Lucas Kunin in race one and a 12.
17:01for their second rider, Sacha Kunin, in that first race.
17:04So that gave them the 15 points.
17:06And then at a 9.5, as it stands right now, 9 with Sacha Kunin, 5 for Evertz.
17:14Their total score, 29 points.
17:16They have five clear of the Netherlands.
17:19Where is their second rider, Koldenhoff?
17:20He's 1.3 seconds behind Sacha Kunin.
17:24On a 2.50, of course, riding MX2 this weekend.
17:27And you've only got another five seconds further up the track to Valan.
17:30So they could pull another couple of points back late on in this race if Glenn Koldenhoff can sort of
17:36find another gear.
17:37JT?
17:37Well, think about Koldenhoff in the positioning here.
17:40He's got Valan, championship contender, right in front of him, followed by Sacha Kunin, who was the red plate holder
17:45majority of the season.
17:46And then right behind him, he has Camden McClellan, who won several GPs, including the final.
17:52So for Koldenhoff, at his age, not having raced a 2.50 this season at all, this is a heroic
17:57performance from him.
18:04What more can you say about Perez, though?
18:06Well, I mean, he's incredible in 2026.
18:08Absolutely, he is.
18:10I mean, when you look at the scoreboard there, you've got 3.95 for Belgium.
18:13They can throw away their 12th if they have better positioning going into the final race.
18:17The Netherlands, 9, 14, 10, and 1.
18:19They're hoping to throw away that 14th if they can.
18:22And then Spain, 2, 4, 4, 36.
18:25They still have the lowest score when you think about dropping your worst score as it stands right now.
18:28Spain very much in the driving seat as it stands right now.
18:32But again, Perez, he's just doing what he does in MX2.
18:35He's just picking up the pace.
18:37He's going to be relying on maybe a little bit better fitness.
18:42And the sort of ease of riding that MX2 bike around here compared to Jonas wrestling that 450 around here.
18:48Take a look at the start of the race again.
18:52He hasn't been flustered by any of this as the Triumph rider.
18:59He would have been over on the inside gates, I think, for Team Spain.
19:03Or did he sweep in from the middle?
19:05Well, we know Vial was there.
19:07And it was Vial over the line for the foxhole shot.
19:14See Sasha Kunin there.
19:17Kitchen got boxed to the inside.
19:20Two Slovenians came together.
19:23But Perez was already sort of out to the outside.
19:26So he came out of that very, very well indeed.
19:31When you think about his season, you know, in terms of all of the stats and things like that, Guillaume
19:36Perez.
19:37I mean, it's just one of the most unlikely success stories I've ever come across.
19:41You know, I think the sport had kind of passed him by.
19:44He was working part-time.
19:46Racing seemed to be an afterthought.
19:48And four or five short years later, he's world champion.
19:51You just don't see that kind of thing very often.
19:54Once you miss your window, it's typically over with.
19:56But not for Perez.
19:59Koldanov almost off the side of the track there.
20:01And that's messed him up for the run.
20:03And that gets McClellan all over the back of him.
20:05So McClellan finds his way past the Dutchman.
20:07And just as we were talking about Koldanov closing in on the riders ahead to maybe gain a point back
20:11for the Netherlands,
20:12all of a sudden he loses the position to Camden McClellan.
20:15So McClellan, I think, would have had the...
20:18maybe would have had the better starting option over his teammate Trey Cox.
20:24But Sascha Koonen, he fell on this part of the racetrack yesterday.
20:27Remember, he tried to find a gap that wasn't there.
20:29Tried to launch it up the inside of Janis Raceless.
20:32He went down hard.
20:34Went down twice in the qualifying race, actually, did Koonen.
20:37But you see Fallon just disappearing out of sight there.
20:40He is in ninth place.
20:40McClellan now just behind him in tenth, using this outside closest to us.
20:45Then Gleb Koldanov, who's just been passed a moment ago.
20:47He finds himself in 11th, head of Enzo Lopes, who's been dropped.
20:50He was right there earlier on in the race.
20:52He's now ten and a half seconds behind.
20:54Meanwhile, Cooper Webb has gotten around Ben Watson.
20:57It's big.
20:58Another point there.
21:01That puts it back up to sixth position.
21:03Tell you what, these 250s are pushing really hard here.
21:06The second half of this race.
21:07If they drag their pace forward, Cooper Webb and Watson are just up the racetrack.
21:11Poor decision there from Mattis Valland.
21:14He went defensive to the inside.
21:15Didn't get the drive on the exit of the turn.
21:17Camden McLennan blasted around the outside.
21:19Got that run.
21:20Found his way past the Frenchman, who's now probably feeling a little bit detuned.
21:25McClellan up to ninth.
21:27On the 41 here for South Africa.
21:30Yeah, you just wonder if Valland feeling the effects of not racing for a long time, effects of that first
21:35race crash.
21:36Able to make a move back, though.
21:37Can't afford to go too far wide there.
21:39He'll leave the door open and lets Valland through.
21:42Oldest line in the book right there.
21:44Valland showing some fighting spirit here in front of the fans.
21:48Bar to bar as they hit that jump.
21:50McClellan finds his way back past the Frenchman and regains that position he lost a moment ago.
21:56He now finds himself back in ninth place.
21:58He's up against a tough one, though, because McClellan has been absolutely lights out in the second half of these
22:03races, all of 2026.
22:08Valland.
22:10There's Koldenov in the orange, going after the young French star.
22:14He'll hold a nice tight line here.
22:16He gets good power.
22:17He was talking about...
22:19Oh, I'll tell you what, that was very close.
22:22Valland went from right to left.
22:24Not sure if the route took him that way, but...
22:27There was evasive action there, wasn't there, from Glenn Koldenov.
22:30He looked like he had that panic wave.
22:32He definitely had to land with the brakes on.
22:34Yeah, had Koldenov stayed in it, that would have been much closer.
22:38So he's going to have another opportunity.
22:41Before the end of the lap, surely.
22:43Bottom of the hill, does he go inside and lose out because Valland goes outside?
22:47That's the run you risk.
22:48That's the run you risk.
22:49Yeah, he's going to have another opportunity.
22:51He's going to have another opportunity.
22:52Watch this here.
22:53He looked across.
22:55He knew he was there.
22:55I don't think he did too much wrong, though.
22:58Yeah, a lot of that is just lines coming together as well.
23:01Right, Sacha Kunen on the ropes.
23:03Because, again, he goes to the inside.
23:05McClellan's going to go the long way around.
23:06Can he outdrag the KTM?
23:08Not quite.
23:10Can't nudge his way up the inside, either.
23:12These two now fighting over eighth place.
23:14Watson just ahead of him.
23:16Yeah, Watson has held up Koonen the last two or three laps, which has brought McClellan back into the fight.
23:22So Koonen probably pretty frustrated.
23:24You saw Luke, older brother, well, by three minutes older, Lucas' brother, Lucas cheering him on there.
23:29Yeah.
23:30Going back to the monitors down there in pit lane.
23:33There's the 48 of Watson.
23:34He goes to the inside to find his way past the B-final winners of Slovakia.
23:40Oh, big moment there for Watson.
23:44And Koonen, he will try to pass him here if he can.
23:48He's going to launch.
23:49Oh, I thought he was going to launch a triple.
23:50Didn't need to.
23:52Anyway, Watson now just running out of steam.
23:56Koonen goes by.
23:57McClellan goes by.
23:58Watson now losing two positions.
24:00Goes from seventh to ninth.
24:02Yeah, I think Watson had been sprinting for the last few laps with the whole Koonen back.
24:05And he, I think it was either to the point of either relent or crash.
24:11So seventh and eighth.
24:13Sasha Koonen, Cameron McClellan.
24:16Koonen gaining points for Belgium once again.
24:19They're on 27 now.
24:21The Netherlands on 35.
24:22The gap is getting bigger.
24:25Oh, cold enough.
24:26Top right.
24:28How did he save that?
24:29He was chasing hard, but he still manages to get back on the rear wheel.
24:32And Mattis Velland, by the time when he hit the next turn.
24:39Still just under six minutes plus two laps to go in this MX2 open class race.
24:44Jeffy Herling's the race leader.
24:45Now 23 seconds.
24:47Oh, is that all?
24:48Is that all?
24:48Of Andrea Adamo of Italy.
24:50Helped by the fact that Tom Bial of France crashing out on the first lap.
24:55Yeah, just watching these guys, if you're wondering how tricky this racetrack is, just judged by the amount of mistakes
25:00they're making.
25:01These are the best riders in the world, and they are making four or five mistakes per lap.
25:05Now, yeah, it's pretty intense.
25:08Also, the racetrack is pretty intense.
25:09And Mattis spoke to Trey Canard earlier today before he did the CR electric e-bike demonstration.
25:18Of course, him and Justin Brayton were doing the Hondas.
25:20Ben Townley and Milko Podacek were doing the Yamaha YZ01.
25:26YZ01, their e-bike, and they were saying yesterday, is it normal that the track is this beat up on
25:31a Saturday?
25:32Because none of the jump faces were fixed or anything like that.
25:34They said it was gnarly out there for the two laps that they did.
25:37And I said, well, when you do your two laps today, the jump faces will be fixed because it's ahead
25:41of race one.
25:42And they'll fix what they can between one and two and two and three.
25:45But I think they were surprised at how gnarly it was already.
25:48And these guys are racing it at pace where those guys were just on a joyride.
25:52Yeah, I mean, that's the biggest difference, I think, in modern-day pro motocross versus modern-day MXGP,
25:57is that the racetracks are so completely different.
26:01And who am I to say what's better or worse?
26:03But they are very, very different.
26:06Well, let's just fill you in then on things of how they've happened then in race one.
26:11Roman Fever was your winner for Team France, ahead of Jorge Prado of Spain,
26:14Lucas Kunin of Belgium, Guillaume Ferez of Spain.
26:18And Mattis Villan, the teammate of Roman Fever,
26:21had a big crash on the opening lap, wasn't able to finish,
26:24and, of course, didn't quite scupper the chances of France at that moment in time,
26:27but they needed two solid rides here in race two.
26:30Well, Tom Villan got off to a flying start in that race
26:32and then fell on the opening lap.
26:34Guillaume Ferez has been solid for Spain,
26:36but he's under pressure here from Liam Everts.
26:39The Spaniard goes inside.
26:40He knows he's on a hiding for nothing.
26:42Then Everts finds his way by the top of the hill.
26:45Well, the Belgian fans love that in the fan zone.
26:48And Everts now up in the fourth place for Belgium.
26:51Ferez is just beside himself with the power that Everts has underneath him, right?
26:55Because these two battled a lot.
26:56Ferez usually getting the upper hand,
26:58and when Everts just rolls right by up the hill.
27:01Listen, you understand the situation.
27:03Spain's in a position here to possibly win this.
27:05They're going to have to have a great race through.
27:06But it's still frustrating
27:07because you know that Everts wouldn't be making that move without the power.
27:12So working their way through the twists and turns then.
27:15Everts onto the jump, heading towards the monster.
27:18Jump in the middle of the circuit there to the outside.
27:21And then a startless Farner rider normally in an MX2 trim.
27:25Of course, stepping up to a 450 this weekend.
27:28It's only five seconds down on Pauls Jonas of Latvia.
27:31What were the lap times last time around?
27:32Jonas was 55.
27:34Everts was a 54.
27:35There was an exact second between them.
27:37Say stepping up or stepping up?
27:39Stepping up.
27:40Yeah, yeah.
27:42Stepping up.
27:43Slight error there going into the left-hander by pit lane.
27:46Yeah, that's not even a mistake for Sasha.
27:49But I asked him when he was on the riders' parade,
27:51we just had a follow-up question, didn't we, for Liam Everts?
27:53Because Sasha and Lucas, of course, fly racing athletes,
27:56they've got a different look to Liam Everts.
27:59But Everts, I asked him about the fact that normally in the past
28:02we got used to seeing Belgium in baby blue kind of colours for Team Belgium.
28:07Why the yellow?
28:08And he said, it's just what I wanted, you know.
28:10My dad wore it, thought it looks good and everything else.
28:12So he felt like he wanted to wear it himself this weekend at an iconic venue
28:16where his dad has had so much success as well.
28:19But obviously fancies it here himself this weekend,
28:22and he's doing a great job in fourth place at the moment.
28:25But of course, he's got his second race to come within an hour.
28:29Well, less than it's about 40 minutes or so, isn't it?
28:3145 minutes, I think, between checkered flag and gate drop.
28:34Well, this is two years in a row for Liam that he stepped up to a bigger bike
28:38and had a great performance.
28:39So if you are Red Bull KTM, you're anyone in Austria,
28:42you're a prospective 450 team owner,
28:45you have to like what you're seeing from Liam
28:47because you're thinking about what that can look like in the future.
28:50Shall we check in with our leader?
28:52Jeffrey Herlings, just 26.
28:53Check in, he's checked out.
28:55Shall we check out with our leader?
28:57Jeffrey Herlings, 26.8 seconds clear at the moment.
29:00He's a lone wolf.
29:02His teammates, Glenn Koldenhoff, down in 10th position at the moment.
29:05The Netherlands are in second position in the overall classification on 34.
29:10Belgium on 26.
29:11They are the leaders.
29:12But what a season Jeffrey Herlings has had.
29:14Of course, we know, we've said it in our podcast before,
29:16we've mentioned it on a regular basis,
29:17we don't know how things would have turned out
29:19had Lucas Koonen not had the second half of the season that he had.
29:23There's his teammate, bottom right corner there, Glenn Koldenhoff,
29:26still closing in on Ben Watson,
29:27looking for a way through into ninth to pull another point back.
29:31But Jeffrey Herlings, nine pole positions,
29:33so that's nine qualifying race wins.
29:35Of course, he led 328 laps throughout the course of the season.
29:3922 race wins, 13 Grand Prix victories,
29:4316 podiums and 13 red plates.
29:46Not a bad season in his rookie season for Honda.
29:48Yeah, it's unbelievable.
29:49And I'm not sure, you know, 2018,
29:52the data would say that it was a better season,
29:55but I don't know.
29:56When you factor in the age, brand new team, brand new everything,
29:59this 2026 campaign is one to remember.
30:03And if Glenn Koldenhoff does find his way past Ben Watson,
30:06of course, that'll put them on 33 points,
30:10so they'll inch a point closer to Belgium.
30:15But it's the Benelux region,
30:16Belgium and the Netherlands, who lead the way.
30:20Remember, a very memorable nation.
30:22It's from 2004 between those two countries as well.
30:24I think Belgium just stole it in the latter stages, didn't they?
30:28I remember Derivar had an issue,
30:31but he also gave a very hard time to Evertz that day
30:36in the woods of Leroy.
30:37Yeah, and we knew that Belgium was going to be
30:40the team of the future.
30:41You know, I think Spain made a case for
30:43they are also going to be.
30:45I just wasn't sure when for Belgium.
30:47You know, maybe it doesn't still happen today.
30:48This race three is going to be critical, as it always is,
30:51but there's no doubt that Belgium is going to be a force
30:53for the next decade with this lineup right here.
30:59Cooper Webb.
31:02Still there in sixth, Sascha Kunin behind him in seventh,
31:04but these two riders fighting here,
31:06Ben Watson and Glenn Koldenov for that ninth place.
31:11Koldenov here in orange on the 56.
31:12He's currently in tenth position,
31:14trying to find his way back.
31:15Can he get in and out early?
31:16Well, I'll tell you what, he did,
31:18but he rode his luck a little there,
31:20and if you get it right,
31:21you can see how much shorter it is to that first turn.
31:24Yeah, you may have to turn a little bit tighter
31:26and scrub a little speed there,
31:27but had it worked out to perfection,
31:29he may have made that pass before the end of the straight.
31:31Watson on the ropes here in that ninth place.
31:36Even if he was just on a 450,
31:37he would have made that move work there,
31:38even with a mistake in the corner.
31:40Both riders launching up onto that triple,
31:43but Watson just getting a little bit more distance
31:46on the 450 Triumph than the 250 Yamaha of the Hoth,
31:51who's rocking a very cool
31:52Motocross of Nations butt patch actually this year,
31:54Motocross MX Hoth Nations.
31:57Simple but effective.
32:03I'll tell you what,
32:05so yeah, Jeffrey's just taken the two-lap board.
32:08He's 32 seconds clear of Adamo,
32:11give or take a tenth or two.
32:13These two are still on lap 15.
32:18Still solid though for Watson,
32:20and how much,
32:21we're talking about the sprint speed earlier on,
32:23where he sort of was there in that fifth position
32:24for a long time,
32:26and as Koldenov goes by
32:28and takes that ninth place away from him,
32:32how much in the tank does Ben Watson have
32:33for his second race, race three,
32:35because, of course, he gets that short turnaround.
32:38Not a lot of recovery time for him.
32:40Yeah, so much effort there on the 250 to make that move.
32:42You could kind of see Watson was just riding around,
32:44and Koldenov was having to ride
32:46a little bit over the limit to make the move work,
32:47but I do think he'll separate himself
32:49now that he got around him.
32:53Jonas,
32:56and he has been caught by Evertz.
32:59He was lapping a second a lap quicker than the Latvian,
33:02and he's still lapping, what,
33:03a second and a half,
33:04two seconds that time around,
33:0557.4, 55.3.
33:08So this has been a very methodical
33:11ride for Liam Evertz.
33:13Just in his mind,
33:14don't rush.
33:15Got 30 plus two,
33:1635 minutes is a long time,
33:17especially around a technical racetrack.
33:19And when you throw the word technical
33:20into the mix,
33:22Liam Evertz is probably one of the most gifted
33:23and talented in terms of his style
33:26and his poise and everything else.
33:27Of course,
33:28I would say Ferez has
33:29probably taken that mantle
33:30to another level this year
33:32in terms of his riding ability,
33:33and I would say
33:34he's definitely on par
33:35with Evertz in that respect.
33:36You know,
33:36does everything right,
33:37doesn't rush,
33:38doesn't get flustered,
33:39stands up exactly when he needs to
33:41and rides things around,
33:42you know,
33:43without any kind of panic.
33:45That's exactly what we're seeing from Evertz.
33:47Yeah,
33:47but it hasn't always been easy, right?
33:48That big injury in China
33:50took him a long time
33:51to kind of get back to form.
33:52You're seeing now,
33:53like the latter part of 2026 season,
33:56he's finished so strong,
33:57backs that up here.
33:58If he can have a healthy offseason,
34:00he has to be one of the guys
34:02going into 2027.
34:03for MX2.
34:05Belgium, of course,
34:06the most podiums in this event,
34:0759,
34:08they've got 15 wins,
34:1026 seconds,
34:1118 thirds.
34:12Their last podium was 2019
34:13when they were second to Assen
34:14in the Netherlands.
34:17They haven't won
34:18since Teuschenthal Germany
34:20in 2013,
34:21and that was their first win
34:22since 2004.
34:25So this is going to be
34:26another memorable one
34:27if they can bring it home,
34:28but as we say,
34:30it's far from being decided,
34:32far from being over
34:33at the moment.
34:35A lot rides on that final race,
34:37as it always does.
34:38But they are in the mix
34:39because Belgium have a 3,
34:41a 7,
34:41and a 4.
34:43Spain have a 2,
34:454,
34:45and a 5,
34:45so 11 for them,
34:4814 for Belgium.
34:49so that's how tight it is
34:50when you throw away
34:51your worst scores
34:52at the moment.
34:53Of course,
34:53that can change
34:54on the opening lap
34:54of the final race
34:55because it could be
34:57one of those scores
34:58that they wanted to keep.
34:59You just never know.
35:00You just need to have
35:01both riders in a good position
35:02to sort of see
35:03how this thing plays out
35:04in that final race.
35:07Andrea Adamo
35:07has been solid
35:08for Team Italy
35:09on his Red Bull KTM.
35:11He's 35 seconds behind.
35:13There's Hurling
35:14at the top end
35:14of the circuit.
35:18And as Adamo
35:19rounds up here,
35:20Hurling's going to be
35:21dropping down that hill
35:21any moment now
35:22in the background
35:23on his way
35:24to the chequered flag.
35:26Right on cue,
35:27there is the bullet.
35:28Doesn't want to make
35:29a Voland mistake.
35:31Keeps it nice and central
35:32down that left-hand side
35:33but he has been
35:34in cruise mode
35:35and I would say
35:36that he's been able
35:37to ride to his own tune,
35:38pull a gap,
35:40ride conservatively.
35:42And Jeffrey Hurling
35:43wins race two
35:46here in Erne.
35:48And the Netherlands
35:49are in with a fighting shot
35:50of the overall win
35:52and certainly a podium here
35:55this weekend.
35:58Andrea Adamo,
35:59we wait for him
35:59to cross the line.
36:00It's going to be
36:00a long wait for him
36:01but here he is
36:02dropping down
36:03the final hill now.
36:04Needs to go up
36:05and down the other side
36:07and Andrea Adamo,
36:09he was part of the
36:10podium winning side
36:12for Italy
36:13when we were here
36:14but look at Evertz
36:15up the inside.
36:17Adamo took a nervous look
36:18and it's going to be
36:19Jonas who hangs on
36:20for Latvia in third.
36:21Evertz fourth for Belgium.
36:22An opportunity lost there
36:24just for an extra point
36:25gained
36:26but respect between
36:27the Latvian
36:28and the Belgian.
36:29The Italian there,
36:31Adamo absolutely pumped
36:32with his second position
36:33as well.