Check out this cool interview from Ben Rumbold from Infront and Behind The Gate show. The South African has shown brilliant form in 2026 and will be a big hit when he races his home GP in two weeks time. Ray Archer images

BTG: Hi Camden, thanks for joining us in the studio. Just to start things off, thinking about before the season, so you're heading into your third year with Triumph. Was there much you changed in the off-season, like with your setup, the team, your training? Anything that you can say you've improved on since you started with the team?

CM: Yeah, third year with Triumph now. I wouldn't say much has changed in terms of my approach and my training routine, let's say, but we did come with a brand-new package of engine and frame which was, and has been, great throughout the season. So, I wouldn't say much has changed. The bike is updated as you would expect, but for the rest, everything's pretty much been business as usual.

BTG: Nice, and before the year, you had a race win, obviously, yet to win a GP, so I guess that was the clear target. And then, is the thought that, even from the first round, that it’s your time to challenge for the title now? That there's no other goal really?

CM: Yeah, I had clicked off the race win last year in Trentino, and I had been kind of chasing an overall win since then, because that was really the one thing left on the list. So, coming into this year, I knew that we made a great step in the off-season and that I was feeling comfortable. Guillem and I had been pushing each other for months. So, I kind of knew where I was at, but you never really know until you're in Argentina. So, the goal was always to come out swinging and come for the Championship. And the first two rounds were really good. Got the overall win finally, in Almonte at the second round, with the red plate as well. So, everything was kind of trending in the right direction, and we were working well towards the goal of being a World Champion this year. And I think, luckily, we still have a lot of rounds to do still, but it's been up and down since the first two rounds, although it’s stabilizing again slowly.

BTG: Yeah, I mean, you took that win in Spain, and like you say, the red plate with it. Talk us through those emotions. Like you're the first to get a win for the Triumph brand, for a start. I know Vincent [Bereni] said it was bittersweet because obviously Guillem had the issue which knocked him out of contention.

CM: Yeah, obviously, I mean, the first win is, as they say, always the one you're going to remember the most, but indeed, a little bit bittersweet with what happened to Guillem. I try to focus on my part of the story and my first win, so it was a really cool, cool day. I'm really happy my mom and dad were there, my cousin, I just missed my brother, but my family was there to experience my first GP win with me, which is something special. You know, it's a part of it, they're a big part of the story as well. And then, yeah, obviously what happened with Guillem was a bit unfortunate, but he's recovered as well since then. And for the team, it was a massive, massive achievement. I've also achieved the first race win for Triumph, now the first overall, first Qualifying Race win. The only thing I missed was the first podium, as Mikkel Haarup has that one. He got that straight away, off the bat! That was a bit annoying! [Laughs]

BTG: Yeah, he set the standard high immediately! Obviously, the next round after the win, you had the crash in Switzerland. How bad was the crash? No one even really saw it. I don't think we had any replay anywhere, so we're not sure what happened there. And yeah, what were your injuries and how badly did they affect you in the Sardegna and Trentino GPs?

CM: Yeah, so the first two GPs were great, and then Switzerland, a great Saturday, and then Sunday, the rain came. The track was pretty beat up, muddy, technical, and my starts were horrible both races, and I put myself in bad positions. After the first race, I was also not really happy with the results. So, I was kind of forcing the issue in the second race, really pushing, making my way through well actually. And then going through the waves, I clicked into fourth just as we were about to jump out onto the straight. And I had mud on my foot pegs and my right foot slipped off. So, I wasn't necessarily doing anything wrong or out of control. I just lost my foot and it hit the ground. And I “Nac-Nac”ed out of the waves, slammed my left side, and it's fourth gear wide open so it was a really high speed crash. It was a really big one. Initially, I couldn't really feel my left arm, and when I tried to get up, I had a sharp pain throughout my back, like a stinging pain, which was something I'd never felt before. So, I was a little bit in shock. I kind of knew nothing was broken because you know when something's broken, but I had damaged the nerve, which we found out later in the week, which is, they said, worse than breaking or cracking the bone. So anyway, I was really lucky to not have any major damage to my nerve, but for Riola and Trentino, I kind of had a left arm that wasn't really working, and still now it's not 100%, but not hindering me on the bike anymore. Also, I was laying there and I was like, damn, my left arm feels weird. I was trying to move it, but it just wasn't working. It was like, off, switched off! I was like, what’s up with that?

BTG: Well, you picked things up after the break. In France, you chased Guillem across the line in that second race. And then, yeah, obviously, taking the first Qualifying Race win for the team in Germany. So, can you please talk us through that win, first of all?

CM: Yeah, finally, a good Saturday for me, which has previously been a bit of a weak point. I picked up maximum points there. So, I had the inside gate going into the races on Sunday, as well as a good head of steam, feeling really good on the bike, really good on the track. I was enjoying the track a lot, so hopefully thinking we can repeat that success on Sunday.

BTG: Is it good just to get that monkey off your back? Like you say, you keep talking about ticking things off. So, you ticked off the race win, the overall GP, and the Qualifying Race was the last one. So yeah, what was that like for you then?

CM: Yeah, it was good to tick it off. I mean that's, as a racer, it's kind of what you chase, I have a list of goals, and at least for me, that's really what gets me up in the morning and gets me going. It’s now, you know, the next thing to have is the Championship, I'd say, for me, and a lot more GP wins. I'd like to be in the front a lot more, but what gets me going initially, also since I started with the Triumph team, is to start clicking off these race wins, Qualifying, winning overall. When I go running, when I go cycling, that's really what's playing in my head. And a lot of these times, a lot of the times I see it before it's happened, which is also something really cool.

BTG: So you actually visualize it type of thing? Is that like a technique you're doing?

CM: I don't know, I just run and a certain song will come on, and then I start to go deep into it. It's crazy. It's like a law of attraction. It happens naturally almost. It works!

BTG: Cool. So yeah, talking about the races themselves, you got on the podium with a 3-6 in the end? Please talk us through your day in Germany, how you got on with the track. You said to us, you said to the cameras recently that you've been working a lot on the hard-pack surface as well. So please tell us what sort of work you've put in to improve on hard-pack and how well it's paid off with the podium and everything.

CM: Yeah, I would say my Sunday in Germany wasn't really what I was looking for, especially after the Saturday went so well. Still, it was clear to see that the work that I've done in the break on the hard-pack has paid off, but I just didn't really get out the gates on Sunday as I would have hoped. And then the track, due to the weather, was kind of difficult for passing, not very raceable, and I also just couldn't make things happen. I would say I was pretty disappointed with my Sunday. I think it was very clear to see. But anyway, oftentimes with me, it's going forward, if I'm disappointed from a weekend, it fires me up even more for the next weekend. So hopefully, going forward, that can be the benefit of the Sunday in Germany.

BTG: Nice one, and you're recovering in the Championship, obviously, after the issues from Switzerland there. You're now into fifth place. You know, it's not out of sight. There's 42 points. There's still a lot of racing left to go, and you're only three behind Liam Everts. So, yeah, can you talk about your hopes for the rest of the Championship?

CM: Yeah, I mean, I'm still pretty much in a positive mindset, I would say. Still a lot of racing to go, and I'm not necessarily too far back. And I've seen it, I've been leading the Championship, and then two weekends later, I've been 60 points down. So, things can swing really, really quickly. And after the break, I would say I'm back on track. And if I can keep this podium streak going, I think I can slowly but surely claw my way back into the Championship, which is, of course, the goal. And we have South Africa coming up, which is going to be really, really special for me and really interesting as well with the altitude there. I think it's going to catch a lot of people by surprise. Then we have a lot of sand rounds in the future: Arnhem, Lommel, Latvia. So, possibly a lot of things that could swing in my favour, and I hope do swing in my favour! So, I'm remaining still very optimistic and looking forward to the next couple of rounds.

BTG: Awesome stuff. Just to go slightly away from racing there, not much, but just a little bit. Your race number, where does the number eight come from? I can't remember what you had before, but yeah, how come you had that old number and changed to number eight from there?

CM: Originally, my number was 122 when I first came to Europe. Actually, I've changed a lot. I started as 48. That was my cousin. He used to ride before me. He had 48, kind of ran in the family. I became 48, and then my brother, who's two years younger than me, he started racing. He became 48, and I picked up 122 from my first ever trainer that I actually trained with up until 2024, from around 2008 up until the end of 2024. I had trained with him, so I took 122 from him, but in European rounds on the 85, I was 422, so I've kind of been all over the place. And then when I signed with Triumph, I was 122 when I raced with Jacky Martens, and Triumph said 122 is too big for the front board, so if you could choose a smaller number, that would be appreciated. And I thought, why not do a little bit of a rebranding? I'm changing team and structure, and the whole look is changing, so why not do a little bit of a full rebrand? And then there was Grant Langston [the second South African racer to win a Motocross world title, who also took a title in the USA], who had run the #8, and I think he's quite a badass, so that came into my mind. Then also just looking at the #8, it's clean, you can kind of play with it a lot in a few artistic ways, if I want to sell something as a brand. Or any sort of thing like that. And I thought, being number eight now is the perfect time, perfect number, looks good, has some heritage, South African heritage, so why not? And I'm fast enough now to pull it off! Still not a World Champion, but it's coming.

BTG: Well commentators always like a single digit, so we’re all for it! Just to talk about your teammate, obviously, you and Guillem are going for the same goals. You clearly get on well, you're working well together, but does there come that moment where you're like, okay, well, I really want it, so obviously you can't have it? That sort of thing? I'm intrigued to see how you guys do it. You're racing so close, and I know you don't give each other any room on the track. The French round kind of made that clear! Yeah, I’d just be interested to hear what you've got to say on that sort of dynamic. You're obviously getting on well, but you want what the other person also wants, so one of you is going to lose out. How is that to deal with on a week to week, day to day basis?

CM: Indeed, both Guillem and myself, we want the exact same thing. We want race wins. At the end of the year, we want to be a World Champion, and there can only be one! You would think that it creates some friction, but we really handle it well. I mean, in France, we got pretty close, and even people come up to me after the race and say, “Man, he cut you off pretty bad”, and you know all of that, but it's business, and I understand that, he understands that, we're out there for the same goal. We can work together, and we are working together very well. We do help each other, you know, I don't think there's many teammates that can go on a training day, training together, and we do that every single week, and still the vibe is great. We get along really well, we talk our rubbish. You know, there's a lot of good times with him, and yeah, we keep it professional on the track. We don't cross the line. Maybe we will have to at the end of the year, but that's the thing. I think still when we come off the track, we understand that it's business. He understands, I understand, the team understands. So there is no need for friction, I believe. And even with my competitors, I don't think I have any friction with anyone. So yeah, it's really good to have a good relationship with Guillem. Just yeah, he's every now and again a bit difficult to pass, which everyone struggles with as well, anyway. So maybe I gotta move him out of the way sooner rather than later!

BTG: [Cameraman] Never mind that, would you take him out for the title?

CM: Would I take him out for the title? Absolutely, I would take him out for free! [Laughs]

BTG: Finally, I have to ask, what does the MXGP in South Africa mean for the South African riders?

CM: Yeah, I mean, MXGP is coming home, after 18 years now, it's massive. The sport has kind of died down a lot since the golden era of Motocross in South Africa. We used to be really good, produce a lot of good riders, and then, yeah, like I said, over the years it's slowed down. And I'm really happy that I can, kind of, be the one to revive it. And as well as having a GP in South Africa, with the place where I'm at, everything's just, the timing is perfect, really. I'm fighting for a World Championship here, and we finally bring the GP back home. I think if all things go really well and to plan, I can win a GP in South Africa, the first one in 18 years. I think it would be really big, and I think also for the sport there to show people that Motocross can be a way of life, and can be a way to make money and to live off, I think that's really good.

BTG: So, it's a huge moment for the South African motocross community?

CM: Yeah, a massive moment. I mean, we haven't had a big event there for, like I said, 18 plus years. So MXGP coming home, and not only just MXGP, just motorsport in general is very popular in South Africa, but we haven't had anything over the recent years. So, I think it's going to be massive. I think the fans are going to show up, they've done an awesome job with the track, it looks unreal. I think the whole event is going to be super. I'm most excited about racing in front of my family. A lot of them have never seen me race a GP, so it's going to be their first GP experience, and they get to experience it with me, hopefully racing at the front, which I think will be very, very special for them. Yeah, the fourth and fifth of July is going to be a massive weekend for South African motorsport in general. The Motocross World Championship is finally making its return, so I think it's going to be awesome, the venue is looking great, and for South African motorsport fans, I don't think you'd want to miss it!

Author: Infront Moto Racing - Ben Rumbold