Five time world motocross champion, Jeffrey Herlings just loves breaking records and this weekend, at the Kegums circuit in Latvia, he can make Latvia his greatest single track, when it comes to GP wins.

Bavo Swijgers image

With 115 GP wins to his name, nine have come at Kegums, a record equal with the Valkenswaard circuit in The Netherlands and while he has nine GP wins in France, those came at different circuits. Yes, his beloved sand of Valkenswaard and Kegums have seen some of the best of "The Bullet".

As a 15-year-old, back in 2010 and some 16 years ago, Jeffrey Herlings first stamped his name on the victory list in Latvia and then he added another eight wins over the next decade and a half.

Rather amazing, "The Bullet" went a year without a GP win between his 2023 Latvian win and his 2024 Latvian victory. There is no doubt, with nine Grand Prix victories in Latvia, Herlings goes into this weekends Grand Prix at the Kegums circuit, with a lot of confidence and another record in sight.

The defending Latvian GP winner and a rider who just loves the sand, it is hard to see him get beaten, but we all know, series leader and red hot Lucas Coenen will do everything to stop his Dutch rival.

The fact Herlings has won in Latvia in 2010, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2023, 2024 and 2025 is staggering, but then again, we always expect the abnormal from this fine athlete.

GP Win Number Two - 2010

Back in 2010 Herlings started strong in the first moto to snatch the lead from holeshotter Musquin but dropped down to an eventual third. Moto two was different, as Herlings found himself at the front of the first laps, but Frossard came past to take the lead. Before the race finished, however, Herlings was back on top and won a three-way battle for first with Frossard and Roczen to take the overall win.

“I won my first Grand Prix in Valkenswaard,” Herlings said at the time. “Which was a big moment for me, nothing is better than that first Grand Prix win, but to win again in the sand in Latvia, which was also special and showed I can win again. Kegums is a circuit I really enjoyed, and I hope to have more success here in the future. I really enjoy coming to Latvia and this beautiful circuit.”

Taking 28th GP Win - 2013

One week after MX1 world champion Tony Cairoli celebrated the accumulation of 60 Grand Prix wins in a decade of racing, Jeffrey Herlings reached his 28th success in just three and a half years and by the age of eighteen. Herlings was again unstoppable and extended his unbeaten run to all eleven meetings, so far spread over four continents. Herlings going for an season being unbeaten was a major part of his motivation in 2013, something no rider had ever done in GP history.

Herlings’ career achievement matched the tally collected by Dave Strijbos and now he had the record of 12 GP wins on the bounce forged by Team Manager Stefan Everts (set at 12 in 2006) in his sights.

“Stefan (Everts) said to me that we needed to talk after the press conference, so maybe he’s going to give me some money if I don’t win next week. I would really like to beat that record. I always like to put down new goals for myself. GPs used to be 12 rounds then they went to 14, 15 and now we’re at 17 or 18. It is such a long season and to win every single race would be amazing. Hopefully a DNF doesn’t happen but you never know.”

Total Domination - 2016

Herlings was out of this world in 2016 While a lot of riders struggled with the roughness of the circuit, Herlings just got stronger and faster. It was awe-inspiring to watch The Bullet attack the track with such finesse. He won both races by more than thirty seconds and lapped more than half of the field.

“I’m back, I’m feeling strong and I’m just trying to get the best out of myself, it’s six out of six wins this weekend and I hope there will be many more to come."

MXGP Rookie Win - 2017

In 2017 in his MXGP rookie season Herlings scored 1-1 to win the Latvian Grand Prix, after starting the year with some injuries it was a nice return for the multiple MX2 champion. The Dutchman proved he was the king of the sand winning ahead of the MXGP points leader Antonio Cairoli and the then HRC rider Evgeny Bobryshev.

“We were fastest all weekend long and it was the cherry on the cake (to go 1-1). We have more confidence with this result, and it means a lot; it felt like a long time since my last win. I just want to continue to improve after my time out of racing.”

Unbeatable - 2018

A year later and Herlings again 1-1, this time ahead of Cairoli and Gautier Paulin and his love of Kegums grew. The rough and tumble of Kegums never troubled the KTM rider, and his confidence was over the moon in the white sand.

“I think it was a good weekend, you know yesterday was obviously perfect, I was able to get the holeshot and do my own thing. It was a little more demanding than I was expecting today especially after the result of yesterday, but we did good things for the championship.”

Sad Affair - 2019

In 2019, it was a sad affair for Herlings as he won the opening race, his return to racing after a long injury, but then crashed in the warm-up lap for the first race and was hit by a rider, causing an ankle injury. Still, his 1-DNS showed that despite his injury, it’s hard to beat the Dutchman in the sand.

“Very sorry to say I have broken my ankle,” Herlings would say after the accident. “I had a small crash in sighting lap and another rider rode over my bad foot and broke my ankle. I decided after the sighting lap to still line up for the race and even won the race with a broken ankle. I just cannot believe it anymore. Of course, I will be out for second race. Feeling so sorry for my team and sponsors.”

Covid Success - 2020

The victory in 2020 it was a 4-1 performance and while the victory was nice, Herlings wasn’t super happy with his win. It happened during the Covid triple header.

“The first race was tough. I didn’t have a good jump, I was like fifteenth and then was struggling with arm pump, the riding just wasn’t good. The track was really sketchy overall the last three races with a lot of square bumps. Going into the next race I’ll definitely have to put in some work, try to work a bit more on the starts, work on myself and try to get some more speed and confidence. But I’m happy to finish off this Latvian trip in this way”.

GP Win Number 103 – 2023

In 2023 Herlings used his KTM SX-F technology to conquer the wet, fast, rough and sandy-ish terrain around the Zelta Zirgs layout for the Grand Prix of Latvia. The Dutchman clinched both motos with authority.

“A tough race. I was a bit scared the start mesh was going to be slick in the second moto, so I dropped the revs and almost missed the start, but I still came out 3rd. I had to work hard to get through and it was not easy at all to catch and pass Jorge and Romain but when I went for it, I could make it happen. Romain was riding really good. I had to fight. 1st place as well yesterday so a good GP and I’m very happy and pleased to have a perfect weekend.”

Herlings was the standout performer on Saturday as he won the qualifier and then on Sunday Herlings chased Jorge Prado and dealt with period of arm-pump as well as a small crash before dropping his lap-times and passing the Spaniard to win the first moto.

12 Month Drought - 2024

In 2024 Herlings to break the twelve-month-and-five-day drought since his last Grand Prix victory for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, which was at this very same circuit last year. A stirring win in race one’s soggy conditions and a charging third in race two gave “The Bullet” his 104th Grand Prix win, extending his record total and collecting his 197th individual race win in the process.

“I’m definitely super happy,” Herlings said. “Yesterday I drove to my hotel, and I thought... what am I doing, I need to do more! But today I came back to show that I can still do it you know. So, already a podium was good but to get the win is really amazing! I did two good starts too, with the first race where I was the fastest, second race I couldn’t get the pace to overtake them (Prado and Gajser) but I kept them within my sight and in the end close them down but couldn’t pass as they were very fast too. I’m very happy with the win and looking forward to the next one”.

Defending Latvia Winner - 2025

Last year Herlings’ mastery of the Latvian circuit continued with a flawless performance — qualifying first, then leading every lap across both motos to take a dominant 1-1 victory. It marked his ninth career overall win at Kegums, equalling his record at Valkenswaard, and his 109th career GP win overall.

“Let’s repeat it nine more times, eh? If only it were that simple!” Herlings smiled after the podium. “Lucas pushed hard in both races, so credit to him. I had good lines, good flow, and just really enjoyed the track today.”

So, with a handful of victories at the Kegums circuit, Herlings goes into this weekends Latvian GP with some motivation, after watching Lucas Coenen walk about with the German GP last weekend. As we all know, he also DNFed the opening moto in Germany with a mechanical issue, and will be desperate to gain valuable points on the Belgian.

Herlings Latvian Victories

2010 Jeffrey Herlings

2013 Jeffrey Herlings

2016 Jeffrey Herlings

2017 Jeffrey Herlings

2018 Jeffrey Herlings

2020 Jeffrey Herlings

2023 Jeffrey Herlings

2024 Jeffrey Herlings

2025 Jeffrey Herlings