MXGP Champion Jeffrey Herlings (Honda) wins the MXGP of Turkiye

MXGP of Turkiye in Afyonkarahisar: The newly crowned 2026 World Champion, Jeffrey Herlings (Honda), started the second race with the golden number plate bearing the number 1.

Holeshot for Jeffrey Herlings

Despite clinching the title early, Jeffrey Herlings was determined to finish the day in Turkey in style. ‘The Bullet’ took the holeshot for the eighth time this season, just ahead of his French team-mate Tom Vialle. Tim Gajser (Yamaha) was also in the mix at the front of the field. Vialle initially held off Tim Gajser with determination, after which a fierce battle ensued between the two HRC factory riders.

Two mistakes set Tim Gajser back

Yamaha factory rider Tim Gajser ran wide on the second lap and fell back behind the two Kawasaki factory riders, Pauls Jonass and Romain Febvre. On lap 3, Febvre overtook Jonass, and one lap later Gajser also passed Jonass. Gajser tried to close the gap to Febvre, but a minor crash set him back once again.

Battle at the front

Tom Vialle didn’t let up right until the end. He was gunning for the race win, but Herlings maintained control and won by a narrow margin of 0.5 seconds. The two HRC factory riders had left the rest of the field more than half a minute behind by the finish.

Romain Febvre finished third overall with two third-place finishes – level on 40 points with Vialle. The tiebreaker in Vialle’s favour was his better result in the second race.

Plenty of points for Yigit Ali Selek

Local GASGAS rider Yigit Ali Selek finished 16th, four laps behind the leader, to score a total of 10 World Championship points. That is as many points as, for example, Cato Nickel managed to score over the entire season. Ali Selek’s best lap time was more than half a minute slower than that of the leading riders, yet he still jumped to 36th place in the World Championship standings, placing him ahead of riders such as Paturel, Lapucci and van Berkel.

Penultimate round: China

In a week’s time, the action continues in Shanghai with Round 18 of the World Championship. Even though the title has already been decided today, there could still be some changes at the top of the field. Red Bull KTM factory riders Andrea Adamo and Tom Vialle have a good chance of improving their positions further in the final two Grands Prix.

MXGP of Turkey

1. Jeffrey Herlings (NL), Honda, 1-1, 50 points

2. Tom Vialle (F), Honda, 4-2, 40, (-10)

3. Romain Febvre (F), Kawasaki, 3-3, 40, (-10)

4. Tim Gajser (SLO), Yamaha, 2-4, 40, (-10)

5. Pauls Jonass (LV), Kawasaki, 6-5, 31, (-19)

6. Andrea Adamo (I), KTM, 5–6, 31, (-19)

7. Jan Pancar (SLO), KTM, 11–7, 24, (-26)

8. Kevin Horgmo (N), Honda, 10–8, 24, (-26)

9. Calvin Vlaanderen (NL), Ducati, 9-10, 23, (-27)

10. Jeremy Seewer (CH), KTM, 8–11, 23, (-27)

11. Ruben Fernandez (E), Honda, 12–9, 21, (-29)

12. Alberto Forato (I), Fantic, 7–15, 20, (-30)

13. Jago Geerts (B), Beta, 13–12, 17, (-33)

14. Rick Elzinga (NL), KTM, 14–13, 15, (-35)

15. Jörgen-Matthias Talviku (EST), Fantic, 17-14, 11, (-39)

16. Yigit Ali Selek (TR), GASGAS, 16–16, 10, (-40)

17. Andrea Bonacorsi (I), Ducati, 15-DNF, 6, (-44)

MXGP World Championship standings after Round 17 of 19

1. Jeffrey Herlings (NL), Honda, 855 points

2. Romain Febvre (F), Kawasaki, 699, (-156)

3. Tim Gajser (SLO), Yamaha, 659, (-196)

4. Lucas Coenen (B), KTM, 566, (-289)

5. Andrea Adamo (I), KTM, 559, (-296)

6. Tom Vialle (F), Honda, 545, (-310)

7. Ruben Fernandez (E), Honda, 523, (-332)

8. Maxime Renaux (F), Yamaha, 449, (-406)

9. Kay de Wolf (NL), Husqvarna, 428, (-427)

10. Pauls Jonass (LV), Kawasaki, 366, (-489)