Herlings and McLellan Rule the Arnhem Sand

The sand belonged to the Dutch on Sunday—but South Africa had plenty to celebrate as well.

More than 30,000 fans packed Motorsportpark Gelderland Midden near Arnhem for the MXGP of the Netherlands, creating an atmosphere worthy of one of the biggest weekends on the motocross calendar.

On a fast, deep and brutally demanding sand circuit, Jeffrey Herlings once again proved why he remains the benchmark in these conditions.

But while “The Bullet” delivered another perfect weekend, South Africa‘s Camden McLellan produced one of the biggest stories in MX2 with his third Grand Prix victory of the 2026 season.

Herlings Survives a Sand War

Herlings entered his home GP as the overwhelming favourite.

He left it with another 50-point haul, his fourth consecutive perfect 1-1-1 weekend and his 122nd career GP victory.

Yet the result was anything but routine.

Kay de Wolf pushed his compatriot harder than most expected, particularly in race one. After De Wolf moved ahead early, Herlings spent lap after lap searching for a way through without making the kind of mistake that can instantly end a sand race.

Eventually, the experience showed.

On lap 14, Herlings attacked through the fast wave section and finally took control.

Then came one of the strangest moments of the weekend.

With only four corners remaining, Herlings suddenly stopped.

A rock had become lodged in his rear brake lever, locking the rear wheel. He had built a nine-second advantage, but the problem nearly erased it.

A determined boot cleared the obstruction.

Herlings still crossed the line first—but by just 3.7 seconds.

The race win was number 230 of his career.

De Wolf Shows He Can Challenge the Master

De Wolf finished second overall with 2-2 results and arguably left Arnhem with as much confidence as Herlings.

The younger Dutchman had spent much of race one leading the reigning championship leader and then mounted another serious attack in race two.

With three laps remaining, De Wolf had closed to within approximately 1.5 seconds.

Then the sand bit back.

A mistake through a right-hander sent his bike sideways after hitting a braking bump, throwing him from the machine.

He recovered uninjured and retained second, but the opportunity for a first victory over Herlings had disappeared.

Still, the performance was a major step forward.

“To beat him in the sand is not easy,” .

De Wolf admitted after giving everything he had to the challenge

For a rider who said that only two weeks earlier he could not match Herlings’ pace, the transformation was significant.

Vialle Turns Sand Weakness Into Podium Strength

Tom Vialle added another chapter to his own comeback story.

The Honda HRC Petronas rider went 4-3 to secure third overall and his third podium in the last four GPs.

For Vialle, the significance went beyond the result.

Sand racing had been a weakness.

After struggling badly in these conditions in previous years, he made a conscious decision to train harder in the sand throughout 2026.

The work finally showed.

“Fighting for a podium in the sand is always nice, and being up here behind two riders as strong as Jeffrey and Kay honestly feels like a win for me,” .

said Vialle

It was a reminder that progression in motocross is often measured long before the podium ceremony.

McLellan Delivers in the Deep Stuff

In MX2, Camden McLellan was the man to beat.

The Triumph Racing Factory Team rider went 1-2 to score 47 points and claim his third Grand Prix victory of the season.

Race one was the defining moment.

McLellan launched brilliantly from the gate and immediately put himself into contention before taking control after Sacha Coenen made a mistake.

The South African did exactly what was required, keeping his Triumph upright and managing the difficult sand to take the win.

Race two demanded more.

Starting further back, McLellan had to work through traffic while dealing with a heavy dose of roost. He eventually moved into second and charged after Liam Everts, but the Belgian had enough pace to hold on for victory.

The result still delivered the overall GP win.

McLellan is now only 12 points away from second place in the MX2 championship.

The Championship Fight Tightens

The Arnhem results leave Guillem Farres at the top of MX2 on 749 points, with Sacha Coenen on 724 and McLellan on 712.

With three rounds remaining, the title fight remains alive—but McLellan has made his immediate target clear.

“The championship is still on the table but it is a bit of a reach at this point, second place is not, so that is what I am going for.”

Triumph also strengthened its position in the manufacturers’ championship, leading KTM by 18 points.

The MXGP paddock now heads east to Türkiye for the final three flyaway rounds.

For Herlings, the championship is within touching distance. His 143-point advantage means the title could potentially be secured as early as the first Sunday race at Afyonkarahisar.

For McLellan, the mission is different.

There is still a podium championship fight to finish.

And after conquering Arnhem’s sand, the South African has given himself every reason to believe he can finish the season on a high.