Chase Sexton is currently sidelined from racing as he continues his recovery from an ACL injury, but the American made the most of his time away from competition by crossing the Atlantic to experience the MXGP paddock first-hand at the Dutch Grand Prix in Arnhem.
The Kawasaki rider took the opportunity to support his close friend and former US teammate Tom Vialle, who delivered a memorable podium finish in MX2, while also getting his first taste of a European Grand Prix. From walking the brutal Arnhem sand and watching Jeffrey Herlings and Kay de Wolf do battle, to joining Paul Malin in the MXGP broadcast booth, Sexton had a unique perspective on the weekend.
With his competitive fire already reignited, Sexton also spoke about his own recovery, his motivation to return to winning ways in 2027, and whether a future MXGP appearance could be on the cards. We caught up with Sexton to get his thoughts on his first European GP experience, Tom Vialle’s podium and everything he took away from his weekend in the Netherlands.
GateDrop: Chase, you are here at MXGP, what was your weekend like here at Arnhem? I don’t think you’ve been at a GP before, so this is the first time?
Sexton: Yeah, a lot of walking around for me. Coming back from ACL surgery, it’s probably not ideal, but good therapy. I just came to watch Tom (Vialle), he got on the podium, so stoked to see that. Just to see what MXGP is like, I’ve only ever been to a dozen nations, and I raced the one in the US in 2017, but I’d never been to a European one. I wanted to see what it was like to see Jeffrey and Kay ride the sand, and learn a little bit, so it was nice.
GateDrop: I mean, watching them, my jaw still drops, and I’m well used to it. What was your thoughts on them and the track? I mean, it was brutal out there…
Sexton: Yeah, it was, definitely, I was expecting it to be a little more deep, because I haven’t really watched. I mean I’ve watched this race a few times but just on the TV. Obviously, Lommel being really deep sand. This one, I think, maybe gets a little bit sketchier, just because it does get those hard cusps, and the clay starts to come out in the bases in some places. It is maybe a little bit more sketchy than Lommel, it looked very difficult out there.
Jeffrey and Kay, obviously, they very precise, they make one rhythm section out of the whole track, which is really cool to watch. I got to go on the track yesterday for qualifying the moto and then moto one today. For moto two I was in the broadcast, so I didn’t get to see much but the second moto was nice to see. It was a good battle until Kay went down, but he was sending it. It is really cool to watch.
GateDrop: Does any part of you wish you were racing out there? I mean, obviously, in America, you have Southwick but it’s nothing really like that…
Sexton: Yeah, I think I need about four months’ practice before I want to go out there and race. But, it’d be fun. I think, obviously, when you get a good flow, it looks like a good time, but I’ve also watched a lot of guys today that didn’t look like they had a good flow, and it doesn’t look very fun. I think it just takes a lot of practice. Maybe in the future it could be something.
GateDrop: When did you get over here? I’ve seen you were at Lommel as well. I guess that was a practice day, watching Tom. What was it like being there, and have you been here long before this weekend?
Sexton: No, I actually got in on Thursday morning and went over. Tom’s brother picked me up from Brussels and drove to the house and hung out there, did a workout and stuff. Before dinner, we went and looked at Lommel, he wasn’t even riding but he lives right there. So, we pulled in and I got to see a little bit, I wanted to see it before I left, and that looked gnarly as well. That’d be the training ground if I ever came over here.
GateDrop: What’s it been like to see Tom again? Obviously, he’s been racing GPs, and you’ve been in America, but it seems like you’ve got a very good friendship going, and you must be proud of him today. He struggled a little bit yesterday, but today, he’s a pretty quick learner, and he’s been a quick learner his whole career, to be fair…
Sexton: I’m not going to lie, I missed having him in the US this year. Obviously, it’s a little bit unfortunate that I have this much time to take off, but when I got hurt, he actually called me and said, hey, maybe you should come to a GP. We’re going to France now to his home and I’ll watch him ride some Supercross. I am proud of him. He had a tough, tough day yesterday. I told him he maybe spent too long in the US, no sand tracks over there like this but he did great today. I think that was probably the maximum that he was going to be able to do.
GateDrop: I mean, it’s like a win, let’s be honest!
Sexton: It’s like a win, that’s what I’ll said on the broadcast. Tom and Tim were racing to try and win their own race but no, it’s cool. We will hopefully enjoy this week, and it’s good to see him again. I definitely miss him in the US, but I’m stoked that he’s doing good over here.
GateDrop: I have no idea what the broadcast was like, because obviously I was here at the track live watching. What was it like being part of the broadcast team and being with Paul Malin, an unbelievable commentator? Was that fun and did you enjoy it?
Sexton: Yeah, it was. I’ve obviously watched MXGP, maybe not every week, but most weeks, and he does a great job. It’s crazy, it’s only him all day, and it’s impressive, even though I just watched him do it when I was in there. He’s got so many buttons, he’s got people talking in his ear. It is small in there too – we were shoulder to shoulder but it was cool. I haven’t done much broadcasting, but I think I did okay. So I guess you guys will tell and if I did bad – you can let me know. But no, it was fun, something different, and something to get excited for today. I mean, obviously watching Tom was exciting, but it got my adrenaline up a little bit going in there, so it was fun.
GateDrop: I know you’ve only been here a few days, but what’s your thoughts on the Netherlands and Belgium area? You got lucky enough with pretty good weather, but in the winter time here, it’s cold, man (laughs).
Sexton: I actually enjoy it. Weather-wise, very similar to fall weather where I grew up in the United States. Also the landscape, we have a lot of cornfields and forests where I grew up, and I was surprised to see cornfields in Europe. I mean, again, I’m very uncultured when it comes to getting out of the United States, so when I got to see the cornfields, I felt like I was at home, which is nice. I get to stay one more night here and then we go to France, so I’ll see something completely different, I’m assuming. I have got a good tour guide next week, so we’ll see.
GateDrop: Obviously you’re injured, it is not what any motocross rider wants, but how motivated are you to get back and get back to your best? I don’t know why, you seem to get a load of sh*t because you wash the front a lot. I mean, you’re an unbelievable rider, and you’d be right at the front there in the AMA Pro motocross series if you were fit, there’s no doubt about that!
Sexton: I’m very motivated. I think obviously this year was tough. Going from winning lots of races in a year to winning only two is not ideal but I’m very motivated. Even after watching this weekend, it kind of gets the fire back ignited and take some of the stuff I learned and try and take it to the US, but we’ll see next year. See you in 2027. T
GateDrop: Hopefully we’ll see you here in the future?
Sexton: Yeah, maybe, we’ll see.
