Taylor Hammal enjoyed a memorable MXoN debut at Ernée as Team GB secured a solid seventh overall in France.
Hammal lined up alongside Ben Watson and Ben Mustoe for Team GB and quickly made an impression throughout the weekend, showing strong pace in the technical conditions at the iconic French circuit.
For Hammal, the atmosphere was one of the biggest highlights of the weekend, with thousands of passionate fans creating an unforgettable experience for the British rider.
“It’s just been amazing. I mean there’s a party going on down there, it’s just been insane. Sitting on the start line and seeing the crowd, it’s just mental. I know it’s in France but there’s a lot of British people here too. I have never experienced anything like this before. It’s amazing”.
Hammal thrives in Ernée conditions
The Ernée track also played into Hammal’s strengths, with the deep ruts and technical conditions providing the kind of challenge he enjoys.
“I loved the track. It suited me – these are my favourite conditions. The ruts and technical conditions, I love it”.
Team GB ultimately finished seventh overall, their best result at the Motocross of Nations in five years, and Hammal was proud of the contribution made by all three riders.
“I mean seventh overall for team GB, that’s the best we’ve done in five years I think. Both of the lads did well, we all counted towards that seventh. We all contributed towards it and it’s been awesome. Mark does a good job, he gets so much hate but there’s so much stuff that people don’t see. The rider is probably the least of his worries, really. It’s been amazing and for everyone supporting us it’s been awesome. I would love to say what I really think about everyone that was talking shit about us (laughs)”.
Hammal also had to fight hard throughout the weekend. After crashing at the start of Saturday’s qualifying race, he battled his way back to ninth and showed impressive pace.
“Definitely. Yesterday during the qualifying race I crashed at the start and came back to P9. I almost caught Reisulis on a factory Yamaha and Beaumer and all sorts. Today, the start was tricky. I got caught up again in the first moto but I came back to p15 so that was alright. The last one, it was terrible on my end but we did well”.
Selected MXGP rounds planned for 2027
Despite the pressure that comes with competing at an event as big as the MXoN, Hammal explained that he was simply focused on enjoying the experience. He feels the pressure he has dealt with throughout the 2026 season has also helped him thrive when the spotlight has been on him. For 2027, Hammal has inked a deal with SevenSeven2 Kawasaki.
“I don’t know, I am just enjoying it. Because I’ve been in the paddock before I guess that helps but for me I’ve no pressure. It doesn’t really matter to me if I’m in the paddock or not. It’s been good and I love it. This year I have thrived with the pressure. Being here it doesn’t get much bigger than this and I did one of my best performances on Saturday. I am just enjoying it”.
Attention now turns towards the winter and preparing for the 2027 season. Hammal is hoping to get some testing and training done during the off-season, although exactly what that will look like depends on the support available.
“I don’t know what the plans are for winter. It depends if they fork out some money for us to go to somewhere like Spain. They’re a great bunch of people so we’ll see what the plans are. I am going to take some time off now and then jump back into it sooner rather than later”.
Hammal also confirmed that he plans to contest selected MXGP rounds next season, with the British rider looking to target circuits that suit his strengths rather than committing to the entire championship.
“Definitely. I am going to do the MXGP rounds next year that suit me. There’s no point me going to somewhere like Latvia or Lommel. But tracks like this suit me so these are the kind of rounds I’ll try to do next year. I am looking forward to it”.
After an impressive MXoN debut and a strong showing for Team GB, Hammal heads into the winter with plenty of momentum and will be hoping to build on his performance when he returns to the track in 2027.
