Former double MX2 World Champion Jeffrey Herlings could be back on a motorcycle for the first time since dislocating his hip in the Grand Prix of Czech Republic in July in a little over a week.

The Dutchman is waiting for clearance from medical specialists before being able to twist a throttle again and has been exercising and dealing with the final stages of his rehab and recovery in the last few weeks.

Red Bull KTM have already started 2016 testing with new MXGP recruit Glenn Coldenhoff and 2015 MX2 runner-up Pauls Jonass on the revised 250SX-F. Herlings is expected to get up to speed with the team ahead of his sixth season with the factory crew. The bike and the class for the 21 year old are still up in the air.

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Herlings insists that he wants to return to the fitness and form of 2013 and his second championship term and the MX2 class would be the easiest and simplest way to do that on a bike he knows intimately. He is also toying with a fresh challenge of jumping into the premier category and a long awaited MXGP debut that could happen with the 350 or the 450SX-F.

“If I stay in the [MX2] class then I have my reasons,” he said exclusively. “I have been off the bike for 12 of the last 18 months. If I go to MXGP then I have my reasons for that as well. Sure I want to go up and fight the big dogs but after some bad injuries it is hard to say right now ‘I’m doing that…’. If I had a perfect preparation [for 2016] then I think I would be in MXGP but it depends on the doctor and what he says. If he says my hip isn’t still right and I need some more time then it is not realistic after so much time off to go to MXGP where I will have to get used to a brand new bike.”

“I don’t think that decision will come in the next few weeks but when I start riding,” he added.