MXGP 26 Scrub and Whip Guide: Free Air Control Explained
Air control is the biggest change in MXGP 26. Nacon promised “better air control” and full free control of whips and scrubs once assists are off. Launch players agree it is free, but disagree on whether it feels real.
Turn the air assists off first
On the Amateur profile the game helps a lot in the air. That keeps you upright but takes the whip and scrub out of your hands. Move up the profiles, or switch the air assists off individually, before practising anything on this page. A Spanish reviewer sums up the result: the whips are really free, so you can throw terrible ones or great ones depending on your input.
Scrubbing
A scrub keeps the bike low over a jump so you spend less time in the air. With assists off:
- Approach the face of the jump with steady throttle.
- Lean and steer the bike sideways as the wheels leave the lip, so the bike stays low and flat.
- Straighten up before landing and be on the throttle as the rear wheel touches.
The James, Is That You? achievement asks for a scrub that stays 1 metre or lower over a bump. About 17% of players had it on launch day, so it is very doable once the assists are off. Smaller, rounder jumps are easier to keep low than big step-ups.
Whipping
A whip throws the back of the bike sideways in the air for style. In MXGP 26 you can keep rotating the bike in mid-air, which one reviewer points out is not how a real whip works: real bikes want to straighten out because of the spinning wheels. Treat it as the game’s own rule. Start the whip early, and start bringing it back before the top of the arc so you land straight.
Why the bike feels light in the air
At least seven launch reviews say the bike feels too light once airborne, even though it feels heavy in corners. That is how it ships. The practical effect: small inputs in the air have a big effect, so make them smaller than in MXGP 2021 or MX Bikes. The first hotfix includes general “physics polish” without detail; we will update this page if air physics change.
Where to practise
- The Compound has jumps and ramps and no other riders.
- Time Attack lets you repeat the same jump every lap, and a gold badge unlocks Practice Makes Perfect.
- The Unicycle achievement (a 50 metre wheelie) is easiest on a long flat straight.
Next: cornering and ruts, the other half of riding this game well.
Cheers, noted for the next pass over this page.