Main image by Mitch Kendra
Welcome to Racerhead, coming to you from an off weekend for the AMA Pro Motocross Championship, but still a busy one. While the AMA riders are all getting a rest after four straight rounds, the FIM Motocross World Championship (MXGP) paddock is set up in Indonesia for the first of two rounds there, and the AMA Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Racing Series has one of its biggest rounds of the year at the Snowshoe Mountain Ski Resort here in West Virginia.
- MXGP
MXGP of Sumbawa (Indonesia)
Sunday, June 25
And we are one week away from the first FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX) round, which is in Birmingham in the UK next Saturday night. That's part of the reason Ken Roczen decided to jump back into outdoor motocross last weekend when he followed through on his hints earlier in the week that he would be lining up again, hoping to get a couple of gate drops in before heading to England, as well as adding some points to his SX/MX total for the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) in September. Roczen got a very warm welcome from the High Point faithful, and he turned around and rewarded them with the fastest qualifying lap in the morning, and then a spirited challenge in both motos to Team Honda HRC's Jett Lawrence. Kenny became the first rider to lead laps in premier class of Pro Motocross this season other than Jett, and he rode as if he had never stopped racing after the Salt Lake City SX finale.
Still, it wasn't enough to topple Lawrence, undefeated so far this summer. Despite losing his visor in both motos (and perhaps becoming the first rider ever to win two national motos on the same day without a helmet visor) Jett stayed perfect, coming from behind in both motos after some early issues. With the track bordering on muddy for much of the day after a couple of deluges on Friday, #18 has now won on four tracks that offered entirely different conditions. Yes, the field remains depleted, even with the return of Roczen, but Lawrence is doing more than enough each week to get the job done, no matter who's out there with him. And it's starting to sound like he's about to get more company, as his Honda teammate Chase Sexton is back on the bike down in Florida and possibly ready for RedBud next week, and Kawasaki's Jason Anderson also appears to be ready to jump back in. No matter, Jett seems up for anyone on his 450 right now.
Same can be said for older brother Hunter, who also won for the fourth straight overall race, and did it for the fourth straight time in uneven fashion, working his way up in the first 250 moto to a podium finish and then taking the second moto outright. It's strange how in all four rounds Jett and Hunter have had seemingly the same script each time. What Hunter may not have expected was the seven-point penalty he would be assessed afterwards for jumping on the red lights and red cross flags after Suzuki privateer Cory Carsten went down in between a blind uphill step-up. Lawrence did a double take when he landed, looking back over his shoulder to see the flag waving (and lights were on either side of the takeoff jump). Needless to say he was not happy, but he did leave High Point with an even bigger points lead. Hunter was 16 clear of Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Justin Cooper, but Cooper had a scary crash in qualifying and injured his neck. Luckily, Cooper is doing okay now and even might lineup in Michigan next weekend. Hunter now has a 28-point lead on Haiden Deegan, Cooper's teammate, who had a solid day, despite an early crash, just like Hunter had in the first moto. More on Deegan's day down below.
All in all, the High Point National was a big one. A staple on the schedule since 1977 (with the exception of 2020's COVID-19 crazy schedule) this was probably the biggest crowd ever, despite the rough weather on Friday raining out amateur day as well as press day’s on track riding session. The track was in excellent shape until it rained, and because it was dug deep expecting a single early-morning storm and not the late-afternoon one, it was muddier than it should have been early in the day. By the end it was its difficult and complicated self, with lots of lines, ruts, berms, everything. (I could tell it was a good track by the look on Tom Vialle's dad's face after he finished second in the second moto, his best finish yet in America, and Fred smiled and said, "So many lines!" as he headed to the podium.)
That reminds me: There were a couple of really interesting stats that came out of this race, and not just another Lawrence brothers' romp. In both divisions, the second-motor podiums were all international: Australia, France, and Japan in the 250 class and Australia, Germany, and France in the 450 class. I don't think that's ever been done before.
The other stat was a bummer for Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX Yamaha's Garrett Marchbanks, who had an incredible ride in the first moto and inherited a career-best second when Kenny fell towards the end and then took a while to kickstart his Suzuki back to life. Marchbanks would have to pitstop on the first lap in the second moto and have to come from 37th to 8th at the finish. But with Roczen going 7-2 for 36 points, Kawasaki's Adam Cianciarulo 4-4 (36), a rejuvenated Dylan Ferrandis 6-3 (35), and Red Bull KTM's Cooper Webb 3-6 (35), Marchbanks 2-8 totaled him out at 35 points and left him an unfortunate seventh overall! The whole Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX team must feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick that field goal, only to have Lucy move the ball, again and again and again...
Read: Registration Open For 2023 AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship
And lastly, check out the latest FMF drop, which includes a Racer X throwback t-shirt and the Pro Motocross souvenir program!
Versatility Game (Jason Weigandt)
Sometimes we take for granted just how versatile, and good, pro riders in this sport really are. For Father’s Day weekend, I brought my son Lane, age eight, to High Point Raceway, and even brought his bikes so he could do some riding. Shoutout to the legendary Jeff Cernic for hooking us up with fresh Dunlops via his MX Tire truck, but unfortunately Friday’s open practice was rained out, so we stuck around to race on Sunday. It was still a little soft and rutted, more than he’s used to, so he struggled. He did worse at High Point than he did at the KTM Jr. SX Challenge in Denver a month ago! Yeah, the steep jumps are still tough, but I’d argue ruts, mud, and hills are just as hard, or at least the same level challenge. Think about watching Ken Roczen or Jett Lawrence rolling through those High Point hills, in peg-deep ruts, in thick mud with shiny, slick soil underneath. Adam Cianciarulo, as usual, summed it up well: “On a track like this if your mind wanders for one second you can find yourself on the ground. It’s really hard to not let any outside thoughts at all come into your head the whole time.”
It's amazing when you think of how different the challenge is from supercross to motocross. Going triple-quad or blitzing whoops is a completely different skill compared to staying locked into a long, deep rut in the mud. I’d argue that it borders on two different sports, but yet when you watch a high-end racer tackle it, they nail them both with incredible precision. Us weekend warriors couldn’t handle a supercross track, we also couldn’t handle those High Point conditions without making a thousand mistakes, and certainly not for 30 minutes. Sometimes you have to step back, realize how varied the challenges during the season, and really tip your cap to the boys. Then in a few weeks we’ll watch racing at Southwick, which is a totally different challenge, and yet they’ll nail that, also. It’s amazing.
On a final note there, kudos to my son for hanging in there in the booth during a five-hour show without losing his mind and messing us all up. I probably bit off more than I could chew there, but we survived!
It was awesome to get Roczen back out there and he really overdelivered for the fans. I wasn’t sure how he’d do with so little prep time on the Suzuki, which he’d never raced outdoors (yes, Suzuki actually did change the bike since the last time Ken raced one in 2016, and also his 2016 bike had tons of works technology from Japan. That’s not the case with his Progressive/Ectsar team.) Anyway, he crushed it and kept it interesting. Of course, Jett Lawrence still won, and the all-time level brother domination continues. Has any sport ever seen something like this? Maybe the Williams sisters in tennis? It’s unbelievable, and huge credit to the brothers and their family and crew for reaching these heights. Can we get the mainstream media to take note of this?
During practice at High Point, I had a quick chat with Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Bruce Stjernstrom regarding Jason Anderson, and he said there’s a chance he’s back for RedBud. Really hoping Chase Sexton, seeing how Roczen performed, returns as well. There’s real motivation for these guys with the $5.5 million SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) playoffs coming in September, so any 450 rider who just sits on the couch—if fully healthy—is leaving a lot of money on the table. So, they need to come back. See them at RedBud? That would be awesome.
The Graduate (DC)
Last Saturday afternoon, just before the start of the first 250 moto, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Haiden Deegan went to the podium and received his high school diploma. Deegan has been a student of Andrea Leib's On Track School for several years (and is apparently a very good student). The 17-year-old was one of several On Track students or graduates who made a nice dent in the results last Saturday. Deegan qualified fastest in the morning, followed by another On Tracker in Matti Jorgensen, who topped both of the 250 B Group practice sessions. Deegan also led late into the first moto before a last-lap pass by RJ Hampshire. In the second moto Haiden went down early, got back up second-to-last, and then passed 33 riders to finish sixth, giving him third overall. So not a bad day—he started it on the podium with graduation and ended there with a third overall finish.
Love it or hate it, home-schooling is a thing in our sport. I have long been an advocate of staying in school, public or private, but I've never had to make a decision about my kids' futures because neither wanted to try to make it in the sport of motocross (though even as I type this, I am at a summer volleyball tournament with my daughter). But ever since On Track came along, I have watched how Andrea and all or her fellow teachers and educators have worked to make the program as much of a classroom/community as possible. They use the big amateur races as a sort of moveable classroom as possible, setting up regular meetings with students and their parents as often as possible. They include social functions too, which offer the kids a chance to all catch up and hang out and not feel like they are not alone in their schooling journey. They even have a prom at Loretta Lynn's mansion every summer. (And remember, when a family decides to pursue a sport like motocross, there's often more than just the athlete to consider, as brothers and sisters usually have to drop out of public school as well if they go on the road.)
I know there are critics who don't think any type of "homeschool" is a legitimate program (but note, On Track's school is not homeschooling it's virtual schooling with real teachers, only done completely remotely) or that we should not be highlighting it the way we did at High Point by inviting Haiden Deegan to put on his cap and gown and graduate in front of a massive motocross crowd (I'm looking at you, Matthes) but the kid worked hard to graduate early and with very good grades. Homeschooling and online schooling are a part of every sport—in last night's NBA Draft only one of the first five players selected ever went to college, and he only went for a single year at that—and while it may not be for everyone, it's a fact of academic and sporting life now. On Track knows the moto space well—Andrea's son Michael Leib was a professional racer and now owns Canvas MX with his brother-in-law Ryan Villopoto, and her husband Don ran Rocket Exhaust—and they take their mission very seriously. You can learn more about how it all works at www.ontrackschool.com.
Launch Pads (DC)
With the addition of metal starting grates to the AMA Pro Motocross Championship there has been a lot of talk about whether these new grids, along with advancements in engine-mapping, as well as holeshot devices, handlebar lights for shift points, and more, make the starts too close. We saw a big crash in the first turn of the last 450 moto at Hangtown, as well as a chain reaction crash halfway up the start hill in the first 250 moto at Thunder Valley. Some say it's because the bikes are more even coming off the gate, and unlike Monster Energy AMA Supercross and most FIM Motocross World Championship (MXGP) races, both of which also use metal grates, there are 40 of them off every start outdoors. As I wrote last week, we still don't have enough data to determine if those two unfortunate crashes (or any others) were caused by the new launch pads, but we are keeping an eye on them. In the meantime, Pro Motocross Commissioner Roy Janson came up with a suggestion for the team managers meeting that takes place every Tuesday via Zoom: If starting on dirt in existing and uneven ruts somehow thinned the field right off the gate, or metal grates took away the art of picking and packing your spot behind the gate, why not leave the ruts in front of the starting gate that form throughout the day? In other words, rather than tractor in and smooth out the starting line right up to the gate before each moto, smooth it out once after the last practice and then leave whatever ruts form off the starting gate for the first 15 or 20 feet...
These were shot from either side of the dog house after the last 450 moto at High Point.
So we decided to try it at High Point last Saturday. Following the eighth and final practice/timed qualifying session (second 450 B) they smoothed and disked up the dirt in front of the starting gate, and then left the dirt untouched for about 20 feet after the starting gate. (In both AMA Motocross and Supercross no rider or mechanic or crew member is allowed to manicure the dirt in front of the starting gate.) Starting with the two LCQ races and including the sighting lap and then the start of each of the four motos, ruts form off of each gate as the day went on. Some of the riders complained that some of the ruts were uneven or not completely straight, but that was the point—put a little strategy back into gate picks and also let the pack thin out quicker according to the dynamic conditions.
How did it work out? There were still a couple of first-turn spills, but that was probably more about the muddy conditions than the first 20 feet off the starting gate. We're planning on trying to this again at RedBud, and it should really shake things up at Southwick if the majority decision is to continue to let the ruts off the starting gate form naturally.
Ricky's Back (DC)
Exactly 20 years ago Ricky Carmichael basically helped save the High Point National. The old AMA Pro Racing—the one in Ohio, also known as Paradama—had sent my mother Rita a letter stating that there was one year left on the contract for the High Point National and that was it, it would not be getting a renewal. Several other national tracks got the same letter as AMA Pro Racing flirted with the idea of running some races themselves. Needless to say, all of the promoters fought back, my mother included. So did some of the riders. After Ricky won the 2003 High Point National, he stopped on his celebration lap atop the big double-jump (now known as the Windham Double) where Team Honda advisor and close friend Jeff Stanton was standing, and together they help up a banner Jeff had borrowed from a group of infield fans that read "Save High Point!" It popped up on TV as well as in Cycle News and pretty soon there was some real pushback to the Paradama plan to go into the promoting business as a for-profit subsidiary of the non-profit AMA.
So anytime Ricky comes back to High Point it's a cool deal, and because he won there a bunch of times, the fans love seeing him. With he and James Stewart splitting up the work as color commentators this season, James decided to sit this one out, so RC ended up in the booth with Jason Weigandt. In between motos and coverage the GOAT would venture out for a few moments, and a couple of folks who have long wanted to hook up with him finally got the chance. First was local racer and vintage builder Luke Louder, who has a perfect Carmichael-replica 2001 Kawasaki KX250 which he brought out to the Big Dave Vet Homecoming race last year. He has long wanted RC himself to sign the number plate of his gem, and Ricky obliged and took a few photos with Luke and his bike.
And then Juan Garcia, a Lego master artist who often does really cool renditions of Racer X Illustrated magazine covers, built a miniature Ricky for his Instagram feed @legomotox and finally got the chance to give Carmichael the bike, and also get some signatures on some of the previous work he's done.
Anyway, it was great to have the GOAT back at High Point for the first time in a while and to also hear him commentate with our man Weege. The High Point faithful always appreciate the GOAT, who often won this race, and also helped save it.
Holeshot Club (DC)
If you were paying attention before the start of the last 450 moto you might have noticed a whole throng of people down there behind the starting gate as the riders were lining up. It was part of an impromptu "holeshot club" tour that MX Sports' Tim Cotter decided to put together for some folks in the First Class zone, borrowing an idea from Monster Energy AMA Supercross. He gathered up anyone who was in that area and wanted to check out the starting gate and the metal grates and just be down on the track as the riders were going to the starting line. When they took off on their sighting lap Cotter guided everyone back up the hill and into the spectator area. Not sure if any of the riders or mechanics minded, but it did draw the ire of some of the race officials who were not expecting a guided tour just before the last race of the day!
Two-Strokes (DC)
Kind of a funny viral deal has sprung up surrounding the Washougal National. Local hero and all-around-excellent rider Carson Brown has decided to enter the 450 class on a two-stroke 250, which led @moto_memess of IG fame to offer $5,000 to anyone who can beat Brown on a two-stroke, no matter where they finish in the actual race. And when Brown's friend Jett Lawrence saw that, he pledged $5,000 as well, via @jettsondonuts. And that was soon matched by @motosportinc as well. With the FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX) round that is scheduled for that date in Lyon, France, apparently not happening, a few fast guys that aren't racing the AMA Pro Motocross, like Joey Savatgy, are flirting with the idea of showing up at Washougal on a two-stroke 250 and taking on this Carson Brown two-stroke challenge or whatever it’s called. This could get interesting... Wonder if Ken Roczen can get that sweet YZ250 he rode at Red Bull Straight Rhythm back from Ping? And if Savatgy can't get Ricky to give up his actual old race bike, we've got a replica version sitting in the Racer X lobby he can borrow!
And if you check out Moto Memes' post below, KTM, GasGas, AND Husqvarna have commented all said they will donate $5,000 to the top-placing two-stroke finisher on their own respective brand!
"Here at Moto Memess, we’re super into investments with zero return. Throwing $5k to the top placing two stroke in the 450 class at Washougal couldn’t be more perfect. It’s cool to see that @motosportinc also hates return on investment and they’ve matched our $5k. Dreams do come true… not for us, just the guy who gets like 36th on a two stroke."
2023 High Point | Ken Roczen Joins Best Post-Race Show Ever
Most Dominant Brothers Ever?! | Jett & Hunter Supercross All-Access
GoPro: YZ250 + South of the Border's Sand Track
Track map for next weekend's WSX in Birmingham
Head-Scratching Headline/s of the Week
“Absolutely Ridiculous (Aria) Names Kevin Culley Chief Operating Officer”
“Bowling Scandal: Stephen F. Austin's Assistant Coach Had An Affair With A Player While His Wife Was The Head Coach And The Quotes He Gave To Defend Himself Will Blow You Away" - Barstool Sports
Random Notes
Save a thought and a prayer and a get-well-soon for longtime Pennsylvania moto enthusiast Curt Casper, who has been battling a serious illness that seemed to take a turn for the worse this week. Curt is a regular at High Point Raceway and all Western Pennsylvania events, as well as one of our local motocross historians. Get well soon, Curt!
One of the biggest vintage bike enthusiasts in the world is Western Pennsylvania's own Jimmy Stokes. He has an arsenal of old-school motorcycles and memorabilia and is a regular on the east coast vintage circuit. Check out the T-shirt he wore at High Point that the folks at Dutch Sport Park made for him, featuring his own flying beard and bike!
For the latest from Canada, check out DMX Frid’EH Update #25.
Thanks for reading Racerhead. See you at the races.