There is a long, flat 180 at the far end of the speedway (nearest turn one of the oval) that leads into a big double on the actual speedway itself. That sends riders into a switchback set of 180s that will probably be mostly follow-the-leader on the insides.

Exiting the 180, there is a snaking section of doubles that winds under the bridge. Riders will try to “straighten” this snaking section, allowing for the most momentum possible. After going through the over/under bridge, riders navigate a sand section before crossing the start diagonally.

A single jump sends riders into another sand section and watch for riders to absolutely send it here. The main focus is finding a bump that allows a smooth landing and continued momentum.

Next up is an elevated 90-degree right hand corner, followed by a small double and a left hand 90 that leads riders down pit lane. A big step up double greets riders exiting the corner (same section of the speedway as Cameron McAdoo’s huge crash in 2021) and then four single jumps that will likely be tripled at minimum.

A 180 left brings riders back from the far side of the speedway and into a rhythm section. This rhythm will be interesting as there are 10 jumps that are mostly the same. Riders will be able to get a bit creative here, putting triples together.

A slight bend to the left meets a wall jump, designed to slow the track down. As riders accelerate down the backside, there is the first set of two SX whoop sections there to greet them. Exiting these with speed will matter as there is a fast straightaway (down the start backwards) right after the last whoop.

That straight bends into a tight 180 right and immediately into another set of SX whoops. These whoops have proven critical in prior years and are very similar to the setup in 2021 (albeit the opposite direction).

Exiting the whoops dumps riders back into the first corner and on their way to lap two.

Who’s Hot

Eli. Tomac. He has been lights out at Glendale and made good on that trend again on Saturday. He now holds a seven-point lead in the title fight.

Justin Barcia is much better than I expected in 2023. I didn’t really have any set expectation, to be fair, but he is a very good version of himself right now.

Chase Sexton can be the best rider in this class when things are clicking. His race two win in Arizona was evidence of that. His mistakes are well chronicled, though.

Jett Lawrence finally broke the Triple Crown jinx with a 1-3-1 for the overall win. I would guess there was a lot of outward downplaying of the significance going in, but I can tell you, there was a distinct sigh of relief on the podium.

RJ Hampshire racked up another runner-up finish, winning race two along the way. He’s dealing with a freakazoid talent in Jett, but his 2023 consistency and pace are nothing to sneeze at.

Levi Kitchen continues to develop, lining himself up to be a legitimate title threat moving forward.

Enzo Lopes has become a top five mainstay and finds himself in a war for third in this championship.