Breakdown: Arlington

We saw some passing taking place in the whoops throughout the night. What were the different line choices in that section, and how did they change over the course of the night?
It came down to two choices, as usual. To jump or blitz is the decade-long choice in whoops. That choice becomes pivotal in the main event as the whoops have deteriorated. In those key laps, the blitzing line is losing effectiveness, and the jump line is finding its footing. Cooper Webb is often the rider that many look to for when to transition. Marvin Musquin was in this category also. Blitzing is not their strength, so they were always on the front end of testing the jump line for proficiency.

Arlington’s main events were no different as Haiden Deegan and Austin Forkner were each utilizing both strategies. Deegan made up time when Forkner was starting to struggle with the blitz. Conversely, if Forkner nailed the whoops, he could use it to his advantage. It was a yo-yo each lap. In the 450 main, the same dynamic emerged as Webb was jumping through on the right side (the preferable jumping line all day and night) while Jett Lawrence was blitzing to the left/middle. The longer the race went, the jumping line seemed to become more and more ideal.

One other aspect of this that’s often not talked about is the fatigue factor. Jumping through whoops is fairly easy on riders. They are able to breathe and use rhythm to keep their heart rates sustainable. Blitzing is much more taxing, and most riders hold their breath while blitzing, causing a heart rate spike when finally back to rhythmic breathing. Further, riders have to grip the motorcycle tightly with both arms and legs while blitzing, using more energy than simply jumping a few times through. Blitzing is often much faster so it’s preferred in neutral conditions but if both lines are the same on the stopwatch, jumping can save a lot of energy.

The rhythm lanes seemed to present different options, and the guys weren’t all doing the same combos all night. What were some of the lines you saw, and what were their strengths and weaknesses?
The ideal choices were pretty clear, but the difficulty was in the conditions. To do the fastest line, riders had to execute perfectly. If you saw a rider opt for a different rhythm, it was usually because of a slight mistake that forced a change. The ruts exiting the corners were mostly to blame for the mistakes but the section where Forkner crashed was another dynamic. If you didn’t clear the tabletop smoothly, doing the next triple was not easily accomplished. Those who refused to back out of it had big moments as Justin Barcia, Tom Vialle, and Forkner all had huge crashes here throughout the day and night. Sometimes caution is the better part of valor when things are spiraling out of control.

Brock Papi, Hardy Munoz, and Gage Linville put on a three-way duel to the death in their 250SX heat. When’s the last time you saw a battle that hard in a heat race, and were you surprised nobody put each other in the cheap seats?
It was great! These 250 riders are all heart and not much experience. The funniest part is that they weren’t even battling for a transfer position! Linville had stolen that and was trying to exit the scene as those two were punishing each other. I learned a lesson long ago that the best idea is to move forward and turn in the best possible lap time. The opportunities that pop up are hard to anticipate. Slowing each other and knocking people into the next lane, missing the rhythm sections, etc., all just push you further and further behind the pack. The goal should have been to get Linville back and move forward, not get trapped into a two-man war for tenth.

Tom Vialle got on the podium in Arlington. We’re only two rounds into the 250SX East Region Championship but are you seeing an improved Vialle in supercross in 2024?
It’s been a mixed bag. We didn’t get to see much of anything in Detroit after his first turn crash. He had a huge crash in qualifying at Arlington and I wasn’t sure if he would even race that night. The other side of that is a podium at round two and a solid move forward to get there. Surely he’s making strides but I am not sold that he’s a week-in-week-out podium guy, either.

Austin Forkner had a nasty crash while leading deep into the main event. The crash happened so fast it was difficult to even see what happened. What was the catalyst for that unfortunate event?
Getting over that tabletop was tricky and leading up to it, you saw riders wheelie into the transition. That wheelie was to get over the small bump and allow riders to fully compress into the take-off, creating the “pop” or heigh they would want. The idea here is to get height, not necessarily distance, which is the opposite of the normal goal. That height will allow them to set both tires on the downside of the tabletop and then drive into the next triple. Too much distance without the “pop” (height) would cause them to either clip the tabletop (Forkner did this) or overjump the tabletop completely and land flat in the transition between jumps. Both of those are a problem and would usually cause riders to land on both brakes in hopes of riding out the mishap.

As Forkner was leading the race, he decided to simply stay in it and try to manage the risk. He clipped the top of the tabletop and that hurled him into the next takeoff with far too much speed. The impact into the next jump blew his hand off the handlebars and off he went. The only real chance of saving this was to land with both brakes on and ride out the scenario. He likely loses a few seconds and possibly the lead, but probably doesn’t crash. It was a split-second decision and when leading, most will choose to assume the risk because, well, they’re winning the main event! This time it simply didn’t work. The tabletop was too tall and the impact to the next jump too severe.

Malcolm Stewart looked spicy all night! Unfortunately, he crashed early in the 450SX main and had to charge back from last, but all in all, was this a good night for Stewart? The speed was there!
He’s definitely improving and that’s all you can ask for at this stage. The heat race was a marked difference in what we have seen. That entire Rockstar Energy Husqvarna 450 program simply needs to see light at the end of the tunnel, and I think they got a glimpse Saturday night. Daytona is Malcolm’s home race and leans into his skillset. It’s a great chance to turn the ship around.

We saw Jett Lawrence get into Jason Anderson a little bit in their heat race, followed by Lawrence dropping back a few seconds for a bit. Was he just regrouping or was he looking to avoid any sort of payback from Anderson?
When Jett ran into JA21, he missed the next double and following triple because of it. The TV cameras missed most of that, but it was just due to the impact exiting that corner. Missing those jumps allowed Malcolm by and created more work for the #18. In the end, he made it happen and got back to the front.

Speaking of Lawrence, he crashed while on his way to collecting another main event win. Webb then took over the race lead and won. Take us through that Jett Lawrence crash while he was leading.
Stepping over that tabletop created momentum that drove riders to the outside (right side) of the rhythm lane. The take-off was around a bend, so riders had to fight to stay left in the air. Jett simply got a little offline and allowed himself to drift right a little too much. That put him right on top of a Tuff Block and into the dirt. He really didn’t make much of a mistake other than drifting a few inches too far right. That’s what this game is, though, a matter of inches.

We’ve seen Eli Tomac light the burners and access an insane level of speed plenty of times in the past, but it’s not something we’d seen in 2024 until Arlington, where he looked a lot like his former self in the second half of the main event. What’d you make of Tomac’s performance, and is this a sign that he’s back?
I heard they made big strides during the week off with his comfort level. I was curious to see if that would show up on the racetrack and it most certainly did. Eli looked like himself all night and without a crash, certainly would have been in the mix to win. If he can find this level every week, he will be in this title fight. The key is consistency in his performance. He can’t drop in rides like Detroit and expect to be within striking distance late in the series. He needs to throw in a few wins and be an every week podium guy. Daytona is a great place to kick off momentum, too.

A win is a win, no matter how you get it, but Cooper Webb knows he got some help from Lawrence in that 450SX main. Does getting a win like that still boost one’s confidence moving forward?
He did get some help, sure, but he was holding serve for most of the main event. I still think we need that signature Webb moment to cement this series, but he’s sitting a few points down and has two wins. He had a very tough afternoon and fought through that to get his sixth win. He’s proving that he can find ways to win and hang around on the nights where things don’t go perfectly. The seventh in Glendale was a bit concerning and can’t become a habit but otherwise, things look good here.