Nothing is certain in racing. Just a few short weeks ago the 250SX West Region class of Monster Energy AMA Supercross seemingly belonged to Levi Kitchen. The Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider was in firm control, winning at will and enjoying a comfortable points buffer. Then it all went south in Nashville when Kitchen crashed hard, eventually finishing 14th and taking a trip to the hospital afterward. The benefactor? RJ Hampshire, who did exactly what he needed to do by winning when it mattered most, and in a stacked East/West Showdown, to take ownership of the lead by two points over Kitchen. Now, both racers are coming into a critical round in Denver, dead set on being the one who lights the torches and heads into the finale with the points lead.
“I feel good, especially now that I just got some laps under my belt,” Kitchen said while sitting on his bike in Denver, immediately following press day riding sessions on Friday. “The track is pretty fun and I feel really good after the weekend off. I’m back to 100 percent and the ribs are good. The main concern was that I was spitting up blood, which is why I went to the hospital. It felt like broken ribs, which I’ve had before. It felt like a UFC fighter punched me in the chest.”
Hampshire, when asked about the turnaround in Nashville, simply explained it was just his night.
“I was the fastest guy all day, no matter what happened behind me,” Hampshire answered when asked about his night in Nashville. “I’ve had my bad races, I had a couple early on, it happens. It just so happened that it happened to Levi on a night when I was on. The swing in points was massive, and that just goes to show you how fast it can change. Now I’m here in Denver and the goal is the same—I need to win.”
Kitchen shares the same sentiment on winning, and says his incident in Nashville hasn’t changed anything, other than the points, of course.
“Nashville was just one of those things. Stuff happens,” Kitchen explained. “Look at the races before, I just need to come in with that same confidence. I felt like I was that guy then, and I feel like I’m that guy now. I just need to put my head down and get up front. That’s it. Not having the points buffer doesn’t matter. It didn’t change how I rode when I had it, and it doesn’t now. I’m just going to go out there, do my laps, and do my best to win. I just want to win. The bike is ripping up here at elevation and I’m confident.”
| Position | Rider | Hometown | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  R.J. Hampshire | Hudson, FL  | 208 |
| 2 |  Levi Kitchen | Washougal, WA | 203 |
| 3 |  Jordon Smith | Belmont, NC | 185 |
| 4 |  Jo Shimoda | Suzuka, Japan  | 181 |
| 5 |  Nate Thrasher | Livingston, TN | 123 |
Confidence is something Hampshire is riding with too, citing a bike change as one of the things that has helped him since Nashville.
“I got crushed in Seattle. I rode well in St. Louis and still got beat bad. I couldn’t do the same thing I was doing, I needed to change something,” Hampshire explained as he was waiting for his turn to spin laps on press day. “I felt like my intensity was higher during the week, and we changed something with the bike too. People would laugh if they actually knew what it was. So far I’m gelling really well with it. I can’t tell you about it, I’m usually open, but I’m going to keep this one a secret. I showed up in Nashville and raced with it and I’ve been riding every day with it since. We’ll be racing Denver with it. It’s a different racetrack. It’s got a different feel, the elevation is different, we’re using different gearing, it’s all different but the goal is the same.”
Clearly, both riders are here for one thing only. When asked what they worked on specifically to prepare for Denver, there were no surprises. Hampshire hammered starts, putting “a lot of thought and work into them,” while Kitchen worked on sprint speed. Kitchen did, however, make a small change to his days.
“It’s getting pretty hot in Florida, so I rode in the mornings and went fishing in the afternoons.”
Two points separate two riders. May the best man win come the next two Saturdays.
