Triple Chaos

Finally, less mud, but it was raining boos for Lawrence in opening ceremonies. Wow, that happened fast. The Triple Crown race saw major speed from Jason Anderson, a key race win for Eli Tomac, more crashes for Lawrence and a consistent victory for Webb. 

Detroit Rocked City

Lawrence was back to winning, but the bigger story was Tomac’s massive fade from the front to a lap down, and the requisite “is he done/is he going to retire/is he scared/is he hurt/is his shock broken” questions from every pundit and fan.

Glendale

A popular victory for Ken Roczen, but this year only the second-most-popular win behind Plessinger’s triumph. In 2023, Kenny’s Suzuki win was the feel-good of the year. Also, Lawrence passed Tomac and tried to explain that no one should read into it because Tomac isn’t quite at full capacity, but he phrased it as “Not the beast he was” and that seemed to be taken as an insult to Tomac.

Arlington

Cooper Webb usually does Cooper Webb things in Arlington, and he did it again this time, but was it his pressure that made Jett Lawrence crash, or just Jett making a mistake? Either way, Webb won, and then Jett ran into lapped rider Vince Friese (always… there) trying to get Webb back and crashed again. This let Tomac, riding much more like the beast he was, charge all the way to second. It looked like that beast was awakened and the points were historically close heading into Daytona. Where the GOAT says the series begins and Tomac usually does his best work. How exciting!

The Run

Oh wow. Lawrence simply rolled up on Sexton and Tomac and beat ‘em on a gnarly Daytona track. In a world always looking for quick narratives and symbolism, it was all too easy to see this race as the changing of the guard. When Lawrence then held off a determined Webb charge in Birmingham and swept a Triple Crown in Indy, he had, in three weekends, beaten guys at their best tracks, in their best scenarios and his worst format. It became even easier to run that changing of the guard stuff. When was he going to lose again? Also: A Monster Girl was standing on the track in Birmingham! Maybe this season would not be like the others.

Seattle Slew

Lawrence’s speed worked against him in Seattle, when he ran into the back of Webb in the sand and crashed. Still some rookie errors there. This let Webb and Sexton have at it in a brilliant duel, the kind Webb usually wins. And he did, despite pumped up arms that were, ahem, “As hard as morning wood.”

Bam Crossed

Another Triple Crown, and maybe quadruple the chaos. First, Tomac is suddenly back again, apparently he had an ankle injury for a bit. He wins race one. Perhaps more importantly, he runs close to Lawrence for a bit in the second race, proving he’s still got some speed for the kid. Those few minutes alone changed the story from “Tomac is diminished” to “Tomac just needs a proper off season of training.” This narrative was not just for the storytellers, either, because soon rumors of a Tomac return in 2025 began to circulate.

The rest of the race? Oh, Lawrence won race two but was part of a ton of guys who jumped on a red cross flag at the finish, and a ton of penalties. The bigger penalty was a massive hit on Lawrence from Justin Barcia in the third race. Someone should have gotten hurt there, but what it did do was damage Jett’s points lead. Tomac ended up with a 1-1-1 sweep and 52^nd career win. Webb salvaged a podium and suddenly was back in the title fight.

Cooper Man

Webb was the total package in Foxboro, ripping in practice (not normally his thing) and winning the main. Lawrence got a bad start and finished fifth (after Tomac hung on his rear wheel for a bit, again… let’s talk 2025, right?) and just like that, changing of the guard changed to Webb is a mercenary.

Crashville

Everyone loves Nashville these days, but boy does it hurt the next morning. Same with Monster Energy AMA Supercross, which writes its own country music style hard luck story every year at Nissan Stadium. Ever wonder what it would look like to go through whoops without a shock? Yeah, see Ken Roczen. Chase Sexton also had a freak mechanical issue, where his throttle stuck on the take off of a jump. Neither rider finished the main, where Lawrence won it and Webb didn’t have it which reset the story on the points.

Brotherly Love

First time ever, two brothers go 1-2 in the premier class at a supercross (via Jett and Hunter Lawrence). But this story of Brotherly Love was not told in Philadelphia but rather Denver. Jett also won Philly, though, and Webb, again, didn’t have it. The real story was that he had hurt his thumb earlier, and a love tap from Anderson in The City of Brotherly love did not help. By then, Webb was barely hanging on, physically and mathematically. Also, everyone who wanted the ultimate comeback story of Tomac winning in Denver instead got Eli hurting his own thumb in Denver. My how quickly things can change. Again.

Wrap

It took the whole season for Chase Sexton to finally find Chase Sexton speed, but he looked quick in Denver and then rolled in Salt Lake City. Of course, Jett wasn’t trying to win that one, he was just cruising to a title, but Webb fought Jett hard with the nine fingers he had, even hitting him in turn one of the heat race. Then Hunter Lawrence and Anderson had more run ins, Jett took a chance on his title to throw Anderson some more love, and it all ended the way it started, with Jett as the points leader, and this time, as champion. From mud to crashes to comebacks to penalties to on-track aggression, blown shocks and chasing the cowboy around, this one had it all.