Last August, veteran Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Eli Tomac spoke about deciding to stay on and hang around for another year for the entire 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship.
“I’m really happy on how long I’ve made it,” pointed out Tomac on what will be his 15th consecutive racing season come the drop of the gate at Angel Stadium this coming Saturday evening in Orange County, California. “To be honest, I didn’t see myself doing it past 30 years old. You’ve got to do what you love doing. I’ve always told myself that if I’m competitive, then I was going to keep going. It’s a little bit scary how fast 15 years goes by, but overall it has been a fantastic journey.”
Now at age 31 and putting the finishing touches on his testing and training for the 2025 season, Tomac has been putting in the time at 6,182ft of elevation at the Flying T Ranch in Cortez, Colorado, as well the 94-acre Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing compound in Cairo, Georgia.
“I would say I’ve done a little bit of training and testing at both the ranch and in Georgia in the past,” explained the two-time 450SX champion on his two front training approach this winter. “This year I’ve been down here in Florida a couple more weeks. This year I have basically spent most of December here in Florida and at the Star Racing’s facility. If I look back to last year, yes, I spent less time here. More time here this off-season. We’ve got a lot of tracks here and we’ve got great testing and a great setup for basically everything for getting ready for the season. It has been a good time with the team so far.’ You know there is a balance to everything, but this is all getting me into a really good race pace here. It just made sense to be in Georgia this time around, so yeah, all cylinders are going and man, the racing is going to be here before we know it.”
Tomac talked about the feelings and emotions he expects to feel come the walk into the Angel Stadium asphalt parking lot paddock area come this Saturday morning.
“Anaheim, it creeps up on you,” smiled Tomac of his Angel Stadium experience. “That’s just the way it is, but it’s awesome. There is nothing better than going racing, so I’m looking forward to it all. I can’t wait for it. I did some of those off-season races and had a great time doing that and then now all of a sudden, we are here at Anaheim 1. Man, it’s crazy how fast it comes around. It’s like, ‘Man, where did the time go?’ It’s been a great time doing it. I don’t know… I’ve just been healthy lately and I’ve just been having a blast doing it, so I want to keep my head on straight and continue strong.”
Having won the very first AMA Pro Racing event he competed in – the 2010 Hangtown National – Tomac has been charging and winning races for 15 years. All this withstanding, what still keeps Tomac focused and determined and even motivated.
“It’s just the love of racing. Basically, I’m not over it yet. I still enjoy it. I still have the passion for it and the burn for trying to better myself and just competing against all of the guys out there. Really, that’s all it comes down to is believing in yourself that you can still be competitive to try and win a race.
"Last year, you know of course I wanted more than one win. And it was just okay. It’s hard to really say what I should have done. Coming off of an injury like that was probably tougher than I expected or what I even thought it was going to be. And it was one of those things where you think you’re 100 percent, or almost fully healed, but in all reality you’re not until you actually get basically a year down the road. That’s what I realized. Once I was a full year down the road from that injury, it was like, ‘Oh wow, that last couple of percent really matters.’ And those things matter when you get to this level. And I guess we’re going to find out if that’s the truth, but that’s what I’m telling myself right now. Maybe my preparation time was short and that affected some of my results and maybe kept me from getting more wins. That was part of it, in my opinion. You need to stay focused. Very much. And if you’re off a tick with your health it just shows. It’s amazing when you do injure something, you don’t realize how much that little piece affects you, but it does. There is so much going on in trying to manhandle that motorcycle and basically just taming the beast. It is so critical to be healthy in this sport."
Tomac believes the talent runs deep and the competition will be fierce come the opening phase of the 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship.
“Yeah, everyone is going later and later, so the depth of the field, of course, is increasing,” explained Tomac. “The talent is staying around longer. It’s the high level that is just lasting longer, so the gate is getting packed. It’s a great time to be a supercross fan to see all this talent on the gate. Yeah, it’s a fantastic time."
Can he win? Can Eli Tomac win main events and ultimately make a run at his third supercross title?
“I think I can,” he answered. “I’m definitely going to be in the mix. Of course the number one guy is Jett Lawrence. He’s the defending champion, so that’s the guy we have to beat. We need to just better ourselves. Of course he’s the man to beat, and then we have all the other riders that are always there. Yeah, Jett is the man right now and we need to try to do our best to defeat him. I mean when I walk through the tunnel and out on the field, I just think, supercross, there is no feeling like it. For me, Anaheim is supercross. It never gets old going there for Anaheim 1; I’ll tell you that. The butterflies are always there and the energy is high and you can’t replace it."
As Tomac adds years to his career, he also gains appreciation of being part of the spectacle of racing in a stadium, especially at the opener.
"It feels great to be here. I appreciate it. It’s just part of growing older. You kind of realize what you’ve accomplished and what you have done and you appreciate the fans and the places that you go. It’s just very special and you know the time with it is finite. You just see things in a different way as time goes on. Yeah, enjoy it while you can.”
Those feelings are only amplified with victories.
“The wins, they’re very, very meaningful. There are certain times when you take things for granted in how easy it all comes at some times, but then there are certain parts of your career and certain seasons where it just gets very hard to accomplish that goal. Yeah, that’s the reason we go racing. We are going for those wins and when you get them, it’s like, ‘This is why we do it.’ You know when it’s going good, you don’t realize how good you have it. However when you have those nagging injuries or some sort of struggle, it’s just the never ending battle. You just have to stand back up and make it happen and believe in yourself.”
Tomac also feels fortified with the might of Star Yamaha behind him leading into what will be his fourth season with the organization that has actually added to the length to his racing career.
“It has been a great run with these guys. We’re already going on year number four. Yeah, it’s been great. Unfortunately, I’ve gotten hurt the past two seasons for motocross. However, 2022 was lights out amazing. We should have, would have could have won supercross in 2023. We’ve had so many great races and seasons and we’ve just had a good run. Looking forward to 2025 with Monster Energy Star Yamaha.”
Has he ever caught himself looking back on what he has achieved in the sport?
“Oh yeah. I have to pinch myself,” said an enthusiastic Tomac. “You look back and what you’ve accomplished and what you have and I do inch myself and just try to appreciate what I have and what I’ve accomplished. Pretty wild.”
2025 will mark Tomac’s final season as a professional supercross competitor. That being the case, will the veteran be taking it all in as the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship barnstorms the United States of America?
“Yep. I will be doing that,” offered Tomac. “Yeah, it’s crazy to say, but yeah, this is the last one. Man, crazy. I’m going to lave it all on the track, that’s for sure. I’m going to leave it all out there on the track and enjoy every moment along the way.”
