Doubling Up
Chase Sexton was pumped after winning A1, and for good reason. Wins at this level don’t come easy, especially this early in the season when the entire field is healthy and ready to rip. But what would be sweeter than winning the first round? Following it up with a win in San Diego, of course! And with Jett Lawrence, who struggled at A1, sitting 15 points back, the timing couldn’t be better for Sexton to start stacking wins and make a break for it in the points. -Aaron Hansel
The Rebound
Speaking of Lawrence, the Honda HRC rider logged the worst 450SX finish of his career at A1, thanks in part to tangling with Jason Anderson, and a Tuff Block, on the start, and later going down in the sand section. He was also fighting setup, bit time, as detailed by Jason Thomas earlier this week in Breakdown. Don’t expect this trend to continue. Lawrence is going to get back up front sooner rather than later, and there’s a big chance he does it in San Diego. -Hansel
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Missed Opportunity
Eli Tomac missed a big opportunity to draw first blood at A1 when he went down on the first lap while leading. Had he not taken a close inspection of the dirt after passing Jorge Prado for the lead, the way the 450SX main event played out may have been drastically different. Even so, he was able to charge back to fifth to salvage some points. We’ll see what kind of result Tomac can muster this weekend if he keeps it upright. -Hansel
Proper Start
Literally, and figuratively, for Jo Shimoda. When the gate dropped for the 250SX main at A1 Shimoda got a great start, took over the lead, and withstood pressure from Julien Beaumer to win the first race of the season. In the past the knock on Shimoda is that he’s typically been a slow starter, and gradually improved over the course of the season. Well, if we’re judging by his performance at A1, he may have solved that problem. If he can back it up in San Diego, it changes the entire look of the 250SX West championship. -Hansel
Performance Upgrade
Whatever Beaumer worked on during the offseason, it worked! The Red Bull KTM rider was the fastest qualifier, won his heat, and was in a position early in the 250SX main to challenge Shimoda for the win. Perhaps even more impressive, Beaumer showed maturity by not riding over his head to go after the win, which is something we see quite frequently in the 250SX class. Clearly Beaumer has leveled up for 2025. Will it result in another podium, or even his first career win in San Diego? -Hansel
Not Ideal
That’s a good way to describe Haiden Deegan’s night last week. Sure, he did a fantastic job of charging back through the pack for fifth place after going down early on the first lap, and he’s not in a big points hole either. But Deegan ain’t racing for top fives, he’s hunting W’s out there, every time he lines up. He’s still looking good, but it’s important for the health of his championship run to win in San Diego. The last thing he needs is for guys like Shimoda and Beaumer, who both look like they’ve taken significant steps during the offseason, to start getting some traction as the season unfolds. -Hansel
First of Many
Jordon Smith took third at A1, handing the Triumph brand its first ever podium in supercross. That’s a big deal, and after seeing how good Smith was on his new ride, you’ve got to think there are going to be plenty more coming this season. There’s still room for more “firsts,” too, and if Smith takes second, or even first, in San Diego, it’ll be another box checked for Triumph. -Hansel
Underdog
It's not that no one was talking about Jorge Prado before A1. It's just that the things they were saying were more along the lines of “He’s not a supercross rider, wait until outdoors.” However, Prado rode well at the opener, getting great starts in both his heat race and the main. He didn’t just roll over and let guys by either, he fought hard and made the other riders work for each position. With starts like his, he will be learning from the best every weekend, and he may be able to figure out the steep supercross learning curve quicker than most than most. Will he be able to repeat his impressive ride this weekend? -Sarah Whitmore
New Kid On The Block
New Zealand’s Cole Davies has been impressive ever since he showed up, seemingly out of nowhere, last year for Supercross Futures at Anaheim 2, and won. Leading his first ever heat race and getting eighth in the main after a crash, there is no question why Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing moved him up this year. With first race jitters out of the way, can Davies smooth things out this weekend and land on the box? -Whitmore
Related: A1 SX Rookie Round Up
The Other Guys
With most of the pre A1 talk about Lawrence, Sexton and Tomac, what about Ken Roczen and Jason Anderson? Anderson was fast all day in qualifying, meanwhile Roczen qualified 14th, but came in and said he wasn’t worried about it. They went 1-2 in their heat race and then placed second and third in the main event, respectively. It really just goes to show how deep the talent is this year, you really can’t count anyone out. Can Roczen and Anderson back it up again this weekend? -Whitmore
BONUS: New Kid On the Block, Part 2
After Levi Kitchen was ill at the season opener and he and the team made the decision to switch him to the 250SX East Region, it left Garrett Marchbanks as the sole Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider in the 250SX West Region. On Tuesday, the team announced Ty Masterpool would switch to the 250SX West Region and make his season debut at this weekend’s San Diego Supercross. Masterpool keeps saying he wants a shot to race supercross and he has one now. How does the SX season go for #26? -Mitch Kendra
