Bringing the Heat
This weekend's second round of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship will bring us our first hot race day of the season, although sooner than normal. We know it gets hot for the summer motos but tomorrow's second round will see the temperature over 100° Fahrenheit, meaning this weekend will be the first true sign of who has fitness and who does not. Eli Tomac and Jeremy Martin are two riders that could benefit from a scorching day at the races. Keep an eye on riders and their recovery process throughout the day Saturday. If you are at the race, stay hydrated today, tonight, and early tomorrow morning. It will be brutal. -Mitch Kendra
Room for Improvement
Sixth overall via 7-6 moto scores is definitely not what Jorge Prado wanted at the season opener, but that ended up being his reality when the checkers flew at Fox Raceway. It was his first AMA Pro Motocross race, so there’s plenty of things he isn’t used to, but at the end of the day, finishing outside of the top five is below the standard Prado sets for himself. Expect more from Prado at Hangtown. -Aaron Hansel
- Motocross
- Race Day Live (Qualifying)LiveMay 31 - 1:00 PM
- Race Day Live (Qualifying)LiveMay 31 - 1:00 PM
- MotosLiveMay 31 - 4:00 PM
- MotosLiveMay 31 - 4:00 PM
Death Duel
The second 450 moto last weekend was bananas! The show Jett Lawrence and Eli Tomac put on was incredible, with Tomac dogging Lawrence for most of the moto before settling for second. When’s the last time anyone was able to pressure Lawrence like that? If we’re lucky, these two will have another epic battle at Hangtown! -Hansel
The Rookie
RJ Hampshire made his debut in the 450 Class last weekend and his first moto was excellent! He ran fifth for most of the moto before succumbing to Aaron Plessinger. He ended up going 6-12 for ninth, but the real story here is that he’d had surgery to remove some bone from his wrist less than two weeks prior and didn’t even have the stitches removed until the Thursday before the race. He’ll continue to improve as his wrist heals and as he gains more experience on the 450. How much better will he be at Hangtown? -Hansel
More than Solid
Is a great way to describe Justin Cooper’s ride in the first 450 moto. Cooper held second early and never allowed Hunter Lawrence to get within striking distance. It was a fantastic performance! He ended up eighth in the second moto, which relegated him to fifth overall, but if he can pair his great first motos with good finishes in the second, we’ll see him picking up podiums again all summer. -Hansel
![Hunter Lawrence]()
Hunter Lawrence Align Media ![Justin Cooper]()
Justin Cooper Align Media
Momentum Abatement
There’s no shortage of talent and opposition in the 250 Class, but unfortunately for the field, it hasn’t been enough to put an end to Deegan’s momentum. There was nothing about Fox Raceway that suggested he could be stopped, —he won both motos by large margins. The season is early, but if the 250 field allows Deegan to go on a rampage early this thing is going to be over before they know it. -Hansel
Proper Beginning
This is the best performance we’ve seen from Jo Shimoda at an opening round of the nationals, period. The Honda HRC Progressive rider went 2-2, and in the first moto he had to ride from ninth on the first lap to do it. Will we see the best version of Shimoda ever this summer? It’s impossible to predict, but his great start at Fox Raceway bodes well for his summer. -Hansel
Big Bro
Did anyone notice Hunter Lawrence (who also came back from injury) went 3-4 for third overall at Fox Raceway? With all this talk about Jett, it's like no one noticed that Hunter got great starts both motos and rode great all day. That second moto battle with Aaron Plessinger where he bobbled and gave up a position on the last lap was intense. How much better will Hunter get once he is 100 percent? -Sarah Whitmore
Next
SMX Next - Motocross will hit the track for the first time this summer at Hangtown on Friday. Both Enzo Temmerman and Alexander Fedortsov (who won the SMX Next Supercross Championship) graduated from the program and raced the 250MX class at Fox Raceway. That leaves a bunch of fast guys like Kayden Minear, Landen Gordon, Landon Gibson, Luke Fauser, Tiger Wood, Vincent Wey, and more who will be fighting for the win. It will be the first big race for Minear on his Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #66 after an injury kept him out of the SMX Next - Supercross program. Who out of this group is going to prove to be an outdoor specialist? -Whitmore
WMX
The first round of the Women’s Motocross (WMX) Championship was at Fox Raceway and those women put on a heck of a show. Lala Turner won the first moto and then battled arm-pump in the second moto to finish third, for second overall. California native, Makayla Nielson, who also races off-road, looked fresh after two motos going 2-1 for the overall. Meanwhile title favorite Charli Cannon broke her finger and had surgery only nine days before the first round, gritting it out for fourth overall. How will round two play out when these riders hit the track again Friday? -Whitmore
