We also had some unexpected disappointments for guys like Chase Sexton, who was making his Monster Energy Kawasaki debut, and Haiden Deegan, who for the third year in a row missed the podium in the opener. I definitely would not hit the panic button on either just yet—we've only just begun 2026!

We also saw the series get a bit of a black eye when a terrible first-lap crash for Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati Factory Racing Team’s Justin Barcia came down on Rockstar Energy Husqvarna's Malcolm Stewart when Mookie did not jump the trouble. In the ensuing chaos, trackside medics got to Malcolm almost immediately but didn't get to Justin quickly enough for anyone's comfort. With two other riders down in Twisted Tea Suzuki’s Jason Anderson and Colt Nichols, there was a lot going on. The race was red-flagged and restarted, while both Barcia and Stewart were taken to the Alpinestars Medical Unit. Very fortunately, both were just banged up and not badly injured. Stewart posted that he's going to give it a go tomorrow night in San Diego; and while Barcia will be out for the immediate future, he does not need surgery to fix a “broken wing” (technically called a transverse processes) in his back. As far as what caused the crash in the first place, as well as the delay in getting to Barcia, I'm sure there were plenty of calls, discussions, and suggestions throughout this past week, including some thoughts from David Bailey, which I will get to further down.

Now it's San Diego and round two, where we can expect a focused Sexton (eighth at Anaheim) and Deegan (fourth), as well as Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Levi Kitchen (sixth) and Cameron McAdoo (22nd after a mid-air collision with Deegan) to all be pushing hard to make up what they lost as soon as possible. The weather looks perfect for tomorrow's event, which again begins at 4 p.m. Pacific/7 p.m. Eastern. And Race Day Live will be up and running on Peacock at 10 a.m. locally (Pacific)/1 p.m. Eastern.

By extending his streak of winning a 450SX to a 12th straight season and joining Chad Reed as the only rider in SX history to win on four different brands in the premier class, Eli Tomac has the honor of wearing the red plate tomorrow on his KTM 450 SX-F. For the third year in a row, Max Anstie will have red plates on his YZ250F (with a third different number, as Max was #31 last year and #37 in 2024 on a Honda). Both are now the oldest riders to have ever worn the red plates in 450SX and 250SX. Tomac has gone on to win two titles: 2020 on Kawasaki and '22 on Yamaha, but Max lost hold of the red plate and the title the last two times he was the points leader. There's still a very long way to go but keep both in the back of your mind.

And just something cool for tomorrow night: Kawasaki is celebrating 25 years since Ricky Carmichael won the 2001 San Diego SX, his first "night-time" win of his career while aboard the Kawasaki KX250. It was the beginning of his takedown of Jeremy McGrath as the man to beat in supercross, as well as his first win of a record-tying 14-win season—tying McGrath, of course! Kawasaki is celebrating this anniversary with retro graphics on the new #4's bike, Chase Sexton.

Speaking of Carmichael, here's some food for thought: In 2004, when Ricky Carmichael made that somewhat surprising change from Honda to Suzuki, he competed in the two rounds of THQ World Supercross, in Toronto and Vancouver, in December to get some gate drops on the bike and with the Makita Suzuki team before the real racing started in Anaheim in January. Then he went out and finished third in the muddy "perfect storm" opener and then won the second round at Phoenix, going on to the title. Fast forward to the fall of 2025, and Tomac did two WSX rounds, Vancouver and Gold Coast of Australia, in the hopes of getting adjusted to the Red Bull KTM, as well as some start $... One thing is for sure: Tomac looked more at home and comfortable on his new bike than Sexton did, but again, there is a long way to go...

Mitch Kendra's Eli Tomac Anaheim 1 win stats:

Pro Perspective (Thomas)

Round two is either a let's-run-it-back moment or a let's-start-over scenario for pretty much every rider in Monster Energy AMA Supercross. For guys like Max Anstie, Eli Tomac, Ken Roczen, Chance Hymas, Ryder D, and Jorge Prado, they just want to continue down the road that got them on the box at A1. They likely didn't make big changes this week and just followed a routine they feel good about after confirmation at the opener. They slept well, had a pep in their step at the test track, and were all smiles to friends and loved ones. In other words, life is good this week.

The other side of this coin is Haiden Deegan, Chase Sexton, Levi Kitchen, Aaron Plessinger, and—maybe most of all—Garrett Marchbanks. This is a tougher week for those guys (except for maybe AP; he's always happy). They didn't get the result they wanted and are likely seeking answers. That means rethinking the bike, their program, their life, the moon, the stars, their favorite color, etc. They likely stared at the ceiling for far too long before sleeping. They likely felt a burning, relentless desire to get back to a racetrack and undo the wrong that befell their opening round. There is nothing that will remove the ick other than a good result at the next race. Saturday simply can't get here soon enough. Yes, they all know that it's racing and one race is nothing in the grand scheme of the series. Still, it's very tough to sit with the feeling of disappointment after so much anticipation. They have all worked far too hard to let themselves down with a subpar result.

Round two is no different than round one and no different than round nine. The same points are handed out at all of them, and they all carry the same amount of importance as far as dictating the success of a season. It doesn't feel that way, though, and that's the trick. If riders can remove the emotion and realize it's just one race, good or bad, it will ease the pain of a bad day and allow for steady focus through a good day. The best quarterbacks in the NFL keep an even keel through a touchdown or an interception. Their approach remains the same regardless of the result. For those that did well or those that suffered, there's a lesson there. Saturday is another chance, and just because January 10 went a certain way, that has no bearing on how January 17 will go.

Sexton (Keefer)

For as much hype as Eli is getting for the win—and it is well deserved—a lot of others are talking about Chase Sexton's night. Yes, Sexton had some mistakes (not out of the norm) on Saturday night, but what a lot of fans are "thinking" is that it is the Kawasaki that is causing those mistakes because Prado podiums on a KTM the same night, and Sexton does not. That isn't accurate. What is accurate is that every rider needs a feeling, and if that motorcycle doesn't give him that feeling, then he's going to struggle on the bike (and quite possibly mentally). Prado wanted to be on the KTM so badly he took a pay cut to be on that team—the Kawasaki didn't gel with his style of riding. For his part, Sexton set the fastest qualifying time (also not shocking) and had the fastest segment one and segment five times in the main event. He was third fastest in the main, but mistakes (jumping off the track, etc.) cost him a P8. This isn't shocking either. We have seen mistakes from Chase on Honda as well as KTM, so now if Chase makes a mistake on the Kawasaki, it's on the bike? Nah, man, that's not it.

Now, I am not here to wave the Sexton flag—that is our esteemed colleague Lewis Phillips' job (just kidding)—but I do know that Chase can be the fastest rider out there, but sometimes he gets in his own way. Will he figure it out? I think he will. Could it be a little bike setup? Sure, it could. Maybe Chase and the team worked on the bike setup this week from early morning to sundown, and we see a P1 on Saturday night? I wouldn't be shocked at that either.

The moral of the story here is that all of us fans need to calm down on so many "it's-the-bike" themes for 2026. All of these bikes are great and are meant to be set up for each individual rider, not us. My KX450 in the garage is not #4's bike. Sure, it's the same color, but it's about as different as my speed from Sexton's. We both are human, but on the inside, we are built differently. Look for a HUGE rebound this weekend from Chase, just as we saw last year when Jett Lawrence went from 12th at A1 to second at San Diego to first at A2. Now, I am either going to look great next week after typing this or my DMs are going to be blown up with "you're an idiot" or "I told you it was the bike!" Either way, I am happy supercross is back and we have some real race talk going on!

#61 and #26 (DC)

We've been keeping a tracker of all the numbers that have won an AMA Motocross or Supercross event going back to 1972, the first year of the outdoor nationals and, coincidentally, the first Superbowl of Motocross at the Los Angeles Coliseum. According to our count, the lowest number to NOT ever win a race at this level is #54, followed by #55. Seth Hammaker won twice in '25 as #56. Jim Pomeroy won with #57, as did Blake Baggett much, much more recently. Well, it turns out no one has ever won while wearing #61 in an AMA race for SX or MX until Saturday night. As #61 for ’26, Max Anstie took that number off the board with his 250SX West win, while also becoming the oldest 250SX winner ever by one day, surpassing John Dowd's win at the 1998 Dallas 125SX, as we mentioned earlier.

The #26 has won before, but Jorge Prado's Anaheim '26 podium must have felt like a win for the Spaniard, who struggled through two rounds in '25 with Kawasaki, then got hurt during practice for Anaheim 2. So began a downward spiral that ended badly for both the rider and the team. Both moved on, both hoping for better days. Prado's game on Saturday night, as the multi-time FIM Motocross World Champion, looked for the first time ever like someone who could be a contender in Supercross. He won his heat race and then led early in the main before triumphantly finishing third, beaten only by Tomac, the second-winningest rider in SX history, and Roczen, who now has racked up 250 combined SX and MX starts, taking him one start past our own Jason Thomas (249 starts) for 14th on the all-time list. (Thanks to Clinton Fowler and We Went Fast for that little nugget.) It didn't take long for Prado Corner to return to Matthes' PulpMX Show and the genesis of a thread on the Vital MX Forum titled "Official Prado Public Apology Thread." And I was something of a doubter too, especially after last year's strange ending for the rider and the team at the Budds Creek Motocross Park finale. And despite later losing three championship points for failing the post-race sound check, I don't recall ever seeing a third-place finisher with a bigger smile after the race—at least not since the 2008 Daytona Supercross!

Prado wasn't the only one to be penalized throughout the day for failed sound, nor was his the only high-profile penalty. Haiden Deegan was given a code of conduct violation when he did not stop for a TV interview, as requested and signaled by officials at the podium. To his credit, he did come back down to be interviewed by endemic media in the scrum, but the TV moment was unfortunately missed. I have a feeling that's only going to fire Haiden up even more tomorrow night.

TUFF ENOUGH (Matthes)

Anaheim 1 2026 marked a monumental moment in SX history. No, Weege didn't spend his own money on something—but someone else did, because we got new Tuff Blox! Since 1997, we've had the same blocky foam blocks alongside the track, though with a few alterations over time, usually up the faces of the triples. But sometimes the blocks have been kicked out in front of riders, landed on by riders, and instead of providing safety for all of the riders, they have bitten a few. I understand the importance of sponsors (I've got enough of them on the PulpMX Show), but there had to be a better way than what we were doing. I pitched a plastic "tray" for them, I've pitched a way to tie them down, and also, why not use inflatable ones like we see in Europe?

Well, someone finally dug into the problem and built a better Tuff Block, and we got a bunch of all-new triangular blocks out there for 2026. They're angled in from the track, and then the side that faces the fans still gets maximum sponsor logos. But you can land next to them, and your foot peg won't hit the block. They're definitely better, and props to Feld for doing this after so many years. I'm sure the riders all thank you!

Crash Theory (DC)

Last weekend marked the 40th anniversary of the legendary Anaheim '86 showdown between David Bailey and Rick Johnson that is almost universally considered to be the single best supercross battle of all time. I reached out to both David and RJ last week to see if they would be at the event, and while RJ was, David has been dealing with a shoulder injury and decided to watch it at home, which was understandable, knowing how crowded the pits were going to be.

On Sunday, while I was flying home, David reached out to express his concern over the crash that knocked both Stewart and Barcia out, which happened on a triple jump when Stewart had to table, but Barcia was already committed to the leap and ended up landing on Malcolm. Bailey, whose own career ended in 1987 in a crash at a Golden State warm-up race, has long been an advocate for making tracks and obstacles safer.

"I've been nervous about the triple since I was doing TV and going to the races watching practice and day qualifiers," wrote the '83 AMA Supercross Champion. "Yikes. I saw so many of those types of crashes I'd just roll away because I didn't even want to know how bad it was. These happen a lot, and we've been fairly lucky not to have more Trey Canard/Ryan Morais (LA 2011) or Malcolm/Barcia scenarios."

What David then proposed was an obstacle that was less a triple than a single over a tabletop, with the second two jumps filled in between, which is similar to what we do at the Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch.

"For what it's worth, this type of correction eliminates the potential catastrophic impact without ruining the airtime of a triple. All it does is, in the event a rider, for whatever reason, has to back out and double it, he and those around him will be fine.

"I'm all for separating the men from the boys, but that isn't one of those obstacles or necessary in its current shape. Just my 2 cents," concluded David. "Not as a reaction to A1; it's been my opinion for 30 years."

I can understand David's concern, also on a personal level. Way back at the 1985 Rodil Cup's 125SX East/West Shootout at the Los Angeles Coliseum, I had to pull out of a triple on the first lap of the second 125 moto and got landed on by someone who was tripling, dislocating my left shoulder, which still hangs down all these years later. I was lucky, to say the least. It was very clear after that that I wasn't cut out to be a professional supercross racer.

Godspeed, Jamie Bradford (Mitch Kendra)

The SMX community lost a beloved member when Jamie Bradford, the sister of privateer racer Cole Bradford, passed away last weekend. She was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) in January 2022 and fought hard to overcome it. She was one of those unsung heroes of the sport, always there to support not only her brother but everyone around her.

Trey Stire met Jamie last year and he did a write up on her and Cole. Here is his original piece last year: "The Unsung Heroes of Tampa: 250 Class Edition."

And then this is what Trey wrote about her on Sunday: "For Jamie."

Here's what Cole wrote about his sister on Instagram:

Godspeed, Jamie.

Steve Wise: 1957-2026 (DC)

The motorcycle racing world lost a legend this week when Steve Wise, a former Honda factory rider, passed away due to a heart attack. He was 68 years old. Wise was not just any Honda factory rider; not only was he a member of the SX/MX team, but the incredibly talented Texan was also a member of the road racing and flat track teams. After several years as a top dirt bike racer, with AMA Pro Motocross wins, including the 125 National win at Keyser's Ridge, Maryland, on July 4, 1976, as a full-on privateer, he was signed to Team Honda. Wise captured an AMA Supercross win in 1979 at the New Orleans Superdome, as well as the RedBud 250 National in 1980.

In 1982, Wise moved on to race flat tracks and pavement. He won the first AMA Grand National Flat Track race he ever entered at the Houston Astrodome; an AMA Superbike win at Mid-Ohio, and even podiumed in the Daytona 200. His versatility and success across so many disciplines earned him the 1982 AMA Pro Athlete of the Year Award.

But Steve's greatest accomplishment may have been his two wins (1980 and '81) at the ABC Wide World of Sports' Battle of the Superbikers race, a made-for-television all-star race that included both dirt and pavement at Carlsbad Raceway. Those events were the genesis of what would become known as Supermoto and cemented the status of Steve Wise as the best all-around motorcycle racer in the world of that era.

Wise retired following the 1984 season and went to Bible college, becoming an ordained minister. He attended a few races each year for the rest of his life. He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2001.

Here's Wise winning the 1979 New Orleans Supercross on the #15 works Honda over Kawasaki's Jammin' Jimmy Weinert—on Steve's 22nd birthday to boot:

And here's Wise winning 1981 ABC Superbikers event on Wide World of Sports:

On a personal note, I became a fan of Steve Wise when he won the Keysers Ridge 125 National in Maryland, a race my parents promoted on Bicentennial Day, July 4, 1976. Wise was an unknown privateer from Texas at the time, and the fact that he beat both Yamaha factory superstar Bob Hannah and Honda factory superstar Marty Smith was just mind-blowing. I have followed his career ever since that day, as he rose to factory status himself with Honda, then made an incredible transition into flat track and road racing. He was the guy I cheered for each year in ABC's Superbikers race on Wide World of Sports, which he won twice. I became friends with Steve in later years, as he went from racing to being an ordained minister. I was always happy to see him at the races because he was just such a good, positive human being. He will be sorely missed by all.

A1 Win Ads (DC)

Cycle News Magazine on Mondays after a race weekend is always fun to click through (just as it was fun to thumb through back in the print days). Anaheim 1 gave us the first batch of win ads of the season for KTM, Yamaha, FMF, and Dunlop, all getting to beat their chests based on the wins by Tomac and Anstie. And Eli got himself a cover after his winning debut in Monster Energy AMA Supercross on the Red Bull KTM.

Hey, Watch It!

Inside Anaheim 1 Supercross 2026 Track Prep | 20 Minutes Raw (Insta 360 X5)

2026 Anaheim 1 Supercross Cinematic Recap

Bubba's World is back! James Stewart's podcast is back:

Daniel Blair's BD Show is back: Is Deegan in DNGR? Is Prado for REAL? A1 Exposed EVERYTHING | Tomac Beast Mode | Sexton Struggles

"This is Lawrence" starts out 2026 one man down: Anaheim 1

#Yamaha BLU CRU: Anaheim Flashback

Head-Scratching Headline/s of the Week 

“The Dodgers are Building the Death Star”—New York Times

“Dog Wins Award for Movie Performance, Beating 5 Actors, Including Ethan Hawke”—MSN

“Health Obsessed Bros Have a New Thing to Hate: Their Underwear”—Wall Stree Journal

“ICE Agents Arrest Workers From Mexican Restaurant Where They Just Ate”—Mediaite

Random Notes

Last week we mentioned the passing of Eastern Pennsylvania motocross leader Julio Limantour, and how he was a very prominent Suzuki rider and dealer, to the point where he was invited out to California for one of Suzuki's new model launches and ended up on the cover of Modern Cycle magazine wearing his Allentown Suzuki jersey. Editor Rick "Super Hunky" Sieman, who also hailed from Pennsylvania, made the shot. Here is that cover:

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One last reminder about Steve Bauer's annual Big Air Kids Fair at Loma Linda Hospital...