After winning Anaheim 1 for Red Bull KTM, Eli Tomac doubled down to make it two in a row in San Diego. Eli started the day off strong with the fastest qualifying time. He then went out to finish second in his heat behind Ken Roczen. In the main, Eli was third out of the first turn, but honestly, he described his race in the post-race press conference better than we ever could:
“Yeah, it was quite a back and forth there. And in the beginning of the race, I tried to play the patience game. Hunter [Lawrence] and Ken were really, really dicing it out. So, I just tried to warm up into the race there and stay on them but also try not to do anything too wild there. And then of course I made my way forward, passed Hunter, and then started dicing with Ken back and forth. And the first pass, I'm like, ‘Okay, I think I'm going to make it stick and I can get away.’ And sure enough, that didn't happen and Ken came back and then it was tough. And once I got in front of him the second time, got back into a good groove again and thought I was all good, just watching Ken and marking around the track.
He continued on about how close the race got at the end, “And then the last lap, I go over the tunnel, and I hear this rev and I look over and I see a red fender and I'm just like, ‘What in the world is that?’ And it was Hunter. So, I'm kind of bummed with myself. I just wasn't paying attention and then plus the Lawrences ride so quiet on the track, you just don't know they're there. So bad on me for not watching the pit board, the tower, and being aware and just honestly just watching Ken too much. So, I felt like when I saw him over the tunnel, I'm like, ‘I don't know what am I doing this next corner?’ And I just pinned it into that berm and hoped for the best. So of course, great night, another win, two weekends a row with this team, but it was close.”
Eli, the rider who always comes on strong at the end of the race was completely caught off guard by Hunter “Well, there was just the back and forth with Ken there and then thinking I was in control, but little did I know I wasn't and I was maybe a little lazy through the whoops, lazy into that bowl turn before the tunnel jump there. And of course, Hunter was right there. So, I feel like I was somewhat lucky to hold onto that one.”
While Tomac considers himself lucky to come away with the San Diego win, sitting second on the all-time wins list, one does not luck into 55 wins. He has been winning for 12 consecutive seasons now, which is simply incredible. Everyone is wondering how long he can keep it up.
“Yeah. I mean, of course the clock's ticking, but I've improved myself. So man, this is a great spot to be in. And of course I'm enjoying it. I keep saying it, but man, it's pretty wild to think this is the double nickel win, number 55. Pretty cool.”
Before the start of the season Eli mentioned he is done saying he is going to retire. He is looking great on his new KTM, seems to be having more fun than ever, and fans get to see him and Roczen continue their decades long rivalry. It’s crazy to already be talking about 2027, but if Eli keeps riding like this, could we see him back, racking up more wins again next year?
