This weekend, we will get our first glimpse of the top A level amateur riders at Angel Stadium. The first qualifying round of the SMX Next – Supercross program will take place at the Anaheim 2 Supercross on Saturday, as the amateur riders’ race day is integrated right into the pro event.

The amateur field will have their first of four qualifying rounds (Anaheim 2, Houston, Daytona, and Birmingham) in order to qualify for the championship finale (Philadelphia SX). Riders compete in the SMX Next division (formerly called “SX Futures”) and they are awarded points towards their pro SX license based on their finishing positions at each round. There are no championship standings, as the finale is a winner-takes-all main event. Therefore, a rider could win all the qualifying races and finish dead last in the finale main event and they would get 22nd in the championship. Similarly, a rider barely qualifying into the finale (taking several races to make the top five cut off to transfer in) could win the finale and be named the champion.

Unfortunately, we will not be seeing Enzo Temmerman this season after he recently suffered a broken leg in a training crash. Alexander Fedortsov, who won the 20205 SMX Next AMA National Championship in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, will be racing 250SX East Division with the MX6 Racing Kawasaki team starting next month. Those too topped the board last year at the championship finale, with Temmerman finishing second.

Related: Enzo Temmerman Suffers Broken Leg, Out for SMX Next - Supercross Season