Before we get into previewing more of Dallas—which is the annual Military Appreciation round—and the 250SX East, congrats to all of the production crews involved in Monster Energy Supercross for pulling off a great race in Seattle last weekend, despite the time crunch caused by the Seattle Seahawks' Super Bowl victory parade and party on Wednesday and the threat of weather. Whether it was the Dirt Wurx track-building crew, the infrastructure crew, the TV crew, or the FanFest staff—there were a lot of folks under the gun in Seattle, and they somehow pulled it off. And the Seattle fans were impressive in their own right—it wasn't a full house, but it was an extremely loud house, especially during the Kitchen/Deegan battle. I was in the Washougal suite with Ryan Huffman, Jason McCormick, Joey Lancaster, and about three dozen neighbors of Levi's (who was born and raised in the town of Washougal), and they were all on their feet screaming for #47. It was a loud night for sure!

Pro Perspective (Jason Thomas)

Last weekend was a pivotal one for the 450 title. Tomac re-established himself as the guy to beat, Webb clawed even closer, Hunter made a big mistake, and Kenny paid the tab for that mistake. The never-ending fluidity of this class makes it hard to find concrete trends, but there are moments that mean more than others. For instance, the six-point swing that Tomac and Webb underwent looms large. Tomac knew that Webb wanted to keep the Seattle momentum going, and a win would have dragged the points gap down to near nil. With Tomac grabbing that win and swinging the six his way, he now has a ten-point gap to Webb and sits one point out of red. Further, that same dynamic is set for Arlington, as Webb has won 7 of 9 appearances and knows, as John Tomac said, that he needs to play his aces when he has them. If Tomac can steal another win, taking two of Webb's best tracks off the table and carrying that momentum into Daytona, well, now we have something.

The same dynamics apply for Hunter Lawrence, too. The 96 has made his presence known through relentless consistency and letting everyone else make the mistakes around him. Outside of a crash in race two of the triple crown, he has been the stalwart at the front. This mental error cost him points, another podium, and opened the door to those needing a crack. He did a great job of salvaging, but without wins, the only way to win this title is to be mistake-free. That was the first costly mistake. On the other hand, this Arlington round represents his first-ever 250 win (2021). Could he find some magic in Jerry's World?

There is an ebb and flow to series momentum. Riders try to lean in with full force when they have the wind at their backs. These riders all know which tracks and venues suit them and which will be an uphill climb. Tomac rivered an Ace in Seattle and stole one Webb wanted. Can he do the same in Arlington?

250SX EAST KICKOFF (Matthes)

Yeah, that's right, the 250SX East Division Championship is about to kick off in Dallas. This class is, to me, deeper than the West, though I think the West had more top-end talent. There's no doubt that this East Division will see a lot of different guys getting on the podium, I think. Nate Thrasher has six career wins, Seth Hammaker and Jo Shimoda have three each, and Cole Davies has two, and that's about it. It's my job in the media to help break the racing down and offer up some opinions, so I guess I'll do this now, but with my stance on Jorge Prado looking dumber by the week, maybe just scroll down to what Weege says...

Here's the thing, though. Each guy kind of has questions about him coming in, and whomever answers the questions will change a lot of narratives about them, right? Questions such as:

Seth Hammaker, coming off a big shoulder surgery, is 100 percent healthy, but he had a bit of an abbreviated boot camp, so where is he at right now?

Cole Davies is apparently flying at the test track, but he's pretty young to be in a title fight. There was no pressure on him before. Now there is. Can he handle it?

Jo Shimoda is just back on the bike for a week or two, and I'm sure he is hoping to get top fives and/or podiums before he can get to 100 percent after his preseason injury. Can he keep the points close for a second-half surge?

Drew Adams: Can he start getting on the podium and then keep getting better?

Dax Bennick: He's been on the box two years in a row at the first race, so can he step up? And also, more importantly, can he stay healthy?

Caden Dudney: Everyone I know says he's a little better in MX as opposed to SX, but Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing doesn't just expect you to ease yourself in. Can he actually win a race?

Coty Schock has won heats and has gotten on the podium. Can he take it one step more?

Nate Thrasher: Yeah man, IDK. He can win or get seventh. Can a zebra change his stripes?

See what I mean? This class is about as clear as mud. I expect Hammaker, Davies, Shimoda, and Thrasher to be the main guys, but I've got lots of questions. Can't wait to see them answered.

Dudney (Keefer)

Caden Dudney is set to make his professional Monster Energy Supercross debut this Saturday at the Arlington Supercross inside AT&T Stadium. Dudney has had a strong amateur career and solid results in the SMX Next program, including a podium and a win in Houston. Dudney learned that he earned the call-up only a week ago, which should be interesting to watch. I think a top eight to ten finish is a safe spot to put him in, but if he cracks the top five, that wouldn't surprise me either. I tried reaching out to Wil Hahn last week to see if he was indeed moving up, and when he ghosted my call, I kind of knew it would be happening. The Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team is usually a podium-type atmosphere, so I will be curious to see how they let Dudney develop. I think with Wil there full-time, the program will allow some of these kids the team has invested so much in a little more time to develop. Dudney has one of the most fluid styles coming out of the amateur ranks, and seeing him on Saturday night only adds to the excitement of the kickoff of the 250SX East Division Championship.

The Maico Book (DC)

Congratulations are in order for our friend Dave Russell. His giant project—a book on the history of the once-mighty Maico motorcycle brand—finally reached the publishing finish line and is now available for order. Maico motorcycles were made in Germany and were among the finest motocross bikes produced in the 1960s and '70s, but the company struggled financially against the wave of Japanese bikes that came onto the scene. There were also some squabbles in the Maisch family that owned the brand, which helped lead to their demise in 1983. Here's how Russell describes his new book, as well as the whole publishing process:

After many years and wonderful interchanges with you all, I'm happy to report the Maico book is published. Of course, it's only been possible through your invaluable contributions! I hope I've done justice to all the friendships and conversations we've been privileged to have these past years.

I'm very happy with it. On the good side, it's beautifully designed, and the typesetting and picture layout are excellent; the publisher used my original footnotes (not opting for easier-to-handle but less reader-helpful endnotes); all photo reproduction is peerless (including the color sections); and McFarland didn't try to reduce the overall size of the text (420+ pages). Printed in America (a rarity now) and quality from cover to cover. On the But, I wish... side, it would have been nice for it to have been a hardcover, but I'll be thankful for what I received. The retail price isn't cheap at $49, but I believe the buyer will feel it was well worth the cost.

Besides covering the Maico motorcycle thoroughly, the book gives a complete analysis of the "What happened to Maico?" question and, I believe, a beautiful picture of American motorcycle culture in the 1960s-1980s. I hope it's as valuable to American history fans as it is to former Maico riders and modern vintage racers.

Copies can be purchased directly from McFarland Books (Maico - McFarland), or you may wish to buy from a vintage motorcycle specialist and help support them. I believe MotoXroads (formerly Northwest Maico & CZ) and Brett Smith's WeWentFast plan to purchase them, along with possibly other retailers.

George Barber. Godspeed (DC)

The motorcycling world lost a great friend this week with the passing of George Barber. He was a very successful businessman who invested heavily in motorcycle history, building and displaying one of the largest and most exotic motorcycle collections in the world at his Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Alabama.

Barber also built an amazing road course for auto and motorcycle racing, and for a time was considering building a national-caliber motocross track as well. George invited me down to have a look around, planting a sign on the area of his facility that read something to the effect of “Future home to the world’s best motocross track.”  Mark Barnett was even starting to prepare the land where the track would, and Barber himself came to Loretta Lynn’s in 2009 to have a look at the event and what to maybe expect if he built a similar event, only for vintage motocross. But then the recession hit, the economy slowed down, and George had to shelve the wider motocross project unfortunately, but still built an amazing vintage track, which you can see here.

If you’re going to the Birmingham Supercross next month, by all means carve out some time to go visit the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum. It’s an amazing space, an amazing collection, and an appropriate legacy to the life and generosity of George Barber.

Winners (DC)

With Tomac's win in Seattle, we expected to see a KTM on the cover of Cycle News, and we did—but it was FMF/KTM Factory Racing off-road rider Johnny Girroir on page 1 after winning an extremely muddy opening round of the 2026 GNCC Racing Series in South Carolina. Girroir also got a big KTM win spread, as did Tomac. And GNCC class winners Nick DeFeo (Kawasaki XC2) and Danielle McDonald (Yamaha WXC) also received some love from their brands. Deegan got his fifth straight Yamaha win as well as one for Pod Knee Braces, and Kawasaki ordered up a spread for Jeremy McGrath for winning his second straight King of the Hammers in his Teryx KRX 1000 Rock Edition.

Hey, Watch It!

The Reset That Could Change Everything - Daxton Bennick

Kailub Russell's GNCC opener on board cameara...BIG BUCK | POV

The buildout of the new MXGP circuit in Argentina that will host the 2026 FIM World Championship opener on March 7-8:

2026 Seattle Supercross Cinematic Recap

EPIC BATTLE! Deegan versus Kitchen at 2026 Seattle Supercross RAW

Cameron McAdoo joined Cameron Hanes, the grand marshal of the Seattle SX, for an episode of Hanes’ podcast this week

Head-Scratching Headline/s of the Week 

"The Curling Controversy Goes So Deep That Sweden Allegedly Set Up A Sting Operation To Catch Team Canada In The Act Of Cheating" -Barstool Sports

“The incredible SULK: Winter Olympics skier STORMS OFF into the woods”—ABD Post

“Bird with hook caught in beak pecks on window of emergency room for help, hospital says”—Turn to 10 News

“Dog Joins Olympic Cross-Country Ski Race Near Finish Line, Fails to Medal”—Si

"Olympic athletes promised fresh stocks of condoms on Valentine’s Day after villages run short"—AP News

Random Notes

Congratulations to our friend and colleague Jay Laws on taking on the role of SMX Senior Director of Design. Jay's role will expand as he continues shaping the creative vision of the SMX League, partnering closely with teams across the organization to ensure a cohesive and engaging visual identity across all touch points, including live events, broadcasts, marketing campaigns, social media, merchandise, and more. Laws has done a fantastic job of making the SMX looks really pop and we're excited to see all of the things that he has in mind for the future.