The 2026 season of Monster Energy AMA Supercross just keeps delivering! Eli Tomac was in an LCQ, Justin Cooper transferred out of his heat race despite getting his leg caught in Tomac’s rear wheel, Haiden Deegan had a win taken away, and more! With so much taking place, we were left with plenty of questions, which we fired off to former pro and NBC on-track analyst, Jason Thomas.
What kind of changes did the dirt go through throughout the day, and how tough is it from a rider’s perspective when the track changes so much?
The toughest aspect for maintaining the dirt was the bright sunshine. The dirt wasn’t sifted through as much as anyone would like, leaving big chunks of clay and rocks, but the varying moisture was difficult to chase as the sun moved across the sky. Ideally, the SMX track crew could water it heavily and let it work in through the day and into the evening. With qualifying sessions before noon, the ask is to have it stay ideal for nearly ten hours. That is basically impossible to execute. So, having a track in good condition at noon is really what makes it so difficult to chase later in the evening. They can’t water it as much as they would like during the day so it’s a perpetual chase to keep it tacky but not overdo it, either. Had it been overcast or cooler, this job would have been much easier. The great weather is a Godsend for fans but very difficult for track maintenance.
The riders are chasing it, too. Cooper Webb made mention of it after the heat race. I think this may have been what Eli Tomac struggled with in the main event. The track went from reasonable to bad for the 450 main.
Take us through the heat race incident in which Justin Cooper’s leg got caught in Tomac’s rear wheel. You don’t see that often! How’d that happen?
This is just bad luck. Tomac ran Cooper wide in a very typical block pass. JC32 lost his balance and leaned downward toward Tomac as he was waiting for him to clear. He put his leg down out of instinct and the forward spin of Tomac’s rear wheel sucked his leg right in. There were several variables that needed to align for this to happen and they all did. If you watch the replay, watch how violently Cooper’s head whips as he is rag dolled along behind Tomac. That is what worried me the most.
Speaking of Cooper, he looked great in Birmingham. Was there anything you noticed different about his riding, or was he simply riding confidence after winning one of the Triple Crown races in Indianapolis?
I didn’t really see anything “different”, more just continuation in improvement. One factor is that he thrives when the whoops are not the predominant factor in the race. If there are several ways to successfully execute the whoops, that opens the door of opportunity for J-Coop. If the whoops are blitz only, that’s problematic for Cooper on every front.
Hunter Lawrence was dominant and rode a great race, nobody can take away from that. But even when Lawrence is on, he hasn’t beaten Tomac by this big of a margin (35.787 seconds). What the heck was going on with Tomac in that 450SX main event?
It’s hard to be sure but I think Tomac was either feeling a bit off or missed with his main event settings. Once he realized he couldn’t match pace with Roczen and Lawrence, he backed it down to a safe place and brought it home. If the upside was taking big risks and losing by 7 seconds but still finishing third, that’s a losing equation on a risk scale. I think he just realized that it was going to be a third no matter what and then just put it on cruise control.
Tomac now trails Lawrence by nine points. Does this change anything in the way Tomac approaches the remaining races, or is it business as usual?
No, the goal is just to beat each other every time. Nine points with six races to go is not a big number. This Detroit round does feel important, though, and the importance level will begin to climb as we go from six to five to four and so on. It’s not wildly important right this second but say it went from nine points to twelve in Detroit, that’s going the wrong direction which then becomes more of a problem. In the end, all he can do is go out and try to beat the red 96 bike and then see what the points look like afterward.
Justin Bogle was back for the first time in several years. He finished 18th. What’d you think of his night? Was he better, worse, or about where you thought he’d be?
Just getting into the main event was the goal. He’s been racing globally in the interim, putting the Stark through its paces in Europe. I didn’t have high expectations for Bogle. Stay safe, put the bike in the main event, fulfill sponsorship obligations for the team, and be a good representative. Job done.
Same question as above, except for Nick Romano, who transferred out of the LCQ and finished 18th in the 250SX main event.
I thought it would be tough to get into the main event at the Showdown coming in cold. He did it though, and that sets up well moving forward. I am not sure what his own expectations were. From a few interviews it sounded like he was very optimistic. For me, I was satisfied with the main event goal, but I think he is expecting a lot more. Perspective is everything for this stuff. What I or others may think is acceptable may be far from it for the rider.
There was an inside/outside section in Birmingham, and as Haiden Deegan was entering it he switched lines. He was later penalized for this, which handed the win to Cole Davies. What’s your position on this call?
I don’t agree with the penalty. This was a nothing burger. He didn’t gain an advantage and it certainly didn’t effect the outcome of the race. Those track markers have been run over and abused for years in Pro Motocross so now we are going to treat them as the gospel? In fact, riders actually aim for them at times in Pro Motocross knowing that eliminating them can open up a smoother line during the motos.
To have such an irrelevant action change who won the race feels wrong. I believe in Mike Pelletier and the improvements they are trying to make but I have to say, this one feels like it was fouled up. This penalty does not and did not fit the crime. This was swatting a mosquito with an ICBM.
Jo Shimoda briefly held second on the last lap, then got shuffled back to fourth. Was this a product of a poorly planned pass, or just what happens when there’s so much talent on the track?
Jo has had a rough go on the race craft front lately. This has been a subject of questions directly to him lately and he had a few theories on his injury effecting things but man, it feels like it’s getting worse. He has shown a liability when things get their most critical. I am not sure how to remedy this other than reviewing every individual scenario and working to understand thought processes in the moment. Asking, ‘Why did I do this or that, given this set of circumstances,’ could help. The only way to try to be better in the future is to understand why you got it wrong in the past.
