MOTOCROSS ACTION MID-WEEK REPORT

#WHIPITWEDNESDAY

Rider: Jordon Smith

Jordon Smith has been a stand-out rider since he was a young kid. However, his results seemed to be overshadowed in the amateur ranks by Cooper Webb and Adam Cianciarulo he was still always one of the fastest riders on the track. In 2011 at Loretta Lynns, Smith grabbed two second-place overall results in supermini behind Adam Cianciarulo but in front of Cooper Webb. He would return the following year in 2012 and win the schoolboy one class on a 125. He would not stop there as he would also win the 250 B class the year after that. Heading into the pro ranks he was signed by the now-remembered Geico Honda team where he displayed decent results. As he started to grow to pro speed he was signed by the Troy Lee KTM team where Smith had one of his best seasons. Taking the points battle all the way to the last round in Las Vegas. When the race began, he found himself in the driver’s seat for the championship, but as luck would have it, found himself going over the bars hard down a fast ski jump section, ending his championship run. Over the past few years, Jordon has bounced around from a few different teams and is still putting up great results for Star Racing Yamaha.

ON TOP IN HIS RETURN

Jett Lawrence goes 2-1 for first overall in the first round of SMX at Charlotte.

Jett Lawrence had a spectacular return to racing taking the win at Charlotte. But this was no simple task as Eli Tomac was on a roll winning the first moto as Jett Lawrence battled for second with his brother Hunter Lawrence. As the race concluded for moto one Eli Tomac had nearly a five-second lead and it appeared he would be the evening winner. As moto two started it again was Tomac out front who began to build a lead on the rest of the pack. As the time started to wind down, Jett Lawrence began to attack, catching the leader and making the move into first. Many were unsure of how his fitness would fare as he had spent time off the bike recovering from injury. But as the race concluded, Jett Lawrence had proved to everyone why he is the man to beat.

DEEGAN DOMINATES

Haiden Deegan on the podium at ZMAX Dragway SMX in Charlotte.

Haiden Deegan had one of the best rides that we have seen all year. In both motos, he started mid-pack having to fight his way to the front. He was the only rider in both classes to unlock a quad in the longer rhythm section on the track. Because of this, he was able to quickly make passes each lap. In the first moto Julien Beaumer had gained quite a bit of time on the rest of the field as Deegan battled through, which was nearly five seconds. As Deegan made his way into second it took less than a lap for him to catch and pass Julien Beaumer and to easily go on and win the moto. In moto two he again started mid-pack but had made the passes in no time at all and found himself once again up front. The other riders are going to have to find unknown speeds if they want to be able to catch Deegan in this series.

THIS SMALL SHOP MAKES THE MOST HIGH-TECH SUSPENSION IN THE USA!

MXA PHOTO TRIVIA

Who is this rider? Bonus internet points if you can guess the track. The answer is at the bottom of the article.

MOTOCROSS RACER FLYING A F-16 FIGHTER JET!

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ASK THE MXPERTS: WHY DOESN’T MXA INCLUDE TM IN ITS SHOOTOUTS

YOU CAN’T TEST WHAT DOESN’T EXIST

Dear MXperts,
Why don’t you test TM bikes in MXA? You don’t include them in your shootouts, and I never see any TM tests. Is it because the Japanese brands spend more advertising dollars in your magazine than TM?

First and foremost, the MXA test riders have nothing to do with advertising. We don’t know anything about the ad budgets of any of the manufacturers, and we can assure you that how much money a manufacturer spends on advertising has nothing to do with our bike tests. Over the years, MXA has tested more TM motorcycles than any other magazine or website; however, all of those tests were done when former American TM importers Pete Vetrano and Ralf Schmidt handled the American market. When Ralf Schmidt had a falling out with TM’s Italian management, he moved back to Holland, ending any presence by TM in the USA. To his credit, Ralf tried to arrange a deal between TM and former importer Pete Vetrano, but TM Racing—under the management of Gastone Serafini’s sons—never responded.

We can’t test what we don’t have, and a quick look at TM’s official map showing the location of all the TM dealerships in the United States reveals that there are none. Any TMs currently being sold in the USA are either year-old models or bikes shipped in from Canada or Mexico.

SMX POINTS AFTER CHARLOTTE

The first round of SMX at Charlotte included some great racing in both the 250 and 450 class. As we head into SMX at Dallas, we take a look at how the points add up after this past weekend.

450 POINT STANDINGS AFTER CHARLOTTE

Aaron Plessinger had a tough weekend with 6-11 moto finishes.

POS.	Rider Name	Total Points	Previous Points	Charlotte Points
1	Chase Sexton	45	+25	*20
2	Jett Lawrence	41	+16	*25
3	Hunter Lawrence	40	+22	*18
4	Eli Tomac	33	+11	*22
5	Justin Cooper	33	+17	*16
6	Aaron Plessinger	32	+18	*14
7	Malcolm Stewart	30	+15	*15
8	Ken Roczen	26	+9	*17
9	Dylan Ferrandis	25	+14	*11
10	Cooper Webb	24	+12	*12
11	Jason Anderson	20	+20	0
12	Christian Craig	18	+10	*8
13	Shane McElrath	17	+8	*9
14	Marshal Weltin	14	+4	*10
15	Freddie Noren	14	+7	*7
16	Colt Nichols	13	0	*13
17	Justin Barcia	13	+13	0
18	Phillip Nicoletti	11	+6	*5
19	Grant Harlan	9	+3	*6
20	Harri Kullas	8	+5	*3
21	Jerry Robin	4	0	*4
22	Dean Wilson	2	0	*2
23	Kyle Chisholm	2	+2	*0

250 POINTS STANDINGS: CHARLOTTE

Haiden Deegan dominated going 1-1 for the overall at Charlotte.

POS.	Rider Name	Total Points	Previous Points	Charlotte Points
1	Haiden Deegan	50	+25	*25
2	Levi Kitchen	42	+22	*20
3	Tom Vialle	37	+20	*17
4	Jo Shimoda	36	+18	*18
5	Julien Beaumer	35	+13	*22
6	Jordon Smith	32	+16	*16
7	Pierce Brown	26	+15	*11
8	Max Anstie	25	+10	*15
9	Chance Hymas	23	+17	*6
10	R.J. Hampshire	22	+9	*13
11	Ty Masterpool	21	+11	*10
12	Ryder DiFrancesco	21	+12	*9
13	Garrett Marchbanks	15	+3	*12
14	Cameron Mcadoo	14	0	*14
15	Nicholas Romano	14	+6	*8
16	Coty Schock	14	+7	*7
17	Jalek Swoll	14	+14	*0
18	Carson Mumford	5	0	*5
19	Jett Reynolds	4	0	*4
20	Casey Cochran	4	+4	0
21	Lux Turner	3	0	*3
22	Talon Hawkins	2	0	*2
23	Nate Thrashser	2	+2	*0

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: ELI TOMAC ON HIS SMX FIRST MOTO WIN

“It was a good day overall, but it stings getting second. I won Moto 1 and was leading Moto 2, but I missed the rhythm section too many times, which cost me. Otherwise, Jett (Lawrence) and I were super close. It’s frustrating because I felt so good all day. Man, it was right there, but overall, this was a good step forward. We are improving each weekend since I’ve been back this summer. I’m excited for the next two.”

MXA PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Julien Beaumer really came to life in the first round of the SMX Playoffs where he grabbed two holeshots and led the majority of Moto one. Even putting a gap on the rest of the field by nearly five seconds. However, Deegan would catch the KTM rider as the time winded down to closing.

CLASSIC MXA PHOTO

The 1992 start at the Southwick National. Jeff Emig (8) leads them around followed by Jeremy McGrath (17), Brian Swink (15), Ron Tichenor (23), and Doug Henry (19).

MXA PHOTO TRIVIA ANSWER: David Bailey who during his eight-year professional motocross career, won 30 AMA national race victories and won three motocross national championships.