HEADED BACK TO RACING AFTER A WEEKEND OFF

Justin Cooper currently sits fifth in points and has multiple podiums so far this season.

We are returning to racing this weekend at the Southwick National for the continuation of the 2025 Pro Motocross series. Jett Lawrence has yet to lose an overall thus far but has faced some challenges in different motos. Eli Tomac has found the top step of the podium a couple of times this season but has also found himself on the ground in multiple motos as he was giving chase to Jett Lawrence up front. A ninth in the second moto at Hangtown hurt him in the points standings and Jett has begun to pull away quite a bit. Aaron Plessinger has also been very consistent this season as he has grabbed multiple third-place overall finishes in the opening rounds. He has the potential to grab a win before the season concludes.

HAIDEN DEEGAN’S CONSISTENCY

Haiden Deegan has easily been the most consistent rider this season with only one second place overall on the scoresheet.

Haiden Deegan has really shown that the hard work put in prior to the season is really showing that he has what it takes to be a champion. Winning every moto but two Deegan looks to continue his winning ways at Southwick. Chance Hymas was the only rider to beat Deegan this season which came at Thunder Valley but a knee injury at the High Point National will have Chance out for the rest of the season. Though Deegan has easily been the fastest other riders like Jo Shimoda, Garrett Marchbanks, or Tom Vialle all can have a great weekend and grab a win. Rested and recovered we will see how Haiden Deegan finishes this weekend.

THE ENDLESS SUMMER EP 4: HIGH POINT

WILD RIDE FOR COTY SCHOCK AT THE LAST ROUND AT HIGH POINT

Coty Schock currently sits twelfth in points in his rookie season in the 450 class.

A statement from Club MX: High Point was a wild ride for Coty. In the first moto, he did not get the best start but worked his way into the top ten on the first lap. He maintained that position for the rest of the race – finishing tenth. Considering the depth of the 450 field, that is a great accomplishment. In the second moto, he got a much better start, and just as the gate fell, so did the rain. Light at first and only on part of the track. As the race passed the halfway mark, the rain became more torrential and the red flag was displayed for the safety of the riders, the track workers, and the fans. With a bit of confusion, the race was over, and Coty was in the ninth position. Now with moto scores of 10-9, he ended the day with a P9 overall score, a goal that he has been working towards all season. With a career-best of ninth and more momentum on his side, he spent much of his time in the off week preparing for Southwick. The sand tracks at ClubMX are ideal for this type of training and the weather has been extremely hot. A mixture of preparations that should suit him and his teammates well coming into Saturday. This effort has been moving him up the SMX rankings as well, now sitting in the twenty-third position. Aiming to move into the top twenty is a whole other story.

THE GREY ITALIAN TWO-STROKE THAT SURPRISED US: 2025 TM 125

MXA PHOTO TRIVIA

Who is this rider? The answer can be found at the bottom of the article.

HERO OF THE WEEK! IN 2012 MIKE MCDADE DROPPED HIS BIKE TO HELP A SMOKIN’ HOT WIL HAHN AT SOUTHWICK

ASK THE MXPERTS: SINCE WHEN IS LESS SKILL A GOOD THING?

Starting used to be a highly valued skill, but modern changes have made getting off the line easier and easier.

SINCE WHEN IS LESS SKILL A GOOD THING?
Dear MXperts,
     I’m curious as to what MXA’s opinion is of launch control maps, holeshot devices and metal-grid starting pads?

We don’t like it. Motocross racers throughout history have a firm belief that the start is the most important part of any race. Motocross history is full of stories about riders who were great starters. They achieved their fame because they were able to find traction and launch out of deep ruts without wheeling, spinning or bogging their bikes off the line. It was a skill that had to be learned, and because of its importance, it had to be practiced. Somehow the pantywaist AMA decided that making life easier for riders who couldn’t get a good start was a worthy cause. So, the AMA completely eliminated the skill sets needed to get a good start on dirt.

They achieved this by legalizing a series of changes:

 (1) Holeshot devices pull the front suspension down to keep the bike from wheeling out of the gate. By eliminating the wheelie, the need for effective throttle and clutch control are eliminated.

(2) ECU-controlled launch control systems took the actual throttle control out of the riders’ hands and left it to electronics that retard the ignition timing when the ECU detects the runaway revs that signal wheelspin—something that talented riders could manage with their throttle hands. And more insidious are launch control maps where the ECU holds the rpm at the preset perfect rpm to launch the bike without the rider having to select the best setting by themselves. 

(3) Metal grids are ridiculous. Starting on dirt is a major part of the sport. It tests the rider’s ability to go from zero to warp speed in the blink of an eye and replaced it with 100 percent traction to every rider behind gate. It eliminated the rider’s skill at being able to pick the best gate based on its alignment, straightness of the rut, consistency of the dirt and traction. Instead, every rider launches at the same time with the same traction and, in many cases get to the first turn together, where they clump together and crash.

At least there is still some common sense in the motocross world. Both the Wiseco World Two-Stroke Championship, Dubya World Vet Motocross Championship and $100,000 MotoFest races banned starting grids from their races. They didn’t want every racer at the events to have to spend money to buy start grids, or have mechanics kneeling in the dirt as they hammered metal stakes in the ground to keep the metal contraptions from moving while blocking the next race on the line as they removed them. Plus, at races with massive turnouts you can’t have 800 guys , in class and low as the minicycles dragging metal grates to the starting line.

What’s next? How about metal freestyle ramps on the jump faces instead of dirt?

250 POINT STANDINGS: AFTER HIGH POINT

Haiden Deegan had a perfect day at the last National in High Point, he started off by grabbing the fastest qualifying position and then went on to grab a win in both motos he now holds a forty-two-point lead over Jo Shimoda who still holds on to second.

POS	Name	Total Points
1	Haiden Deegan	194
2	Jo Shimoda	152
3	Chance Hymas	132
4	Garrett Marchbanks	132
5	Tom Vialle	125
6	Levi Kitchen	124
7	Ty Masterpool	89
8	Casey Cochran	88
9	Julien Beaumer	87
10	Max Vohland	82
11	Mikkel Haarup	80
12	Michael Mosiman	77
13	Seth Hammaker	73
14	Jordon Smith	71
15	Dilan Schwartz	65
16	Drew Adams	62
17	Ryder DiFrancesco	54
18	Nate Thrasher	35
19	Parker Ross	34
20	Austin Forkner	32
21	Kayden Minear	23
22	Jalek Swoll	22
23	Avery Long	17
24	Lux Turner	15
25	Alexander Fedortsov	10
26	Enzo Temmerman	9
27	Lance Kobusch	6
28	Gavin Towers	4
29	Jeremy Martin	4
30	Cole Timboe	3
31	Jack Chambers	2
32	CJ Benard	1

450 POINT STANDINGS: AFTER HIGH POINT

Eli Tomac was able to rebound in the second moto at High Point and the 5-1 moto scores would give him third overall on the day.

POS	Name	Total Points
1	Jett Lawrence	190
2	Eli Tomac	162
3	Aaron Plessinger	156
4	Hunter Lawrence	153
5	Justin Cooper	148
6	R.J. Hampshire	117
7	Cooper Webb	100
8	Jason Anderson	99
9	Joey Savatgy	98
10	Jorge Prado	82
11	Valentin Guillod	66
12	Coty Schock	66
13	Benoit Paturel	64
14	Malcolm Stewart	60
15	Colt Nichols	53
16	Grant Harlan	40
17	Harri Kullas	37
18	Mitchell Harrison	32
19	Derek Kelley	26
20	Derek Drake	24
21	Fredrik Noren	24
22	Romain Pape	21
23	Benny Bloss	18
24	Lorenzo Locurcio	18
25	Mason Semmens	9
26	Bryce Shelly	9
27	Bryson Gardner	7
28	Scotty Verhaeghe	5
29	John Short	5
30	Tyler Stepek	4
31	Brad West	3
32	Dante Oliveira	3
33	Jeremy Hand	3
34	Nicholas Lapucci	2