- 2 days ago
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Well, certainly the data would say Joe Shimoda, who finished first or second in the great majority of the Modos
00:05last year,
00:06second in the championship, last year's title winner Hayden Deegan out.
00:10He's moved up to the 450 division. A lot of people focused on the rider out of Japan.
00:15But there's so many young riders in this class, you really don't know who's about to make a big step.
00:19Yeah, you don't. And this class has always consistently been up and down.
00:23So you get guys who have great finishes and in fact, this year I think it's going to have to
00:27change.
00:27But yeah, Joe is one of the favorites along with Levi Kitchen.
00:30Yep. And then you got Cole Davies with a dominant run in Monster Trinity Supercross.
00:35Can he translate that, the young New Zealand racer, to motocross?
00:39He does not have much experience on these tracks here in America.
00:43But that's just the start of the list. And it's the start of the season for the first time in
00:48pro motocross this year.
00:49Braves are up. Gates down.
01:00He's got his teammate Nick Romano there with him.
01:03And Caden Dudney as well in the 82 in the second.
01:07Great start by Seth. We know how strong he is and how fast he is.
01:10So there's a great start by the pro circuit.
01:12It looks like there's some star racing Yamahas in there. Great start by him.
01:16And two rookies, Dudney and Gordon.
01:19But then around the outside is Romano, fill-in rider for the team.
01:23Didn't even have a ride about six months ago up to second.
01:26Look at Dudney, the outside line working for him.
01:28Yeah, he wants to go. And it's 250 class. He's opening lapses. Control chaos.
01:32These guys are going everywhere. They want that track position.
01:35Great to see him up here fighting. It's not too much. It's not too wet.
01:38So I think these guys can be racing.
01:40If you're not moving forward, you're going to be moving backwards.
01:42That's this guy trying to make the pass.
01:44Oh, yeah, they're battling. Yes, Romano's going to get Dudney.
01:46Oh, down from fourth. I think that was Ryder DeFrancisco.
01:50How about this battle? Dudney and Romano side-by-side three, four times already.
01:55Yeah, you can see the gap starting to open up.
01:57But Levi Kitchen got a bad start.
01:59If you're watching Dax get back on the racetrack, or Ryder De, excuse me, really fast in practice.
02:04But Levi Kitchen got a horrible start.
02:06He made a lot of moves, and I believe he's in fourth.
02:08So it just shows you that confidence that he's been carrying from that practice.
02:13I'll show you some confidence.
02:14Look at Nick Romano, the pride of Bayshore, New York, in the city.
02:19Now has completed the pass on Dudney, and has started to make tracks toward his teammate Hanager.
02:25Yeah, I think this race, as this first couple laps, it has started settling down.
02:29The problem about this 250 class is that every, you go back, it doesn't get any easier.
02:34If you think you let one guy pass, you'll have five more behind you.
02:37So a lot of people stay up front, but good job by Dudney.
02:40Settle down in his third position and try to regroup.
02:42Yeah, you called it, James.
02:44The 47 is already on the radar.
02:47Bad start didn't even matter with Kitchen.
02:50He's moving forward, challenging Dudney, JT.
02:53He is.
02:54And it's interesting to watch Dudney and Romano battle there.
02:57We talked a little bit about this during Monster New Supercross.
02:59But remember, Romano was on Monster Yamaha Star Racing, and he lost his spot to give room
03:05to riders like Caden, Dudney, and Landon Gordney to see Kitchen make a move there.
03:09So when Romano goes by them, you know he's got a little extra incentive to make the move.
03:14That's a great point.
03:15Yeah, Romano was one of the young stars of that team.
03:17Oh, mistake by Kitchen.
03:19That allows Dudney, now one of the young riders on that team, to move back up.
03:23Yeah, I mean, it's going to be a lot of back and forth, just one simple mistake.
03:26But I love what I see from the 47.
03:29He's been firing all day long from practice, being that much faster.
03:32And when you have that built-in speed, you can be a little bit more patient.
03:36Levi doesn't look like that.
03:37The Kitchen is wide open as he's watching his teammate get away.
03:40So try to make quick work of the rookie, Dudney, and see if you can close that gap to the
03:45lead.
03:46Still a nice bounce back for Dudney.
03:47He made his pro debut in Monster Energy Supercross, and it did not go well.
03:52In fact, after a couple of rounds, he stopped racing Supercross to refocus on this.
03:58And it's going much better here in Pro Motocross with this early run for third.
04:03A rider who is an amateur, again, just a few months ago.
04:06But honestly, the big upset is Romano out there.
04:09Wasn't even sure if he was going to race Motocross for the Pro Circuit team.
04:12It's Drew Adams out with injury for the moment.
04:15Romano got the call to stay with the team, at least to the early rounds.
04:19Just keep riding like this, he's going to be with them all year, running in second.
04:23Yeah, and these kids, you know, they're young, so there's a lot of pressure for them.
04:27But they also understand that if you don't perform, there's another guy that's ready to take it,
04:31as you just mentioned, with Romano out here.
04:34So I think they've got a lot to work for.
04:36He's got his hands full with Levi Kitchen, but early in this race, he'll be fine.
04:42Kitchen going to reset and go back after Dudney.
04:44Here is Romano.
04:46So, yeah, was dropped by the star team.
04:48Then got hurt immediately last year.
04:50Was out for a long time.
04:52Said he had a couple of smaller teams calling him to race Supercross,
04:55but he just had faith that a big factory-level team was going to eventually call.
05:00When they needed help, they did.
05:01He's making the most of it.
05:02Another pass.
05:04Kitchen is back around Dudney for third.
05:06Yeah, you know, K-Trog in, but, again, Levi has a lot of speed built in.
05:11So, you know, he can be patient, wait his time, because he knows ultimate.
05:14He's faster than those guys.
05:15But right now, it's a Kawasaki Pro Circuit 1-2-3.
05:18It's been a few years since we've seen something like that.
05:21It's a great sign for these guys.
05:23Yeah, a little throwback there.
05:24This was once the dominant team in this 250 class.
05:27Right now, 1-2-3.
05:29Feels like old times out here for them.
05:33Dudney going to try to hang on.
05:34Now, he opened some eyes, finished 7th in a moto last year, Dudney,
05:37when he first tipped his feet into the pro ranks late last summer.
05:41And that was actually done only to get him in under the age limit.
05:46The pro minimum age has moved up to 17 this year.
05:51But if you raced one last year, you're automatically grandfathered in.
05:54So they had him race one last year.
05:55He opened up some serious eyes.
05:57Hey, Unadilla, raced one more.
05:59And that experience paying off for Dudney.
06:01But here comes the cavalry.
06:02Landon Gordon, another one of his young teammates.
06:05And Cole Davies.
06:06Yeah, you're a Supercross champion.
06:08It doesn't stop after that.
06:10You know, it continues to go.
06:11But I think the good part about this is that these kids, they're prepared coming in here.
06:15So, you know, though they're young, they're really prepared, JT.
06:18They are.
06:19And, you know, you see that Bradfordville, Florida, as the hometown for Landon Gordon.
06:23And that's a little deceiving, yes, he's located there because that's where the Monster Yamaha Star Racing training facility is.
06:28But he's a California kid.
06:29He's surely spent a lot of time here at this racetrack on this type of dirt, this type of terrain.
06:35So don't let that Florida address fool you.
06:37This is more of a home race for Landon Gordon.
06:39I don't think there's anything wrong with Florida address.
06:42Whatever it is, he's doing good.
06:44But, yeah, the Whole Star Racing, as you mentioned, their facility is up in Tallahassee area.
06:48So he's got to change that license to Florida.
06:53Yeah, you know, he's logged a lot of laps on this track.
06:55Yeah, we're not saying it any of native Florida guy.
06:57That's totally fine.
06:58They've all headed your way, James.
07:00So this is pretty impressive for Dudley and Gordon.
07:02Look, we talked about how big the opener was for the title contenders to start on the right foot.
07:07What about these young guys?
07:08It's huge.
07:09It's huge.
07:09And especially like Landon Gordon, you know, at one point you would almost, in no disrespect,
07:15maybe he was one of the weakest ones on here.
07:17But, you know, injuries, the opportunity, got his first podium this year,
07:21the second race during Supercross.
07:23So clearly he has that confidence.
07:25He's just got to continue to build, and this guy can be up here.
07:29Battle continues between the Yamaha boys up front.
07:32Look at this.
07:33Nick Romano, can he go to the lead?
07:35He is catching Hamaker.
07:37Yeah, this is actually a good thing for Nick because it's been a while since he's been up here, if
07:42ever.
07:43So the fact that he's got his teammate right in front of him kind of keeps that pressure and keeps
07:47his goals focused.
07:48And now you're starting to see this field's going to close up.
07:51Levi Kitchen still with that speed.
07:53Everything's going good.
07:55A lot of things are going to change over the next couple laps.
07:58Senator Will.
07:59Guys, I'm looking at Seth Hamaker up front here.
08:02I had a conversation with him earlier about just kind of like where he's at mentally.
08:07He's had to overcome injury, just coming back from an injury there through his trap now.
08:12And he's suffered a lot over the last few years.
08:14I said, where are you at?
08:16And he said, what I've learned to do is basically kind of care less.
08:20It's like, I care so much.
08:21And he's like, but I need to sort of let that go.
08:23But I said, okay, so you care?
08:25How can you change that?
08:26Because you live for this.
08:28And he's like, well, I can change it on the back end of things.
08:31And Stu, he talked about just being able to learn to let things go.
08:35He's like, so I care.
08:36I want this.
08:37But when it doesn't go right, or if the bike is not perfect, or if I am not physically perfect,
08:42I just have learned to move on from that.
08:44Just let those things go.
08:45And that's just kind of a bit of a mentally freeing process for Seth here.
08:49Yeah, hopefully it will work for him there as he starts to attack his perimeter first.
08:53Yeah, no, I understand it completely what he's saying.
08:56And it's weird because he's like, I want to care less because I care too much on there.
09:00But what he's talking about is more perspective.
09:03You know, where he was a couple years ago being injured and not really sure if he ever gets to
09:08this level.
09:09I think that perspective of knowing that helps him continue to get out here and fight.
09:13And so far, for the last couple years, Seth has been here, and I suspect he's going to be here
09:18all year long for championships.
09:20Yeah, where you've seen that really pay off is the consistency.
09:22He was always a fast but crash guy.
09:24He has been very consistent the last two years, but he knows he has company.
09:29I look over the shoulder.
09:30It's his teammates from Otto and Kitchen.
09:33Unbelievable stat here.
09:34The last time this team swept the podium was at this track 15 years ago with Blake Baggett, Tyler Rattray,
09:41and Dean Wilson.
09:42It's been 15 years since a 1-2-3 for Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki.
09:47But they've got at least the riders in position right now.
09:50You see Joe Shimoda, one of the expected contenders, at the bottom back at 8.
09:54Yeah, there was a struggle for a few years with Pro Circuit.
09:57Just a lot of injuries, but I think that also shows you that when you get, you know, the alpha
10:01dog out, the opportunity for these guys, they rod together.
10:04So when one teammate's doing great, it just raises level with everybody else.
10:08Just like the NBA, you've got to make your teammate just as good, and that's the success of a great
10:14team.
10:14And now you're starting to see that with Pro Circuit.
10:16You saw it over the years for a star race in Yamaha.
10:19Great to see you, Mitch Payton.
10:20And they've pulled away from the Dougie Gordon rookie battle.
10:24Well, Davies, about a second behind that in sixth.
10:28Lutz Turner riding very well, both in qualifying and in this moto.
10:31And then it's Joe Shimoda, JT.
10:33It is Joe Shimoda.
10:34You know, Joe has been so consistent.
10:36He was fantastic last year in this championship, and really has been for a while.
10:41And when you contrast the way Joe goes about his racing versus a lot of the other riders in this
10:46class,
10:46thinking who can be champion.
10:48Well, Joe seems to find a way to be there week in and week out.
10:51And the other guys, Seth Hemmaker in the past, Chance Hymus, who's trying to fight through the pack,
10:56they've been known as what people call a cow.
10:59It's crash or win.
11:00And that is really difficult to be in a championship contention late in the series if that's your MO.
11:05If you crash or win, guess what?
11:07The weekends where you crash, you lose too many points.
11:09And a guy like Joe Shimoda, racking up podiums week in and week out,
11:13he can have his way with this title.
11:15So, JT, are you talking about me?
11:17Crash or win?
11:18Because I heard that statement about my career.
11:21Oh, no, never.
11:21No, we never said that.
11:22Ain't nothing wrong with that.
11:23Turn the volume down.
11:24Yeah.
11:25Hey, play SMX for cash.
11:28Go to nxtvets.com or just scan that flow code on the screen right there.
11:33Try to make your picks as this new Pro Motocross Championship begins.
11:37Certainly, this guy was looking good for folks.
11:40The 47, Levi Kitchen, from qualifying with a ton of speed.
11:43And we're seeing it now.
11:45Yeah, it's a great sign.
11:46Normally, Levi have these risers.
11:48But we talked to, you know, it was kind of laughing over a couple years ago.
11:51And I mentioned to you, Levi would win that first moto and then get 13th to the next one.
11:56And you'd be like, oh, he kind of wrote the same.
11:57Did he crash?
11:58No.
11:59But I think what you're seeing this early in the season is the Levi that I wanted to see.
12:04He's got that everything rolling.
12:06His teammates are in front of him.
12:07And clearly, he has the speed.
12:09He looks good where he's at, Will.
12:11I'm just thinking back, James, to last year when I spoke to Levi.
12:15And he was at that point, like middle of the season, when things weren't going particularly well.
12:19He was suffering after that back injury.
12:22If the bike wasn't set up, they weren't where they were supposed to be.
12:25Starts weren't good.
12:26The team was struggling with that.
12:28And he had his eyes already on this year, this championship.
12:32And part of that was the exit of Hayden Deegan.
12:35And he knew the bike would get better.
12:36He knew he physically would get healthy again.
12:38What does it do to these guys when they know it's more possible than it perhaps was before?
12:44Well, I mean, I think you're seeing it right here just from the whole standpoint.
12:49And it's not that, you know, Levi was afraid of Hayden Deegan or he didn't think he could win.
12:52But he knew how great Hayden was.
12:55And with his race team, you need everything working for you to be able to compete at this level.
13:00And when you know one part isn't working, you know, you've got to start looking towards the future.
13:04But I love what I see.
13:05The whole team stepped up.
13:06Levi stepped up.
13:07And, you know, we're only a few minutes into this race.
13:10But it looks good for him.
13:12But talking to Levi yesterday, he has a pretty unique perspective on this wide open storyline that everyone is talking
13:19about in this class.
13:19Here's Levi.
13:21I feel like a championship is wide open no matter what year it is.
13:25Like, whether, obviously, there's always people that are favorites.
13:27But, you know, people can go out in the first or second round or things happen, you know.
13:35I don't know.
13:36It's just, I don't like to go in with the mindset that it's wide open because no matter what, it's
13:41never wide open.
13:42I mean, we're all going fast.
13:44I feel like, like you said, a couple of us have won races.
13:47There's going to be others that are going to feel that they can win, obviously, this year.
13:52So, but I think my chances are good.
13:56Obviously, Joe and Chance, I think theirs are good, too, if we're the only ones who have won.
14:00So, that's cool.
14:03I'm excited.
14:07I get what he's saying.
14:08I mean, it is wide open, but we know.
14:11I mean, if I oversleep, then that means I'm going to take the kids to school.
14:13So, that's a possibility of possibly happening.
14:16You know, but Levi.
14:18Shimoda makes a move.
14:19I'd like to turn it here, by the way, for seven.
14:20Yeah, go ahead on Levi.
14:21Yeah, you know, Levi knows he's got to be there, and he's always had his speed.
14:25But, you know, Joe Shimoda was a little off of practice, and we were kind of concerned on, you know,
14:30not only he's missed some time in having to rush,
14:33but just how he feels, you know, possibly being a little scared, timid with this injury as we're watching the
14:38battle up front.
14:39I think this is going to be a great thing for Joe because this is what he does.
14:42He always moves forward.
14:43He has that heart.
14:44And maybe because the speed's not there, he just marches his way up, I think we'll get a better version
14:49of Joe Shimoda, that confidence to come back, and he'll be up here battling with these guys.
14:54Looks like Kitchen made the move, James, on Romano now.
14:57So, he's up to second, and still about two seconds behind his teammate, Hamaker, who has yet to win a
15:02moto in his career in pro motocross.
15:05So, let's see if today is the day for Hamaker, who had a lot of physical issues that slowed him
15:11in his early development in motocross.
15:13He's gotten a lot of that behind him, clearly, but still, we're not even at the halfway mark, so a
15:19long way to go to prove how strong he can be.
15:22Yeah, we're not, but I also think, like, when you're looking at Kawasaki, this is probably their best two opportunities,
15:30Hamaker and Kitchen.
15:32So, we're going to watch Kitchen goes up the inside right here.
15:34I think things are probably going to start happening a little fast for Nick.
15:37He hasn't been racing all year long, so kind of lets his teammate have it.
15:43Levi was probably going to have it anyway, but still a great ride by him.
15:47All right, we have now reached the halfway point, and I can remind you to stock up on Monster Energy
15:51at Stater Brothers.
15:53Now, what's interesting about that pass, Kitchen and Romano are really good friends off the track.
15:57When Romano didn't have a ride months ago, he got a bike at Kawasaki and was just riding with Kitchen
16:03to try to stay somewhat ready in case the phone call came.
16:07I've got to imagine Kitchen was putting in a good word to the team owner, Mitch Payton, to give Romano
16:11a look.
16:12That has certainly paid off with a good run for him, but Kitchen's got to go.
16:16Left Romano behind, he's going for the lead.
16:18Yeah, Kitchen's on, you know, I can tell by his body language, I mean, he's really smooth.
16:23He feels good, and he's got a lot of equity built up in that speed.
16:27Seeing Joe close in, I believe this is Landon Gordon right here.
16:31So, as I said earlier, Joe will continue marching his way up here.
16:35He could have ran it in, but I'm too early in the race for that,
16:38but I think Joe's probably going to get him here pretty soon, the way he's moving.
16:41So, if this is Gordon, it actually means Davies, as you see.
16:44The results on the left side of the screen has moved ahead of him.
16:47So, Davies kind of quietly up into fifth.
16:51This is sixth and seventh right now with the rookie Gordon and Shimoda.
16:56Yeah, Joe's good.
16:57Some parts of this racetrack, you just got to sit back.
16:59Now it opens back up.
17:01Joe can rail this outside or cut back in there.
17:04Start to see Landon Gordon.
17:05Starting to sit down a little bit to be expected.
17:09Long race, you know, first race is always tough for these guys,
17:12but overall, Joe and both these guys are doing good.
17:15Well, I talked to Landon Gordon yesterday, and he said, really, he was never on a full training program.
17:19When he lived out here in California, he'd ride, but nothing fully structured like he now has with this Yamaha
17:26team.
17:27But he's only about eight months into it, so he feels like he's got a lot more to give as
17:31far as getting stronger, building his endurance.
17:33He's hanging on right now against the pressure of Shimoda.
17:37Then it's Turner, Benick, and Nate Thrasher riding out the top ten.
17:41And Kitchin continuing to take a few tenths out of the lead of Hammacher.
17:45Yeah, I mean, for a lot of our viewers, they've seen Levi Kitchin ride, and he's really all over the
17:50bike.
17:50You know, really lose, slamming into stuff.
17:52But watch his body language.
17:53He's standing up, you know, just relaxed and not really over-rushing himself going into the corners.
17:58And that's why I said he looks really relaxed to me because of that speed he's had, speed of energy
18:02he's had over these guys.
18:03He can take his time and just go to work on Seth because he knows if I need to put
18:07down a lap, I can close that gap pretty easy.
18:10Maybe put a little pressure on his teammate, get in that lead.
18:14So when you're in Kitchin's situation, you start to know.
18:17He'll come back to me.
18:18I don't need to rush it right now.
18:19I'll get there.
18:20Yeah, no, Levi knows he's, on speed-wise, he's got his teammate.
18:23You know, that's why you'll see this little cat and mouse.
18:26You know, it's not because Seth's really pulling away.
18:28I think it's because Levi's just sitting back.
18:30But what he's also doing is taking, you know, breathers.
18:33And in his first race, as I just mentioned earlier, it's easy to hold your breath.
18:38It's a big difference from Supercross.
18:39So I think a lot of things are going on besides just racing the racetrack.
18:43I think Levi's just taking his time.
18:44But when it comes to it, I think he'll attack his teammate.
18:47How about Romano still there in third?
18:49That would be a career best for him if he can hang on to it.
18:52His best is a fourth.
18:54Shibota and Gordon still going for it.
18:58Joe makes it happen.
18:59Yeah, Joe put a little game of chicken rat there.
19:01He, you know, swore over there like, are you going to do it?
19:04He backed out of it.
19:05So it took him a while.
19:06He was working on it.
19:07But you see this, you know, Levi's standing up in the corners.
19:10And as I mentioned, he's got that speed.
19:12But he's also saving a lot of energy.
19:15Seth doesn't know that.
19:16So it makes you nervous behind you.
19:18And you start getting that mental will spin.
19:19Now things are starting to happen really quick.
19:22Great position where I'm at if I'm Levi Kitchen.
19:26And 11 minutes and two laps to go.
19:28Still half acre.
19:31Leading laps.
19:32Never won a photo.
19:34And at the moment, looking good.
19:37Yeah, look at both these guys looking good.
19:39And it just shows you how good Levi's been riding all day
19:42because they gapped the rest of the field.
19:44I mean, Nixon almost 10 seconds behind him.
19:47And then our Supercross champ Cole Davies is 13.
19:49So it's not like, you know, they just got out front.
19:53And they built this lead.
19:54So it's been a great ride.
19:55They both have speed.
19:57But I love the 47 and his body language.
19:59It looks very relaxed.
20:00Get a little style for him, Levi.
20:03All right, let's hop on board.
20:05And watch this play out.
20:18So again, even though the gap hasn't really closed,
20:20you still feel like Hitchin has some level of control here.
20:24This is Gordon and Turner.
20:26So Lux Turner, whose career best in a moto is an 11th,
20:29looking to move into 7th.
20:30And he has it.
20:31Oh, he moved into 7th.
20:34Looked really good.
20:35We're going to watch his sister next weekend.
20:37I can't wait to watch that.
20:39So, yeah, great ride for all these guys.
20:41And, again, they sense the opportunity when he can be announced.
20:45Who knows what can happen?
20:46And I think Lux is going to have a breakout year as he did last year.
20:50He'll be even better this year.
20:53Got to imagine Lux has written here a lot.
20:55He's from Reno, Nevada.
20:56Not too far in motocross terms as far as a road trip to this track.
21:00Check out the riders.
21:01We're in the fly racing.
21:02Here, Turner is tops right now at 8th.
21:04We've got Heimus at 11th.
21:07Schwartz, Volenshock, Ross.
21:09Here's your fly racing athlete's kitchen.
21:12Now about, I believe, to put an attack on Hamaker.
21:16And Hamaker made it easy.
21:17Yep, there it is.
21:17That's what I was saying with Levi.
21:19Put your team in that mental will spin.
21:21You know, have us starting to think.
21:23You know, Seth doesn't know.
21:24He doesn't know if Levi's, you know, trying really hard or doing what he did.
21:28As we got our lap rider just getting a little wood blast in the background.
21:33But great move by Levi, JT.
21:35Yeah, and James, I would not be shocked to see Levi put in his best laps of the race right
21:39here.
21:40If he can really drop his pace, maybe get back into that 220, 221 range for two or three laps,
21:45that will be enough to break the back of Seth Hamaker in this moto and ride the last few laps
21:50uncontested.
21:52Yeah, absolutely.
21:52And you can start to see that gap, as you were saying, Jason.
21:56He was just sitting back.
21:57There's certain parts of this racetrack you can't pass.
21:59So, you know, sit back, get your teammate, relax in, a little false hope, and then you attack it.
22:04And that's exactly what Levi did.
22:05And he's already starting to bridge that gap over his teammate.
22:10Hey, I know it's only one race, but we kept saying how up for grabs this is.
22:13When you dominate qualifying, and then you just completely have this first moto charge under control,
22:19that has got to be doing wonders for him under the helmet.
22:21No, it is as we go back to Cole Davies trying to get, you know, around his old teammate in
22:29Nick.
22:30It does a lot for guys, but it does even more for certain guys.
22:34And I think Levi is that certain guy.
22:36We always know when he's had that speed, it's just got to get off the gate.
22:39And we see how deep this field is.
22:42Cole Davies got a decent start, but he's almost, you know, 13 seconds back.
22:46And, you know, just a difference of start as Cole tries to go up the inside of this Nick.
22:50Nick, battle for the podium.
22:52Davies almost had it.
22:53Outside worked out for Romano, at least for the moment.
22:57Yeah, still a great ride by Nick.
23:00You know, if nothing happens, I'm thinking Cole's probably going to get by him.
23:03He's caught him.
23:04Nick's starting to sit down, but still, you know, not riding all year.
23:07Kind of a fill-in.
23:08This is a great ride.
23:09And if he can ride this thing with a top four, top five, I'm sure Mitch Payton would be super
23:14happy.
23:14So will Nick with you.
23:16As Mike clinch a ride all summer for Romano right here.
23:20As of now, it's just the early rounds while Drew Adams is out.
23:23But don't find room if you're fast, no doubt.
23:26And running third right now definitely proves something.
23:28It's a good run for Davies.
23:31Yeah, I mean, even though Cole is our Supercross champion, a lot of expectation.
23:34He could be your title.
23:37He's definitely a title contender, but he might win this championship.
23:40He's also really young.
23:41He got hurt last year, so he only did a few outdoors.
23:44Got an overall last year.
23:46But I think, you know, Cole is very, you know, technical.
23:50Takes his time as he takes his time up the inside of Nick.
23:53He can finish on third.
23:55That'd be a great vote for Cole Davies.
23:56Well, there goes the stat.
23:58This is potentially the first Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki Moto Sweep since 2011.
24:03But now that has been broken up by Davies.
24:06Still a great ride for the squad, a great ride by Romano.
24:09But Davies, okay, look, it's not the dominant runs like we were seeing in Supercross.
24:14But I got to figure this is not a bad position to be in, just getting rolling.
24:18No, I think Cole's doing a great job.
24:21Again, the way this field is and the way Levi's riding, if you don't get up there with him,
24:25like, you can ride great and get beat.
24:27You know, that's the way it is.
24:28So just because Hayden Deegan's gone and some of these other guys, there's a lot of speed out there.
24:33And both these guys were able to beat Hayden last year at one point.
24:36So speed's not an issue.
24:38It's just by being there week in and week out.
24:39So Cole Davies, top three.
24:41I'm sure he'll be happy with that.
24:44And after Davies trounced the field in Supercross, I think everyone's just looking for some sign
24:49that he can beat the same guy in motocross.
24:51And it won't take much.
24:52I think everybody already knows how talented and how good he can be.
24:55This is a sign that he can be just as good outdoors.
24:59They just haven't seen it in America yet.
25:01But at least so far today, they've all got a long way to go to catch this guy.
25:06Yeah, this guy's good almost five and a half seconds and looks really comfortable doing it,
25:11saving a lot of energy, and that's the hard part of your competition.
25:16Levi's not, you know, riding that hard.
25:18So he'll be built up compared to where you've got Chance Hymes fighting his way up with a bad start.
25:23He's going to be battling all the way to the end.
25:25So you've got to look at towards Levi having a little bit more fresher legs.
25:30But rough start for Chance.
25:31I don't know where he was at opening lap, but trying to crack that top ten.
25:35Not the first motor he wanted to have, but he can keep moving forward if you're all right.
25:39No, this is a rider who's had a lot of speed.
25:41Again, the fast qualifier out this race a year ago,
25:44and now just trying to get into the top ten, battling Gordon.
25:48But so many of these riders, including Hymes and his teammate Shimoda,
25:52are coming back from injury.
25:53So you never know what those first race jitters are like.
25:57At the moment, he has at least put that Honda into the top ten.
26:02Here's Hymes on his physical update coming back from injury.
26:06Yeah, my body's feeling 100%.
26:09Shoulders feeling good.
26:10Big thanks to Dr. G and Yvette Brioche for, you know,
26:15getting me dialed in and the folks over at Red Bull.
26:19Yeah, just overall, body's feeling 100%.
26:23Been back on the bike for a couple months now, a few months.
26:26Just doing some testing and putting the motos in.
26:29So, yeah, I'm feeling good.
26:30Yeah, it's great to hear that he's healthy.
26:32You know, but certain riders, you know, when I look at Chance Hymes,
26:36if you were to say he hole shots and just runs away, like, that would be expected.
26:40What I want to see from Chance is what he's doing right here.
26:43A bad start.
26:44I want him to grind his way through the field.
26:46Get up, hopefully, a top five or a top ten.
26:49That's what we're looking for, and that's that belief that I think will carry him.
26:52The speed has always been there.
26:54He can win any of these races, but the grind is what I want to see.
26:57So, great start.
26:58Looks like we got Max Anstey.
27:00The grind for him had that big crash in qualifying.
27:03I don't know if this is related to that or not.
27:06Yeah, he's got a little dirt on him.
27:08So, at some point, something didn't happen the way he wanted.
27:11Good to see him riding off a tough first moto for Max.
27:14Yeah, not a good way to start the campaign.
27:16So, there's Hymes up to ten.
27:19About two seconds behind Thrasher, who is at ninth.
27:22And then, quietly, a good run for Dax Fennick.
27:25Running eight on the Rockstar Husqvarna.
27:27There is Anstey talking to his mechanic, Austin.
27:32That's when you're a rider, when you're like that, you talk real slow.
27:37Just talk real slow.
27:38You want your mechanic to be like, just go back, son.
27:41He's talking real slow, a little body movements.
27:43But Max is one of the toughest guys I know.
27:45That tough hit early in practice, and you can see the little dirt on him.
27:49He took another one.
27:50Hopefully, he'll be back for that second moto.
27:52Ah, bummer for the very likable veteran out of England, who had several years when he's living in Europe, where
27:58he wasn't racing supercross at all.
28:00So, a lot of people wondering just what would be his level here in motocross, where he has more experience,
28:05really, than almost anyone in this field.
28:07Did not get to see it today.
28:11Okay, so we talked about riders coming back from injury, and we always ask them how long they've been riding.
28:16Are they prepared physically?
28:17But what about that first race jitters thing?
28:20That's probably a lot harder to measure.
28:21No, it is.
28:23And that's what's impressive about this guy.
28:25You know, the speed, if you came here a bit slower, it would have been a disappointment if you wouldn't
28:29have had a great finish.
28:29So, to come out here and look as good as you did with all that pressure is great.
28:33But then, at the same time, I think it helps, as I was saying with Joe Shimoto, maybe there is
28:38a lot of pressure.
28:38You are a championship contender.
28:40Getting a bad start kind of resets that focus and allows you to find your groove without being up front
28:45where Levi, you only want to be up here if you feel confident in your belief,
28:49as he makes a little mistake right there, or you want to be in the pack to where you just
28:53kind of move forward and build for yourself.
28:55Two ways of getting it done.
28:57Next battle to watch here is Gordon, who has drifted back out of the top ten.
29:02And good to see Julian Bomair and the Red Bull KTM, the Orange 13th, back at the races.
29:08That was a devastating back injury for the playoffs last year.
29:13He told me yesterday, at the first doctor he went to, he said, 12 months before you could even think
29:17about getting on a motorcycle.
29:19And here he is.
29:20That was September.
29:22And in May, he's back not just Friday, but racing, and was fast at qualifying, and trying to close in
29:28the top ten.
29:28Yeah, that's riders.
29:29When we hear news like that, we don't want to be like, okay, cool.
29:32We're like, all right, have a nice day, Doc.
29:34Where's the next one?
29:35We don't want to hear that kind of news.
29:37Will?
29:39Yeah, nine months all up was what he told me then.
29:42That was three months, Jason, in a back race.
29:46And then an additional four months with all of that hardware in that he had there.
29:49And then he came to a really tough decision.
29:52This was back in April.
29:53Keep the hardware in.
29:54But the risk is, James, if you take a bad crash, that could cause a break sort of either side
29:59of that metalwork in there.
30:01Or take it out.
30:02But if he felt pain when he got back on the bike, when he takes that hardware out, then he
30:07misses the start of Pro Motocross.
30:09So a massive gamble there for Juju.
30:11He spoke to the team of Red Bull KTM.
30:13He said they told him, this is your health first.
30:16We've got to take that hardware out.
30:18If you missed the opener, you missed the opener.
30:20He took it out.
30:21He said he was extremely nervous two weeks later when he jumped on the bike.
30:24He felt absolutely nothing.
30:26He said, okay, I know I can line up in parlor.
30:28So he's been through a lot just to get to this round here.
30:32Yeah, that's crazy.
30:33And I'm sure that was a hard decision.
30:35But I know for Julian, because of what KTM said, and they look at your health first,
30:40makes you want to get back out here and not only do it for yourself, but do it for your
30:44team.
30:44Because you know genuinely they care about you.
30:46So great to see Julian out here.
30:48I'm sure it's going to take him a little bit of time to knock some of the rust off.
30:51But at least he's out here.
30:53And I can't wait to see what he does over the course of this season.
30:56Yeah, last year he was very fast at this race.
30:58Went 4-5 for fifth.
30:59But that's a much different circumstance.
31:03So when you see Bomer 12, that's solid for you.
31:07Yeah, I mean, it's solid.
31:08It's solid that the guy's even out here.
31:09Yes.
31:10You know, I think these guys overcoming some of these injuries, you don't know.
31:13It could do one or two things.
31:15It could break you mentally or it could make you even stronger.
31:18And we've seen both those things happen.
31:20You look in the 450 class of Hunter Lawrence, a lot of injuries.
31:23Look where he's at.
31:24And I think Julian, if he is pain-free, stays healthy, this is only going to make him stronger
31:29to where one day he might be up there where Levi is leading these races.
31:33Time has expired.
31:34So under two laps to go here for Kitchen, who has put Hamaker and Davies away.
31:40Still going to be a great start to the year for Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki as they look
31:45for a one-two.
31:47And Romano trying to hold on for a fourth.
31:49That would be phenomenal for him considering his road to get here.
31:53Shimoda fifth.
31:54Yeah, great, great route by the top five.
31:58Romano's not out of it for the podium here.
32:00He's got Davies in sight again.
32:01Yeah, I think what's happening with Cole, I mean, one of two things.
32:04Either it's the first race, or he's either settled in third place, or that rabbit's not
32:10in front of him.
32:11So he doesn't have anybody to chase.
32:13So it's kind of hard to move forward.
32:14Nick is still there, and he's giving life into him.
32:17Nick understands that, man, if I can get on the podium, I can make Jason right and read
32:21that stat.
32:22But it's the first time in a bunch of gear and solidify my ride for next year, too.
32:26That's right.
32:27Get it back to the podium sweep.
32:29Yeah, it was two seconds faster than Davies the last time around.
32:32You've got to figure the 37 might catch a glimpse over his shoulder and say, all right,
32:36I've got to lock this podium down.
32:37Yeah, I'm sure he will.
32:39And you can tell by his body language that he probably was just relaxing a little bit.
32:43But that being said, Nick is really fighting.
32:46I'm really happy to see that for him, all these pro circuit guys, because it's been a few
32:50years, but great start.
32:52And he's still closing in on Cole.
32:56You know, if you're Nick, if you have an opportunity, I would say anything goes.
33:00We know Cole's going to be up here a lot, but this could be a huge boost for him as
33:05he's letting it all hang out.
33:07Yeah.
33:09All right.
33:09He knows what the podium would mean.
33:11This would be massive, again, for a rider who is just a fill-in racer.
33:16At one point thought maybe his career was done in a flash.
33:21Turned a pro a couple of years ago.
33:23Had a solid summer.
33:24A lot of top tens.
33:25Then about two straight years of injuries.
33:27Got injured again at the start of last year.
33:29Thought it might be over.
33:31But what did you say about injuries?
33:33How they can build a guy up?
33:34You know if you're Amano, you're leaving nothing on the track.
33:37Yeah.
33:37Because you know this is your shot.
33:38No, and this is.
33:40And just what I was saying about Julian, you know, Nick's out here.
33:43He was able to race a few races this year, and look what he's doing.
33:46So I think for him, if he came back from this injury mentally, he'll be stronger.
33:51And he's closing in on the Supercross champ.
33:53So all these guys got talent.
33:56Just whether they stay healthy and they believe how good they are, I'm happy to see it happen.
34:00Yeah, you can see the belief right now, but the white flag is out.
34:03Davey's going to try to weather this storm.
34:06Kitchen, looking to lock down what would be his eighth career moto win.
34:10And it's actually would be a career best in pro motocross for Hamaker, even if he hangs on for a
34:16second.
34:17Yeah, it's a career best for a lot of these guys out here.
34:20But, you know, I was looking behind.
34:22Joe Shimoda's right there behind him.
34:24So Nick's got to push because Joe Shimoda's got to pop in the screen.
34:27And we know Joe don't quit.
34:29He always keeps fighting.
34:30And he looks better, you know, peeking at his thing.
34:33Joe looks better than he did earlier.
34:35This is what he needed.
34:36This is the Joe Shimoda that we've been wanting.
34:38I was going to say, is that not classic Shimoda?
34:40That's what it is.
34:41That's why I thought maybe if you put him out front, you know, it's a little bit different.
34:44The nerves, and he starts thinking about all the things he can lose.
34:47But you put it where Joe feels like he's more comfortable running these guys down.
34:51This is the guy that beat Hayden Deegan towards the end of the supercross
34:55and then ultimately to win that championship.
34:57This guy right there never gives up.
34:59And Nick better pick up their feet because Joe Shimoda's coming.
35:02Man, he just does not get tired.
35:05He never gives up.
35:06And remember, folks, the two-moto format, you're going to take the results of this one.
35:11They'll all come back and race another 30-minute at two-lap moto.
35:14Combine those results together for the overall.
35:17So this could affect the podium.
35:18This could even affect who wins the race this afternoon.
35:21These passes down the stretch.
35:24Yeah, and I think with this class and how deep this field is and usually the inconsistency,
35:29this fourth place that Joe is able to get around, if he's able to win the next moto,
35:33he could win the overall because a bad start, you could end up in 10th,
35:37even though, you know, your Levi kitchen with his feet.
35:39So Joe, it really wouldn't matter if this was the last place.
35:43Joe would be doing what he's doing.
35:44But it could, you know, be big towards that overall for him.
35:48And each point pays in the championship per moto, not per overall.
35:52So you never know how close it could be at the end.
35:55All we're trying to say here is there's plenty of reason for these guys to push to the end.
36:00Although no reason to push for the win because this guy is gone.
36:04Levi kitchen dominates qualifying, takes his time, goes fast when he needs to.
36:09Who's going to fire first with Deegan out firing first?
36:13It's Levi kitchen wins the first moto of the year.
36:18Yeah, what a strong rod by his teammates.
36:22Second, Seth Handmaker, great rod by Cole.
36:27Let's see what happens behind him.
36:28But what we say earlier, he said the kitchen was open for breakfast.
36:31I think it's open for lunch now.
36:33Okay.
36:34Moto two, you know what that is?
36:35Oh, that's dinner.
36:36That's dinner time.
36:37Don't worry about that.
36:37You fool right now, right?
36:38How many courses can the chef make today?
36:41Davies, as you mentioned, comes across in third.
36:43Solid start to the campaign for him.
36:45And Shimoda did it.
36:46He got Romano.
36:48Wow, what a great rod.
36:49Still a great rod by Nick.
36:51Yeah.
36:51Top five.
36:53Here's the pass.
36:55Shimoda.
36:56Yeah, let's see what happens.
36:57Let's see if Joe is going to go in the inside of him.
37:01Now Nick makes a small mistake.
37:04Joe was going to make that pass anyway.
37:05Great rod by him.
37:06Came from a ways back.
37:07So, good right here.
37:10Nick's off the racetrack.
37:12Waves his hand.
37:13No harm, no foul.
37:14Good rod, Joe.
37:15And Nick.
37:17Shimoda takes a look over to Dewey.
37:18Has him covered.
37:19This guy's happy.
37:21Way to start it for Levi Kitchen.
37:23We'll see you next time.
37:24We'll see you next time.
37:25We'll see you next time.
Comments