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00:00Starts 15th, it's going to be a much tougher battle to chase down those Monstruoji Pro Circuit Kawasaki's.
00:06Yeah, thanks, JT. That's it.
00:08Hamaker has been lightning off of every start this year in the 10.
00:12Kitchen, not quite as good off the gate, but has delivered multiple moto wins.
00:16And that might have been his best start of the year in that first moto.
00:19So he's moving further forward.
00:21Yeah, he's moving forward.
00:22And also thank you, just shout out to Joe Shimoto.
00:25I think Joe wrote great that first moto.
00:26He obviously went down, but you heard him on the podium, made quite a bit of passes, more aggressive.
00:31He gets a start.
00:32I think he'll be here to compete.
00:34Same thing with Cole Davies and Lucas.
00:38I mean, Sasha Kunin.
00:39Yeah, Sasha, with the early crash, really wasn't in it in the first moto.
00:43Could be different this time, although he won't have a very good gate pick.
00:47But he is a great starter, might be able to overcome that.
00:51This is it, 30 minutes and two laps, 40 riders on the gate.
00:54First moto winner is Kitchen over Hamaker and Shimoda.
00:57Will they be the ones battling for the overall, or can someone else like Davies get in the mix?
01:02Here it is.
01:03Rebs are up.
01:06Gates down.
01:11And it is Sasha Kunin.
01:13Oh, and Hamaker's down in a first turn crash again.
01:17Was that his teammate?
01:18I believe Levi Kitchen was down as with him as well.
01:21It was.
01:22So first and second in the first moto are nearly last and next to last here in the second moto.
01:30This is in second place.
01:31Nick Romano.
01:33Are you kidding me?
01:35Nick Romano, who is fourth in moto one.
01:38Could he win today's overall?
01:41He's running second, but Sasha Kunin showing his start prowess in the lead.
01:46Yeah, this track is going to be a lot different than what it was earlier.
01:48They put some water down.
01:49So you saw that 450 class, how slippery it was.
01:53Got to be careful this opening lap.
01:54But great to see him up here, JT, as he makes a mistake and gets passed by Nick on the
01:59inside.
02:00Unbelievable.
02:01Romano, oh, almost throws it away.
02:03Sasha gets it back.
02:04All right, JT, what do you got?
02:06I was just going to say buckle up because this is what Sasha does.
02:09He is one of the best starters I've seen.
02:11And let's just give him a mulligan on that first moto start.
02:14But this is what he does well.
02:16But no one likes to push the envelope like Sasha Kunin.
02:20So let's see what he's got.
02:21Because you know after watching his brother get second overall right there, he wants to leave here with a win.
02:25Yeah, absolutely.
02:26And the one thing I was thinking about before the gate dropped, you know, how many times has Sasha probably
02:30started in first gear over in Europe?
02:33So maybe that first start was just him really getting used to that.
02:36Second one was definitely better.
02:38Now he's out front.
02:40You see in that box there, you've got the two Kawasaki's in green.
02:43That's Habaker and Kitchen trying to make their way forward.
02:47Trying to figure out where they are looking at timing and scoring.
02:50It is 27th and 28th, at least for the moment.
02:54Yeah, they're way, way, way, way, way, way, way in the back of the pack.
02:57But, yeah, I mean, you can see all the chaos in the small box.
03:00Not only they've got to deal with the ruts, they've got the riders getting cross-rutted.
03:04So you've got to be careful to make your way up.
03:07And if you're Levi, just stick with that number 10 in front of him as he's making a bunch of
03:10passes.
03:12So Sasha Kunin, 14th in Moto 1 and quickly getting away in Moto 2.
03:18What an impression, a first impression, that the Kunin twins are leaving a pro motocross today.
03:25Romano, DeFrancisco, Gordon, Shimoda is fifth.
03:30This could be an opportunity for Shimoda to get that much-needed first overall win of the season.
03:36Because he's going to have to deal with Romano, who's the overall leader right now.
03:40And Kitchen and Habaker are way back.
03:42Yeah, I need to make a mistake.
03:43So Levi's actually ahead of Seth.
03:45So he's made the pass on him and a few other positions.
03:48But, I mean, you've got to think, Sasha's out front just smiling.
03:53His brother's smiling out here.
03:55Long ways to go.
03:56But I would say so far, the dissertation to America has been successful.
04:02No doubt about it.
04:03Even if he doesn't finish off for the Moto win, they have shown how well they can ride and what
04:07talents that they are.
04:09Will?
04:11Yeah, I just want to let you guys know, I'm actually with Sasha's brother, Lucas, right now.
04:15He's just watching the monitor that we watched the racing on.
04:18He's like, I'm loving this.
04:19I'm loving the fact that I can watch him out there.
04:21I don't think any surprise right now seeing what his brother is doing.
04:24But he's watching very closely.
04:26He hasn't gone anywhere.
04:27He's moved about 10 feet from the podium.
04:30Yes, very interested spectator there.
04:33Expect to see them back at Southwick and Iron Man.
04:36Get to a sand track.
04:39Southwick, they could do some serious damage there.
04:42You know, but at the same time, I know this is hard packed.
04:45But this track kind of reminds me of a sand track, meaning you've got to carry your momentum up.
04:49And with the bike being down on power, it's probably allowing Lucas, being on this hard pack, to kind of
04:55ride it.
04:56I mean, Sasha, that is, to ride it like he would sand.
04:58Keeping that momentum up.
05:00I mean, look at this gap.
05:01He almost got five seconds within a lap and a half.
05:03And he's got his head down, just moving forward.
05:06And at one point, he'll realize, man, I got these guys pretty far.
05:09I'm pretty far out front.
05:11You can see Romano in the distance back there.
05:14Going to go back to the start.
05:15Got to show you what happened to Hamaker, who I thought might have the hole shot.
05:19And just like last week, ends up getting tangled in turn one.
05:23And Kitchen was down with him.
05:25There's Romano in second.
05:28And already, the gap, like you said, nearly five seconds.
05:30Good start for Ryder D.
05:32Princesco and the Rockstar Husqvarna.
05:34There's Kitchen.
05:36He is into the top 20 now, 18.
05:39And now we'll show you the replay of the start as he tries to get around his teammate Drew Adams
05:45back here.
05:46Yeah, Drew probably didn't recognize that it was Levi behind him.
05:49But here we go.
05:49We've got Levi highlighted.
05:52Now, it looked like kind of got clipped.
05:54Somebody gets clipped, they start leaning towards the other way.
05:57So, I believe the, it was a Kawasaki rider that got hooked on Seth.
06:02I don't know, was that Levi?
06:04And pulled Seth down.
06:05I think it was Levi that pulled him down.
06:07But the question is, what happened to Levi?
06:09Something must have hit him.
06:11Yeah, when the corner is going right, these guys start going left.
06:15It never ends well.
06:17Man, Kitchen is making an immense beat of this field.
06:20He's already passed about half of the riders.
06:2417th now for Kitchen in six minutes.
06:28Yeah, that's good.
06:30Seems like with the track, it's gotten to a point to where the ruts are going to be the ruts.
06:33So, wherever it's flat, it's pretty much going to stay that way.
06:36So, I think it's opened up the passing opportunities for these guys.
06:40They look like they've made some movements on the racetrack.
06:42So, they're able to hit some of the outsides.
06:44But, nonetheless, Levi's doing good, JT.
06:46Yeah, it is.
06:47And, Weege, I love what you did there with the Kitchen-Mencemeat thing.
06:49But, it is a little, I think, reassuring for Kitchen when he sees Handmaker down with him in the first
06:55corner.
06:55Now, that doesn't help his points or his scoring position in this moto.
06:58But, at least he knows that his championship rival up to this point is in the same dire situation that
07:04he is.
07:04So, it's not going to be as much panic.
07:06He's going to work forward, get every single point he can.
07:09But, there's just that tinge of like, oh, okay, well, it's not as bad as it could be.
07:14Making moves in a hurry.
07:15Gage Linfield here on the 5-11 try on the 74.
07:18Catch back up to the lead group.
07:20You've got Davies who has now moved from 6th to 4th.
07:23Shimoda.
07:24Shimoda has the overall win right in front of him.
07:27But, he's actually drifted back a bit.
07:29And, it's going to help Romano's cause.
07:32This would be an unbelievable story.
07:34If Nick Romano, the fill-in rider for Pro Circuit, could get the win.
07:39There he is on the 141.
07:40But, he's under fire from Di Francesco.
07:43Yeah.
07:43I'm assuming Joe must have went down.
07:45Yeah.
07:45He was up there.
07:46Or, maybe my mistake.
07:48But, yeah, the one you've got to watch for is the guy in fourth right now, Cole Davies.
07:52I do believe, like, he showed a lot of pace.
07:55He was second fastest.
07:56Actually, he was your fastest on the racetrack for almost a second over Lotter D in front of him.
08:02So, he has the pace.
08:03And, he just came through the pack.
08:05So, Joe better catch a toe.
08:08Okay.
08:09Joe is back going behind Davies.
08:12Shimoda's going to need a couple of passes.
08:13He's got to get to Romano and beat him in this moto because he only beat Romano by one spot
08:18in the first moto.
08:20So, Romano would have tiebreaker in position if he finishes ahead of Shimoda.
08:25So, at least right now, the overall win today is a battle between the green 141 of Romano and the
08:31red 30 of Shimoda.
08:33And, there's a pass by DeFrancisco.
08:35Yeah, Nick got caught on that outside.
08:37And, you can't go the long ways around to make that mistake.
08:40Ryder D was able to slide up the inside.
08:42Great pass.
08:43And, good to see him up here.
08:45Promising Supercross season.
08:46A couple crashes this outdoor season.
08:48But, make no mistake, this kid has a lot of speed.
08:51He just needs to be up front.
08:52And, he can show it.
08:54Do you think Romano has any idea he's leading this thing overall?
08:57Yeah, probably.
08:58Do you think so?
08:59Knows his teammates down.
09:00Oh, there goes.
09:01Easy pass.
09:01Easy work there for the 37.
09:04Davies.
09:04Yeah, I don't know if he's pumped up.
09:07Oh, no.
09:07Davies.
09:08Goes down.
09:09Oh, no.
09:10That's going to be tough in the shower later on.
09:12You can see a little road rash up there.
09:15But, that just shows you the traction or the lack thereof on this racetrack.
09:19He was pushing it.
09:20Both tires start pushing.
09:21And, he goes down.
09:23Bummer for Cole.
09:25So, we think Shimoda might have gone down at one point.
09:27Now, same thing for Davies.
09:29It is all sorts of mixed up.
09:33And, Davies now back to seven.
09:35Of the young Australian, Kate Menear, who got in front of him.
09:41Then, there's Menear at the 99.
09:44Deacon Denno, another rookie.
09:46Had a good start last week.
09:48On the 5-11 triumph.
09:49Looking good on the 199.
09:51Then, it's Davies.
09:54Carson Mumford, who was quick last week.
09:57Yeah, looking at the points.
09:59Nick and Joe tied on points.
10:01Ryder Dees in third.
10:03The 2-CF class is making it difficult on my math problems right now.
10:06I can't deal with it.
10:07It's like the single digits.
10:09Levi Kitchen is going to be in a position here a little bit for an overall victory still.
10:14How many people struggle with that?
10:16Five out of four, baby.
10:19We're going to give you the update here on the fly racing riders in this field as Davies goes to
10:24work on Denno.
10:26Just a moment.
10:27We'll give you that update.
10:28Been in a struggle today for Jimas, again, who was the race winner here last year.
10:33He's in 13th.
10:34There's the pass.
10:36Yeah, good recovery by Cole.
10:37Probably takes him a few pointers to settle back up.
10:40Hopefully, his mechanic probably told him, hey, we're still in this thing.
10:44We need to fight.
10:45Levi's in the back.
10:46He doesn't understand that.
10:47Still got 20 minutes left, plus two laps in this race.
10:50Pitches to 14th.
10:51Let's hear about that rookie, Deacon Denno, JT.
10:54Yeah, and Jason, it's not so much just about Denno.
10:56It's really about the youth in this top 10.
10:58Look, you've got Sasha Kunin making his first-ever pro motocross race.
11:01It's winning here.
11:02You've got Landon Gordon in, what, his maybe fourth or fifth-ever pro motocross race.
11:06Caden Muneer with a similar number in sixth.
11:08Deacon Denno, his third-ever pro motocross race.
11:11So the youth is really showing up.
11:13And Carson Wood was 10th, now 11th, in his first-ever pro motocross race.
11:17So the youngster's really showing up in moto, too.
11:20Yeah, Wood is just 16 years old.
11:22The plan for now is for Wood to race a couple of these,
11:25but not so many that he loses his amateur eligibility
11:28and then go to the Monster Energy Championship at Loretta Lins for amateurs.
11:32But if he does really well, the team might just keep Wood on full-time, running 11th right now.
11:39Yeah, how good these amateurs are these days.
11:41It's probably not much easier to race an amateur.
11:44We've seen these kids come out, especially the next program, and compete next weekend.
11:51How about this?
11:53Sasha Coonan wheeling away and looking for the moto win.
11:58Not his first race in America, but he was part of the Belgium team for the motocross of nations.
12:04Was fast that day, made some mistakes.
12:06He was fast in the first moto, made some mistakes.
12:08But so far, he's got it right now.
12:11Yeah, but I would say this is his first race, only because of the destinations.
12:16You end up racing against 450s and stuff.
12:18So, like I said, with his brother, there's 10 reasons why this shouldn't be possible.
12:22But these kids have got a lot of heart, a lot of determination.
12:25It is.
12:27Wow.
12:28Making that Roger DeCoster fly racing gear look good.
12:32Coonan's first.
12:33You look at the fly racing riders.
12:34Hymas, we mentioned before, 13th.
12:36Boland, 17th.
12:37Turner, Ross, Timbo, and Schwartz on the Bar-Axe, Toyota, Redlands.
12:41Yamaha's out there as well.
12:43So, yeah, the gear here that Fly Racing came up with is designed to look like the man.
12:47Roger DeCoster, the superstar of the sport in the 1970s.
12:51A Belgium native as well.
12:53And he manages K-10's racing operations.
12:55So, it's great to be able to work with these riders.
12:58Roger is 82 years old.
13:00They are 19.
13:01So, I cannot say they grew up as Roger fans necessarily.
13:05I mean, luckily, you're still in it.
13:07Luckily, they still watched you growing up.
13:09So, you're 19.
13:11You still respect it.
13:12I'm glad you threw out Roger's age because that saves me.
13:14I feel way young.
13:15But, you watching a little grown man out here and whatnot.
13:20He's putting it down.
13:21These kids are teams.
13:23Coming over here doing work.
13:24It looks like Shimoda has the gap to Romano down to one second.
13:28That would be the battle for the overall win today.
13:31You see the event points on the left side.
13:33And here is that battle.
13:35They're currently tied.
13:36But, Romano would have it.
13:38Second moto is a tiebreaker.
13:39But, for how long?
13:42Yeah.
13:42When you ask him that question, does Nick know?
13:45You're about to find out.
13:47Yeah.
13:47It depends on how he fights Joe.
13:49If Joe gets around and does he run a wheel back in on him.
13:53But, overall, I can do a lot of things.
13:55And, I'm sure Nick will be able to get his first one.
13:57Joe's had one before.
13:58An opportunity for him.
14:02Unbelievable from Pro Circuit.
14:04If Romano holds on, they have the first three wins of the year with three different riders.
14:09Really showing how strong these motorcycles are this year.
14:14Here's Kitchen.
14:15More work.
14:16He has taught primus.
14:18Yeah, I was looking at it.
14:19He's been stuck in 14 for a little bit now.
14:21But, he had to make up a little bit of time on chance.
14:24And, he's got to keep pushing forward.
14:30And, with the word Kitchen has done, he would actually take over the championship lead by one point at the
14:36moment.
14:36He throws the field over Handacre.
14:38Seth a little further back.
14:40He's in 19.
14:41But, Derek Kelly here.
14:4477 on the MX6.
14:47Sons of our fathers, Kawasaki.
14:50Here's Kitchen.
14:51Yeah, Levi's doing really good.
14:53And, it just shows you how impressive this ride is if he can continue.
14:56Because, it's really hard for anyone to come up through this field.
14:59Look at Seth.
14:59I mean, he's kind of been stuck in that same position.
15:01How difficult this racetrack is.
15:03So, Cole Davies, the same thing.
15:06Really impressed that first motor with the passes.
15:09Uh-oh.
15:10It's joke time.
15:11Right there, James.
15:13Looking for the move of Romano.
15:14It's for the overall, the bottom box.
15:16Yeah, now if I'm Joe, I want HRC to let me know that this is for an overall with Nick.
15:22So, you know, hey, don't leave that corner open.
15:24Maybe some races Nick wouldn't come back in.
15:26But, like I said, you'd do a lot of things for an overall victory in this class.
15:31Oh, yeah.
15:32Kitchen, meanwhile, in that battle with Hyman's, had feet off the pegs.
15:35And the Rucks lost a ton of ground to Hyman's.
15:38So, still stuck in 14th.
15:40Kunin leads the moto.
15:42So, DiFrancisco second.
15:43But this battle, Romano and Shimoda, that all comes down to this, JT.
15:47It does.
15:48And for Shimoda, you know, I was thinking, it's been a long time since we've seen Wasabi Joe show up.
15:53You know, the nickname that the Honda HRC guys use for Joe when he's in the zone.
15:58When he's feeling it and he goes to that other place.
16:01That's Wasabi Joe.
16:02We have not seen that.
16:04I don't know.
16:05Maybe all of 2026.
16:07So, if it was ever a time to break it back out, he'll be right here, right now, to grab
16:11that overall win.
16:12Get some water.
16:13It's Wasabi time.
16:15I feel like Joe's here.
16:16And, like I said earlier, the first moto, he rode good.
16:19But, looking at Levi Kitchen, our points leader, Seth, it is just very, very hard to make passes in this
16:25field.
16:26And, as you get up, the passes get even more difficult.
16:28So, Joe's riding really good, ducking his hair from the ruse.
16:33He's getting an overall victory.
16:35That's, uh, wasn't probably a lot on a lot of people's veto card, for sure.
16:39This is the battle for the win.
16:40Halfway mark of the moto.
16:42Reminder to stock up on Monster Energy.
16:45Shimoda versus Romano.
16:47Will.
16:50As I've been talking to Ben Griffiths, Joe Shimoda's mechanic, Shane Drew, the crew chief over there for the two
16:55teams.
16:56He's just asking, kind of, where Joe's at, you know, because the results have been relatively consistent, but not consistently
17:02on the podium up front.
17:03And, they both said, this is about the start.
17:06There's been a big focus this week on those starts.
17:08It was a bit so-so, once again, there in moto.
17:11To imagine the world where Joe has got these starts, because he has been the most consistent rider, really.
17:17And, they said, also, we have to remember back-to-back injuries for Joe.
17:21He had that very serious, um, upper back there, neck injuries, and then, of course, you know, he had the,
17:26he had the leg, his broken leg there.
17:28So, they said, that's a lot of time away from the bike.
17:30That's a lot of, uh, no gate drops, a lot of confidence knocking.
17:33So, the message really coming from them was, once we get a start, just watch this space.
17:38Because, they're very happy with the way Joe's been moving through the pack.
17:42As you've noted, James, and, uh, we're seeing it happen again here.
17:44It might result in a no-ball, but we still haven't seen him go out in front and get that
17:48win on the moto.
17:50But, just kind of, I don't think that it's coming.
17:51Yeah, and, just going, uh, expanding on that a little bit more, when you talk about the injuries,
17:55I felt like, with Joe coming back, because he has some, um, gnarly injuries, you know, just having that confidence
18:00in yourself,
18:01I actually believe, because he hasn't been getting bad starts, it's probably why, once he does get it, he's able
18:07to ride.
18:08Because, to me, the way he looked at first race, if you were to put him out front, he might
18:12have not rode like this.
18:13But, because he had bad starts, and he had to just let loose and race and pass these guys,
18:18probably let his instincts come back, found his racing form, to where now he's back.
18:22But, he's got a bigger problem, his motorcycle's smoking now.
18:25Smoking Joe.
18:26He's smoking Joe right now.
18:28Look on the right side of that bike, on the bottom part.
18:32Oh, wow.
18:36This is it.
18:38If the bike holds on, it's the battle for the overall.
18:40Romano hanging tough.
18:42He has improved so much on the late race endurance, compared to the first weekend of the year at Fox
18:48Raceway.
18:49But, has he improved enough to hold off Joe, who is maybe the toughest rider in this field late in
18:54the race?
18:54Oh, that bike's smoking a lot more now.
18:57Yeah, it's smoking, and hopefully, maybe it's just because it's overheating.
19:00I can hear Joe revving that motorcycle up.
19:02We're at altitude as Joe tries to go around the outside.
19:05The bikes run hotter up here because they're starving for oxygen.
19:08So, easy to happen.
19:10Saw it happen yesterday and even earlier today.
19:14So, Joe's going to have to keep this thing and try to manage it, but I doubt he knows at
19:17this moment.
19:19JT.
19:20Oh, just remember, guys.
19:21Remember Hayden Deegan last year.
19:23Oh, there's a pass, JT.
19:24He makes the move there.
19:25But Hayden Deegan basically had to milk his bike all the way to the finish line with a similar issue.
19:30Over-revving the motorcycle, using the clutch too much.
19:34So, nothing that dramatic yet for Joe, but he could be there if he doesn't take it easy.
19:38Yeah, and I'm looking at it.
19:39It's coming out the drain plug down there.
19:40So, that's actually a good thing because that is overheating.
19:43It looks like overflow.
19:45Yeah, the overflow, which is saying that bike is hot.
19:48So, he might have an opportunity.
19:50It's going to be hard because he's battling, but maybe try to cool that thing down.
19:56Well, it'll be interesting to see if they put on the pit board to stay off the clutch.
20:00Because when the smoke's coming out there, as a rider, do you even know it?
20:03Do you even see it?
20:04No, the only time you know it is like if there's a big puff or you start feeling like the
20:08antifreeze or water getting on you,
20:09you start sliding around and not gripping it.
20:12That's when you'll look down.
20:13But Smoking Joe don't know he's smoking right now.
20:16Back with Kitchen.
20:17So, Shimoda, at the moment with that pass and Romano, has taken the overall lead.
20:22Kitchen is digging for a podium today.
20:28Yeah, hopefully, that's wood.
20:30Yeah, these guys in front of him are going to get Levi back in here because I believe that he's
20:35got an opportunity to make a few passes.
20:37It's only about, you know, six seconds behind Cole Davies running in ninth place.
20:44Cole must have went down again.
20:46Well, what's wild is first of Kitchen can make this pass on wood and put him on the overall podium.
20:52Not bad for the first turn crash.
20:53But the serious points right now.
20:56Kitchen would have a two-point lead on Hamaker and a four-point lead on Shimoda.
21:00And Beaumare, who's been solid all year, would be down only 12.
21:04So, every point is big for any one of these riders.
21:08And if Shimoda's bike can't hold on, that would be an absolute disaster.
21:12Will?
21:13I just spoke to crew chief and mechanic for Joe Shimoda, and neither of them have heard over their radios
21:19that Joe's bike is smoking.
21:21So, they have not made him aware because, essentially, right now, the team is unaware that there's potentially any bike
21:26problems.
21:28Yeah, it could be good.
21:29It could be bad.
21:30Yeah, and the reason that is, because some places it's not smoking, which goes to me, it's more about it
21:36overheating.
21:37It seems like when the slower parts, it starts smoking.
21:40Like, right here, you can see it.
21:41But when it gets going, it opens up, and they cannot see that.
21:45So, as long as Joe's smoking, he's all right.
21:48That bike could continue to run.
21:50It's when it stops, that might be the issue, and hopefully it cools down.
21:57So, Shimoda in control of the overall.
21:59But here's the podium attempt for Kitchen in the bottom box.
22:02We can make the move on young Carson Wood.
22:07Carson, both of his grandparents are here this weekend to watch his pro debut.
22:11They're very happy.
22:11He has been flying out the test track.
22:13So, that's why they're giving him a shot as a pro.
22:16He is right behind Mumford, who's been riding very well as of late on the AEO KTM.
22:21That's the three-rider battle in the bottom.
22:22What a line by Levi.
22:24The same line he was using that first moto.
22:26That was even more impressive, how rough it is.
22:28And now you can start to see the aggressiveness coming from Levi.
22:31He sees these guys in front of him.
22:33So, if he can get these two, that's going to change things, and who knows how far he can go
22:37up.
22:42Wood really applying the pressure to Mumford.
22:48Yeah, this is going to help Levi out.
22:49These two battling.
22:52Trying to catch them while they're battling each other.
22:54A little sneak attack as Carson looks like he makes the pass.
22:58So, the 16-year-old Wood showing some toughness.
23:02Oh, but he had a rough ride through that corner.
23:04Mumford trying to get him back.
23:07Not able to do it.
23:11I love this team in class because there's battles all the way down.
23:15I mean, we're down, what, 11, 12th?
23:18Yeah, 10th, 11, 12th.
23:20These two are battling as Levi makes that pass.
23:23And is that enough for the overall podium for Kitchen?
23:26Well, this is going to help.
23:28He just made it two for one.
23:30Logo time, Levi.
23:32So, he's around Wood.
23:35Where is Hamaker?
23:3616th, and it is enough.
23:38Kitchen will go to second overall now.
23:41Yeah, you got Cole Davies in front of him.
23:44And it's kind of strange.
23:46Yes, I agree.
23:48Yeah, the way he's riding, you're starting to wonder,
23:50does he have bike issues as well?
23:53We heard him that first moto last weekend.
23:57Yeah, I'm not sure what the issue was last week.
23:59When I talked to Davies yesterday,
24:00he just said, I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say.
24:02We had a problem.
24:03He got 11th in that moto.
24:07Yeah, less now.
24:07And there he is.
24:08That's not the truth to get into a good story.
24:11But Kitchen has definitely reeled him in now, James.
24:13You can see Davies right there.
24:15Yeah, and if I'm Levi, I know this is going to be one of the guys,
24:18and I'm going to fight for this championship.
24:19So that's even more motivation to try to get him.
24:22And, yeah, if he can get this pass, he's already in second overall at this moment.
24:28Is it conceivable that he could make up four more points, four more passes,
24:34and actually somehow get the overall win despite the crash?
24:39Yeah, it's going to be tough.
24:40He's got about 10 seconds to gain, but I did say he was going to be,
24:44at the end of this moto, possibly fight for his overall victory.
24:47Now, as for Hamaker, here he is.
24:49If it ends like this, he'll lose the red plate to Kitchen,
24:53but he is digging as well.
24:55He just got around Dudley for 15th.
25:00Kitchen in hot pursuit of Davies.
25:04Yeah, really, I mean, those two were down together in that first corner,
25:07so I'm sure Seth, you know, he did a good job at fighting back.
25:11Probably going to be a little bummed once he looks up
25:13and see how far Levi was able to climb up,
25:15because he just did it last weekend, so I didn't lose that points lead,
25:19but the number 47 has been riding great all day long.
25:22Very impressive.
25:23He continues marching his way up.
25:25Kitchen is 10th.
25:27If you've got Davies, that'd be one point.
25:29Denno, Menear, Bomer, he would need to get there, I believe,
25:32and I'm literally counting on my fingers.
25:34You can verify.
25:35I'm doing it right in front of you to get to the overall win.
25:37That would be unbelievable.
25:39One pass at a time, and he's going for it around the outside.
25:44Got it.
25:44Yeah, no, he looked like he had it,
25:46but almost looked like he hit like a pothole,
25:48and he kind of knocked his hand off the throttle
25:51and kind of stalled out there, but nonetheless,
25:54yeah, Levi's, no matter how he finished,
25:58I think this is a win today.
25:59The way he rode that first moto,
26:01he's going to be able to come up
26:02and then ultimately, like, take over the points,
26:04I think if he's able to finish this thing out
26:06with his second place after going down to first corner,
26:09Levi's solid.
26:11And he has officially taken the measure of Davies.
26:15Again, second overall.
26:16He needs three more positions
26:18to be able to knock Shimoda off of the top overall spot.
26:24And what can you say about the moto?
26:25Oh, is that a mistake there for the 47th?
26:28Yeah, he probably wanted to get to that end time,
26:30so it looked like he stalled it out.
26:32Yeah, small mistake, but no harm, no foul.
26:35He's got to get a little distance.
26:37Oh, but by the way,
26:38did he just fly over from somewhere,
26:41and he just showed up?
26:42Would look it.
26:43Yeah, he was just, like,
26:44riding in California a couple days ago.
26:45Unbelievable.
26:46Yeah, maybe first time at altitude,
26:48riding a bike on a team that he's not familiar.
26:50It's different than what he's racing,
26:51and I feel like I just saw him win last weekend
26:55somewhere else in a whole different country,
26:57and he comes over here and does it here.
26:58So far, it looks good.
27:00Yes, sweeping the motos last weekend in Latvia,
27:04and now looking for a moto win here.
27:07Now, this is Sasha Kuhn,
27:08and he's not going to make the overall podium
27:09because of a bad first moto,
27:10but what a performance here, JT.
27:13It sure is,
27:14and just thinking about their future plans,
27:16they're going to go back,
27:17and they're going to go to Italy
27:18to race next weekend.
27:20The following weekend,
27:21they go all the way down to South Africa
27:23for a Grand Prix down there,
27:25and then they'll be back for Southwick.
27:27So what a travel schedule in front of them,
27:30and just going from South Africa
27:31to Southwick alone,
27:33that is enough to ask in and of itself,
27:35but I think there's a bright future ahead.
27:37It's pretty obvious from these results.
27:39Yeah, I think I'm going to agree
27:40with that.
27:41These kids can ride,
27:43no doubt about it,
27:43the 19-year-old twins from Belgium.
27:47And the other thing about Sasha,
27:49you only saw it in this moto,
27:50he is an unbelievable starter,
27:52and that'll obviously serve him well.
27:54Now, a lot of the Belgian riders
27:56and the Dutch,
27:56you know, the neighboring country,
27:58are known for the sand riding,
27:59but the Kuhnens,
28:00a couple of years ago,
28:01moved to France
28:02because they wanted
28:03to get more riding in on hard pack
28:05because they know
28:06they need to be more versatile
28:07than just being sand masters.
28:09So they're good on sand,
28:10but they do a lot of work
28:11on this type of terrain,
28:12and you can see it pay off today.
28:14Yeah, I mean,
28:14spoiler alert,
28:15if you can ride sand,
28:16you can ride anything,
28:17to be honest,
28:18because they're all kind of similar
28:19when it's hard pack,
28:20you've got to keep the momentum up,
28:21but there's mud,
28:22same thing.
28:23And so I think sand
28:23is a challenge,
28:24not only to learn
28:26how to shift the motorcycle,
28:27keep momentum,
28:28but also physically,
28:29it's really hard to,
28:30so very impressed.
28:32But we did talk
28:34on the call this weekend,
28:35and what Sasha's doing,
28:36it's not surprising,
28:38he did say,
28:39it wouldn't be surprising
28:39if he came out one in moto
28:40and had some troubles
28:41in the other one,
28:42but to me,
28:43listen to Jett Lawrence
28:44talk about how difficult
28:45this racetrack is,
28:47knowing how difficult
28:48after racing on it,
28:49I'm impressed for them
28:50to adapt,
28:51because I know this track
28:52has not been the same
28:53each time they've been
28:54on the racetrack,
28:55come to altitude,
28:57you know,
28:57there's a lot of pressure on him,
28:58but talking to him yesterday,
29:00knowing everything
29:01that's going on,
29:02I'm more impressed
29:02about them being able
29:03to handle all the adversity,
29:05and then come out
29:06and look like he did
29:07a week ago
29:08out front in his own series,
29:10that's what makes
29:11this kid special,
29:12not what he's doing
29:13right now,
29:13we know he's fast,
29:14but it's doing all that
29:15the way he's doing it,
29:17very impressive.
29:19Kitchen still trying
29:20to dig back there
29:23in nine,
29:25oh, wait a minute,
29:26this is going to help Shimoda,
29:27he is starting to close
29:28on Di Francesco,
29:29could get a little insurance,
29:31because right now
29:31he's only two points ahead
29:32of Kitchen overall,
29:34but he's closing
29:35on Di Francesco,
29:37Di Francesco,
29:38by the way,
29:38will be looking
29:39at his first career podium
29:41overall in pro motocross.
29:46At least at the moment,
29:48but if he gets passed
29:48by Shimoda,
29:49he'll be bumped back.
29:52That JT asked
29:53for Wasabi time,
29:55I believe is here.
29:56Joe's heating up.
29:58Joe's been heating up
29:59by his bike,
29:59he's been heating up
30:00for a few laps,
30:01but we haven't seen it
30:02in a bit,
30:03so maybe,
30:03looks like no more worries,
30:04cooling down a little bit.
30:05All right.
30:07He's heating up,
30:08bike's cooling down,
30:08he has caught Ryder D,
30:10who's been very good
30:11so far this year,
30:12making steps
30:13on the Rockstar Husky.
30:16Wow,
30:16is his track brutal
30:17at this point,
30:18he just sawed it out,
30:19those holes down there.
30:20Yeah,
30:21and this kind of goes back
30:22to my point,
30:22what I was saying
30:23with Joe earlier,
30:24because he's had that start,
30:25he's learned how to race again,
30:27and all that fear
30:28kind of goes away,
30:29because there's so much
30:30chaos around you,
30:31I think that helped Joe
30:32in this situation,
30:34because now he's following
30:35Ryder D,
30:35and he's like,
30:36man,
30:36I've been getting bad starts,
30:37I'm used to pushing
30:38all the way to the end,
30:39and we know how fast he is,
30:41so if he gets that start,
30:42now I believe that
30:42riding matches,
30:44and Joe's been riding great
30:45all day long,
30:45and he holds on
30:46another two and a half laps,
30:49going to be,
30:50what,
30:50third race coming into season,
30:51we wouldn't chalk that up
30:53on a good season,
30:53only four points down,
30:55four and five points down,
30:58seven points down,
30:59because Kitchens
31:00made a few spots up,
31:01but yeah,
31:02for what seems to be
31:03a slow start to the year,
31:05seven points down
31:06after six motos,
31:07and I would say
31:09probably all his championships,
31:11this is probably
31:11the closest he's been
31:12after three races
31:14to the lead,
31:15so in all,
31:16you know,
31:17hindsight,
31:18this is actually
31:19a great start to the season
31:19for Joe and HRC
31:21if they can hold
31:21this thing off
31:22a couple more laps.
31:24That's right,
31:24Joe normally known
31:25as a closer,
31:25doing his best work
31:27late in the championships,
31:29all over
31:30DeFrancisco
31:31with two to go,
31:32so the overall today,
31:34at least as of now,
31:35will be Shimoda,
31:36Kitchen,
31:37DeFrancisco,
31:38it almost was
31:39the dream ride
31:40for Romano,
31:40he's still riding
31:41very well,
31:42but he'd be
31:42fourth overall,
31:44and then Sasha Kunin
31:46with the Moto win,
31:47but the top 14th
31:48in Moto 1
31:49would be fifth overall.
31:52Ladder D,
31:53see what he's made of
31:54here down the stretch,
31:55got to dig deep.
31:57Yeah,
31:58he is,
31:58Joe's got some good lines,
32:00you can see,
32:00Joe's starting to work
32:01some of those outside,
32:02keeping that momentum up,
32:04start making
32:04Rodder D guess,
32:06and
32:07he can make that pass.
32:10all that's going to help
32:11is just the points
32:12and close that gap
32:13to the championship,
32:14because right now
32:15he has overall,
32:16so for him,
32:17but Joe doesn't know
32:18anything different.
32:19Rodder in front of us,
32:20time to pass.
32:21This guy is so strong
32:23late in the races,
32:24so this is not going
32:25to be easy
32:25for DeFrancisco.
32:28Saw Joe wanted to get
32:29to that inside there,
32:30he just missed it,
32:31couldn't,
32:31Mike wouldn't hook up.
32:40going to be white flag
32:41next time around.
32:44Nice how Joe
32:45struggled to get
32:46over that tabletop
32:47just shows the lack
32:48of power
32:49on these motorcycles.
32:54Kitchen,
32:55still going.
32:57Deacon Deno though,
32:59solid in this moto
33:00on the Triumph at eight.
33:02Yeah, good, good ride.
33:04I mean,
33:04it comes down to
33:05a lot of these kids
33:06we talked about
33:06over the last couple
33:07of weeks.
33:08Sasha looks like
33:09she went off track.
33:11Hey, Graham,
33:11he had a pretty big lead.
33:14Yeah, he's all right
33:15here on the 109,
33:16about to see
33:16the white flag
33:18with a seven second gap.
33:23Yep,
33:24racing in Lafayette
33:26last weekend,
33:27couple of days
33:28out in California
33:29to get it used
33:29to the American bike,
33:30and so far so good,
33:32except for this.
33:34Yep,
33:34that's a double.
33:34Ooh,
33:35that was close
33:36right there.
33:37Yeah,
33:37great riding by him.
33:39No harm,
33:39no foul,
33:39gets back on the track,
33:41but that could have
33:42been really bad.
33:42He looked like
33:43he bottomed out,
33:44cross-rutted,
33:45and save the day.
33:47But back on Levi
33:48and Deacon,
33:49like,
33:50a lot of these kids,
33:51I mean,
33:51it really just comes
33:52down to a start
33:54because they have
33:54the speed to do it
33:55as Levi makes
33:56his way up.
33:57It's still a great
33:57ride by him,
33:58and both of these guys,
34:00Levi gets another
34:00point on Seth.
34:02So now Kitchen
34:03would need two more
34:04points on this last lap
34:06if Shimoda
34:06cannot get
34:07DeFrancisco.
34:08It's not quite over.
34:10If I look back there,
34:12do I see Shimoda
34:13still battling?
34:14And yes,
34:15Shimoda just made
34:16the pass
34:17on DeFrancisco.
34:19So that's going to
34:19make the overall
34:20mouth a little
34:21easier for Joe.
34:25Well,
34:26when we met
34:26these two yesterday,
34:28Lucas and Sasha,
34:29they were so happy,
34:30so pumped,
34:31especially to meet you.
34:32They came over here
34:33to say,
34:34can we get a picture
34:35with James?
34:35Which is what the fans
34:36say,
34:37this guy's good enough
34:37to win motos.
34:38And I said to Lucas,
34:39I said,
34:40are you sure you're
34:41going to be going to
34:42lock in tomorrow?
34:42Like, at some point
34:43it's got to get serious.
34:44And they were honestly
34:45a little concerned.
34:47But obviously,
34:47when the helmet went on,
34:48they knew what to do.
34:49Yeah,
34:50but I mean,
34:51you come over,
34:52this has been a dream
34:53and there is,
34:54truthfully,
34:54both of them,
34:55I would have to say,
34:55they probably lived up
34:57to the expectation
34:58this dream come true
34:59because Lucas understands
35:01after Rod here,
35:02I can come over here
35:03and compete immediately.
35:05So that's good.
35:06Same thing with Sasha,
35:08what he's doing
35:08in his moto,
35:09but man,
35:11I am really impressed.
35:12You guys hear me
35:13talk about these Rod,
35:14I'm impressed with all of them,
35:15but I get more impressed
35:16about what they do
35:17inside their head,
35:18all those challenges
35:19and now face a lot of adversity
35:21in a different ways
35:22and I can't say enough
35:23about what they're doing today.
35:24Yep.
35:26Transatlantic travel,
35:27a bunch of time zones,
35:28different bike,
35:29different series,
35:30tracks they don't know,
35:31formats they don't know.
35:32What worries?
35:34This one's just powered
35:36by the fact that
35:37it's the dream they want
35:38to come to America
35:39and win in America
35:40and in the second moto,
35:42Sasha Kunin
35:44takes a moto win
35:45in Thunder Valley
35:47and this should be enough
35:49for Joe Shimoda
35:52to take the win
35:53overall in Thunder Valley.
35:55Joe Shimoda's
35:56first win of the year.
35:57Congrats,
35:58Joe,
35:59but look at the point.
36:00Seth has made some passes.
36:01They're tied.
36:02Wow!
36:03Okay,
36:03so let's shake this all out.
36:05Shimoda made that pass
36:06on DeFrancisco
36:07for second.
36:07DeFrancisco third.
36:09Bomer got around Romano,
36:10but yes,
36:11Seth Hammacher
36:12never gave up,
36:13got the 12th
36:14and it should be
36:15a co-share of the point lead
36:17for the Kawasaki Riders.
36:23And Joe congratulates Sasha.
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