Who's Who at 2023 Erzberg?

BILLY BOLT

Billy Bolt, the 2021 FIM World Hard Enduro champion, has earned a reputation for his remarkable skills and tenacious style. He tends to dominate any type of sprint situation and is a dominant prologue racer which could put him in a good position off the start of the main race. He had a few issues at the opening round of the series but looked really strong and plenty capable of winning races this season. Look for Billy to do great things this season.

For a complete list of contenders go to 

ERZBERG 2023: RIDERS TO WATCH - Dirt Bike Magazine

Huge Start Crash - Redbull Erzberg Rodeo

A huge crash at Erzberg...who would have thought?

Qualifying MXGP of Germany

Lawrence Bros Dominate Again!

 Post: Alex Gobert

Perfect Lawrence remains unbeaten with Thunder Valley double extends Pro Motocross advantage following six moto wins in succession.

Image: Octopi Media.

There was no stopping Jett Lawrence in Thunder Valley’s third round of the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship, remaining perfect with his sixth moto win in a row and third-successive overall victory.

It was the story of Lawrence in the first 450MX moto of the round, hitting the front from the outset and effectively cruising away to a 31.609s victory.

While the teenager was unchallenged on his way to a fifth win in as many races, Cooper Webb (Red Bull KTM) was solid on his way to the runner-up result, despite a crash in the mid-stages that almost enabled third-placed Adam Cianciarulo (Monster Energy Kawasaki) to takeover the position.

That’s how they would finish, however, and it was the race for fourth that stole much of the attention, with Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM) – rebounding from a first lap clash with Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – managing to fend off a determined ride from Masterpool, who took it right down to the wire.

Making Masterpool’s ride even more impressive was that he had crashed in the first turn and fought all the way back into the top-five.

Positions sixth through 10th included Garrett Marchbanks (Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha) in his first premier class appearance of the year, Ferrandis, Grant Harlan (Manluk Rock River Racing Yamaha), Derek Drake (BarX Suzuki) and Fredrik Noren (Twisted Tea Suzuki).

Another measured performance saw Lawrence continue his unbeaten run in 450MX moto two, crossing the finish 11.993s clear of the field to further stamp his authority on the class, despite his rookie status.

After taking the holeshot, Lawrence sprinted away and controlled the gap, winning ahead of Plessinger and Ferrandis, who made a final lap pass on the impressive Masterpool.

Webb was fifth this time out, but ahead of Cianciarulo after he ran as high as second early on, with Harlan, Marchbanks, Lorenzo Locurcio (Wildcat Race Team GasGas) and Noren the top 10.

That resulted in victory for Lawrence overall, joined on the podium by Plessinger and Webb. Heading into High Point next Saturday, Lawrence holds a 34-point lead over Ferrandis – fourth overall today – and with Webb directly behind him in third position.

Jett on Hangtown Track

Thunder Valley Who's Up?

Thunder Valley Motocross by the numbers: A new 450 winner will be crowned

By Dan Beaver

The first Pro Motocross race held at Thunder Valley in Lakewood, Colorado in 2005 was swept by Ricky Carmichael in a season where he won all but two motos while James Stewart won there in a 2008 night race on his way to winning all 24 motos and those are some of the numbers highlighting the track’s 18 years. Through two rounds and four motos, Jett Lawrence has been perfect in 2023 and he looks to add to the history of Thunder Valley.

 

Dylan Ferrandis has swept the podium in the first two rounds of the Pro Motocross championship. – Align Media

One thing is certain, Thunder Valley will have a new 450 winner this week as none of the active riders have won in this division. Jett has one win on this track, but it came in the 250 class last year over his brother Hunter Lawrence, who is also undefeated in overall victories so far in 2023.

The odds are good that Jett will be in the hunt for both moto wins. Thunder Valley was his fifth-best Motocross venue in 250s with a third-place average finish but three other riders who have swept the top five this season will have some to say about that. Dylan Ferrandis (third at Fox and second at Hangtown), Aaron Plessinger (with two fourths), and Cooper Webb (fifth and third) each have a pair of strong runs.

Ken Roczen leads the league with five wins over Ryan Dungey with four. Eli Tomac has three wins on his home track, but neither he nor Roczen will participate this week.

This weekend, the track will host a race for the 19th consecutive year, giving it the third-longest active streak. Only RedBud in Buchanan, Michigan and Spring Creek in Millville, Minnesota have longer streaks.

Supercross statistician Clinton Fowler points out that Honda has dominated the opening two rounds for the past two seasons. In 2023, they have won six motos in the combined classes compared to five in 2022. Honda has led 73 percent of the laps (compared to 75 percent in 2022), set seven fastest laps (5 in 2022) and swept victory lane (3 overall wins in 2022).

Two of the top points’ contenders enter Thunder Valley with a lot of momentum: Chase Sexton missed last week’s race due to a concussion and mononucleosis, but he is riding a nine-race streak of top-five finishes otherwise. Webb has finished in the top five in every Main or overall he’s made this season. He started his heat but missed the Nashville main with an injury.

Last year’s race was run in June with Roczen, Tomac and Sexton on the podium. Dungey was also in attendance in sixth.

With the field being thinned by injury, it has opened the door for some strong early runs for three riders. Ty Masterpool was sixth overall in his 450 debut at Hangtown, Derek Drake seventh overall in his second start there and Jose Butron scored top-10 finishes in his first two Motocross starts this season with a best of eighth at Fox Raceway.

With two rounds in the books, there has been some notable movement in the 450 SuperMotocross World Championship points. Ferrandis (16th), Freddie Noren (18th) and Jett (19th) have moved into the Top 20. Lorenzo Locurcio (27th), Jose Butron (28th), Jerry Robin (29th) and Derek Drake (30th) were elevated into the Top 30 and have their eye set on getting the automatic invitation into the main events for the three-races SMX Playoffs that begin in September.

In 250s Jett, Hunter and Levi Kitchen stood on the podium last year. In 2023, Hunter has been almost as dominant as Jett and he has as much reason to believe he will win this week.

 

Jett Lawrence won in the 250 class last year ahead of his brother Hunter Lawrence. This year, it’s a fair bet Hunter will challenge for his first Thunder Valley win. – Align Media

This is Hunter’s second-best venue with a 4.5 average overall finish. He was third in 2021 and second to his brother Jett last year. The logical progression, especially in light of his first-place finishes in the first two rounds, is a win this weekend.

But one of the riders best suited to ending Lawrence’s streak of 250 overall wins is the only active rider to win at Thunder Valley in his current class. Justin Cooper is tied with five riders for the most overall wins at Thunder Valley with two. Since 2018, he has a perfect record top-fives with his worst finish of fourth coming in last year’s round.

It pays to get off to a strong start and the top three in the points’ standings, Lawrence, Haiden Deegan and Cooper, have each averaged a fifth-place position at the end of their first laps in the first two rounds. Fourth in points, Tom Vialle has the best record of 3.8.

Deegan’s Moto 1 win last week came early, but that is not exactly rare in Pro Motocross. He is one of 21 riders who won in their first seven motos — a list that includes Hunter. While not uncommon, this early moto win suggests a strong career; 11 of the previous 20 riders won a Motocross championship.

With each moto paying 25 points to the winner, the move to the outdoors has allowed the 250 class to experience its own upheaval. Jo Shimoda (12th), Carson Mumford (17th) and Chance Hymas (20th) have moved into the Top 20 in SMX points since the start of the Pro Motocross season. Cooper (28th), Michael Mosiman (29th), and Caden Braswell (30th), who signed with Troy Lee Designs just prior to the season, climbed into the top 30.

In 2023, hole shots have been equally distributed with RJ Hampshire, Cooper, Lawrence and Deegan getting one apiece in the first four motos of the season.

Title 24 Podcast RC & RV Talk Hangtown

Sexton Sits Out

Honda’s Sexton to remain sidelined through Thunder Valley

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Section: Competition Post: Troy Guenther

Premier class contender still experiencing issues from concussion.

450SX champion Chase Sexton will remain sidelined throughout this Saturday’s third round of the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship at Thunder Valley as he continues to recover from injuries sustained in a testing crash after Fox Raceway.

The number 23 finished second overall at the 450MX opener at Fox Raceway, where he competed already ‘banged up’ following a heavy crash in qualifying.

Sexton then crashed on Tuesday following the opening round of the season in Pala which led to him being confirmed with a concussion, also diagnosed with mono that week, ruling him out of Hangtown and now Thunder Valley as he continues to recover.

“Unfortunately, Chase Sexton won’t be able to rejoin the squad yet, as he’s still experiencing issues from the concussion he suffered while testing after round one,” a statement from Honda read. “The team missed having the new AMA Supercross champ in the truck and is looking forward to having him back as soon as he feels better.”

While Sexton’s absence has effectively ruled him out of 450MX title contention, he still currently holds the number one premier class seed into the SuperMotocross World Championship post-season.

Its Erzberg Week!

Just a little trail ride.

AMA 450MX Not What It Used To Be!

Talking point: Should AMA National teams look at National riders outside the US in the future?

Whilst the 250cc class in the AMA Nationals this year is strong, the 450cc class is as weak as it’s been for a number of years but there are a few reasons for this.

Firstly, they’ve been unfortunate with injuries with the likes of Anderson, Barcia, Tomac and Craig out injured at the moment. Some of which won’t even return to race the Nationals which is a shame.  People are critical when there’s low rider entries in MXGP but at times this is because of injuries and you have to be honest, injuries are affecting the level of AMA 450cc class this year. Yes, there might be 40 riders behind the gate but the quality isn’t at it’s usual level at the front. It’s a shame because Tomac V Sexton V Lawrence could have been great!

Aside from the injuries, the World Supercross series is also having some sort of impact. Ken Roczen has decided to sign up to the full WSX series meaning he won’t race the AMA Nationals although the German hasn’t ruled out racing a couple. Joey Savatgy is another very good rider opting to race WSX but you’d have to say Roczen is the only elite level rider to choose WSX as oppose AMA Nationals. The other riders would just help the depth of the 450cc AMA Nationals class.

Looking at the 450cc AMA Nationals this year, you just have to look at the likes of Jose Butron and Lorenzo Locurcio who are both no doubt good riders but currently sit sixth and seventh in the standings after two rounds. Locurcio has AMA National experience in the past but Butron is racing these tracks for the first time. The Spaniard has just been concentrating racing the National championship in Spain the past few years and whilst he’s still fast probably thought the best days of his career were in the past but he’ll be loving running in the top ten of the AMA Nationals and it’ll certainly be good for his motivation.

Another example is Fredrik Noren who is currently tenth in the standings and even French rider, Romain Pape is sixteenth and has scored points in three out of four moto’s.

Looking ahead to 2024, firstly, the level should hopefully be higher than it is this year with hopefully less injuries although with the injuries in Supercross high this isn’t always a guarantee. But there should be riders making the jump up from the 250cc class such as Hunter Lawrence and hopefully Justin Cooper finally making the move up.

However, should AMA National teams be having a look at riders in Europe that don’t race MXGP and focus on National racing similar to Jose Butron? Just look at the MX1 British Championship for example… the likes of Harri Kullas, Conrad Mewse and Josh Gilbert are fast and don’t race MXGP at the moment. They would probably love to have the opportunity with an AMA National team and Gilbert raced selected rounds of the series last year running in the top twelve when the class was tougher. AMA teams could offer them a salary and then they’d get prize money as well, it could be a win-win as these riders despite not racing MXGP full time specialize in racing Motocross.

Image: Scott Dunne

Looking further a field there’s also French riders that are strong and could be competitive in the MX1 class. Stephen Rubini and Pierre Goupillon would be two very good options, whilst both might prefer racing a 250cc they’d have a real good chance of results in the 450cc class in America. There has actually been rumours both could race a couple of AMA Nationals at the end of this year after the French Elite series finishes so it could be a chance for America to see their speed.

Other championships such as the ADAC MX Masters and Dutch Masters have fast riders that could be considered as well. There’s also championships outside Europe that could be looked at, the MX1 class in Australia is very competitive with the likes of Todd Waters, Dean Ferris and Jed Beaton competing. In Canada, Dylan Wright could also be looked at.

It’ll be interesting to see how the AMA Nationals future looks and especially if World Supercross continues to grow but for the moment the factory teams do remain behind the AMA series…

Article: Andy McKinstry

Image: Nuestrostandarte