2 - Stroke World Championship MX

Deegan on Foxborough

“I rode some motos with Kenny, one-on-one stuff.”

Yamaha YZM500 TWO STROKE TEST

We ride the YZM 500cc TWO STROKE BEAST on a rough track in Southern California with Carson Brown on the handlebars. We were bummed to hear that the 2024 Fasthouse Two-Stroke Championship was postponed. We were pleased to have to opportunity to spend some time with defending champion Carson Brown, though. We got to spend a couple of days with him and his Yamaha/BRC 500. This bike has a ton of custom parts and with Carson at the controls you know its going to be pure chaos. Sit back and enjoy a special video from the Dirt Bike Magazine Crew! Turn up the volume!

500cc FUEL INJECTED TWO STROKE MONSTER!

 THIS IS A VLOG NOT FULL TEST VIDEO =). Dirt Bike Magazine tests an MX Revival built TE500 fuel injected two stroke in the hills of Southern California. This bike is custom from the ground up featuring electric start, coated cases, Baja Designs lighting, carbon fiber guards, and much more. Have some fun with the Dirt Bike Magazine crew as they shake down the bike and enjoy some laughs on the trail. This is just a behind the scenes look from our film day on the bike and we'll have more information in our TEST video as well as on the website. Until then, enjoy ! We're just Dirt Bike guys and like to have fun ...end of the day..that's what its all about. See you down the trail!

Racerx Talks with Webb

A few weeks ago Jett Lawrence turned the momentum from a Daytona Supercross victory into a win streak and a growing points lead. He threatened to put nearly a full race worth of points between himself and the field. But two-time Monster Energy Supercross Champion Cooper Webb would not give up, and he's taken advantage of Lawrence's bad races (mistakes in Seattle, penalty and collision in St. Louis, bad start in this event) to claw back 21 points in three weeks. Webb's victory at Foxborough, Massachusetts, was the second in the last three races for the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider, and now he's tied atop the standings with Lawrence with four races to go.

Webb was also fastest in qualifying, which is rare for him. This is a championship push, and he talked about it in the post-race press conference.

Take us through the night.
Cooper Webb: It was a great start, holeshot, which was huge, and I was able to put in some good laps. Kenny and I, I felt, had a good pace going at the beginning. Then honestly once the rain came, it got a little bit interesting for me. You don’t know if you can trust some of those hard packed areas. I had a few lines I needed to clean up and be better at. I saw Chase catching Kenny, we were all riding pretty well, then I made that mistake in the rhythm and that tightened it right up, quick. I could see them coming and then Chase got around Kenny and he caught me, quick.  Just try to hit my marks the last couple laps, try to think where he was catching me and where I could pick up time. That’s what I tried to do. Felt good. Haven’t led a whole main event in long time, and to have the co-points lead is an amazing feeling.

Where you aware where Jett was the whole race and where you thinking about championship points and were you aware of where Jet was throughout the race?
Yeah, I mean, it was tough. I saw first lap, he was buried like really far back. So, um, it made it tough, right? Because you, you wanna win. But, you got chase and you got him [Ken Roczen} and you got Eli, you got all these guys that are fast, but the championship guys is kind of at this stage where you're kind of thinking about ait a little bit. So it definitely was tough to stay locked in because you think about that and you think about maybe taking a second or laying over. So it definitely was challenging to see that, right away and then trying to push the limit of going out and still get a race win. But I feel after a few laps we were able to settle in. Just lock in and still get a race win.

Were you able to tell where the guys were making up time on you? I know the 3-3-1 was the rhythm. I don't think you were jumping it. And those guys behind you were. Just talk about the approach to that rhythm specifically as well.
Yeah, I knew that was the way [they were gaining] and then the whoops, you know, I was sticking to the jump line which worked in practice, but it wasn't working in the race. It’s tough when you commit to something and you're out front, it's tough to try something new that you haven't done all day. I had done the three-in once in practice, but that's it. I felt like the risk versus reward, unless I really needed to do it wasn't there. So that what I was thinking on that. And then, yeah, the whoops, the last lap, I finally skimmed it knowing that I needed a good run and it was night and day better. So you live and learn, but it's part of it in this class, reading the track and making those adjustments. And like I said, I feel like Chase picked up on some lines that, especially late, were really good. 

It seemed like you're just under pressure all day today from, from Jett in the heat race and then these two guys [Sexton, Roczen] in the main. What are you doing differently to make sure that you can stay ahead of those guys?
Well a start is a key, that's for sure, especially tonight. Like Chase said, it was tough to pass. But it's, hard. It really is. I've not led a lot, you know, so it's definitely different upfront. You just kind of have to know where you're fast and where you're not and try to stick to that. I think tonight was very hard to pass, but also you could ride behind someone and kind of realize whether they're slower and pick up on it. So it's definitely cat and mouse for sure. I think today was good though, especially after a break and kind of being off the racing for a little bit, you might come in anxious or a little bit excited and override. I felt like I did a really good job today with my riding and just finding a good flow all day.

MX LEGEND RICKY JOHNSON NAMED “LEGEND OF THE SPORT”

US motocross legend Ricky Johnson will be honoured as a ‘Legend of the Sport’ at the Quail Golf Club’s 2024 motorcycle gathering

Ricky Johnson, the motocross legend of the 1980s, is set to be honoured as a ‘Legend of the Sport’ at the upcoming Quail Motorcycle Gathering held by the Quail Golf Club in Monterey.

Johnson, a seven-times AMA National Champion in both supercross and motocross disciplines in the 1980s, is already a member of the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. A dominant force in ‘80s motocross, Johnson was a part of the famous, victorious 1986 Team USA at the Motocross of Nations in Maggiora, and in 1987 won both the 250cc and 500cc AMA Pro Motocross titles. 

Johnson’s motocross career ended in 1991, when he was only 26, as a result of a wrist injury sustained at the 1989 Gainesville National. 

"I am thrilled to be honoured at this year's event," said Johnson ahead of the Quail Motorcycle Gathering. "The Quail has such a diverse selection of motorcycles, new and old, and I can't wait to swap stories with fellow riders on the lawn."

"We are proud to honour Ricky Johnson as our 2024 Legend of the Sport for his passion and immense success in motorsports," said Kai Lerman, managing director at The Quail Golf Club. "Legend of the Sport is meant to honor iconic individuals that have made significant contributions to motorcycling, and we could not think of anyone more deserving of this title."

The Quail Motorcycle Gathering event begins with it The Quail Ride on 3 May, where participants will ride for 100 miles through the backroads of the Monterey Peninsula and parade laps around the Laguna Seca circuit.

MXGP of Trentino 2024

Prado Makes It 4 Straight

Since 2017, the MXGP winner in Trentino has gone on to win the World championship and while many of the motocross fans would have liked to have seen a battle for the Trentino GP and maybe some drama, it wasn't to be as Red Bull GasGas factory rider Jorge Prado once again won and did it eventually with ease in the final moto.

Whatever happened to Prado on the Saturday with his seat problem, it was all forgotten on Sunday, when he scored a consistent 3-1 performance to win the Grand Prix and again, kept his championship points lead. It was also his 42st Grand Prix victory of his career.

Jorge Prado: You know, it didn't start well yesterday with a mechanical issue, but we turned it around and the other guys made it hard today, but we got the win and our fourth in a row. The track was sketchy and we changed some things on the bike for the second moto and it worked well. Starting from 17th on the gate wasn't easy and in the first one I didn't have a good flow. It was a weekend when it looked like we were going in another direction, but we could turn it around.

The defending champion looked a little disappointed in the opening moto third place, but came home to win moto two and the GP and did it just like he has done in all the GP's this season. Second overall was Romain Febvre with 1-5 results and third Tim Gajser with 2-4 finishes.

From gate pick 17, Prado again with the holeshot and Herlings down in the second corner and last. Behind Prado came Febvre, Vlaanderen, Paturel, Seewer, Coldenhoff, Horgmo, Guillod, Gajser and Scuteri in 10th. Gajser quickly into seventh place and Herlings up to 27th place.

On lap one it was Prado with a slight lead over Febvre, followed by Vlaanderen, Seewer, Coldenhoff, Gajser, Paturel, Guillod, Horgmo and Edberg. Herlings 20th and flying. Herlings really hanging it out and 21 seconds back, while Gajser into fifth place, but five seconds off the leaders.

Again, Febvre not letting Prado get away and Vlaanderen also sticking to the leader. Herlings up to 18th place and the two leaders getting away from Vlaanderen suddenly. Febvre really putting pressure on Prado and for sure hanging with the red plate man. Prado making small mistakes. Gajser the quickest lap of the race but can’t get past Seewer in fourth place.

All top five pretty close on the track and Herlings back in 15th place, some 28 seconds away from the main group. Such a difficult track to make passes, or even make up ground on the rider in front. Lap five it was Prado, Febvre, Vlaanderen, Seewer, Gajser, Coldenhoff, Paturel, Guillod, Horgmo and Jonass 10th.

Febvre mistake and dropped to fifth place, more or less handing the GP to Prado. Vlaanderen now five seconds off Prado in second and Seewer and Gajser even further back. Herlings up to 12th place. Herlings up to 11th place on lap seven and 32 seconds off Prado’s lead.

On lap seven the top ten was Prado, Vlaanderen, Seewer, Gajser, Febvre, Coldenhoff, Paturel, Guillod, Horgmo and Herlings into 10th. Prado looking comfortable now with a handly lead and same old story as the opening three rounds. Total domination more or less. Herlings into eight place.

Vlaanderen closing the gap to Prado somewhat, or is Prado just controlling the race again, like he has done so far this year. Gajser was in fourth behind Seewer, but some nine seconds off the leader and unlikely to catch him with four minutes and two lap remaining. 

Herlings up to seventh place and still around 30 seconds off the lead, his horrible starts have cost him again. On lap 15, it was Prado with a lead of 3.7 seconds over Vlaanderen, then Seewer, Gajser, Febvre, Coldenhoff, Herlings, Paturel, Guillod and Jonass in 10th.

Prado in total control won the moto easily from Vlaanderen and Seewer and also scored yet another Grand Prix victory. Perfect from four so far.

MXGP - GP Classification

1. Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 45 points; 2. Romain Febvre (FRA, KAW), 41 p.; 3. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 40 p.; 4. Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, YAM), 37 p.; 5. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, KAW), 36 p.; 6. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 32 p.; 7. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, FAN), 27 p.; 8. Valentin Guillod (SUI, HON), 26 p.; 9. Pauls Jonass (LAT, HON), 24 p.; 10. Benoit Paturel (FRA, YAM), 23 p.; 11. Ben Watson (GBR, BET), 19 p.; 12. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, HON)

One Tough Hillbilly

Cooper Webb goes wire to wire to tie up the Supercross series! 

RacerX

Webb has got that dog in him, and that dog is hungry. He spent the two-week break between rounds of Monster Energy AMA Supercross working on speed, and it showed immediately in Foxborough, Massachusetts, when he pushed to the fast qualifying time for the day, a rare feat for a rider not known for one-lap qualifying pace. Webb wanted and needed this one, though, sitting eight points behind series’ leader Jett Lawrence. The two then went at in their heat race, with Jett making a late pass to snag a close win. In the main, though, Lawrence spun after the starting gate and found himself buried in the pack, while Webb snagged the holeshot.

Webb isn’t known for qualifying speed or leading races wire-to-wire, but he is trying to check every box in pursuit of third AMA Supercross Championship. Webb withstood early pressure from the always-quick-early Ken Roczen, and then heat down the stretch from Chase Sexton, to lead every lap of the race and take his fourth win on the year and second in three races. Lawrence’s fifth moves Webb into a tie for the points lead.

“It's crazy, you know, the season's never over, you've just gotta put your head down and now it's tied; it’s pretty crazy,” said Webb. “So we'll just stick to our thing, but man, it was great. Great race, had a great pace out front, and then made a big mistake. I missed the rhythm, and the guys got [up to] me. And then Chase was riding really well, I could feel him coming. [I lost time] just being kind of dumb in the whoops. [On the] last lap I decided to skim, and it was the best I hit them. But it was great, man. To get a holeshot like that, to lead every lap, was huge. The track was really tricky, especially when it started to rain, it could reach up and bite you. So it was a great race and, man, to get [into] the points lead is amazing. I want to give it up to the Good Lord, the whole Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team, they worked their butts off, my mechanic Alex, [other sponsors], my wife, and man, this feels great.” 

Red Bull KTM’s Sexton charged forward and challenged for the lead right up to the final lap. Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki's Ken Roczen held second place for the majority of the race, and landed the final spot on the podium when the checkered flag flew.

Sexton talked about how smart Webb and Roczen are and how hard it was to set up passes on them.

“I had a few good lines on the track. I was good on the on-off going outside, but it put me on the outside. And then Ken caught on to my line in the sand and was riding smart, so he made it tough on me. I set that pass up for almost a lap, and it was just a tough track overall. I feel like tonight I rode pretty well. I came from fifth or sixth, so [we’re] getting better and better.”

Just before the final lap, Webb made a mistake and missed a rut, and Sexton tried to charge forward and take advantage. He spun and lost momentum.

“Obviously wanted that win; I was pretty close,” Sexton said. “I tried to hit that corner pretty hard after the finish line and slid out [at the start of the final lap]. Other than that, though, we're making progress and happy to be getting a little closer in points; losing points to Cooper, but we're kind of inching up a little bit. So we need to click off some wins and end this season on a high.”

“It's even as it can be,” Webb said on the pressure of being tied in the championship lead vs coming from behind. “But I think, I look at it differently. I think pressure is when you're behind. Eight points tonight could have easily doubled the other way. So, to me that's pressure when you're behind. So now that we're tied up, it's a much more comfortable feeling, at least for me.”

Sexton is actually just 15 points behind the series' leaders.

“I mean, a little bit of both,” Sexton said on being happy vs being frustrated with his ride. “Obviously, I would have loved to make a late race pass. But I think for me on these conditions where it's really slippery. I think that's why I struggled the most this year and tonight, I think that was a good step in the right direction. I wasn't super happy after the heat race and kind of went back to where I was all week in practice and stuck with that. So, it was good. And, yeah, like I said, it's just a big difference going from what I was on before to, I feel like it's to where I'm at now, it's a big difference. So, getting used to it and also trying to use the bike where it's really good and also not and kind of back off it where maybe it's not the greatest. So it's kind of a give and a take and that's kind of what I'm learning at this point and trying to uh not fix my riding but adapt my riding to the, to the new bike.”

Roczen stayed in the fight, joking that he really wanted to make a last-lap pass on Webb since Webb has probably done that to him “10 times before.”

“That was gnarly, but I had a lot of fun,” said Roczen. “I got off to a really good start… That track was really hardpack and shiny on some areas, and then the whoops got super edgy, and you could just see the ruts were hardpack. It just made for tricky [conditions], especially from the wall [area of the Stadium] through the sand section, and everything, it was really tight. So, it was a track that was hard to stay loose on; there's a very fine line between pushing and trying to carry momentum. But that was a really good race. I was in second for a long time, and even with a lap to go we all bunched up again. Man, that was a fun race. I'm just really thankful to be back on the podium, that was really important for us. I'm sure the team was wondering sometimes what I was doing out there; especially in practice, I mean it was horrendous, but I’m just happy to be back up on the box.”

Series leader Lawrence was around 14^th early in the race after spinning past the starting gate, then he got sandwiched with Malcolm Stewart in the first turn. Eli Tomac, winner of the last race in St. Louis, slid out early and got up right in front of Lawrence. They put on a show coming through the pack together, and finally Lawrence made a pass on Tomac. Tomac then stuck with the rookie for a bit and then the two hit in a corner when Lawrence cut down to avoid traffic. From there Lawrence got away and set sail for Anderson. He passed him trying the inside in the final corner, but Anderson blasted back around him using the berm.

Supercross Round #13 250SX Highlights