Rumors of Roczen to Suzuki

centralcalmx 11/17/2022 3:15pm
11/17/2022 3:15pm
That Madera dirt is looking prime for riding.
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aeffertz
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aeffertz 11/17/2022 3:21pm
11/17/2022 3:21pm
soggy wrote:
This is not an attack but do these guys ever not look comfortable riding a perfectly groomed practice track?
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light.

I’d still love to see Ken on it, though! Plus it’s the perfect play. Do great and win races = Suzuki hero and legend. If he doesn’t win = bike is outdated and not up to par with other bikes. Win-win! Grinning
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Black Diesel Bomber 11/17/2022 3:23pm
11/17/2022 3:23pm
Kenny should get all colors of these factory or semi factory bikes at the track and do a lap time comparison between them. This has never been done before due to contracts. Would be fun to watch the yellow bike win the contest.
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SEMAC
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SEMAC 11/17/2022 3:33pm
11/17/2022 3:33pm
soggy wrote:
This is not an attack but do these guys ever not look comfortable riding a perfectly groomed practice track?
aeffertz wrote:
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light...
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light.

I’d still love to see Ken on it, though! Plus it’s the perfect play. Do great and win races = Suzuki hero and legend. If he doesn’t win = bike is outdated and not up to par with other bikes. Win-win! Grinning
Bogle,was not into racing,i went both to San diego supercross and the national at fox raceway,i watched hon closely,and he was doing all kind of nac nacs,no footers and what ever,he wasn´t even practicing
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DonM
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DonM 11/17/2022 4:12pm
11/17/2022 4:12pm
soggy wrote:
This is not an attack but do these guys ever not look comfortable riding a perfectly groomed practice track?
aeffertz wrote:
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light...
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light.

I’d still love to see Ken on it, though! Plus it’s the perfect play. Do great and win races = Suzuki hero and legend. If he doesn’t win = bike is outdated and not up to par with other bikes. Win-win! Grinning
SEMAC wrote:
Bogle,was not into racing,i went both to San diego supercross and the national at fox raceway,i watched hon closely,and he was doing all kind of nac...
Bogle,was not into racing,i went both to San diego supercross and the national at fox raceway,i watched hon closely,and he was doing all kind of nac nacs,no footers and what ever,he wasn´t even practicing
So you’re saying he was having fun riding his dirt bike……
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JMR1976
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JMR1976 11/17/2022 4:16pm
11/17/2022 4:16pm
Did he ride the bike again today?
studworx
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studworx 11/17/2022 4:33pm
11/17/2022 4:33pm
soggy wrote:
This is not an attack but do these guys ever not look comfortable riding a perfectly groomed practice track?
aeffertz wrote:
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light...
Right, he’s Ken Roczen after all. Bogle looked comfortable on their test track too but his interview with Bubba painted the bike in a different light.

I’d still love to see Ken on it, though! Plus it’s the perfect play. Do great and win races = Suzuki hero and legend. If he doesn’t win = bike is outdated and not up to par with other bikes. Win-win! Grinning
Bogle last won on a Suzuki. He has had far worse results on any other brand he’s ridden in the 450 class.

I think his issue is less to do with bikes more to do with injuries.
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mx313
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mx313 11/17/2022 4:46pm
11/17/2022 4:46pm Edited Date/Time 11/17/2022 4:47pm
Travis_Hudson wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577028/s1200_A7135179_8996_4A3C_B9C3_A9DA727C28C8.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577027/s1200_222BB32C_15E9_40C9_B54D_64190EE3AEAB.jpg[/img]


Am I living in a hole or out of touch?
But is twisted tea and hep done? Or cutting way back on sponsorship.
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soggy
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soggy 11/17/2022 5:32pm
11/17/2022 5:32pm
Travis_Hudson wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577028/s1200_A7135179_8996_4A3C_B9C3_A9DA727C28C8.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577027/s1200_222BB32C_15E9_40C9_B54D_64190EE3AEAB.jpg[/img]


mx313 wrote:
Am I living in a hole or out of touch?
But is twisted tea and hep done? Or cutting way back on sponsorship.
Seems they may have cut back. But they still have a logo on the front fender
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burn1986
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burn1986 11/17/2022 5:40pm
11/17/2022 5:40pm Edited Date/Time 11/17/2022 6:06pm
This reminds me when Chad Reed was working the social media and stirring the drama as to what bike he would ride. Lol
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SX_336
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SX_336 11/17/2022 6:59pm
11/17/2022 6:59pm
Travis_Hudson wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577028/s1200_A7135179_8996_4A3C_B9C3_A9DA727C28C8.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577027/s1200_222BB32C_15E9_40C9_B54D_64190EE3AEAB.jpg[/img]


mx313 wrote:
Am I living in a hole or out of touch?
But is twisted tea and hep done? Or cutting way back on sponsorship.
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250 guys aren’t old enough to drink, so they can’t be running/promoting alcoholic beverages.
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Sully
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Sully 11/17/2022 7:36pm
11/17/2022 7:36pm
Travis_Hudson wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577028/s1200_A7135179_8996_4A3C_B9C3_A9DA727C28C8.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/11/16/577027/s1200_222BB32C_15E9_40C9_B54D_64190EE3AEAB.jpg[/img]


mx313 wrote:
Am I living in a hole or out of touch?
But is twisted tea and hep done? Or cutting way back on sponsorship.
SX_336 wrote:
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250...
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250 guys aren’t old enough to drink, so they can’t be running/promoting alcoholic beverages.
I'm not saying you're wrong, but you have to ask; if Twisted Tea is the main sponsor of the 450s, why wouldn't they have their logo plastered on the shrouds instead of Progressive's, when the (arguably) most popular guy in the sport is testing their bike?
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NSP139
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NSP139 11/17/2022 7:46pm
11/17/2022 7:46pm
mx313 wrote:
Am I living in a hole or out of touch?
But is twisted tea and hep done? Or cutting way back on sponsorship.
SX_336 wrote:
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250...
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250 guys aren’t old enough to drink, so they can’t be running/promoting alcoholic beverages.
Sully wrote:
I'm not saying you're wrong, but you have to ask; if Twisted Tea is the main sponsor of the 450s, why wouldn't they have their logo...
I'm not saying you're wrong, but you have to ask; if Twisted Tea is the main sponsor of the 450s, why wouldn't they have their logo plastered on the shrouds instead of Progressive's, when the (arguably) most popular guy in the sport is testing their bike?
ML mentioned that Twisted Tea might be a conflict with Red Bull so if Ken chooses that ride he would pit with the 250 guys under the progressive sponsorship
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Chris99Flannery 11/17/2022 8:36pm
11/17/2022 8:36pm
Larry Brooks at HEP. Guess they are upping the program and throwing dollars for a main rider. Bikes fine if you don’t stall it. Most race bikes keep running when tipped over. The Suzuki is famous for carving and holeshotting. The electronics can be added.
If the teams got the goods Ken can win. God damn I
hope he does and spices it up.
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Sully
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Sully 11/17/2022 8:36pm
11/17/2022 8:36pm
SX_336 wrote:
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250...
They have TWO Title sponsors. The 450 guys will run the Twisted Tea HEP logos and the 250 guys will run the Progressive logos. The 250 guys aren’t old enough to drink, so they can’t be running/promoting alcoholic beverages.
Sully wrote:
I'm not saying you're wrong, but you have to ask; if Twisted Tea is the main sponsor of the 450s, why wouldn't they have their logo...
I'm not saying you're wrong, but you have to ask; if Twisted Tea is the main sponsor of the 450s, why wouldn't they have their logo plastered on the shrouds instead of Progressive's, when the (arguably) most popular guy in the sport is testing their bike?
NSP139 wrote:
ML mentioned that Twisted Tea might be a conflict with Red Bull so if Ken chooses that ride he would pit with the 250 guys under...
ML mentioned that Twisted Tea might be a conflict with Red Bull so if Ken chooses that ride he would pit with the 250 guys under the progressive sponsorship
Cool, thanks. I actually kind of wondered if it might be a conflict, but wrote off the thought since they're non-competing types of drinks.
rhargrave431
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rhargrave431 11/17/2022 8:58pm
11/17/2022 8:58pm
I think Matthes tweeted that Progressive is the group throwing the money in to get Kenny on board.

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tek14
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tek14 11/17/2022 11:56pm
11/17/2022 11:56pm
Bike looks dinosaur even on perfect prepped track with good ruts on it. Competition has moved on since that bike was out.
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Thisusernameisavailable 11/18/2022 12:14am
11/18/2022 12:14am
“I hate to break it to you guys who think they know it all, but…..😬 that bike is really fkn good! And so, this really has given me a difficult decision to make.😬”

Signed, Ken Roczen.



*any team who gives him time and opportunity to test their bike, he isn’t going to go straight to social media the day after and talk shit on it.
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stremme12
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stremme12 11/18/2022 3:28am
11/18/2022 3:28am Edited Date/Time 11/18/2022 3:28am
These were just mock up graphics for WSX. Pipes said Twisted Tea is still a huge part of the program.
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WCRider
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WCRider 11/18/2022 4:03am
11/18/2022 4:03am
Did he post his own calves ? This not a Melon at this point, this is a hot air balloon.
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917rider
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917rider 11/18/2022 4:04am
11/18/2022 4:04am Edited Date/Time 11/18/2022 4:05am
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same since 2019 🤷🏻‍♂️
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Motofinne
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Motofinne 11/18/2022 4:14am
11/18/2022 4:14am Edited Date/Time 11/18/2022 5:07am
917rider wrote:
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same...
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same since 2019 🤷🏻‍♂️
Lets put some context to what you just said. The Suzuki was dated and behind the competition in 2017 and the new bike in 2018 wasn't a big step forward. Go and look at some of the shootout results in 2018, the previous gen Kawasaki beat it in pretty much all of them.

Shootouts are definitely not the be all and end all but those results say something.

And the KX got some small refinements in 2021 (new clutch etc). The 2023 should be the last of this generation. Expect an all new bike in the summer or fall.
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ga_pike 11/18/2022 4:45am
11/18/2022 4:45am
917rider wrote:
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same...
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same since 2019 🤷🏻‍♂️
Motofinne wrote:
Lets put some context to what you just said. The Suzuki was dated and behind the competition in 2017 and the new bike in 2018 wasn't...
Lets put some context to what you just said. The Suzuki was dated and behind the competition in 2017 and the new bike in 2018 wasn't a big step forward. Go and look at some of the shootout results in 2018, the previous gen Kawasaki beat it in pretty much all of them.

Shootouts are definitely not the be all and end all but those results say something.

And the KX got some small refinements in 2021 (new clutch etc). The 2023 should be the last of this generation. Expect an all new bike in the summer or fall.
Also keep in mind these guys aren't riding stock bikes. The only drawback to the Zook is kick start. Some think that's a big issue and other not so much. Otherwise, the platform is what it is and they can trim weight, add or adjust HP, fine tune suspension, etc. The question is does the layout and handling feel comfortable to him. If so, then they can build a bike off that to his liking and he can win on it. Dude literally said he liked the Firepower Honda better than the HRC. It's not about the newest technology, it's about what works for the rider.
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Thisusernameisavailable 11/18/2022 5:24am
11/18/2022 5:24am
ga_pike wrote:
Also keep in mind these guys aren't riding stock bikes. The only drawback to the Zook is kick start. Some think that's a big issue and...
Also keep in mind these guys aren't riding stock bikes. The only drawback to the Zook is kick start. Some think that's a big issue and other not so much. Otherwise, the platform is what it is and they can trim weight, add or adjust HP, fine tune suspension, etc. The question is does the layout and handling feel comfortable to him. If so, then they can build a bike off that to his liking and he can win on it. Dude literally said he liked the Firepower Honda better than the HRC. It's not about the newest technology, it's about what works for the rider.
STOP. TALKING. PERFECT. SENSE.
You'll struggle to fit in around here.
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FilthyGrungy 11/18/2022 5:53am
11/18/2022 5:53am
Black Diesel Bomber wrote:
Kenny should get all colors of these factory or semi factory bikes at the track and do a lap time comparison between them. This has never...
Kenny should get all colors of these factory or semi factory bikes at the track and do a lap time comparison between them. This has never been done before due to contracts. Would be fun to watch the yellow bike win the contest.
Hire a film crew and put it up on Cooksey's channel as a F U to the industry
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Motofinne
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Motofinne 11/18/2022 5:58am
11/18/2022 5:58am
917rider wrote:
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same...
It’s funny to me the Suzuki catches so much slack because it has not been updated since 2018 but the Kx 450 has been the same since 2019 🤷🏻‍♂️
Motofinne wrote:
Lets put some context to what you just said. The Suzuki was dated and behind the competition in 2017 and the new bike in 2018 wasn't...
Lets put some context to what you just said. The Suzuki was dated and behind the competition in 2017 and the new bike in 2018 wasn't a big step forward. Go and look at some of the shootout results in 2018, the previous gen Kawasaki beat it in pretty much all of them.

Shootouts are definitely not the be all and end all but those results say something.

And the KX got some small refinements in 2021 (new clutch etc). The 2023 should be the last of this generation. Expect an all new bike in the summer or fall.
ga_pike wrote:
Also keep in mind these guys aren't riding stock bikes. The only drawback to the Zook is kick start. Some think that's a big issue and...
Also keep in mind these guys aren't riding stock bikes. The only drawback to the Zook is kick start. Some think that's a big issue and other not so much. Otherwise, the platform is what it is and they can trim weight, add or adjust HP, fine tune suspension, etc. The question is does the layout and handling feel comfortable to him. If so, then they can build a bike off that to his liking and he can win on it. Dude literally said he liked the Firepower Honda better than the HRC. It's not about the newest technology, it's about what works for the rider.
I agree with a lot, just not the statement that the kick strart would be the only drawback. The older platform is a drawback.

But i hope Roczen signs with HEP. It would be awesome to see what he can do with the bike and the team. Much more interesting than going the Geniune Honda route which would be frankly a bit boring.
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Zycki11
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Zycki11 11/18/2022 6:03am
11/18/2022 6:03am Edited Date/Time 11/19/2022 7:22am
My personal and selfish reasons I want Kenny on blue. But if that won’t work then HEP would be awesome.
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Spoonguy
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Spoonguy 11/18/2022 7:17am
11/18/2022 7:17am
Not knowing obviously, but perhaps the Suzuki being an older platform has more proven setups? The new Austrian bikes have some confused, the Yamaha is new, and Roczen consistently stated they were searching on the Honda.
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