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Read that back to yourself , until you realise how dumb that sounds.
Why they have everyone hooked up with head sets , and this doesnt get put on his board, when everyone else on the planet can see it is beyond me.
They could have put it on the board but he saw it happening right in front of him . He did try the outside line once but it didn't go that well .
When they showed Sexton playing on his phone before the gate drop, it was all clear. His mind is elsewhere.
Chase and his bike look amazing in the heats when the track is smooth, but Eli and his bike don’t look much different heat to main. Hard to beat.
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It all depends how hard you’re pushing plus SX requires a mental focus that is draining compared to outdoors. You’re taking way too simplistic a view on it. We’ve seen Eli himself fade not too long ago in SX races when he still had outdoor winning fitness. Last year Chase had moments while winning where he just mentally lost it and crashed. It wasn’t due to fitness.
It looked like sexton was riding tense in the last 5 mins, I wonder if he had arm pump. I haven’t checked the lap times but it sure seemed like he dropped anchor. Either that or mentally beat, I don’t think fitness is a problem.
Definitely think there is something to the Yamaha getting better as the track breaks down vs the Honda getting worse. Also, I believe the shock Chase is running was known for fading in SX, he likes it but at the end of a 20 min main it may be completely different than a 12 min triple crown.
It wasn't just outside in the sand turn that was faster IMO. Eli went back to the outsides in other turns towards the end of the race and that was faster as well.
Inside looked faster for most guys all night. Tomac is just, well, Tomac, so he railed the outside and made it work as the faster line.
Side note, I said at the time it was silly for Sexton to pass Tomac in the heat. Meaningless race. Sit on Tomac. Don’t show him anything. 3rd gate pick. Line up inside him. Then take care of business in the main.
If it’s that easy, why didn’t they just put “Beat Eli” on the pit board?
Because I'm talking about relaying information about a line that obviously wasn't working for Chase. You're just being a Vitard douche.
I agree 100%. That was a master class of racing strategy, adjustment, determination, fitness, and skill. The whole enchilada. So dang impressive.
Inside sand line was faster at the beginning of the night. Tomac was still working the outside line in the heat race after he got passed and he could see Sexton faster on the inside. He committed to it early and it paid off for him, could have gone the other way.
Chase looked even more crushed at the post race interview. He looked pretty disappointed, plays right into Tomac’s wheelhouse. If it turns into a mental game Chase will IMO make too many mistakes over the course of the season. The best part for Chase is that he’s getting invaluable experience racing head to head with Tomac, it will only make him better. Now if Tomac would ride outdoors this summer, that will be a HUGE win for the fans.
Eli messed up the outside Sand line a few times and Chase executed the inside nicely a few times, and Chase was right on Eli's tail, then Eli was clean thru the sand and Chase messed up the inside 4-5 laps in a row and the lead grew.
I agree with the comment "Master Class" psych move on Eli's part in the Quali, let Chase think he had him really covered.
The key to that outside sand line, was Eli was coming in with a lil move speed and trying to go double double thru it.
I noticed the same thing in the last 5 mins. However it was something with his bike and the higher speeds. His bike no longer looked as stable as Tomacs... (suspension wise) and started bouncing and doing weird deflections. Go back and watch it again and you can see his bike having some strange reactions to the exact same thing he was doing a lap before.
He will have his hands full enough with Jett. I suspect Eli will race enough outdoors to get qualified for the Supermotocross. I hope this is the case. It could just be wishful thinking on my part.
Pit Row
History is starting to repeat itself.
We had RC dominate SX and outdoors. Along came this guy Chad Reed. Many times Reed gave RC fits and we kind of saw what was coming. Then along came JS7 and Reed kind of got overshadowed. Reed kind of fell backward to being the 3rd place guy. He got some wins, but RC and JS7 were the favorites.
I see the same thing happening with Chase. Eli is the old RC. Chase is the old Chad Reed and Jett is the old JS7. Chase may never win a premier title unless Eli or Jett are hurt and not racing. I hope and pray we get to see all 3 of them at a few outdoor rounds this year and hopefully a few SX races this year.
Yeah, that sand section was a head game. Hammer it, go sideways and lose time. Go slow, and well, go slow. Balance point was weird - Justin Cooper found it one lap and passed Kroc though so Eli wasn't the only one making it work.
Even at outdoors Chase has crashed in weird places - so I I can see him saying "Yeah - Eli may be making the outside work, but it aint working for me". Which is tough to take mentally.
Chase got very sideways in the whoop section on several laps - and never backed down but I can see where it wasn't going to wick it up there like when he passed Andersen. He could have made up for the sand section loss but he was already on the edge.
Risk Vs reward was too much for Sexton in that section, Something was off that didn’t allow him to feel comfortable doing what others where!
Also the inside line looked to come good around the 3/5 way
I get sick of people talking like Jett's already winning 450 championships. It's more like Tomac and RD with Tomac and Chase. As one has got it figured out and the other is so close to having it figured out
Look at segment times. Nobody could touch Eli’s pace in the sand.
sand was Seg 1
next best was maybe Barcia
However, Chase was gaining all that back in Seg 2, until a late fade.
Chase said in the press conference he almost crashed on the outside and would rather lose time on the inside than risk that. Also said the whoops were way more beat up than early in the day so he was losing time there too.
Maybe it’s just me but Sexton appeared to be struggling around that inside. I haven’t talked to anyone who thought he was gaining time there.
Better the Devil you know!
Who knows why but this is what I saw. Eli basically looked very similar start to finish. The track going away didn't faze him in the slightest... His whoop speed was pretty consistent all moto it seemed.
Chase looked like he was working very hard and making a lot of mistakes when the track went away.
100% agree with Crush.. The track went away and took away some of the places (whoops, etc) where Sexton was a little faster unless he wanted to end up on the ground eventually. Not sure how some of these dudes aren't seeing that.
Absolutely this.
I was watching and saying the same thing, do an Eli on Eli....don't let him see what your doing!!
Might have made a difference, or might not have...but at least play the game!
Post a reply to: Couldn't somebody have put, "outside sand," on Chase's pit board?