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I think modern 450 are all so close now, sx races are short & most importantly sx tracks are hard to pass on.
Put that all together & in general it’ll come down to who gets the start.
Tough track to pass, but Eli and Chase were definitely stuck in that California Traffic in Moto 2
While that may contribute. I think the main reason is just soo many good riders that you just don't know who's going to be up front. In years past, we always just expected a certain 3ish riders to dominate. This year it's a crap shoot who'll be fastest next week.
TM
That's just the top half of the grid, who are you gonna kick out? Last race for Prado but he showed he's got what it takes to race sx. Tomac's results showed that starts are as important as speed.
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Tip of the spear. Its expected and awesome🤟🏻
Top ten in 450sx is a bar fight these days . Love it .
I'm not a big track complainer but this week was brutal with all the 90 degree turns.
I think it was the second 450 race, Sexton and Tomac were going at it for 10th and 11th, i think Prado was 6th and holding his own , while everyone else was fighting it out behind him.
While its easy to say ' well you couldnt pass' , Loads of riders had come from the back races , in both classes, in shortened races.
It was the best race so far , by far .
Things we learned.
450
Webb, Tomac and Anderson are not done, not by a long way .
Prado is a Legit SX rider, he can lay down a time, and he can run the pace. He lacks the intensity from lap 1, but when he comes back, full time, he will be a threat . Seeing him pass Jett back, was a joy, almost like ' dont forget me ' . Justin Barcia will be hoping that GASGAS will be a 2 rider effort in 2025
Sexton has settled on the KTM better than anyone would have imagined.
Aaron Plessinger is turning into the rider his 250 form said he always should have been, and its great to see.
Its going to be a long season for Hunter Lawrence.
If Ken Roczen fell in a barrel full of tits, he would come out sucking his thumb.
Next week cant come soon enough
Ferrandis is liking the Honda.
250
Jordan Smith looks like he might actually have a run at a championship.
Joe Shimoda will start winning when its too late, and will make Hunter look like a good investment.
Pro Circuit might have struck gold with Levi Kitchen. Have to say the decision to let DiFransesco go hasnt bit them on the arse .
Anthony Bourdon is showing the BARx Suzuki can get resuls.
As fast as RJ Hampshire is, i can still see him coming up short .
Phil Nicoletti is a legend.
Next week.
The buzz is that Max Anstie is gonna be the man in 250 East , which i cant see, and seeing as he was the guy that beat Jeffrey Herlings straight up at the MXoN just a few years ago, a regional title on a 250 isn't exactly a big deal.. Love Max to bits, our best rider in years, and have no problem with him earning a living, but he should be on a 450 , IMO
Looking forward to seeing the Triumph Team debut, my home town boys , lot of folk put a lot of work in to get them there, not sure what Swoll and Ferry will deliver, but looking forward to seeing them out there.
Deegan is a class above anyone IMO , and while there are plenty of 'potential' winners, its Deegan's to lose , fitness permitting. I reckon he could win it without even winning one.
Austin Forkner, 15th go at a title.
But looking forward to the gate drops whatever happens.
One thing you can put to rest is the Jett is only riding at 90% crap. He looked like he was at 105% ….hence the get offs. He thinks all he needs to do is go faster. 2 weeks in a row he was in over his head, speed wise, in the whoops and it bit him.
I don't get the Ferrandis hype at all. He has just been OK. If he was still racing for star people would be all saying his season is just meh so far. You think he expects prado to be beating him . Or roczen/ sexton /tomac to catch him from a mile back and drop him in a lap
450 race two there was so much passing and repassing going on ,it was great . Then JT comes on and says it s impossible pass out there .
Last year on the Yamaha was actually better than this year so far. It's really weird that it was holding him back, but he had better finishes 😂...
Did he tho?
2023: 4-6-5-21
2024: 5-6-6-9
The results are comparable if you factor in that we've had two mud rounds this year. Not to mention that he got a late start in testing heading into the 2024 season.
Also, the Yamaha was not holding him back in Supercross last year. The new YZ was better for him in SX, but worse outdoors. He struggled with the previous gen YZ in SX but went on to win the outdoor title on it.
If I had to choose who would be stronger on a 450 in sx, Aaron or DF, I would have choose DF. All day long.
this is my exact point . Last year he was miserable with them results. He has been solid but nothing spectacular. And speed is way off winning.
I really hope Forkner will end up at least 3rd,but hopefully 1st
Sorry if someone already pointed this out but there are 16 factory guys in the 450 class if you include twisted tea. that leaves 6 spots for "privateers" and with more OEM's coming in, the lower half of the field will become more "factory". When triumph and Ducati eventually field 2 450 riders and both Beta riders get into the main that could potentially leave only one spot for a privateer to be able to make it in. take that how you want but I think that is a good step towards making this a "Real Sport" to outside eyes.
Pit Row
I agree I d choose DF over Aaron . I think he is well capable of winning mutiable 450 sx races imo. This year has been solid but not great as people seem to think . Its early tho . Hopefully will get better as the year goes on
And to touch on that I think there are 16 250 SX champs in the 450 main. That is a long list of talented guys on the track at once. I would wager to guess that who ever wins the title will also have the best starting average (not sure if that is always the case?)
When I look at how deep and variable the field is this season, I imagine Dungey would've absolutely thrived in this environment. Dude would've been racking up 2nds and 3rds no sweat and pulled out a 15 point lead on the field by now.
Instead, the majority of his 450 career was spent with more shallow fields of top-level talent, but the competition that he did have was historically elite - Villopoto, Reed, and Stewart.
So would i, but AP has over delivered IMO, way better than expected. AP has been better , DF has been what you would expect. Its not that DF is worse .
Ferrandis has been solid for his first non factory ride in a while, and he will get better.
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