Finally, Eli and Jorge tackle burning questions...

Oh yeah.  Seewer is just crushing it this year on the Duc. 🙄 

I've said this before just as an example, shorty wasn't allowed to drop the forks in the clamp, he talked about this himself. Wasn't safe according to Japan even though he rode with it during practice and was seconds faster. 

Ridiculous but nothing suprise me when it comes to what a factory team can and cannot do.

Also Phil is still looking for more power and season is almost over. He can send it to whoever to try and fix that but apparently still an issue so probably not an easy fix.

Maybe Prado isn't comfortable with American culture and lifestyle and it's causing him to be off.

Lewis might be the only true journalist in the sport at the moment. He’s not a jerk, but asks the uncomfortable questions we all have and nobody else has the balls to ask.  At this point, I only watch Lewis’s pre and/or post race interviews anymore. Great work!

Here is Jorge's results in the sand since 2023 

Sardegna 2023 

Time practice : fastest lap with a 1.43.377, he is a 1.212 seconds faster than Vlaanderen and 1.335 faster than Herlings. 

Qualifying race : he starts in the lead and win the race with 1.450 seconds over Coldenhoff and 3.253 seconds over Herlings. His fastest lap is a 1.52.030, which is 1.279 seconds faster than 2nd fast lap (1.53.335) by Brent Van Doninck 

Race 1 : He starts in the lead and manage his gap to finish with 1.706 seconds over Herlings and 2.831 over Vlaanderen. He puts a minute gap over Jonass in 12th and lapped Maximilian Spies in 18th. His fastest lap is a 1.52.210, Herlings, Vlaanderen, Renaux, Coldenhoff and Seewer are also in 1.52. 

Race 2 : He starts in 4th, he quickly got passed by Renaux and Vlaanderen, passed Vlaanderen back, then got passed by Vlaanderen and Herlings and pass Seewer at the end. He is 20.5 seconds behing the leader Coldenhoff. His fastest lap is a 1.54.015, which is 1.259 slower than Coldenhoff. He is lapping in the same second than Vlaanderen. 

Overall classification : 3rd. 

Kegums, Latvia 2023 

Time practice : fastest lap with a 1.57.647, 0.320 seconds faster than Herlings and 0.622 over Fernandez. 

Qualifying race : He starts in 3rd, quickly pass Fernandez for 2nd, and battle Herlings for the win to finish 2nd with only 0.467 seconds down on Jeffrey, gapping Fernandez by 15.842 seconds. He has the fastest lap with a 2.00.886, 0.460 seconds faster than Herlings and 0.956 faster than Fernandez. 

Race 1 : He starts in the lead and gets passed by Herlings with 4 laps to go to end up 2nd with 7.706 seconds down, but 12.876 seconds over Fernandez in 3rd. His fastest lap is 0.279 slower than Herlings, but 1.062 faster than Fernandez. 

Race 2 : starts in the lead but get passed by Febvre in lap 4 and Herlings in lap 7 to finish 19.776 seconds down on Jeffrey and 14.804 down on Romain. He got 18.217 seconds on Coldenhoff though. With a 2.09.971, he is 1.585 seconds slower than Jeffrey and only Febvre has a 2.09, the rest is 2.10 at best. 

Overall : 2nd. 

Lommel, Belgium 2023 

Time practice : fastest lap of the session with a 1.59.581, 0.209 faster than Coldenhoff and 0.391 faster than Febvre. 

Qualifying race : starts in the lead but get passed by Coldenhoff in lap 9, Febvre in lap 10, and a crash in lap 12th puts him back to 5th with 34.635 seconds down on Coldenhoff. He got a 2.07.905, 0.909 seconds slower a lap than Febvre and only Coldenhoff also has a 2.07,  the rest in 2.09/2.10 at best. 

Race 1 : He starts in 6th position, pass Kullas in lap 1, Seewer in lap 10 and Vlaanderen in the last lap (16). He is 17.629 seconds down on Febvre, his fastest lap is a 2.09.405, 2.805 seconds slower than Coldenhoff. 

Race 2 : He starts uo front and wins with 6.549 seconds over Febvre and 8.576 over Coldenhoff. His fastest lap is 2.605 seconds faster than Febvre. 

Overall classification : 2nd 

Arnhem, Netherlands 2023 

Time practice : fastest lap with 0.189 seconds on Gajser and 0.200 seconds on Coldenhoff. 

Qualifying race : starts in 3rd, quickly passed by Febvre, pass Seewer in lap 5 and stays there with a 5.027 seconds behind Romain. His fastest lap is a 1.49.249, 1.960 seconds slower than Febvre. Seewer and Gajser also in 1.49, Coldenhoff in 1.48. 

Race 1 : starts in the lead and wins with 4.399 over Febvre and 16.442 over Seewer. He laps 0.605 slower than Febvre and 0.937 faster than Seewer. He puts a minute on Jonass in 8th and lapped Guillod in 15th. 

Race 2 : He starts in 4th, pass Coldenhoff for 3rd in lap 4 and he is passed back by the off in lap 7. Finished 4th with 24.691 seconds down on Febvre. He lapped a 1.50.851, 1.116 seconds slower than Seewer. Febvre, Coldenhoff and Renaux also in 1.50. 

Overall : 2nd 

Sardegna 2024 

Time practice : fastest lap with 0.076 on Herlings and 1.136 on Vlaanderen. 

Qualifying race : sarts up front and wins with 6.628 seconds on Gajser and 25.730 seconds on Herlings. His fastest lap is 0.262 seconds slower than Tim's but 2.790 seconds faster than Jonass. 

Race 1 : holeshot and win with 5.279 seconds on Gajser and 39.521 seconds on Herlings. Faster man on track with a 1.48.891, 0.281 faster than Gajser and 1.490 faster than Herlings. 

Race 2 : holeshot and win with 16.624 seconds on Gajser and 27.553 on Herlings. Fastest man on track as well with a 1.48.100, 0.121 sec faster than Herlings and 0.390 faster than Gajser, also 3.313 seconds faster than Jonass. 

Overall : 1st 

Lugo, Spain 

Time practice : 4th position, he is 1.032 seconds slower than Herlings. 

Qualifying race : starts in 3rd, pass Herlings in lap 5 and Gajser in lap 7, wins with 0.631 seconds over Tim and 7.465 over Jeffrey. Fastest man on track with a 1.40.775, 0.601 seconds faster than Tim and 0.751 seconds faster than Febvre. 

Race 1 : holeshot and win with 2.036 seconds over Febvre and 2.599 seconds over Coldenhoff. Fastest lap of the race for him with a 1.40.111, 0.217 seconds faster than Febvre and 1.017 faster than Herlings. 

Race 2 : holeshot and win with 2.880 seconds on Herlings and 10.110 on Gajser. His fastest lap is a 1.41.230, 0.178 seconds slower than Gajser. Herlings, Febvre, Seewer and Vlaanderen also in the 1.41. 

Overall : 1st 

Kegums, Latvia 2024 

Time practice : 5th position with a 1.58.023, he is 2.226 seconds slower than Gajser with a 1.55.797. 

Qualifying race : starts in 2nd and finish 2nd with a 3.425 gap down Gajser but 13.586 seconds over Coldenhoff. His fastest lap is a 1.59.576, 0.306 seconds faster than Tim and 0.953 faster than Coldenhoff. 

Race 1 : Starts in 3rd, crash in lap 3 where is shuffled back to 8th, pass Toendel in lap 14 to get 7th with 56.234 seconds down on Herlings. With a 2.13.968, he is lapping 2.525 seconds slower than Herlings, Bogers laps in the same second than him. 

Race 2 : starts in the front and wins with a 1.665 seconds avantage on Gajser and 3.403 on Herlings (51.510 on Coldenhoff). He is lapping 0.433 faster than Gajser, 1.146 faster than Herlings and 2.700 faster than Vlaanderen. 

Overal : 3rd 

Lommel, Belgium 2024 

Time practice : fastest lap with a 2.00.372, 0.292 sec on Herlings and 1.517 on Mewse. 

Qualifying race : starts in the lead and wins with 1.078 over Herlings and 25.512 over Gajser. His fastest lap is 0.289 sec slower than Jeffrey but 0.654 faster than Gajser. 

Race 1 : Starts in the lead and gets passed by Herlings in lap 13. He finishes 10.374 seconds down on Jeffrey but 24.189 up on Vlaanderen. His fastest lap is 0.515 seconds slower than Jeffrey's but 2.037 seconds faster than Vlaanderen. 

Race 2 : starts in the front and gets passed by Herlings in lap 8. He finished 10.375 seconds down on Herlings and 10.777 up on Febvre. His fastest lap is a 2.06.260, 1.145 faster than Herlings and 1.360 faster than Gajser 

Overall : 2nd. 

Arnhem, Netherlands 2024 

Time practice : fastest lap with a 1.40.036, 0.846 faster than Gajser and 1.087 faster than Herlings. 

Qualifying race : He starts in 2nd and gets passed by Febvre in lap 10 to finish 3rd, 1.968 seconds down only on the leader Coldenhoff. His fastest lap is a 1.46.592, 0.685 seconds slower than Febvre. Coldenhoff and Jeffrey also in 1.46. 

Race 1 : starts up front and is passed by Herlings in lap 16. He finishes 3.244 down on Herlings and 1.393 up on Coldenhoff. He got the fastest lap with a 1.46.823, which is 1.728 seconds faster than Herlings. 

Race 2 : Starts in 3rd, pass Gajser in lap 2 and get passed by Gajser in lap 3 while passing Coldenhoff, takes the lead from Tim in lap 7 before losing it to Herlings in lap 8 to finish 2nd with a 9.413 seconds deficit on Jeffrey and a 1.965 seconds advantage on Tim. He got the fastest lap of the race with a 1.48.323, 0.522 faster than Coldenhoff and 0.723 faster than Jeffrey. 

Overall : 2nd 

Southwick 2025 : 

Time practice session 1 : 3rd fastest lap with 2.01.615, he has a 0.285 deficit on Cooper, Jett Lawrence is also on the same second. 

Time practice session 2 : Fastest lap with a 2.04.493, 2.575 seconds faster than Cooper and 2.994 faster than Savatgy 

Race 1 : He starts in 5h postion, pass Webb in lap 3 and Plessinger in lap 7, and crash in lap 10, handing two positions to Tomac and Plessinger. He finishes 46.043 seconds down on Jett, his fastest lap is a 2.11.585, which 2.212 seconds slower than Jett. He is in the same second a lap than Tomac and Plessinger. 

Race 2 : He starts in 2nd and stays there until lap 7 and his crash that puts him back to 6th. He then pass Plessinger two laps after and he is passed by Cooper in lap 12. He ends 1.33.036 down on Jett with the 2nd fastest lap, a 2.10.719, 0.963 slower than Jett and only Tomac also got a 2.10. 

Overall : 5th

No he certainly doesn't. Jorge is a good person but he's just too arrogant for his own good when it comes to his thoughts on himself and his racing. When he does well it's him. When he doesn't its the bike. That wears thin on these teams.  Unless something changes really quick and he shuts the hell up he will find himself having a more difficult time getting a 3rd manufacture to give him a top tier deal. Especially with the level of people at Kawasaki that he's disrespecting and his knocking the KTM group on his way out. But this has always been his style so i don't expect anything to change.

On the other hand, Good on Tomac for answering the questions. Especially for the constant digs Lewis does on him. LOL.. Great interviews by Lewis

Every one of those interviews were excellent , you can tell the riders like him. There’s good rapport.with the riders and that’s great for the fans! Well done Lewis 👍

Damn lewis throwing bombs at prado 😀. It was entertaining though.  😆🙌 I can see prado back in the mxgp next year , you can tell he’s regretting the move to the US. My 2 cents. 

Maybe jorge should take that hrc Honda spot in mxgp now that gajser is leaving. That bike would suit him I think. 

Kawi looks like shit. Last guy that made that bike look good in America was masterpool on an almost stock bike. Prado’s bike just looks dead, sluggish, heavy, and unresponsive. Same goes for Anderson’s and AC9 when he was on it.  

Kawi thinks the bike is fine because AC won on it in 2020, Tomac won on it in 2021, Anderson in 2022. History of the team shows that if they have one winning rider, the bike and setup are fine. 

At some point, the bike setup is the responsibility of the rider.  How does Prado have Privateers dropping him yet he is so great?  Prado and Kawi are cooked.

Hilarious!😂 

450 teams can’t afford to field 2 winning riders.  Hunter is riding great, for sure, but he’ll always be Cal Naughton Jr. unless Jett gets hurt.  That’s just the way it works.

Rear geometry on Kawi is great for almost all. 
The top % push it to where it causes the rear shock to heat up and fade. 
Kawi pride has always been an issue with riders. 
Why any different now. 

Eli (who is arguably harder on bikes than anybody) did plenty of winning on the Kawasaki.  How was he able to overcome this overheating shock scenario that you suggest?  I’ve been following motocross for a long time, and that’s the first I’ve heard of a chronic overheating shock issue.  Can you educate me and post a link to a story on this?

On top of that, I invite you to remind me of a point this season where Prado was pushing his bike to the limit for a period of time long enough to create this overheating shock issue.

I didn't known Prado did his own engine work...? 🙄

Phil is still looking for more power in Canada. He can send it to anyone he want but still with 3 races left they haven't solved it.

From what is being told Prado have told them what power is needed and they can't deliver, yet.

Setting up chassi and suspension we all know is dependent on power of bike. Change the map and your suspension can be shit because engine braking changes and power to the ground is different.

Tomac has been what, 3 seasons on the bike and still haven't figured setup out for Mx. Swinging at setup, mailing it in when it doesn't work. Same as Prado.

People that would get lapped 6-8min into the race needs to be a bit careful passing judgement from the couch.

Prado we have known what is going on, because of Prado, because he actually speaks about it. If not for Lewis, people would have stilled guess what is wrong with Tomac throwing theories around age and "he is not better than this" around.

Took years, YEARS before we got the explanation with bike setup and armpump. I'll take Prado's way any day over Tomac and other US riders PC attitude.

I wasn't referring to them needing two winning riders. If one rider is winning, they won't make changes to help the #2 riders. Weimer, I think Savatgy went through it.

Eli also did plenty of weirdo fucking around rides on the kawi. He pretty much threw away, what 2 or 3 championships due to massive inconsistency and “off” nights. 
Eli did what he did on the kawi because he was just that much better then his competitors, not because that bike was good. 

Even if prado had his bike perfect and was firing on all cylinders, I still think Jett would be beating him. But he is certainly a lot better then he’s showing. Im sure the bike isn’t the only factor in his poor performance, but its definitely holding him back. 

That's a 10 second a lap difference, either he's out of shape or he's saying fuck it and is cruising around. Not a good luck for kawi or prado. Partnership is shaky at this moment.

Agreed. The Kawasaki doesn't appear to be anywhere as strong as the Honda, Yamaha, or KTM team bikes...which again makes me SMH over Sexton's decision to ride the bike in 2026. To me...and I guess I'm shortsighted, but it makes no damn sense at all especially as good as he looks on the KTM now. 

I don't see Prado on Kawasaki next year. 

For Eli I think it's a little bit of everything. First there is the Jett and Hunter effect. If I were him, I could rationalize what Jett is doing to me and everyone else. If I'm not feeling like peak me and the bike isn't close to perfect, I can say to myself I'm getting beat by a dude who may be the best damn motocrosser to ever swing a leg over the seat. But I should be whipping everyone else, and his doggone brother is not only showing me his ass he is the one giving Jett a run for the money. Second there is truth in the fact that this chassis is a departure from the one I started on with this team and I don't have outdoor settings that allow me to be me because of circumstances and I'm about to quit riding it in a few short months anyway. And then there is the age/family/ bank account/ life outside this pressure cooker factor. It is really understandable, and I have to admit to myself I might only find the magic occasionally at this point in my career and I am figuring out how to be ok with that.

For Jorge I have no clue at this point and I don't think he does either. I'm hoping the vibe he is sending is really just massive frustration and it will all get sorted out. Oh yeah, there also is the fact that the top guys in this series are just as tough and fast as the MXGP boys I had to fight with, and I bit off more than I can chew coming here. He has to be in a really rough place mentally at this point.

3 pages of mostly shitting on the Prado interview, but I thought it was pretty straightforward.    

I get the feeling that there are things he would like changed, and "Kawasaki" is unwilling to allow it at this point. He and the team may be trying their best, but forces elsewhere in the "Kawasaki" umbrella may be resisting, and Prado is tap-dancing around the politics of his situation a bit. I could be wrong.

That was mainly in SX though it seems to me. There is the one year (2016?) where Roczen pretty much owed him, but Kenny was on another planet that summer kind of like Jett is now. I just don't buy that the Kawi is this terrible. The litmus test comes when Chase gets on the thing I suppose but Chase has some battles going on between his ears at times as well. If Prado is still on the green monster next season and Chase kicks ass while he (Prado) still languishes we will have our answer and Prado's career may be toast.

Not enough horsepower, not enough torque, chassis setup,  suspension too stiff, suspension too soft, doesn't like the food, culture, lifestyle. 

How about Jorge? How about getting a reality check in SX and losing confidence? Season ending injury? Elite competition? Does any of that factor in?

Zero of your points indicate it isn't the bike. I'm not saying it is but your argument has no logic to it. We know he's being beaten by people who he ought to beat. That doesn't mean it's not the bike. 

I think what a lot of people miss in this regard is that there are more than 2 sides to this. There's Prado,  his immediate team and corporate Kawasaki. Prado and his team may be doing all they can possibly do with the current platform. But if they're asking for major changes then corporate may hav  to deliver those...not the immediate team. And if they're not prioritizing these then perhaps that's where the problem lies. 

At any rate I found his interview with Lewis very awkward .

You’re definitely not wrong about prado needing to prove himself a winner and title threat before the end of next season. Because If he doesn’t, while I’m sure he’ll get another chance to go back to mxgp with a top team, I doubt he’ll get a top tier $$$ contract. He will be damaged goods at that point and his confidence may be beyond repair. And Jorge is definitely a confidence rider. 

Even when Lewis threw Jorge a softball, complimenting him on his Southwick ride, Jorge made it clear he was overriding the bike to do that because of his strong sand skills. And that pointed comment to the keyboard warriors about "what everbody is saying" - Jorge - we'll they should ride the bike. It is clear that he gives no effs about what being are saying online about his performance. Rather than arrogant I came away with Jorge as confident but frustrated in the bike. Not going to push hard (like his Southwick crash) when he doesn't have the confidence. Being direct about it will be better; Kawi steps up or they part ways. Either way will be better than repeating the press release of "challenges this race, looking forward to next race" that perpetuates frustration for both team and rider. 

Febvre doing just fine on it.   

...so a MXGP champ needs the 'perfect of the perfect' bike to even get into the top5 in the US? 

I was happy for Jorge but he is seriously sh*tty at giving input to bike setup if the MXGP champ cannot even get into top5 on a regular basis.

I always find it strange when people talk about how someone is super fast but then lists a long list of criteria, track, weather, bike etc... there is a guy, not going to mention name but apparently the track should be Lommel, then he can show he is the fastest in the world.

I have to say I vote for Jett, he seems to be able to run top3 regardless of bike and track and weather.