Who wins?

JS covered them all ... easy choice 

Jett every time

RV2, no question in my mind 

One race? One moto? A 17 race SX season? 

Outdoors? I'd say RC no doubt. 

Indoors? I'd say Jett

Casually leaving off the guy with the nickname FMOTP!! 😂. He did have a perfect 450 outdoor season. 

Have to pick Ricky, he is hardest charging win at any cost rider I’ve seen.

You missed 2015 Tomac

Hypothetical speaking u guys think RC for example could beat 2015 Tomac at Hangtown, 2016 Kenny at Millville or current Jett at Pala/RedBud though?

I'm kinda sad I didn't get to witness the RC/Js7 era. Before Marv and Kenny went to the US (that's when I started watching every US race) I was a MXGP guy/kid through and through. Watching the old videos from Ricky and James is definitely mindblowing, but witnessing live or in person gotta be different.

I’m a massive Jett fan.  I hope he’s revered as the GOAT of our sport someday…

That said it’s hard to imagine anyone being physically faster than this 

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPdu3YrjxhZ/?igsh=Z3duNmFkcXN2d3oz

2015 Eli is hard to rate for me because it was only for 5 motos and we never saw it again. I cant put it up against the other guys who did it for a season. But yes, '15 Eli at Hangtown is the fastest a man has ever ridden a bike on a mx track. 

I love this place. I knew what the vid was before I pulled it up 😂 I just saw that on Instagram the other day. Yes give me peak James on a modern bike, when he's ON, and nobody is coming close. God damn, he was so awesome. I feel very fortunate to have seen it first hand 

If they are all on modern bikes I think Jett wins

The guy that lapped the field and has two perfect seasons, probably 

Such an impossible comparison. Fun to bench race on but impossible. They were all so dominant for their era. How do you not go with RC? But then how do I not pick '13 RV? Technique has progressed so much since RC. So we dont think they're faster because of it? Again, its impossible to compare. 2007 RC sure dont look visually any slower. His corner speed was insane 

2025 Dangerboy 

2026 Haiden Deegan smokes them all.



 

Anyone who doesn’t say Jett is coping. I didn’t like the guy either but the talent is undeniable and truly the greatest we’ve ever seen 

Hannah '78, Decoster '72. On 125s Barnett that one season. So many variables.

If they all lined up in their prime, and on same equipment it would be Jett. He has the advantage of learning more than 10 years of progression in the sport and he’s as mentally tough as all of them. 

The real question is, if they all lined up at Unadulla in the 70’s with early 2000’s two strokes who would win? 🙂

Probably going to be an unpopular opinion, but here it goes. RC and RV were able to overcome significant flaws on their bikes and still win. Hell Jeff Ward had some real turds and won everything at least once. Hannah, same way. They set the standard of their time.

In the modern era, I think things have been perfected and progressed to such a point that you can't win that way. We've all seen the races where Eli had his setup a bit off riding around in 7th, then crushes it the next moto.

So I think Jett, and Eli too because while Jett has him covered Eli is physically passed his prime, have the RC and RVs of the world along with JS7 covered. Herlings and Roczen would be in the Jett camp too. Not because they are better then the previous guys, but because they've built on what everyone before them did.

For a single race, I think the Herlings of a few years back might take it all, or Tomac. For a series, Jett would be more consistent. Roczen is harder to place for me, I think he in his prime might have still been like McGrath where he sprinted out front with amazing speed, mentally crushed everyone, and won the race. That won't always work against a grinder that never quits.

For those that don't know, Jett stayed with the Roczen family while Hunter was doing GPs for part of a year. It isn't a coincidence that Jett and Ken have similarity in styles.

I just keep thinking that we got robbed to not have seen Tomac in the 2 stroke era. His aggressive riding was made for it. As far a this question I go with Herlings. He is smooth as well as blazing fast.

Stefan Everts could be in this conversation as well.

I'm of the opinion that all professional sports progress as time moves on. I think that Ricky's focus on attaining peak physical fitness sparked exponential growth of the level that the top guys ride at, as being in top shape allows riders to push on the bike for so much longer and around the whole track, rather than just short spurts here and there. As more and more racers followed suit and prioritized training, the collective level of the sport was raised. That's where we saw guys like Villopoto and Dungey dominate - they took Carmichael's training regimen and merged it with their own unique styles. Villopoto was closer to a clone of Carmichael, whereas Dungey was so relaxed and balanced on the bike that he could hit laps in the same exact clean manner without breaking a sweat.

Eventually, other riders came through the ranks that grew up with prioritizing fitness and had watched the way Carmichael, Stewart, and Reed pushed the limits of a motocross bike. With that as the new "level" and four strokes reaching their peak, these riders were able to merge the fitness and aggressiveness of the 00's with an added focus on maximizing the setup of the bike to suit their unique styles. Thus, Tomac and Roczen in particular, raised the level yet again.

Then, Jett merged all of this layered knowledge of motocross riding with his own method of technique that he was brought up on. Interestingly enough, I would say that his technique is built on the foundation of riders from decades ago, such as David Bailey, JBM, and McGrath. The advent of hyper-fitness and wide-open throttles was paired with extremely aggressive riding styles that sometimes moved away from the "standards" of motocross technique - Carmichael, Stewart, and RV were a little wonky on the bike compared to some of their predecessors. Jett and his camp realized that the tenants of standing up on the pegs, hinging at the hips with a straight back, and staying balanced within the center of the bike, can be merged with physical dominance and ballsy high-end speeds. 

So, after that long-winded summary of the evolution of motocross over the past 25 years, I will offer the opinion that Jett is probably the best we've ever seen and would beat literally anyone that has ever ridden a dirtbike, given they're all on modern 450s. I also tend to think Tomac and Roczen would be around the same level as Villopoto/Dungey (slightly more top-end speed than Dungey, but Villopoto might be able to keep up). And, as sacreligious as it sounds, I think they'd all be a little bit better than Carmichael and Stew.

I still think Carmichael is the goat. But if riders weren't building on past knowledge and getting better & better, what the hell are they doing?

Jett is gonna tax that ass next summer. Ohhhh baby! Buckle up for the whupping

I would argue that guys like O'Mara , Bailey Ward etc. trained harder than RC but what RC brought to the table was specialized training . 

Agreed on the evolution of riding . I was watching the 84 SX season review this morning on Gary Bailey's channel and it barely resembles what we see today , of course tracks have changed along with it . Those 84 tracks had smaller jumps for the most part but no flow , mostly flat or off camber turns, uneven whoops and the tracks got pretty rough . By the end of the 80s we were seeing larger gaps , triples and quad jumps .  But you watch someone like Carson Brown shred on those old bikes and you see how far technique has come , but to be fair many of those vids are on his backyard track . It would be interesting to see him on and 80s bike on an exact replica of one of those mid 80s tracks . 

Anyway I'd say Jett wins followed closely by Herlings . 

😂 😂 😂 That meme rules!! Its all good man. Its gonna be fun to watch no matter who wins. All of us fans win 

I'm just goofing with you. 😄

Look at the tracks RV and RC rode, then look at the tracks Jett rides.

I'd have to go with Jett.

A pissed off 1978 Hannah beats anyone at any track.  The key is that he has to be pissed off.  Fun fact, when he was on the track racing, he was almost always pissed off.

-Steve