Tomac seemed happy with 3rd. Really?

kpiper
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3/24/2019 10:13pm
Something sure has changed with ET. He did not seem bothered too much with 3rd place and falling back again midway through the race.

Guess we will never know what is up but it sure would be nice to know! We need a spy in Colorado!
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T-Fish
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3/24/2019 10:32pm
Have you seen the year he’s been having? I’d be happy with 3rd too.
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Boomslang
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3/24/2019 10:35pm
T-Fish wrote:
Have you seen the year he’s been having? I’d be happy with 3rd too.
Agreed, if he is having a bad day for whatever reason and he Podiums then it's a good thing right?
3/24/2019 10:37pm
More I watch him it seems like he's burnt out or is just doing it as a job.
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Lloydcarter
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3/24/2019 11:50pm
Do you think he’s checked out at this point? Man I would love to see him on a Honda again.
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The Shop

3/25/2019 12:58am
Do you think he’s checked out at this point? Man I would love to see him on a Honda again.
Probably needs a spark of motivation or confidence.

Change can do that.
fullfloater
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3/25/2019 1:13am Edited Date/Time 3/25/2019 1:15am
Noticed that too. You know he hates losing so he must have switched his perspective to the outdoors. Only way he could stomach getting gapped 2 weeks straight.
DoctorJD
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3/25/2019 4:49am
You could tell he was happy? All of his emotions look the same to me.
Mx814
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3/25/2019 4:59am
He's in love. Stamp it...
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Crush
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3/25/2019 5:24am
Bet you they're still working on the bike. His season is 2016 like.
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3/25/2019 5:50am
Crush wrote:
Bet you they're still working on the bike. His season is 2016 like.
Bike doesn’t suit him period imo
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RD757
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3/25/2019 5:58am
If I were him I’d try and get on Rocky Mountain (if they could find a way to afford him) just so he could be on a Ktm.
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Shaned9326
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3/25/2019 6:03am
I sure as hell hope we see a different Eli outdoors when the real season starts are his three peat national title will be in trouble!!
level
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3/25/2019 6:22am
Maybe he just doesn’t want to ride over his head anymore. He is fast no doubt but also crashes when he pushes it. Maybe he is being smart.
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Kyle_McNab
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3/25/2019 6:41am
Anytime you stand on the box is a good day plus the bonus. But it was kinda weird seeing that from Eli. Guess he knows Webb got it
rikhek
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3/25/2019 7:29am
More I watch him it seems like he's burnt out or is just doing it as a job.
It is a/his job. Many don't realize once you get to the level of successful pro it really isn't too much fun anymore, it's hard work. It's all consuming and all they do. It's really a pretty lousy way to make a living. The danger, living in hotels, on airplanes and at race tracks, not eating what you want, pain in the ass fans, the entire lifestyle gets real old after awhile. It's a lot different doing it for a paycheck than for fun.
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TriRacer27
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3/25/2019 7:32am
I'll take the positive view on this. I hope he finds something that helps him handle the pressure better. He seems to ride better when he isn't thinking championship. He might just be putting too much pressure on himself.

My hope is he finds something meaningful outside of Moto to take the pressure off of his performance and just let him ride the way he knows how.
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Talisker
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3/25/2019 7:41am
Somethings not right. Mike Williamson rolling out is also a big red flag. Reminds me of that couple everyone thought was perfect. You start seeing early signs that tell you different. Then there’s a big stess fracture to the foundation. Next thing you know the whole damn thing is crumbling!!!
It happens everytime....
Smiles, promises, and phone calls stop overnight!!!
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kpiper
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3/25/2019 7:44am
No doubt when you do it for a living it changes things and takes a lot of the 'fun' away. The interviews leading up to the last race KR94 could not even smile! So not a lot of fun factor there either.

It does seem like ET is less focused on winning right now even though he dominated just two weeks ago. An injury can really make you think and a back injury can nag at you for a long time. He did say last week was a struggle but did not say why.

Dungey said he thought about his injury a lot during his last season.
hamncheeze
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3/25/2019 8:34am
Talisker wrote:
Somethings not right. Mike Williamson rolling out is also a big red flag. Reminds me of that couple everyone thought was perfect. You start seeing early...
Somethings not right. Mike Williamson rolling out is also a big red flag. Reminds me of that couple everyone thought was perfect. You start seeing early signs that tell you different. Then there’s a big stess fracture to the foundation. Next thing you know the whole damn thing is crumbling!!!
It happens everytime....
Smiles, promises, and phone calls stop overnight!!!
Yeah especially the way it went down with Williamson. He's saying he resigned, but according to Matthes he was booked to come on the Pulp Show and everything was normal, then Kawi shut that down and the announcement came out. To me it really seems like Kawi clipped Williamson, maybe at the insistence of the Tomac camp?

Honestly, at this point I think Eli needs a full program change. I think his dad is awesome (in the 90s I absolutely idolized him), doesn't seem like a crazy moto dad, but maybe it's time for Eli to step out of the family circle with his riding and training. If he stays at Kawi he'll never get to work with Baker, but maybe he could get in with a guy like Swanapoel. Maybe just getting feedback from an independent source without the parental relationship mixing the message would be healthy at this point.
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Ranman68
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3/25/2019 9:02am
I'm sure that being one spot ahead of Webb and Marvin being docked points made that 3rd place finish a lot easier to swallow. He had some good speed and enough of it to win it if he had been just a little better in that long whoop section. I think the guy is a little better now at knowing when he can't win and settling for a decent result rather than a crash from pushing too hard. I also don't believe that Tomac is as "off" as most people think. The dude is ripping, but this year there are an unusual number of top riders who are healthy, in it every week, trying like hell, and flat out ripping themselves. Maybe it's just a matter of Webb, Roczen, Baggett, and Musquin being healthy and THAT good, instead of Tomac being a little "off". All the top guys are healthy and hauling major ass with few mistakes compared to previous years. I don't think Tomac is totally dialed, but I also dont believe he's as "off" as most people think. Just my opinion.
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Shaned9326
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3/25/2019 10:03am
No one will really know till Hangtown!! Don’t think he’ll be riding behind and getting gapped once nationals start.
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bsharkey
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3/25/2019 10:11am
Talisker wrote:
Somethings not right. Mike Williamson rolling out is also a big red flag. Reminds me of that couple everyone thought was perfect. You start seeing early...
Somethings not right. Mike Williamson rolling out is also a big red flag. Reminds me of that couple everyone thought was perfect. You start seeing early signs that tell you different. Then there’s a big stess fracture to the foundation. Next thing you know the whole damn thing is crumbling!!!
It happens everytime....
Smiles, promises, and phone calls stop overnight!!!
I was thinking the same thing about Williamson makes you wonder what's going on. He's been a staple at Kawasaki for awhile
bsharkey
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3/25/2019 10:13am
Ranman68 wrote:
I'm sure that being one spot ahead of Webb and Marvin being docked points made that 3rd place finish a lot easier to swallow. He had...
I'm sure that being one spot ahead of Webb and Marvin being docked points made that 3rd place finish a lot easier to swallow. He had some good speed and enough of it to win it if he had been just a little better in that long whoop section. I think the guy is a little better now at knowing when he can't win and settling for a decent result rather than a crash from pushing too hard. I also don't believe that Tomac is as "off" as most people think. The dude is ripping, but this year there are an unusual number of top riders who are healthy, in it every week, trying like hell, and flat out ripping themselves. Maybe it's just a matter of Webb, Roczen, Baggett, and Musquin being healthy and THAT good, instead of Tomac being a little "off". All the top guys are healthy and hauling major ass with few mistakes compared to previous years. I don't think Tomac is totally dialed, but I also dont believe he's as "off" as most people think. Just my opinion.
It's crazy to think that even with the 5 or 6 good guys that are actually injured right now there's still that much talent left where you still have to get a good start the field is still deep
GuyB
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3/25/2019 10:22am
He wrestled with the whoops from the first lap of practice. He seemed to settle on just relentlessly pounding through them. On a good day, he can skim effortlessly. This looked more like hammering every single one. I can't even imagine how much energy that took.
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Ranman68
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3/25/2019 10:30am
Ranman68 wrote:
I'm sure that being one spot ahead of Webb and Marvin being docked points made that 3rd place finish a lot easier to swallow. He had...
I'm sure that being one spot ahead of Webb and Marvin being docked points made that 3rd place finish a lot easier to swallow. He had some good speed and enough of it to win it if he had been just a little better in that long whoop section. I think the guy is a little better now at knowing when he can't win and settling for a decent result rather than a crash from pushing too hard. I also don't believe that Tomac is as "off" as most people think. The dude is ripping, but this year there are an unusual number of top riders who are healthy, in it every week, trying like hell, and flat out ripping themselves. Maybe it's just a matter of Webb, Roczen, Baggett, and Musquin being healthy and THAT good, instead of Tomac being a little "off". All the top guys are healthy and hauling major ass with few mistakes compared to previous years. I don't think Tomac is totally dialed, but I also dont believe he's as "off" as most people think. Just my opinion.
bsharkey wrote:
It's crazy to think that even with the 5 or 6 good guys that are actually injured right now there's still that much talent left where...
It's crazy to think that even with the 5 or 6 good guys that are actually injured right now there's still that much talent left where you still have to get a good start the field is still deep
Yeah it's crazy the speed and depth. Look at the start zach osborn got. He's finally healthy with some races under his belt and up to race speed (he's very fast and he's a hard charger) yet he got sucked up and shuffled back to whatever it was where he finished. As fast as Justin Hill is, look where he's been finishing. I think Savatgy and Wilson are the best they've ever been, and hauling ass yet they barely get glimpses of top 5 finishes no matter where they start. Barcia just can't maintain the speed to run top 5 unless it's a mudder, yet last year he was top 3 and a regular contender for the win.
This year Roczen, Musquin, and Baggett have upped the pace and a lot of that is Webb being so fierce. Webb is forcing the other top riders to ride at a higher level, which is now at a pace that even a dialed Tomac cant walk away from. Jason Anderson was getting hammered except for Glendale. I think the field is just that damn good, and Tomac isn't that "off". That's what I think.
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kpiper
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3/25/2019 10:39am
It appears jumping the whoops is something ET does not practice so he was not prepared to give it a try. Clearly, he was losing time on the last part of the whoops. He said he needs to 'work on it.'

Just strange seeing him fade when he is usually the fittest and charging as the race goes on. He didn't fade at Daytona or Detroit! We could be seeing some burnout, not being willing to go crazy to win anymore, back issues, and he might already 'know' he is leaving Kawi. Since Eli does not like to talk guess we will never know.

Who knows what is up with the Williamson deal. Something pissed him off to say on his IG post that it is not fun anymore and he was not happy with the 'direction'. Could be anything and not even related to the Tomac's.

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Press516
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3/25/2019 10:57am
I was a bit surprised with how he sounded in that interview...

I do think Hangtown is going to show a re-motivated Eli.
3/25/2019 5:28pm Edited Date/Time 3/25/2019 5:30pm
rikhek wrote:
It is a/his job. Many don't realize once you get to the level of successful pro it really isn't too much fun anymore, it's hard work...
It is a/his job. Many don't realize once you get to the level of successful pro it really isn't too much fun anymore, it's hard work. It's all consuming and all they do. It's really a pretty lousy way to make a living. The danger, living in hotels, on airplanes and at race tracks, not eating what you want, pain in the ass fans, the entire lifestyle gets real old after awhile. It's a lot different doing it for a paycheck than for fun.
Yes, the riders that do well in his situation are the ones that are doing it for pride and ego or the ones that came from nothing and need the income.

For Tomac I don't believe he's egotistical at all so beating someone doesn't get him off like others.

Outdoors the results will come it's his style, wide open and swinging wide, muchore fun way to ride that being more technical in SX.
kpiper
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3/25/2019 7:14pm
You are right...ET's style is much more suited for outdoors where he can just go for it. And I am sure the 'three-peat' for the Nationals means a lot to him. Not many riders in motocross history have won three in a row.
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