Daytime Program: A1
Today at 11:07 PM
A1 has come and gone so that means it’s the first Daytime Program of 2025! Here are some things I witnessed from Anaheim.
Pre Race Press Conference: Let's face it, having Deegan around makes for some drama but to me I would rather have some crap talking then just robots up there saying that they’re in the best shape, blah, blah, blah. Jase (Gypsy Tales) asked the question to Deegan about what he thought of Jett saying that he wasn't even in his league. The original question behind all of this was directed to fans that asked who they thought some specific riders direct competition was. Most of the fans answered that Deegan was Jett's toughest competition. Jett Lawrence answered (in tongue and cheek) that Haiden wasn't even in his class or "league" and that got Deegan to fire back with some fun crap talking banter. Where I think it gets blown out of proportion is when the media blows it up to be some huge beef between the two, then us fans wonder why the riders can't show their personality when being interviewed. A lot of these media outlets out there are looking for the next clickbait clip to get themselves views or downloads. I mean I understand it's the world we live in now, but I just wish our media was a little more stick and ball sports oriented and do a little more digging or fact checking. Some of the media does this, some DO NOT give a shit. I just thought this was funny as I was at the press conference and not once did I take it too seriously.
Best Dressed: This has to go to Jorge Prado and Fox Racing. I know most of us reading this are older men but you have to admit this pink look is flashy and clean all at the same time. I know most of us older men are scared to wear pink but I still think this was the best looking gear of the night. Shout out to Justin Cooper and O'Neal though!
250 C Practice: This is more of a "want" but is there anyway we could NOT call the 250 C group, "C"? They're not novices and I think it can get confusing for the new fan as well as it's kind of lame that we denote the third group "C" when we have a "C" class in our sport. Let's just call them "Group 3". Doesn't seem like a big deal and it makes more sense. When you're the fastest group, you're group 1. Seems easy to me and more professional sounding. I have been thinking about this for a while but decided just now to bitch about it. Come on, AMA! Make it happen!
Ticket Prices: Now, usually I don't complain about pricing about tickets but the nosebleeds were 120 bucks? What? I went on and scoured all the sites to purchase tickets and the cheapest I could find was 120.00! If it was really sold out like they say then I will shut up but if Feld wants to fill the stadiums, we should at least have some 50 buck options.
Mechanics Area Pit Board Games?: Did you know there is sometimes some in-fighting within the mechanics area on the floor? There is limited space for the mechanics to pit board their riders so getting into the appropriate area is key to ensure the mechanic's rider can see said pit board signal. I went around and spoke to several mechanics about what it's like down there and if it ever gets chippy when if comes to signaling their riders. Most of them said there is usually "an agreement" between mechanics that are signaling next to each other that one goes high and one goes low with their pit boards, but sometimes that doesn't happen. Sometimes if the riders or mechanics are rivals you will see some mechanic games going on. If both riders are close together some mechanics say they will stand next to (the rider that’s in front) mechanic and throw the pitboard up in front of the other so it blocks the rider's view of his signal. Instead of asking if one mechanic is going high or low, you can throw your board out in front of the mechanic standing behind you to screw with his rider. WOW! I never knew there was an internal battle going on down on the floor of a main event between the mechanics but I guess it happens more than we think! Action on and off the track. Love it!
Achilles Injuries: With the news of Jalek Swoll and now Evan Ferry with Achilles injuries it made me start to think about what is going on? Since Eli Tomac's injury it seems like there have been more Achilles tendon injuries than I have ever seen. People blame the Tech 10 boots for this but I digress. Yes, the "pro" Tech 10s are a little different than the consumer Tech 10s but the protection around the boot is close to the same. The pro boot is a little softer overall but it still has the three front bars in the front of the boot to help protect the rider from extension/flexion. There is also a lace up bootie that is available for the pro riders that can help. The thing that us normal folks may not get is that professional riders are looking for maximum performance/feel and will sacrifice protection for that. Maybe that doesn't make sense to us, but for them it's almost everything. So now when we see these guys rupture a tendon, it can be because they "modify" their own boots to make them flex more. Riding on the balls of your feet has become ALL THE RAGE now so in order to do that correctly, the boot has to flex a lot. The arches of your feet have more support when landing but when a rider modifies his boots, rides on the balls of his feet and lands in a transition of a rhythm, the Achilles can’t withstand that force.
Chase Sexton: Number 4 is running KYB internals in his forks still and has had more "special parts" added to his KTM than he did last year. We will dive into more of this as the year goes on but for now let's admire what we witnessed Saturday night. Chase was great, Gisele only peaked her head out for a split second for a stall but past that, it was picture perfect and his start was "good". Chase claims that his new seat really helps him lock into position and that is going to help him throughout the year. Look for a full video breakdown of the rider triangle soon over on Racer X.
Jett Lawrence: What weird night. You can tell that the both factory HRC Hondas weren’t working great and to me Jett's bike didn't look like it worked on the hard/slick corners. He was searching for traction and I even noticed some headhsake on the straights. Jett will probably bounce back next week and smoke everyone by 7 seconds as we know the HRC team will figure it out. I do think it's a little funny that back at Unadilla we heard that the new Honda chassis was the best thing ever and now the new chassis maybe isn't as good in SX. Hmmmm.. I could be wrong but I think they need to get more compliance out of the chassis and a softer front end feel.
Eli Tomac: Ehhhhhh boy. That is what the other riders should be saying to themselves after seeing Tomac top both qualifying rounds, wining the heat race and coming back to fifth from dead last. It looks like his cornering is back to where it was in 2022 and he says he is down almost 10 pounds from last year. Look like Eli is back into fighting shape/weight. I do think if Eli doesn't crash, he wins A1. There is some changes to his KYB suspension tech, but overall the fork/shock setting combo hasn’t changed.
Ken Roczen: Kenny will not get the e-start until possibly after Daytona. The e-start wasn't quite ready but from what I was told, the e-start is coming! Kenny also got a factory transmission and that means his starts should be better as well as his cornering. The factory transmission will help Ken use 1st gear more as well as make his second gear longer for his starts. I wish RC would have elaborated more on the show. Maybe the broadcast needs a "test rider" to throw it too when there is a technical question about parts on the bike?
Justin Hill: I don’t have much to offer here but maybe an eighth doesn’t look great on paper but Justin Hill gave factory riders fits all night long. He looks in shape and his whoop speed is still top notch. According to Justin, he has put more work in this year than he has since his 250 days. If this guy can stay healthy all year, look for him to be in the top five because that is the kind of speed this guy has.
Jo Shimoda: I don't think a lot of people called Jo for the win. Whoever betted on Jo made some money. the smoothest rider in the west, Shimoda made light work of the field and looked like it was easy when he did it. Jo's whoop speed is still not great, but he does ride efficiently and HRC allowed him to experiment with his own settings this year which looked to have helped him. I will say that this A1 wasn't the most roughest of tracks so let's see how this bike works when go to a little softer dirt.
Julien Beaumer: I do think Ju Ju was faster than Shimoda but on a track that was tough to pass on, I think Julien played it smart and took the second. For how young he is, he is riding more mature in 2025 and I think that a is a direct reflection of Davi Millsaps. Davi said he really worked on Ju Ju's fitness as well as headspace for 2025. Managing races is one of the things they spoke about a lot and it seemed like he can be a podium guy, week in and week out.
Jordan Smith: Triumph's first podium! A lot of work has gone into this so it was nice to sit back and see it happen for all the guys over at Triumph. Jordan possibly could have challenged Jo for the win but to land on the podium (with a spill) is a great start for 19. The Triumph team got the bike better with the help of Dave Arnold and Ivan Tedesco the past few months so a big chunk of that win should go to those guys as well. I will admit that I was a little bummed that the first podium wasn't Jalek's as he was in the trenches early on with the team, but nonetheless the team as well as Jordan made it all happen. Jordan's whoop speed is probably the best in class (next to Deegan) and the Triumph is also especially good when the track gets dried out. I know this team is a little under the radar but being close to the bike and team, I can tell you that this bike is one of the better 250s in the paddock.
