I went to another race this year! Let’s go!! I did full pull and let me tell you, it wasn’t easy. Not that the work is that hard but it’s just a long ass day up in that press box. I don’t know how Steve does it. Wake up, get a Starbucks, walk to the stadium, do track walk (or track talk), talk crap about riders, punch some words into a laptop, talk crap on riders, tell a few Darkside stories, eat snacks, talk crap on Phil, then venture down to the pits to put a microphone to the riders mouths. I just don’t know how they do it every week. I would rather be riding or testing, but all jokes aside, it is a lot to take in during one day. I give these FULL TIME media guys props. Since I did my full pull, let’s discuss some riders from St. Louis shall we? -KK
Tomac: For a guy that wasn’t supposed to win a race, he sure did it in spectacular fashion. Tomac got great starts and stayed out of the trouble for the most part. He got a gift from Jett when the Honda rider jumped on the red cross the second moto, but in the end it didn’t matter because Jett got obliterated by Barcia in the third moto. Tomac has changed his set up a little bit the past couple weeks but it looks like he wanted to get the start and lead laps in St. Louis. What I liked about St. Louis Tomac is he was aggressive early. Like Friday early. He was doing hard laps on press day and that leaked into his riding for Saturday. I don’t think the week off will suit Tomac but winning before a week off has to feel good. I said he would win one, but now maybe I say he will win two?
Webb: Coop had an up and down night and it’s crazy to me he salvaged a second place, especially from what he looked like in the first moto. You can always count on Webb to not do anything flashy but just steadily work his way up through the pack if he gets a bad start. His starts weren’t great Saturday night but his corners were excellent. He made up a ton of time in the 90 degree corners. the corner before the whoops and the corner before the mechanic area he was exceptional. He also had some words with Cade Clason after the second moto as Coop felt Cade was in the way when he was getting lapped. After talking to Cade after the race, he told me he was more than far enough over to allow Coop to pass. I say there should be a rule for riders: That rule should suggest that no rider shall be held accountable for what he says with a ten minute window after the checkered flag. Too much testosterone and adrenaline are pumping through these guys and they just get heated too quick. Everyone chill back a bit.
H.Lawrence: Hunter was a pleasant surprise in St. Louis. Leading the first moto but washing out in a corner didn’t hurt his confidence for the remainder of the night. Hunter has been steadily creeping into the top five more and has sniffed the podium, but his heat race win in Seattle allowed for this new rider to emerge. More confidence and better starts are helping the older brother.
Barcia: Ehhhhh boy. Barcia has been getting better but it still isn’t the same Barcia we have seen in the past couple years. I don’t know exactly what he was thinking when he torpedo’d Jett but it wasn’t deliberate yet it wasn’t that smart of a move either. that early in the race and cutting down that much without much braking before impact is kind of recipe for disaster. 51 did brake before impact but it wasn’t enough braking to make me 100% say I stand with Barcia on the accidental impact front. I don’t think Barcia was going for a kill, but I also don’t think it was the best move. I do think he wanted to make sure Jett saw or felt him a little in that corner, but when Jett cut down early, Barcia’s plans went from a “hey, hello” to “WTF IS UP, JETT”? I appreciate Barcia tryin to talk to Jett after the race but I can tell you that it didn’t matter to the Honda boys. That hit costed Jett a chunk of points and now he only sits 8 points up on Cooper Webb.
Kitchen: A smoother, faster and better starting Kitchen this weekend in St. Louis. I thought RJ would of had something for the lanky Northwesterner but it just didn’t happen. Levi was just so good through the ruts and kept himself out of route by getting good starts. Mitch is smiling. Seems like the world is right again when Pro Circuit is leading the 250 points right?
Shimoda: The Shimoda Realist might be on to something. I thought Jo would have won a race or two by now but honestly I simply don’t know if it will happen? Jo is a great rider, but I feel like Levi is just better at this time. I also think RJ has a little more raw speed than Jo, but I will give credit where credit is due. Jo has been getting better and this (to me) was the quietest second place finish I have witnessed. A 2-3-3 is great but I really never looked at Jo and said to myself “oh yeah he’s ripping”.
J. Smith: From a crappy night in Seattle to a podium in St. Louis. Whoever said this guy doesn’t deserve a ride is inaccurate. One of the fastest in class and yes, he should be winning a championship but to me he deserves a ride and I think Star should give him one more year. Just one more, Star. Some riders just take a little while to catch a break or mature and in this case, Jordan is getting closer to touch both.
Mumford: Mumfy was frisky in qualifying but starts didn’t help him in the mains. After speaking with his dad, Mumfy is finally healthy and has a nice base to build off of. Sometimes what people don’t get is when you keep getting clobbered down by injuries it’s tough to build up a base fitness level. Mumford was in this spot, I think. Flashes of speed, then he gets hurt. Starts building and then no ride. Now I think he found a home at Motoconcepts/Smartop/Bullfrog Spas Honda and I know he likes this honda much more than his older Chaparral Honda so that is a plus. Same engine builder, but better set up. This is what money can get you folks. You ride for team that has some money, you get the best engine available to you. Mumford has a bike that is capable of a podium and he is also capable of a podium with the speed I witnessed at St. Louis. “Hey Tony, sign Mumford again for 2025”. Would be a good idea, just sayin.
Hawkins: A 10-12-10 isn’t great but if you saw what I saw from St. Louis you would say that Hawkins worked his ass off for a top ten. The dude was in battles all night long and his riding looked really good. He looked faster than the position he was in which surprised me a little. I know he’s fast and is on a great AEO/KTM team, I just didn’t think a tenth place would look that good.
