The Monday Gate Drop Presented By Yamaha Motor Canada

So far it’s been a great weekend and I hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving. I’ve always had mixed feelings about Thanksgiving weekend. On one hand it’s great getting together with family and friends, but on the other hand it signifies a big change in our weather as colder temperatures are right around the corner. But hey, let’s enjoy the nice weather while we can, this weekend was all about turkey, family, and of course riding.

Last week was a big week for us Canadian moto media people as we were invited to Sand Del Lee on Thursday/Friday to test ride the all-new 2023 YZ450F. This bike has been completely redesigned and obviously as a seasoned rider and magazine editor I couldn’t wait to throw my leg over it. We arrived at Sand Del Lee around noon on Thursday and were greeted by the uber friendly Yamaha Motor Canada staff as well as MX101 Yamaha boss Kevin Tyler. Kevin (or KT as he’s known in the industry) is one of the great people in our sport and I’m honoured to call him a friend. We are both successful graduates of the University of 1990s Motocross. Whenever we’re together old stories flow out of our mouths like Cole Thompson on a SX track. During Thursday’s official presentation on the new YZ450F Kevin was given the opportunity to announce his newest rider, Sebastien Racine. This news has been circulating for some time; but it was great to see Sebastien finally introduced as the MX101 Team’s new 250 rider as well to see him standing there in person in his new team jacket. I see big things ahead for Racine in 2023 and I think he and the MX101 Yamaha crew are going to make a great team. Anyway, back to the 2023 YZ250F.

Obviously, we get excited during this time of the year when next year’s model’s begin to arrive at our local dealerships and we get to see them in person. Sometimes new bikes come with minor changes such as new graphics and specific refinements that make them look better and work a little better than the previous years model. But every five years or so an OEM will make drastic changes to one of their models and this is most certainly the case with the 2023 YZ450F. With changes to the chassis, the engine, the bodywork, the ECU, and just about everything else Yamaha is once again trying to redefine how a 450 is supposed to work. We’ve seen the Blu Cru do this before and you have to admire their innovation and their desire to move the needle in the 450 class. After suffering through a few dry years with their previous YZ450 platform the last two have been very successful in the USA on our sports biggest stage. Not only did Dylan Ferrandis win the 450 outdoor title in 2021 for the Star Racing Yamaha Team but Eli Tomac went even further this past season winning both the Monster Energy Supercross Series as well as the outdoor title on a YZ450F. As I said, the 2023 YZ450F represents a bold move for Yamaha, but in this sport you don’t get anywhere by just sitting still and doing nothing.

Even from the first moment I laid eyes on the new YZ450F it was easy to see just how much was new. The front fender is completely new and smaller for 2023, the engine is still reversed but is narrower and much more compact looking. Also, the area through the fuel tank and rad shrouds is narrower giving the rider a sense that this new bike will be easier to throw around on the track. As you sit in the cockpit of this new YZ450F you instantly get a sense that once on the track it’s going to feel nimble and exciting to ride. The only item missing again for 2023 is a Hydraulic clutch however, an easy to bolt on option will be available through the GYTR parts catelog, if you feel like you really need one. Unfortunately, due to an October 23^rd embargo by Yamaha Global I cannot release any impression data on this new bike until that date. I can however tell you that the 2023 YZ450F feels completely different from the older generation bike and by the time I left SDL on Friday afternoon I had a big smile on my face! Finally, on October 19^th myself and the Inside X crew are flying down to Florida for the official North American Media Launch of this new bike. For two days we will be riding, shooting video, and taking in the sights and sounds of the Blu Cru at the Star Racing Yamaha HQ in Tallahassee (formally known as the GOAT Farm). Prior to Covid these media trips were fairly common each year but since I haven’t been on an official one since I went to Japan four years ago I am obviously beyond excited to travel. To go down south and not only hang out with the Yamaha crew and my fellow media colleagues but to also get some more time on the 2023 YZ450F is going to be incredible. I cannot wait and I’m even looking forward to my 6am flight to Tallahassee on October 19^th. Anyway, thank you to the awesome people at Yamaha Motor Canada as well as the SDL crew for having us out last week. It was fun two days of riding, bench racing, and a perfect way to introduce this new and exciting YZ450F.

After driving home from SDL on Friday evening, I woke up on Saturday and thanks to Rev TV I was able to watch the opening round of the FIM World SX Championships live. This exciting new series has been talked about for months and it was cool to see the gate finally drop. Sadly, there were no Canadian riders at the opening round in Cardiff but it was great to see Kourtney Lloyd get some television time during the broadcast to talk about not only the ClubMX FXR Yamaha Team but also the fact that she’s the only female Team Manager in the series. It’s amazing to see Kourtney continue to break down barriers and empower women all over the world. All in all I thought the event was entertaining to watch and thankfully they had top riders like Ken Roczen and Eli Tomac on hand to put on a show. Roczen is doing both rounds of the series while Tomac was just a wild card entry this weekend and will not be travelling to Australia. Roczen was able to win the Super Pole race however Tomac was on a slightly different level in the main events and won all three. Sadly, there were a lot of crashes including big ones by Chad Reed, Josh Grant, Luke Clout, and Dean Wilson as all four didn’t end up finishing the night. Grant, Clout and Wilson as said afterwards that they were okay but unfortunately Reed was left with numerous injuries after his fuel pump inexplicably shut off mid-way through a rhythm section. Through his YouTube channel Reed has documented his preparation for this new and exciting global series and it’s honestly sad to see the 40 year old be down and out already with serious injuries. At this time, Chad and family are flying to Australia to visit family and to seek out further medical evaluations. Anyway, I thought the racing as well as the broadcast was good in Cardiff and I’m sure they’ll have some of the kinks worked out by Round 2 in Australia in two weeks. We also got word last night that Cole Thompson will be in Australia for not only Round 2 but also for the entire Australian SX series as he has signed with the Serco Yamaha Team. This is great news for Cole as racing down under is something he’s always wanted to do.

So, with the weekend now in the rear-view mirror, what do we have coming up this weekend? Well, the 2022 Future West AX Championships are kicking off in Chilliwack and after two years of battling Covid restrictions, this long-standing series is back to normal. Tanner Ward told us in an interview last week that he will be there and I’m also hearing that Jacob Piccolo will be there on his new GDR Honda. Yes, the word is that JP has signed with GDR Honda for 2023. He is filling the vacant spot left by Ryder McNabb who will be riding a KTM next year. I will be digging into this story more this week. Anyway, the gate drops in Chilliwack this weekend and good job to the Future West crew on continuing to make this series bigger and better. Also, this past week Dylan Wright had surgery on both his knees to repair the ACL and Meniscus damage that he’s been dealing with for over a year. Dylan text me to say that while the first couple of days were a real challenge, things were slowly improving. Oh, and yes I did say both knees. Even when he goes in for surgery Dylan is a beast!

Also this week in Southern Ontario there is a Steve Simms Ride day at Track 15 near Woodstock. All track fees will be donated to Steve and his family as continues to recover from his crash three weeks ago. As I write this Steve continues to improve as this past weekend nurses had him out of bed and sitting up in chair for small amounts of time. Hopefully the worst is behind him and he now can begin his long recovery process. Thank you to everyone in the industry who has been so supportive of Steve in the past few weeks. If you’re free on Wednesday then head on out to Track 15 and enjoy a fun day of riding all for a great cause.

Well, that is it for me this week. I hope everyone had a great weekend and Happy Thanksgiving! Please be safe and good luck to everyone racing in Chilliwack this coming weekend. Thank you for reading and if you have any questions or comments please email me at chris@mxpmag.com.