Greetings! Welcome to another edition of the Monday Gate Drop Column, which as always is presented by Yamaha Motor Canada. This is a big week for the Blu Cru; a selected number of the Canadian moto media will gather at Sand Del Lee to test ride the new 2025 YZ line up. Thanks to Yamaha, this has become an annual event, and each year it is a perfect way to wrap up the season. Please stay tuned, I will be composing a story next week on the 2026 YZ models, including the new YZ450, which has multiple changes for next year. I’m really excited about riding this new YZ450 on Friday, and I also look forward to sharing my thoughts with you on how all of the changes have complimented this already solid package.
Well, I guess to start off this week, we can talk about Saturday night and the final SMX Playoff round in Las Vegas. With all of the drama that all of us witnessed this season, there certainly had to be a feeling coming into the weekend that we’d seen it all. There was Jett Lawrence injuring his knee back in January and then returning with a vengeance to win the 450 Pro Motocross Championship. There was the Webb/Sexton battle for the Monster Energy Supercross 450 title. There was Haiden Deegan taking out his Star Racing Yamaha teammate Cole Davies to secure the 250SX West Championship and then celebrating on the podium by telling us all to ‘Suck it” if we didn’t agree with his actions; all the while, with most of the stadium booing him. Deegan did redeem himself slightly this summer by dominating the 250 Pro Motocross Series, proving once again that he is the best 250 rider on the planet. We had the opening SMX Playoff round shortened to one moto after rain and lightning moved through the Charlotte area. Then last weekend, Levi Kitchen became an instant SMX folk hero by taking down Deegan (and sadly himself also), on the opening lap of the second 250 main event, causing Deegs to lose the points lead, and more importantly, the aura of invincibility in the paddock. It’s been a crazy season down in the USA, and that doesn’t even include the Jorge Prado situation, which from a far, has been absolutely bizarre to follow. So, when the gate dropped on the final 250 main event of 2025 on a warm night in Las Vegas, all bets were off as to what might unfold next?
If you’re a regular reader of my Monday Gate Drop column, then you know exactly I how feel about Deegan, as I’ve made it pretty clear this year. However, if you’re new, let me summarize: I love his hard charging style and the fact that he’s brought a lot of new eyes to our sport, (I’m not sure he’s been solely responsible for the increase in new fans, I feel like it’s more the group of fast young riders that have done it collectively, but I’ll give Deegan his due as it’s been proven in other sports that, initially at least, fans love a villain) but, I just can’t get onboard with all his on and off track antics. Put it this way, in 13 days if Team Canada wasn’t in the hunt for moto wins at the 2025 MXON, I would’ve been cheering for Deegan to put on a Villopoto 2007 Budds Creek type ride and wax the European riders. I say would’ve, as we all saw on Saturday night what happens when an entitled teenager is given the green light to do whatever he wants with a 250 lbs projectile, and no one appeared ready or willing to stop him. I’m not going to go into all of the details because I’m sure everyone has seen the race, or at least the highlights. I found it shocking that the officials weren’t ready with the black flag in one hand before the gate even dropped. Since Deegan did not control his destiny heading into the final moto of the 250 SMX Championship, he left himself with only two options. Get to the front as quickly as possible and pull away from the pack. Depending on what Jo Shimoda and Seth Hammaker did behind him, this plan might or might not have given him the title, but would’ve allowed him to brag that he was the faster rider in the series, and it also would’ve allowed him to remain healthy, confident, and able to head into the MXON at Ironman with a good chance of being Captain America. Considering this was something that his father was never able to accomplish, that had to be on the Deegan Family bucket list. The other option was for Haiden to try and take down as many riders as possible during the race and then try one more late-race takedown on his closest rival Shimoda. Unfortunately for everyone involved, Deegan chose the latter and broke his own collarbone as they both hit the hard Vegas soil. Thus, knocking himself out of the race and leaving Team USA without a 250 rider for the MXON and subsequently lost a lot of fans, even die-hard fans, in the span of about 15 minutes. It was a crazy race to watch for sure. However, after the season we just had in the USA, Deegan’s shenanigans seemed to fit right into the script. Oh, and in the 450 class, the class where young Deegs hopes to make his mark in next summer (insert eye roll here), Jett Lawrence waited until the very last moment to drop his lap times by two seconds, catch and pass Eli Tomac for second, and take the 450 SMX Championship away from his older brother Hunter. After the race, it was actually heartbreaking to see Jett more upset about his brother not winning the title, than he was happy about winning it himself. The final 450 race was quite the contrast to the final 250 race, and looking back now it was a great way to conclude the 2025 SMX Series. Congratulations to Jett Lawrence, Jo Shimoda, and the entire HRC Honda Team on winning the 2025 SMX Championships.
Well, with the drama of the SMX Series now over, we can all focus ahead to the off-season, bike testing season, and of course Team Canada and the upcoming MXON. As I write this, I’m sitting at Gate E4 at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport waiting for a connecting flight to Charleston WV for the 2026 Triumph TF-450 C media launch. Tomorrow, we will spend the day riding at the new Hatfield McCoy Tornado Trail System just outside Charleston. Even though the weather forecast isn’t great, it should still be a great day of riding Triumph’s newest bike and entry into the popular off-road riding segment of our sport.
Speaking of off-road riding, on Friday Brett Lee and I toured up to Gooderham, Ontario to check the opening day of the 2025 Corduroy Enduro. I went to the Corduroy Enduro last year for the first time and I was amazed at the size of this long-standing event. It really is something that has to be seen to be believed, from the moment you arrive at the Gooderham Community Centre, there is just a mass of bikes, people, and vender’s like Kimpex, GP Bikes, and multiple food trucks (I recommend the oven baked pizza). There is also a lot of OEM support at the Corduroy as Kawasaki, KTM, Ducati, Yamaha, Suzuki, and Beta were all there. Kawasaki, KTM, and MX101 Yamaha even had their semi-trucks there. It was a great day, and while Brett and I were only there on Friday, by all accounts the rest of the weekend was equally as good. In the end, Tyler Medaglia was the big winner in the pro class as he took his third win in as many years. Tyler is the first ever rider to win the Corduroy Enduro three years in a row, and this victory just adds to his already multiple achievements in this sport. Quinn Amyotte was also racing, and he was able to secure 10th overall in the pro class. However, the highlight for Quinn was taking the win (over Tyler), in the final test of the event yesterday. I love how Quinn has become this well-rounded rider that will race anywhere and anything. It’s exactly how Tyler was when he was Quinn’s age. Finally, for the past few weeks the members of Team Canada have been doing some riding together. I was talking to a few people who were able to watch Jess Pettis, Tanner Ward, and Sebastien Racine ride at the famous Ste Julie track last week, and they all reported that our team looks great. With an AMO Racing event this coming weekend at Auburn Hills Raceway, I’m sure we’ll see one, two, or even all three of our riders there racing the Pro Class.
Well, that is it for me this week. I hope everyone has a great final week of September. My Rider of the Week is Tyler Medaglia. Tyler has been around for a long time, and it’s amazing that he continues to compete at such a high level. Thank you for reading, and if you have any questions or comments, please email me at editor@mxpmag.com. Finally, this Sunday is my son’s 18th birthday, so I’d like to wish him a Happy Birthday. This past summer was an up and down season on his dirt bike, with everything from good results in the Intermediate class, his first ever Pro National at Riverglade, as well as a big crash at the ECAN. As they say, he got a taste of everything, but he made it through okay, and I’m sure the adversity has made him a better rider and a better person. Have a great week everyone!
