Honda Canada Racing Presents the Monday Gate Drop

Good day and welcome to another edition of the Honda Canada Racing Monday Gate Drop. With the 2019 Monster Energy Supercross Series finally moving east to the warm confines of US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, I’m dedicating this week’s Gate Drop to Honda rider Ken Roczen, who once again now leads the points in the 450SX class.

This was taken from Dylan’s Facebook. As you can see it could’ve been a lot worse.

In other Red Rider news, GDR Honda Fox Racing 250 pilot Dylan Wright is currently training down in Florida at Mike Alessi’s house, and while they were out road biking last week, Dylan got hit by a car that blew through a stop sign. Thankfully, Dylan escaped with just some cuts and bruises and will recover. The driver of the car, though, apparently took off and no one has seen him since. As everyone knows, the roads can be a pretty scary place these days whether you’re driving a car or if you’re on a bicycle.

This past weekend the 2019 Monster Energy Supercross Series visited the twin cites for Round 6. Like last weekend in San Diego, Mother Nature once again was unkind to everyone. Last week it was heavy rain, this week the riders and teams had to deal with snow and extreme cold temperatures. Thankfully, US Bank Stadium has a roof. Although the dirt was a little soft, everyone was toasty warm inside as they gathered to watch the best SX riders on the planet compete on our most prestigious indoor stage. Minneapolis was also the opening round of the 250SX East class as the series welcomed in a new group of riders to the 2019 series. Young Ontario rider Westen Wrozyna was racing, and although he didn’t make the main event, he did ride well and ended up taking a solid 18^th in the 250SX LCQ. Other names that Canadian fans are also very familiar with are Josh Osby and Joey Crown. Osby won the 250SX LCQ and then went on to finish 13^th in main event. Joey Crown rode great all day but a big crash in the LCQ kept the Michigan rider from qualifying for the main event. One thing that definitely came out of Saturday evening is the 250SX East class is going to be so much fun to watch over the next month as these guys are just plain going for it.

Cooper Webb rode smooth in Minneapolis and took home his third win of 2019. Photo by Matt Wellumson

In the 450 class, fans got to see another great night of racing as the series’ top riders once again battled hard throughout the night. Signing with the Red Bull KTM Team appears to be the best decision Cooper Webb ever made as he was able to rack up another win in Minneapolis. This was Webb’s third win of the season and he now sits in second in the point standings behind Ken Roczen. Between his new bike and his new training program at the Baker’s Factory, Webb has quickly become a title favourite in the 450SX class. This has definitely been a remarkable transformation for Webb. Even though he’s a two-time 250SX champion, not many thought he’d be challenging for a title in 2019. On Saturday night, he got off to a good start, took over the lead early and then just cruised to the win. Even though we are just six rounds into the 2019 SX series, it’s already turning into one of the most hotly contested series we’ve seen in a while as the Top 4 riders in the 450SX class are only separated by two points. From cold Minneapolis, the series now moves to Dallas, Detroit and then Atlanta in the coming weeks.

After six rounds, Ken Roczen once again leads the 450SX points. Photo by Matt Wellumson

If anyone is around the Toronto area this coming weekend, the Toronto Motorcycle Show begins on Friday at the Enercare Centre. This show is one of the best as all of the OEMs will be there and most of our industry have made plans to attend. I will be there on Friday and Saturday as I have a few meetings but I also really love motorcycle shows. With spring not too far off, this show should get everyone excited for our upcoming riding season. The show opens at noon on Friday, and if you visit their website you will find some discount codes for tickets. www.torontomotorcycleshow.com

So, the 2019 SX Series is beginning to heat up, the Toronto Motorcycle Show is coming this weekend, and the Future West Canadian AX Series wrapped up this past weekend in Chilliwack, BC. I want to send a big congratulations to Kourtney Lloyd and her Cycle North race team as they took home multiple titles in the series, including the 250 and 450 Pro championships as well as the Ladies and Beginner class titles. I’ve lost count of how many AX titles the Cycle North Racing Team has won over the years, but they have most certainly been the most successful team in BC and the Future West Canadian AX Series must be thankful to have them. So here we are in the middle of February and we’ve already crowned our first group of series champions in Canada, and there’s only more to come.

Kawasaki rider Austin Forkner drew first blood in the 250SX East class. Photo by Matt Wellumson

Finally, in keeping up with BC and its talented group of young riders, in Minneapolis, young Braxton Zeitner joined the very short list of Canadian riders to win a KTM Junior Supercross event. Braxton rode strong during the three-lap main event to take home the victory. Congratulations to Braxton and his family on this incredible accomplishment. This is one of the most difficult races in motocross to win!

Well, that is it for me this week. I hope everyone has a great week and I hope to see many of you this weekend at the bike show in Toronto. Be safe and thank-you for reading this week’s Honda Canada Racing Monday Gate Drop.

Chad Reed rode great in Minneapolis and ended up finishing up in 7th. Photo by Matt Wellumson