As always, the anticipation was high prior to the gate drop on Sunday for the opening Pro/Am Class moto at Gopher Dunes. Although most of the riders on the starting gate had spent considerable time down south training, many hadn’t seen a gate drop since last fall. This is part of what makes our sport so special as it doesn’t matter if you’re a 50cc rider or a seasoned pro rider, the first race always brings with it a certain level of nervous energy. On Sunday at Gopher Dunes, the Pro/Am class turnout was once again strong as the AMO Racing group has put together a solid purse for these riders. There is some decent money to be made, and honestly, what rider doesn’t like making money? Finally, with this opening AMO Racing taking place at Gopher Dunes, fans in attendance were blessed to have GDR Honda rider Dylan Wright (who stopped in on his way back from Florida) to watch navigate the challenging sand track. Wright was on the starting line with other top pro riders like Tanner Ward, Wyatt Kerr, Quinn Amyotte, and Sebastien Racine. Here are your top ten Pro/Am class finishers from Gopher Dunes and how they got there.
1. Dylan Wright: 1-1
Dylan not only took both motos wins on Sunday, but he did it in dominating fashion. From the drop of the gate, Dylan appeared to be in complete control of his all-new 2025 CRF450R, at times stretching out his lead to almost a minute. Yes, some of Dylan’s competitors were riding 250F machines, but not one other rider was able to come close to the pace that Dylan was riding. For the past three months, he has been down in Florida training at the Dog Pound, and unlike last year when he suffered a couple of injury-related setbacks, this off-season went smooth and Dylan looks to be as prepared as he’s ever been for the 2025 Triple Crown Series.
2. Wyatt Kerr: 2-3
This is a big year for Wyatt Kerr as I believe he has the speed and experience to win motos in the 250 class this summer. Like Dylan, Kerr has been training hard down south for the past few months, and his preparation showed on Sunday. Riding his Priority MX Thor GASGAS Team MC250F, Kerr passed his teammate Tanner Ward in the opening moto to finish second, and then was able to charge from behind to third in the final moto. Kerr looks locked in and ready to go in 2025.
3. Quinn Amyotte: 4-4
Quinn Amyotte was another rider who drove straight to Gopher Dunes from Florida, so he was no doubt looking forward to racing on Canada’s roughest track. For 2025, Quinn is riding a KTM450 with some help from Fox Racing Canada, as well as the new Guaranteed Comfort Racing Team. Quinn was looking for a spot on the KTM Canada Factory Racing Team, but with that team scaling back its racing effort dramatically this year, there was sadly no budget for Quinn. Quinn rode well on Sunday and hopefully, the fact that he wasn’t able to put a deal together with KTM, and that the WLTN Kawasaki Team didn’t bring him back after being a part of their team last year, will serve as extra motivation to reach his goals in 2025.
4. Tanner Ward: 3-6
I didn’t speak with Tanner after the race on Sunday, so I’m not sure if anything was wrong physically or not. But, Tanner didn’t finish where I thought he would or should at Gopher Dunes. After a third in the opening moto, I assumed Tanner would make some adjustments to his Priority MX Thor GASGAS MC450, and then come out swinging in moto two. As a pro rider, especially a top pro rider, you don’t like to get beat in any race. But for these guys to get beat by Dylan by almost a minute in the opening moto, that had to really sting. This is exactly why I thought Tanner would be much closer to Dylan in the second moto. However, he wasn’t and when the checkered flag came out as the end of the 20-minute moto, Tanner was back in sixth. The great thing for Tanner is that now, with a new baby at home, regardless of how he finishes on the track, off of the track he gets to see his beautiful new child’s face, and that is better than winning any race.
5. Preston Masciangelo: 5-5
It was a surprise to see Preston on the starting line at Gopher Dunes as all winter he’s been racing supercross in the USA. But, with a break in the 250SX West Series, Preston wisely decided to keep racing and head to Gopher Dunes. In the end, a 5-5 moto score was pretty solid for Preston on a track that he’s always seemed to struggle with. I’m not sure what he’s going to do after supercross in May, but I hope he gets 450 and at least races the eastern rounds of the Triple Crown Series this summer.
6. Cole Pranger: 7-7
Cole looked solid on Sunday as he battled his more experienced competition in both motos. I’m not sure how much seat time Cole has right now, but he did appear to fade a little in the closing laps of both motos. He is a hard worker though so I’m sure he will be training hard in the next month as he prepares for his rookie season in the 250 Pro Class.
7. Tanner Scott: 8-8
After switching from Husqvarna to Honda for 2025, as well as to the 450 class, Tanner needs to have a solid summer in the Triple Crown Series. I know he did spend some significant time during the past few months at the WW Training Facility down south, so I figured Tanner would be ready to go on Sunday. Obviously, an 8-8 moto score is not where he wants to be on a track he knows very well, but I think the following round at Auburn might be a better indication of where Tanner is at both mentally and physically. This young Ontario rider is capable of great things, I think he needs to perhaps stop overthinking things on Sunday, and just ride!
8. Kyle Keast: 10-9
It was great to see the Dozer out racing on his favourite track, a circuit that he could probably do well on with his eyes closed. His 10-9 moto score doesn’t really do justice to how well Kyle rode on Sunday, but I’m sure he’ll take it against his much younger competition.
9. Sebastien Racine: 22-2
This was not the most consistent day for Sebastien, but he did ride well in both motos. In the opening moto, he was charging hard aboard his MX101 Yamaha YZ250 before the engine decided to let go. This caused not only a DNF but also a switch to his YZ450 for the second moto. The result was a solid second-place finish in Moto 2, further solidifying in my opinion, that Sebastien is a great 450 rider.
10. Seth Hughes: 11-10
Seth rode great on Sunday, and it was great to see him charging from behind in the opening moto, and then riding smooth in moto two. For a smaller rider, Seth rides a 450 very well, and I hope to see him do well this summer in some of the eastern rounds of the Triple Crown Series. Seth is also a nice kid off of the track, and that makes him easy to cheer for on the track.
Well, that is it for the opening round of the 2025 True North AMO OPC Series. As you can see, the Pro/AM class was stacked, and it should be the same at Round 2 next weekend at Auburn Raceway. I don’t think you’ll see Dylan Wright at Auburn, but you may see Jess Pettis make his Canadian debut aboard his new MX101 Yamaha. Regardless, the 2025 season is finally underway and we’re sure everyone is excited about it!
