MXP: Hey Newf! We are now three rounds into the 2026 Monster Energy Supercross Series, and our Canadian riders have been doing okay. We’ll leave Cole Thompson out of this discussion as he’s only raced one event. But what are your thoughts on the results so far of Preston Masciangelo, Blake Davies, and Tyler Gibbs?
RL: Preston has been really good through the first three. I was so bummed that he got past in the final corner last weekend and to miss the main by one spot, but what I like is he knows how to put himself in the right position in order to make the main. He has great racecraft and knows how to start. There will be more mains in his future.
Blake has improved over last year and his qualifying times are much better. To me, the only thing holding him back are his starts. He is a big kid on a 250, which makes it extremely hard for him to get a start. If he wants to be in the main, he needs some luck off the gate. Speed is fine, but starting outside the top ten in the heat and LCQ isn’t going to get it done. We all need to remember that he’s still 17 and doing this SX stuff basically on his own, so big props to him.
Gibby has been having a rough go. There is no doubt in my mind that he has the skill and dedication, but there always seems to be something. Sounds like to me that things during the week have been great with riding and training, but executing that on race day has been the struggle. He’s hurt now with an elbow deal, so hopefully taking Houston off well will help with getting it done in Glendale.
MXP: Two weeks ago, Dylan Wright submitted his latest column and he mentioned, to begin his 2026 Triple Crown Series preparation, he was headed to Nevada to ride at Mesquite track. Is that the plan for the entire GDR Honda Team, and what do you know about this track and facility?
RL: Yes, the whole team is headed there. Braxton Zeitner arrived last week and the two Dylan’s are driving there as we speak. The facility is owned by the Brough Family, who we all know from their racing up here. We as a team thought it was a great idea to do something a little different this year, rather than just basing all the training in Florida. The Mesquite track is more like Calgary with elevation, ruts, and harder packed soil, which is an area that I feel that we can be better on with bike setup etc. The boys will spend a month or so there before heading to Florida to finish things up for the winter.
MXP: This week, the 2026 SMX Playoff track designs were released, as well as the portal for ticket sales to the three events in September. What are your thoughts on bringing back some fall AX/SX events in Ontario? Maybe run two SMX-type events at Gopher Dunes featuring a hybrid track that would cater to several different levels of riders. Also, it would be open to any rider holding any racing license in Canada. Would this type of event work, or has the ship sailed on any AX/SX events in Ontario?
RL: I wouldn’t say that the ship has sailed on it in Ontario, but there is much more to it than just holding the events. There needs to be some sort of attraction for riders to want to do it. Anytime that guys are racing, it costs money, and that is hard to come by. Look at Montreal SX back in the day, guys like us wanted to do it cause the race meant something, it was just part of your schedule in a sense, and there was never really a question of if you were going to go or not. Timing and planning are everything, and these unique events need hype.
