MXP: Hey Newf! We witnessed some great racing this past weekend in Houston and it was the first Triple Crown race of 2026. Do you like the Triple Crown format, and what did you think of overall winners Haiden Deegan and Cooper Webb?
RL: Yes, I do like the Triple Crowns, but 2-3 throughout the season is enough. From a rider’s standpoint, they can’t love them, since they do a lot of laps for the same amount of points. Houston seemed like a lot of racing, which I liked, and I’m sure all the fans there enjoyed it as well. It was nice to see Webb get a win and still keep him in the chase, but he’s still a notch off in my opinion. The way the track developed really played into his favour, and maybe this win will give him some added confidence. As far as Deegs, what more can you say…. I don’t see anyone beating him the rest of the season, just for the fact that he is riding incredibly well.
MXP: This year is the 40th Anniversary of Gopher Dunes, and they’re even hosting a celebration party on February 28th. To honour four decades of riding and racing at Gopher Dunes, give us your best memory from there, as well as your worst?
RL: I always love being at Gopher Dunes, it’s such a great facility. From the track to the trails, they offer something for everyone. Worst racing memory was 2005, which was the first year they held a Pro National; I blew a bike up in the first moto and then again on the hot lap of the second moto. It was a complete disaster of a day. Best would be 2012 coming back after two years away from racing on the Kyle Keast Machine Racing bike and pulling the holeshot in 450 moto two. I ran up front for a bit, but that day in general, finishing both motos with honestly a month of prep was a really satisfying feeling.
MXP: When you look at this old photo of you racing in Chilliwack (see attachment). What year is this from, and what do you remember about this race and this season?
RL: This was 2012 and as mentioned above this was a bit of a come back year for me. I had great support for AX with Kourtney Lloyd from Cycle North. Had some good results at the first few rounds, but ended up pulling out of the series with a couple of rounds to go because of more knee issues. I do remember it was fun just for the fact that I was still able to be competitive after taking so much time off and not knowing if I was going to be able to race at a top level ever again.
