Greetings! Welcome to this late July edition of the Monday Gate Drop, which is once again presented by Yamaha Motor Canada. The Blu Cru had a solid day yesterday at Round 6 of the 2025 Triple Crown Series as both Preston Kilroy and Jess Pettis were victorious at Riverglade MX Park. Everyone involved in the Triple Crown Series loves going to Riverlglade MX Park and enjoying all that the staff and local area have to offer. Whether it’s lobster at Captain Dan’s in Shediac, or hanging out at the track with Larry Northrup and his awesome crew, you just can’t beat the East Coast hospitality. It was another interesting day on the East Coast, and here is a summary of what went down at one of the oldest tracks in Canada.
Heading into Round 6 there was obviously a lot of anticipation as last Sunday produced some unforgettable drama in the form of crashes and more crashes. Oh, and let’s not forget about the anger created by the Wright/Pettis incident in the first turn of the final 450 moto. There was also a lightning delay before the second 250 moto, but compared to everything else that seemed minor. Now, I’m not going into the juicy details of exactly what happened at SDL (I think that has been covered), but I do know that mid-week there was a lot of phone calls between teams, riders, and officials. However, despite all that went on, the good news on Saturday at Riverglade was that both Pettis and Wright were in attendance and by all accounts, ready to race. It’s hard to put into words how tough and resilient these two champions are. Both are banged up to the point where they probably shouldn’t be at the track, let alone trying to race a dirt bike. Dylan has been injured since just before Round 2 in Cold Lake when he hurt his elbow. Pettis was also injured during the week before Cold Lake, but he was more banged up as opposed to having something broken or torn. Dylan would come back for Round 3 in Quebec, but he was still not close to 100%, and it showed in his riding. Pettis was on fire during the opening three rounds, and appeared to have this 2025 Triple Crown Series 450 title all but wrapped. But a brief lapse of concentration during practice at Round 4 caused a hard crash and multiple broken bones. Then, last weekend at SDL, Pettis came back and tried his best to race, only to have his bike expire in moto one, and his arch nemesis collide with him in the first turn of moto two. Four motos with no points has certainly put Pettis in a points hole, but you have to hand it to him for not giving up and still riding pretty fast in the process. Finally, for Dylan, after his hard multiple crashes last weekend, his body (which was already sore) is in rough shape. But, like Pettis, you have to admire how Dylan just will not give up. Even yesterday in the muddy second moto, Dylan crashed multiple times, yet he still kept pushing right to the end. You have to love Dylan’s grit and determination, but I am a little worried about him right now. Think about this stat for a moment. Since going undefeated in 2022, and only losing two motos in 2023, Dylan has only won four motos total in the past two seasons, and he’s suffered multiple hard crashes. Despite being out of the championship chase this summer, we all know Dylan is going to keep going, and most likely will win a moto or two before the series comes to an end. As for Pettis, he’s still riding like he’s not injured, and if he keeps winning he could still finish on the podium in the 450 series. What a crazy summer it has been in the 450 class, and it’s not over yet.
Even though the weatherman was calling for rain all day in Moncton, the real heavy stuff didn’t come until just before the second 250 moto. And when it started, it really started, and within minutes the track turned into a quagmire. From there, it just got worse, and sadly the final two motos were full on mud motos. However, despite the adverse conditions, it was incredible to see both WLTN Kawasaki Team riders dominate in the mud and take the wins. For Dylan Walsh, he looked extremely comfortable in the slop, and led the second 250 moto from start to finish. After suffering multiple DNF’s this season, Dylan and his team deserved this victory more than anyone else in the paddock. For Nicoletti, he also looked very comfortable in the mud, and his moto win brought him back to within one point of the lead in the 450 class. Tanner Ward still holds the red plate heading into Round 7 in Deschambault, a track that has been good to him in the past, but Nicoletti has a little swagger in his step now and can no doubt smell blood in the water. As I predicted before the series began, the 450 championship is most likely going to go down to the final moto on the year at Walton Raceway. Also, let’s not forget about Quinn Amyotte who sits in third and just 19 points back of Tanner Ward.
As I mentioned above, the rain turned Round 6 into a full on mudder, and everyone certainly has a lot of cleaning to do as they get ready for Round 7 in Deschambault. This past weekend was also very special to me as my son Ayrton raced his first-ever pro national in the 250 class yesterday. He is still an Intermediate, but thankfully due the rules, riders like him can compete in the 250 class on Sunday, and get a little taste of what the pro class is like. Well, I can say that he not only made it through the day safe on his Guaranteed Comfort Team Honda, but he also learned more in one day then he probably has in the past year. After qualifying 22nd, he got a decent 12th place start in the opening moto. As expected, he rode very tight in the opening moto, even crashing once, but in the end he crossed the finish line in a very admirable 26th place. In moto two, with the rain pouring down, he got an incredible third place start in the mud, and finished the opening lap in 4th place. Unfortunately, that was the highlight as two crashes and two goggle stops later, he ended up well back in 38th place. During his second goggle stop which came after multiple laps with no goggles at all, he told me his eyes were full of mud and he couldn’t see. My advice was to at least try and finish the moto as there was only two laps remaining. Even Justin Roney, who was standing nearby, offered us some water to dump in Ayrton’s eyes (thank you JR) just so he could get back out there. It was tough for sure, but racing is tough and I’m so proud that he finished both motos and came away not only healthy, but also hungry for more. To think that Ayton’s first race was back in the fall of 2012 at Gopher Dunes, and here we are 13 years later and he’s lining up at a pro national. Time flies for sure, and as happy as I am today, I just wish my father could’ve been there yesterday to see his Grandson grab a third place start in the mud. He would’ve been so proud!
Well, that is it for me this week. As I write this I’m sitting in a Quebec City hotel room waiting to go to bed after a long drive from Moncton today. Tomorrow, we will head to Deschambault to see the track and get set up for the week. The ECAN is one of my favourite events of the year and it all begins on Thursday with the first gate drop taking place at 7;30am. For surviving his first-ever pro national, my pick for Rider of the Week is Ayrton Pomeroy. Well done Son! Thank you for reading and if you have any questions or comments, please email me at editor@mxpmag.com. Have a great week!
