Greetings! Welcome to this Fall edition of the Monday Gate Drop Column, which as always is brought to you by the fine people at Yamaha Motor Canada. This is a big week for Blu Cru riders as this weekend is the Yamaha Rider Appreciation Day at Sand Del Lee. On Saturday, Blu Cru riders from Ontario and Quebec will converge on the beautiful SDL track to ride, bench race, be treated to lunch, and test ride some of the new 2027 YZ models. MXP will be at SDL on Thursday and Friday for the annual Yamaha Media Ride Day, so as you can see, there will be some memorable moments this weekend at Sand Del Lee.
Let’s begin this week with more Yamaha news and that is the apparent rift between Cooper Webb and Haiden Deegan this past weekend at Round 2 of the SMX Playoffs. On the surface, it appeared like Webb went absolutely nuclear after Deegs took him out in the second 450 main event on Saturday. However, I feel like its safe to say that there has to be more to it then just what happened on Saturday night. I’m sure everyone has seen the video of Webb returning to the Star Racing Yamaha pit, handing his bike to his mechanic, and apparently going into the team truck and (if you believe multiple reports) taking a big swing at Deegs. Now, did that last part really happen? No one besides the team really knows what happen inside the truck, but again, I feel like it’s safe to assume that something serious did go down in there. Over the past several years it has become evident that Cooper Webb is a rider that you don’t want mad at you. I don’t know him at all, but in talking to people who do know him, it sounds as though off of the track he’s one of the best people in the paddock, and one that is truly respected among his peers. However, once the gate drops he is ruthless and will do anything to win. Also, if you race him clean, he will do the same, but if you do him dirty, look out! Finally, with some much experienced racing at this level, Webb is someone, like a Roczen or Tomac, that commands respect. He’s a multi-time SX Champion, he loves racing for his Country, and he’s also been around long enough to have seen a lot of young and talented riders come and go in this sport. He also knows that after a tough race, where another rider has perhaps knocked you down and cost you a good finish, that as mad as you are in the moments right after the race, that anger only lasts a few minutes and then you calm down. This is why I do believe that there is so much more to Webb losing his crap on Deegs on Saturday night. Right after the race Webb spent considerable time by the podium with his mechanic, obviously talking about what happened, and he also did a TV interview where I guess he gave us a little preview of what was about to happen. So, by the time he returned to the Star Racing Yamaha truck and confronted Deegs, it had to have been 20-25 minutes post race. Even Phil Nicoletti and Dylan Wright can calm down in that amount of time! So, for Webb to have that amount of rage inside him after 20 minutes tells me that this has been building up for some time, and he simply had enough. Was Webb right to do what he did? I mean, I think it’s a good rule in life to try and avoid putting your hands on another person, especially in anger, and that’s assuming Webb and Deegs did get into a fight. But, we don’t know what the day-to-day life is like around the Star Racing Yamaha training facility and how Haiden (and his family) treat everyone, including the other Star Racing Yamaha riders. If Deegs shows them the same lack of respect that he’s shown other established riders in the paddock, then you can easily understand Webb’s frustration after what was really just a love-tap by Deegs on Saturday night. I will say though that regardless of who’s side you’re on, I bet Webb received multiple texts and DM’s from other riders in the paddock telling him good job. So, Deegs can play this off anyway he wants to help his brand, but at the end of the day, if your peers don’t respect you, then there really is a problem.
So, what is going to happened next with this situation? Is Webb in trouble with the AMA, did he get fired by the Star Racing Yamaha Team, and will he be on the starting line this coming weekend at the final round of the SMX Playoffs? I assume, the answer to all three questions could be yes. If the AMA is looking at this incident, coming to blows with your teammate could be grounds for dismissal, especially when Webb only has one race remaining on his Star Racing Yamaha deal, and if that’s the case, then he could be on the starting line this weekend on his new Tedder Racing Husqvarna. Regardless of what happens, I don’t think he’ll be suspended from this weekend as the sad bottom line is that this is the best thing that could’ve happened to this year’s SMX Playoffs. Considering last weekend’s mud fest in Columbus and this weekend’s sub-par track layout, something needed to happen to spark everyone’s interest heading into the final round this weekend. Drama always sells and this was certainly some good old fashioned drama! Unfortunately, when stuff like this happens, it overshadows some of the performances that take place on the track. For instance, how good was it to see Roczen and Hunter Lawrence ride that track so well? If you get a chance, go on YouTube and watch the Buttery Films video from Saturday night. I’m not sure how they were allowed to do this, but they filmed both 450 main events from the floor, and it’s amazing! It gives you an idea of what the track is really like, as well as the speed the top riders are going. Perhaps moving forward in the SMX Playoffs the broadcast should experiment with different camera views for the fans at home. I know other sports have done this and it’s proven that the closer you can get to the action the better. You don’t have to show the entire main event from the floor, but some up-close clips of the racing would be really cool. Anyway, this weekends race should be an interesting one, to say the least!
On Friday, myself and Steve Simms (who just announced his extension with Canadian Kawasaki and the Kawasaki SSR Team for 2027) travelled up to the Corduroy Enduro to check things out. This was my third time going to watch the Friday festivities at “The Cord” and once again I marvelled at the job that Blair Sharpless and his crew do each and every year. This event really is something you have to see to believe as the sheer volume of riders is just amazing. Two years ago, I was able to hike through the famous Greens Mountain section of the course and it was interesting to see some of the terrain that the riders had to traverse during the race. This year, Steve and I drove across the street to watch the Pro Class Prologue on Friday afternoon. This short ten minute race around a specific section of the course determined how everyone started the race the following day. In moto terms, it was a qualifying session for gate pick. It was also good to catch up with MX riders like Quinn Amyotte and Tyler Medaglia, who were hoping for some more Corduroy Enduro success. However, when all was said and done, it was American rider Ricky Russell who took the win yesterday aboard his Kawasaki KX450X. This was the first time that Kawasaki has won the Corduroy Enduro in sometime, and it was also Russell’s first time racing in Canada. Tyler Medaglia was a close second, and Amyotte finished just inside the top ten. It was another incredible and well-attended event, and congratulations to everyone involved.
Well, that is it for me this week. I hope everyone has a great final weekend of September. Next week, the calendar changes over to October and Team Canada heads over to France for the 2026 MXON. Our team is ready to head overseas and do everything they need to do in order to be successful. Team Manager Kourtney Lloyd and her staff have made sure everything is in order, and that the riders are ready to go. Thank you for reading this week, and if you have any comments or questions, please email me at editor@mxpmag.com.
