Don't Miss

Yamaha Motor Canada Presents The Monday Gate Drop

Good day, and welcome to another edition of the Yamaha Motor Canada Monday Gate Drop. The Blu Cru had a great week at the 2021 ECAN with riders like Hayden Jameson taking wins in the very competitive Schoolboy class. Look for Hayden next week at the 2021 Walton TransCan to try and get another title as well as be eligible for the Yamaha Canada Factory Rider Award.

The new pond at the Deschambault track was a hit with the kids.

Well, what a week it was in Quebec as my family and I got home late last night from five wonderful days at the Deschambault track. As I’m sure you’ve heard many times the track in Deschambault is beautiful with its sandy soil and multiple elevation changes. Also, the atmosphere at this event is second to none as the Quebec fans are a passionate group. So between practice on Thursday and then six motos throughout Friday and Saturday my son was able to get a lot of quality laps in on this famous track,

With the ECAN being cancelled last year due to the Covid-19 Pandemic everyone was eager to return to this event and the 500 entries most certainly proved that. For anyone out there who hasn’t been able to attend the ECAN I can tell you that it’s an incredible event with great racing as well as cool pit vibe. The only challenging part of this event is of course the parking. With so many riders and families travelling to races in large motorhomes and trailers, each one obviously takes up a lot of room. With limited space in the paddock area, everyone always seems to end up parked on top of each other. Also, once you’re in and parked, don’t even think about trying to leave until at least Sunday morning. But hey, this is Quebec, and this the ECAN, so you always expect things to be a little different than at home. Back in the 1990s, I did on average probably about ten races each year in Quebec between AX, Nationals, and the odd Provincial, so multiply that over about 11 years and that is a lot of racing there. I loved racing in Quebec but you do have to go in with an open mind and a ‘go with the flow’ attitude. However, if you do then it’s some of the best racing you will ever experience. This past week was no different as Daniel Thibault and his ECAN crew did an awesome job all week long. Also, it was good to see so many Ontario riders make the trek to Quebec as well as a few riders from our western provinces. Amateur racing is alive and well in this country and next week the riders will once again get to showcase their skills at the Walton TransCan. Anyway, thanks Deschambault for hosting all of us, and congratulations to all of the riders who competed last week.

The amateur riders had a great time at the 2021 ECAN. Photo by James Lissimore

After all of the amateur racing, it was time for the pro riders to compete in Rounds 6 and 7 of the 2021 Triple Crown Series. With a normal schedule on Sunday and then a one moto format on Monday morning, the pro riders most certainly had to dig deep this past week at Deschambault. All in all the racing was great on both days with Jacob Piccolo and Jess Pettis taking the wins on Sunday and Darian Sanayei and Dylan Wright taking the wins yesterday. Almost all of the motos this weekend had some great battles and were entertaining to watch. With one round now remaining in the series, Jacob Piccolo leads the 250 class by just three points over Ryder McNabb, and then Darian Sanayei is just seven back. The final two motos in this class are going to be incredible to watch as you have the two teenagers and one veteran rider going for this title. Also, Tanner Ward is eleven points back and recently he’s had great success at Walton Raceway so he could be a factor or a spoiler in the final round. But how about our two teenage sensations in Piccolo and McNabb. I knew both would be good this summer but I honestly didn’t think they’d be challenging for the 250 Championship when all was said and done. I assumed that the experience of a Tanner Ward or Marco Cannella would shine through when it mattered the most. Of those two, Ward has been the best with consistent finishes and a few moto wins earlier in the series. Cannella got hot a few weeks back and took home two moto wins, but a crash and DNF at SDL killed his chances of being a title contender. So it’s down to the Kids vs Sanayei (who just seems to be getting better and better) going at it at Walton Raceway in two weeks. Each rider has their strengths and weaknesses and in the next few days, we’ll take a look at what they are heading into Walton.

Dylan Wright won the 450 class yesterday and will take a 21 point lead into the final round. Photo by James Lissimore

In the 450 class, all things were pointing to Jess Pettis and Dylan Wright heading into Walton with one point between them with 20 minutes remaining in yesterday’s only moto. Then, disaster struck Pettis and while trying to grab a tear-off over the fastest jump on the track was unable to get his hand fully back on the bars and when he landed his front-end knifed and he went over the bars (I didn’t see it but that is what I got told). I didn’t see him in the air but I caught him hitting the ground and the bike cartwheeling off of the track. Jess hit the ground harder than I’ve seen a rider hit in a long time. I don’t know if the bike also hit him also but it was an ugly sight and thankfully Jess was able to crawl off the track and out of danger from the riders coming behind him. In fact, if it wasn’t for the quick reflexes of Marshal Weltin he would hit Jess and made things even worse. After sitting on the side of the track for a few moments and then being tending to by the medical personal, Pettis was put on a backboard and taken to a local hospital. Pettis spent most of the day at the hospital getting x-rays and scans and then late last night he was released. I will let Jess and his team release the information on what injuries he sustained, but let’s put it this way, the medical team at Deschambault did a great job in getting Jess on a backboard and immobilizing him quickly. Jess is out for the rest of the season but from my understanding, he will recover and be back strong in 2022. However, let’s all be thankful that his injuries aren’t a lot worse. Heal up Jess and we cannot wait to see you battle for the 450 title again next season!

Get well soon Jess! Photo by James Lissimore

When Pettis crashed he had just been passed by Dylan Wright who also had a hard crash in Moto 2 on Sunday. Wright would go on to win the 450 class yesterday and now he will take a 21 point lead into the final round at Walton Raceway. But like I said, after getting cleaned off the track on the opening lap of Moto 2 on Sunday by Cole Thompson, Wright got a high-speed section wrong and was ejected from his bike before landing back first on the face of a tabletop. Wright would take a long time to get off and catch his breath before he got back into the race. When he did he was really far behind the pack, but he was able to charge hard and somehow he was able to get back to sixth. It was a gutsy ride and one that went a long way (at the time) to keep his title hopes alive. After the race, Wright and Thompson had some choice words for each other and things got heated. I can see why Wright would be upset as any rider on the receiving end of that type of move wouldn’t be happy, but I’m not sure why Thompson was upset? These two riders have never gotten along and I think it’s safe to say that they will never see eye to eye.

It was great to see Kaven Benoit ride the Pre Mix class on Sunday. Kaven went 2-2 and the crowd loved it! Photo by James Lissimore

So with two 450 motos remaining Wright leads Pettis by 21 points and Weltin by 27, Thompson 54 points back so he’s officially out of this title chase. It’s been a strange season for Thompson as I expected much more from him. I’m not sure what has been wrong but his speed and finishes have been very inconsistent again this summer. From what I understand he’s in the final year of his KTM contract so unless the Orange team gives him one more chance in 2022 he’ll be looking for a ride over the winter. If that happens then what team will sign him? Kawasaki maybe, GDR Honda would be a big no, and I can’t see the MX101 Yamaha Team or GASGAS Team finding the budget required to sign Thompson. Maybe he starts his own team rides a Honda or Husqvarna next year, or maybe he’s had enough of racing? Only Cole knows for sure, but it would be unfortunate to not have him in the series next year.

See you next week at Walton Raceway!

So now it’s on to Walton next week and the 2021 Walton TransCan. Like it always is this event is going to be massive and I know I speak for everyone when I say that I cannot wait for it to begin. Look for a Walton preview later this week as I’ll take a look at what you can expect next week at Walton Raceway. That is it for me this week as it’s time for me to recover from the 10-hour drive home yesterday from Quebec. However, before I go I want to send a big get well out to Jess Pettis, Tim Tremblay, Shawn Maffenbeier, as well as Crayden Dillon, and any other of the riders who were injured at the ECAN. Thank you for reading and have a great week.

x

Check Also

The 3 Q’s With Ryan Lockhart Presented By Matrix Concepts Canada

MXP: Hey Newf! What are your thoughts on poor Austin Forkner and his massive crash ...