2021 Daytona Supercross | Kickstart

Mud prep. The AMA's decision to delay Saturday's schedule gave teams and techs a little extra time to put the final touches on their equipment with the usual assortment of foam, mesh screens, and no-stick spray.

Up close with the air shock. Justin Barcia has kept WP's latest offering on his Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing bike all season, a sign that he's confident in its ongoing development. We're interested to see how many MXGP riders have the part on their bikes when the long international tour starts later this year.

Ryan Sipes' move to GASGAS makes sense. The Kentucky racer plans to race a variety of events all over the world this year, part of a Red Bull-backed production to show how diverse motorcycle riding is, and GASGAS wants to be the "fun" brand. Housed under the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing tent for the weekend, Sipes brought some of his own parts and pieces to the pits, including different clamps, WP suspension tuned by AEO, a Risk Racing stand, and his brother's toolbox.

We noticed all of the Austrian bikes (KTM-Husky-GASGAS) had the accessory fans bolted onto the radiators at Daytona, a part that's standard during the Nationals but seldom needed in Supercross. Of course, the fan is something the public can purchase through the respective Power Parts catalogs.

CRF450R-S?

Parked in the pit area. The social distancing restrictions have kept us from getting as close to the bikes as we used to, but the garage layout at Daytona offered a few new angles.

Chris Blose is a Race Tech guy to the core. The Motul/AJE Motorsports/GASGAS rider requested the hop-up shop build the bike's engine and suspension for the 250 West Coast region, something the team obliged to. In the market for a faster bike? Race Tech is really pushing their in-house high-tech engine builds, which you can find out about at racetech.com

Cheers to the goggle guys that stressed all week about a possible mudder, installed roll-off canisters on dozens of frames and waited for the sky to open, only to have ideal conditions on race day.

Coffee with Mitch. Did you watch the feature video that Fox Racing released last week about Payton? Everyone knows how a small Husqvarna shop in SoCal went on to become a leader in aftermarket accessories and pro racing, but it's always awesome to see how involved Mitch is in the day-to-day of the business and the team. Give it a watch when you finish reading.

The FXR/Chaparral/Honda team was ready for the worst. Pedro and Tony Archer had three protection levels over the radiators (screen over the cooling unit, Twin Air wraps on the louvers, wire mesh on top) to keep potential mud or sand from blocking airflow...

And cut-to-fit foam on the fenders to prevent mud from sticking to the bikes and weighing them down.

One last part that ML512 pointed out: carbon covers by SLF Moto.

Just the essentials for Hayden Hefner.

Flames and the Ricky Bobby Wonder Bread bubbles. Jared Lesher's YZ250F nailed the Daytona-NASCAR theme.

Daytona has been put to use a lot lately. Speedweeks started with sports car racing and the Rolex 24 At Daytona (hence the arch), continued with full back-to-back NASCAR programs (Cup, Xfinity, Truck), and now Bike Week's Supercross and Daytona 200 road race.

Ryan Surratt found out his Instagram got hacked during his flight to Daytona, which sounds like nothing but sucks for someone with an established following (Surry had 66K on his original account). His new account is @ryansurratt.951

Jerry Robin's Spring Break setup looked great. The privateer had Canvas and Enjoy come up with a bright blue-pink livery for the round, as different graphics and one-off gear are part of the Munn Racing-Next Gen Motorsports program.

With Dakota Alix sidelined for the foreseeable future, PRMX Racing has tapped up Chase Marquier to complete the 250 West Coast region. This is a good fit, considering Marquier was already racing a KX250. Daytona was the rider and team's first race together; he finished seventh in the LCQ.

Living the dream. Here's privateer Hunter Calle in the staging area.

We respect Tom Journet's determination to be at the races. Unable to get a media credential this year, Journet worked as a mechanic for Corbin Hayes at the Daytona race. Tom had all the essentials for the work area, including a pit board, spare goggles, and a Palace bag to carry tools.

It was great to see Nick Gaines and the 3D Racing team at the track. The long-running independent operation missed the start of the season after team owner Bill Dill was diagnosed with an advanced form of brain cancer but had bikes on the track in both classes at Daytona. Dill was absent from the track due to ongoing treatment, and there is a Road2Recovery link set up to help with the medical costs).

When a steady drizzle fell during the first round of Timed Qualifying, mechanics in the staging area covered up key areas of their bikes in an attempt to keep them dry.

Spare rags? Standard. Pit board? Creative.

Another midseason fill-in. With Carson Brown sidelined for another month due to a dislocated elbow, the JMC Motorsports team has hired Ramy Alves to ride the Husqvarna FC 250 for the rest of the 250 West Coast region. Alves had a hard crash in the LCQ and needed attention from the medics, but says he's all good and will be back for the Arlington trio.

It's always cool when a team tips us off about factory parts. Team Honda HRC told us that there would be some new goods on Hunter Lawrence's bike, and yeah, they weren't kidding. The team had bolted on an oil cooler to the CRF250R, something that flowed through HRC, and we'd expect this to be standard on both Lawrence brother bikes come the summer Nationals. Look closely behind the head and you can see some of the bike's electronics package, too.

Holeshot devices are a must in pro motocross, and there are many different iterations for the front fork and rear shock. CLUB MX/Jeffrey Homes/IAMACOMEBACK/FXR/Yamaha has Tamer Designs parts on both ends of the bike to keep locked in when the gate drops, including this piece that lowers the rear.

The entire Alpinestars Mobile Medical staff were outfitted in Alpinestars helmets at Daytona, a safety measure that makes sense considering they run right into the action to tend to riders. With race officials and medics now in headgear, we wouldn't be surprised if it becomes mandatory for any essential worker around the track.

There was a lot of pre-race buzz about Garrett Marchbanks, and rightly so. The CLUB MX/Jeffrey Homes/IAMACOMEBACK/FXR/Yamaha rider was quick all day (third fastest in Timed Qualifying) and made his way through the pack after a poor start in the 250 Main Event (17th on the opening lap) to finish in fifth place. Marchbanks is now third overall in the championship with 39 points, down 10 to leader McAdoo and six to Cooper.

It was good to see Alex Martin back at the track. The Manluk/Rock River Yamaha/Merge Racing rider was knocked senseless at Orlando Two, took a few days off to sort himself out during the break, and passed the concussion protocol to race Daytona. The two-week break after Arlington should be a big help for AMart.

Camo and metal flake. SCOTT Sports put their top riders in a new colorway of the PROSPECT goggle, which looked great with the black and green sparkle on the Bell Helmet.

Guys like Mitchell Harrison and Garrett Marchbanks make the 250 West Coast region interesting. Both guys have experienced the highs and lows of racing, ridden for-parted ways with factory squads, and are re-establishing themselves as front-runners with growing teams.

Malcolm Stewart and SEVEN MX came up with a one-off kit inspired by Lewis Hamilton, complete with a custom-painted helmet meant to match the F1 champ. Coincidentally, the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha team was assigned garage stall 44, which is Hamilton's race number.

SEVEN MX took the details to another level on the over-jersey and used their company logo similar to the silver arrows and iconic logo of the Mercedes-AMG F1 W12 E Performance car's livery.

Another top-10 for El Hombre. Jason Anderson had a quiet yet solid day at Daytona as the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider unassumingly ranked near the top of the class in every on-track session (seventh in Timed Qualifying, crash to eighth place in 450 Heat Race Two, seventh in the 450 Main Event). Now ranked 11th overall in the championship, Anderson will for-sure finish in the top-10 if he keeps logging steady finishes (the injured Adam Cianciarulo is currently 10th).

The late afternoon mist in the first round of Timed Qualifying was just enough to make track conditions even better, to frustrate riders with vision issues on their goggles, get spectators wet, and require us to cover our camera gear up. Still, it was worth the hassle to watch the action.

Justin Bogle has made massive steps forward in recent weeks, something that he attributes to a move to Florida and continued work with Michael Byrne. The Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM team and rider have worked on further fine-tuning the 450 SX-F to his liking. The effort got them a ninth-place result at Daytona and Bogle's second consecutive top-10 finish.

No one needed time off from racing more than Vince Friese. Hard crashes at Houston and Indianapolis left the Smartop/Bullfrog Spas/MotoConcepts/Honda rider battered and bruised, but he regrouped during the break and was reinvigorated at Daytona. The 13th place finish in the 450 Main Event is Friese's best score so far this season.

Dean Wilson gritted out that 10th Place score in the 450 Main Event. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider went down hard in 450 Heat Race One while in a transfer position and had to line up for the 450 LCQ, which he won after a mad dash in the final laps. This was Dean's first top-10 of the season.

Pole Position

Here's to a quick recovery for Grant Harlan. The TiLube Honda rider posted the fastest lap of the C Group in the Timed Qualifying sessions, which ended up being 24th overall for the 450 Class, but had a hard crash in the long rhythm lane and was taken away from the track by medics. Harlan was hospitalized for two nights with a "small brain bleed, broken left elbow, broken right wrist," but has been discharged and is on his way home to Texas.

Opening Ceremonies FMX. Full extension and a foot off of the seat. Marvin Musquin gets a 10 score across the board for this heel clicker.

Ken Roczen with a look-back night-time Nac-Nac. Flawless execution.

Eli Tomac with a simple whip in the spotlight. Bonus points for the American flag in the background.

Although it was strange not to have fans on the tri-oval, it did give us a free run of the speedway, and this shot of the start was taken from just underneath the flag stand. The wall behind the riders makes it impossible to forget where we were.

The future looks bright for Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki. The green team has been very good this season thanks to Forkner and Shimoda's podium finishes, rookie speed by Hammaker, resilient riding by Smith despite injuries, and McAdoo's win.

Seth Hammaker is legit. For the second race in a row, the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki was in the top-five during Timed Qualifying and ran up front in 250 Heat Race One on his way to a second-place finish, but was part of the madness in the 250 Main Event and ended the night with an 11th place. The rookie is now sixth overall in the 250 West Coast region.

"Oh, James said you should try that wall jump?"

Hurry up and wait.

Bell Helmets always goes all-out with custom-painted lids at Daytona. Cooper Webb came up with the idea for his helmet and asked Air Trix, one of Red Bull's preferred paint shops for Red Bull, to cover the shell with a Dodge race car, Red Bull moonshine bottles, and his name in the old-school NASCAR font.

Hardy Munoz isn't at the races to make friends. The Team Solitaire/Nuclear Blast Records/Yamaha ran it in on a few guys during Daytona, something that other riders weren't happy about, but the aggressive moves got him a spot in the 250 Main Event. Munoz first lined up for Supercross last year and has made considerable progress with speed and control.

TV time for Hunter Lawrence. The Team Honda HRC rider led 250 Heat Race Two from the gate drop to the checkered flag and scored his first SX win. With 5-6 finishes in the 250 Main Events to start the season, Lawrence is fourth overall in the West Coast region.

Vince Friese and Broc Tickle spent all of 450 Heat Race One in a bar-to-bar battle for position, a duel that began when both MCR riders started at the front of the pack, mixed it up with factory riders, and ended with Friese in sixth place and Tickle in seventh place.

450 Heat Race Two really was a preview for the 450 Main Event. Cooper Webb and Aaron Plessinger, old friends and former training partners, linked up at the front of the field and went at it for the win, which Webb got. The last laps of the feature race were just as exciting as Plessinger did everything he could to hold on to second place but made a mistake in the last section of the track and allowed Webb a chance to steal away the spot.

It's cool to see riders get excited about going to different races. Max Anstie's maiden trip to Daytona was good; the Twisted Tea/HEP Motorsports/Suzuki rider was 20th overall, transferred directly out of 450 Heat Race One, and finished the Main Event in 14th place, a remarkable rank even after a preseason injury limited his prep.

Thoughts on the sand section?

Oklahomies

The 450 LCQ was stacked. Look at that first turn and think of how fast and accomplished the riders in the pack are, then that only four go on to the Main Event.

Cade Clason, out front. The PRMX Racing rider aced the start in the LCQ, put in some excellent laps as he led the race, held on to a third-place finish, and went on to the 450 Main Event.

Henry Miller made his SX debut at Daytona, but it wasn't without issue. The Minnesota privateer had a lengthy recovery from a wrist dislocation last year and set his sights on Daytona and wanted to get a warm-up at the Pro Circuit Open in Dade City, but a crash at the well-paying local race left him sore for the Saturday Supercross. Miller was 13th in the 450 LCQ.

Starting blocks are the new trick part, and like titanium footpegs a few years ago, everyone has a different spin on their steps. Here are Jordon Smith's risers, complete with heat marks on the metal.

While PC teammate Cameron McAdoo has a completely different design and has a sheet of grip tape on the top.

Alex Martin's steps have some sentimental value: they were from his days with JGRMX. The flat black paint makes the metal grip look even more treacherous.

The airbox opening on the KX250 is massive, so Pro Circuit mechanics decided to cover the hole with mesh material from Twin Air, a crafty barrier that kept the fine sand out of the intake.

Be your own biggest sponsor.

Stilez Robertson made quite the impression in his second-ever Supercross. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider regrouped after a rough debut at Orlando, put in the seventh-fastest qualifying time, snagged the holeshot in the Main Event, and held the lead for eight laps. A mid-race pass by McAdoo pushed the rookie to second place, but he fended off the hard charges other riders put in during the closing laps to finish in second.

A California native, Robertson has spent the last few years in Florida training at the Baker's Factory and has former pro Mike Brown serving as his riding coach. Keep an eye on Robertson in these next few weeks.

Shoutout to whoever put the over-under bridge after the sand; the poppy jump was the perfect spot for riders to blip the throttle and spin the sand out of their tires. Nate Thrasher demonstrates.

Props to Jordon Smith for lining up. The Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider has had a rough go of things this year (a preseason thumb injury is impacting his grip strength, which led to his crash in the whoops at Orlando Two), and matters were made worse when he was gouged by a footpeg in Timed Qualifying on Saturday morning. The cut on his backside required 20 stitches and allowed him to line up for the night's race, where he finished in 10th place.

Career win number one for Cameron McAdoo. The Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider was fast and loose during the 250 Main Event, and after his mid-moto pass on Robertson, he ran unchallenged to the checkered flag.

Nick Wey and Mitch Payton were two of the first people McAdoo went to after the race. The riding coach and team owner have helped McAdoo channel his speed on the track and supported him for multiple seasons, and now that they've found the right balance, he leads the championship standings by four points.

"Congrats, head to the AMA trailer for impound when you're done." Words every race mechanic wants to hear from Toolie.

This podium was huge for Pierce Brown and Stilez Robertson. Both have been part of the KTM-Husqvarna-GASGAS program for years, but injuries and issues in their 2020 season held both riders back and caused some concerns. It's no secret that young riders are given little time to establish themselves in pro racing, so results this early are important and should keep Robertson and Brown in good standing with teams for a while.

The title fight is on. Cooper Webb and Ken Roczen lined up next to each other on the grid (Webb had first pick for his Heat Race win and time, Roczen second pick) and immediately went at it when the gate dropped. Thoughts on the turn-two move? It was perfectly fine in our opinion, as Webb left Roczen plenty of room and never made contact, even if it allowed Tomac a chance to take control. Roczen was fired up about it after the race, which led to a dispute by the podium. Words were exchanged in person and in the post-race interviews (Roczen on TV, Webb in the press conference) and reminded us just how little these two like each other. Bring on Arlington.

Another Bell-Daytona masterpiece, this one by AP Designs for Eli Tomac.

Chase Sexton was solid in his return to action. The Team Honda HRC rider had a long layoff due to his Houston Two shoulder injury but had been putting in laps at the Stewart compound for weeks and was ready to go at Daytona. That overjump to face smash in practice left him with a few cracked teeth, black eyes, and some stitches, but he rode to an eighth-place finish at the end of the night.

Did you know Justin Barcia was credited with the holeshot? Us neither. The Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing rider was very quiet at Daytona (10th in Qualifying, third in 450 Heat Race One, sixth in the 450 Main Event) and didn't seem to have many big mistakes or disasters. This new, reserved Barcia is doing well, and with seven top-10 finishes in nine rounds, is fourth overall in the championship.

Shake' n Bake

Yeah, this win meant a lot to Eli Tomac. The Monster Energy Kawasaki rider has made it clear that he's not worried about his place in the record books, but it was impossible not to talk about his chance at tying Ricky Carmichael for most wins at the speedway. Fast all day, but not unbelievable, Tomac seized the lead when Roczen and Webb went wide in turn two, spent every lap of the 450 Main Event in the front, and won the race for the fifth time in his career.

Daytona was a must-win for the defending champion's title hopes, something he downplayed a bit in pre-race interviews but admitted was on his mind after everything was over. "I needed this. Like you said, I've struggled the past three or four rounds. Really struggled," he told us in the press conference. "Just not being me, if I want to say it that way. I've been looking forward to this race at this point the way the last few have gone. I'm still in a pretty good hole points-wise. I've got a lot of work to do. That being said, it kind of makes me feel like I'm still somewhat kind of in the game. If I would have got beat by Ken and Cooper again, it's like, 'Wow, I'm really out of the game now.' So that was big for us." Will this be the start of a surge? We will find out in a few days.

For the third year in a row, Aaron Plessinger was hauling ass at Daytona. This time the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha rider put it together for the full race and was rewarded with a third-place finish in the 450 Main Event, his first in the premier class. To say this is huge for AP is an understatement; injuries and bike setup issues have hindered him to the point that some wondered if he was worthy of a ride. He and the team have made breakthroughs with the equipment, and the YZ450F glided across the beat-up Daytona track. Congrats AP.

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