2023 RedBud Motocross | Kickstart Recap & Gallery

We'll go "good news-bad news" to start this week's recap.The good: Red Bull KTM and DeCal Works went wild with their Fourth of July graphics, which featured an amped-up take on the American flag and an equally bold number font.The bad: Cooper Webb sat out RedBud due to a crash during the week off and, as a result, dropped from the top spot in the SMX point standings. The team's post-race press release did not mention the severity of the wreck or an estimated return to action for CW2.

The patriotic kit SKDA made for AEO Powersports popped on the blue plastics and black frame of the 250 SX-F race bikes. This look, a Statue of Liberty print run by Twisted Tea/Progressive/Suzuki, a stars and stripes design for Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX/Yamaha, and a clean red-white-blue pattern for privateer Jeff Walker are available through SKDA's website and can be customized to fit your model motorcycle and include personal sponsors.

Throttle Jockey and Team Honda HRC always do something special for RedBud. This year the Indiana sticker shop brought back the big wing the factory squad ran in 1999, printed the rider's last names on the seat covers, and swapped the black details for blue to celebrate Independence Day. Check back soon for an interview with Throttle Jockey's Matt Davis about the 25-year relationship that his company and the Honda race team have shared.

D'Cor Visuals busted out their metallic material for Monster Energy Kawasaki and Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha. More shots of the Fourth of July graphics are included in the gallery below and as a b-roll in the Pre-Race News Break Video.

Monster Energy Kawasaki has run versions of Showa's BFRC shock for roughly a decade, and the "Balance Free Rear Cushion" is currently mounted to Jason Anderson's motorcycle.As we've mentioned in past posts, the unique internal configuration gives the rear end a "connected to the ground" feeling, but riders at both Kawasaki and Honda have continually gone back and forth between the part and a standard style shock...

This is what Adam Cianciarulo has experienced first-hand. The BFRC was on AC's KX450SR early in 2022, got pulled midway through the year, was back at the beginning of 2023, and is gone again as of RedBud.

Chase Sexton swapped and slammed in the sand rollers during Friday's media riding session, a high-speed get-off that dirtied the Team Honda HRC rider but didn't seem to leave him any worse for the wear. Ask any racer: getting the first crash out of the way after some time off the bike is very important, and the sooner, the better.

Props to homie in the middle. Every weekend fans call out from the sidelines for us to get a snap of their crew, but they never ask how they can get it (we assume they know to browse Kickstart). Dude had enough sense to say, "Let me get a picture of the camera screen and your website details." Just for that, there's a vertical of the boys in the gallery below for them to post on IG, too.

Setting up the 2023 YZ450F for the outdoors' pace and conditions has been a task for every pro in the pits. We noticed unmarked polished aluminum upper clamps with the stock lower clamps on Dylan Ferrandis' bike during Friday's build and Saturday practice, but in the motos, it was switched to a Neken upper-stock lower combo.We mention this not as a critique of any one or thing, but as an example of the challenges everyone faces during the running development for a new motorcycle, the creative concepts that race teams come up with, and how every rider is looking for something different from the motorcycle. For more on this topic, including the types of parts being tested, listen to our HWYW interview with Phil Nicoletti.

The RedBud layout was reworked ahead of its 50th National, changes that included new routing to LaRocco's Leap/the downhill tabletop/uphill sand rollers, and the relocation of the starting gate back to its original place near the pit area trees."This is the start I grew up racing. I'm all for going back to the original. It's not exactly the same because it used to have a chicane. We used to go left into the first corner, right and then left, but now it goes all the way down," Illinois local Chase Sexton recalled on Friday. "I never thought of it as being super sketchy when I was racing here, but I've definitely seen some big get-offs in the first turn."

Wash Bays: If you build them, they will come.

Lorenzo Locurcio and Jose Butron are taking their run on the summer series seriously. During Friday's media scrum, the two told us that Wild Cat Racing now has Florida suspension tuner Powerband Racing setting up the WP components, how a one-day test at Moto Sandbox made a tremendous difference to the handling of the GASGAS bikes, how Steve Matthes of PulpMX stepped up for the weekend, that they've gotten another special title sponsor for Washougal, and that they're fielding supporters to see them through the end of SMX. If you're interested in helping at any level, get a hold of the team through Instagram: @wildcat.raceteam or @lorenzolocurcio_.

It's always good to see friends in the pit area again. Filmmaker Kyle Cowling has been hired by Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing to follow them through the summer season and will produce an in-depth video series showcasing the highs and lows that happen with every gate drop, which will come out later in the year.

The sound of forty riders dumping the clutches and twisting the throttles of their revved-up race bikes all at once never gets old.

We hustled over to the Leap as soon as the gate dropped to see who would send it on the opening lap, arrived just as the pack approached the mythical triple, and got blasted by the cheers Haiden Deegan received for sending it while in second place. DangerBoy boosted the big jump for most of 250 Moto One and, by our count, did it more than any other rider (Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha teammate Justin Cooper would be ranked second on the unofficial list).

What's the difference between skying it out or going two-three? Here's what it looked like with Ryder DiFrancesco and Tom Vialle on the opening lap. LaRocco's Leap was part of Segment Three in the scoring loop, which stretched from the lip of the lower bowl tabletop to the take-off of the downhill tabletop; per the AMA results, going big on lap one helped DiFrancesco get through the section in 41.311 seconds while Vialle's more conservative route took 41.696 seconds.

Dream On.

Hardy Munoz is all-effort. The HBI Racing rider skipped High Point after a hard crash at Thunder Valley and was back on the starting line as promised at RedBud. Munoz noticed his bike having an issue on the second lap of 250 Moto One and, per his Instagram post and this shot, pulled off to the side of the track to "fix it." The Chilean rejoined the race in 36th and put in a solid effort to reach 21st before the checkered flag, one spot shy of points. Another mechanical forced him to DNF five laps into Moto Two, and the 21-39 results put him 32nd overall.

Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki's Seth Hammaker scored impressive 5-10 results for eighth overall in his first race of 2023. A wrist injury caused the rider to miss all of Supercross and the first part of the Nationals, but weeks of riding with the team in California helped him get up to speed and has added even more depth to the 250 Class.

We're pretty sure the current spect Team Honda HRC CRF250R has enough oomph to get over LaRocco's Leap, but Hunter Lawrence played it safe on his way to the win in 250 Moto One. When your lead stretches from 2.167 seconds on Lap One to 13.363 seconds on Lap 16 (an average gain of 0.835 seconds per lap), why risk it?

Shoutout to Honda of the Ozarks/Twisted Team's Brett Greenly and Devin Milkovich for their weekend, which saw the rider qualify directly into the motos with a 2:16.697 lap time that put him 32nd in the combined results, then go 33-31 for 34th overall in the 250 Class. The duo had signed up in the 450 Class at Thunder Valley and High Point but finished 27th in both LCQs.

RedBud's heavy roost forced many in the 250 Class to rip through their tear-offs. The lack of laminates wasn't great for the riders or the goggle guys, but the look of the clear lens added something to these shots of RJ Hampshire...

Justin Cooper

And Tom Vialle. Looking closely, you can see that Max Vohland avoided the same fame by opting for roll-offs.

Good to meet you, Josh. Hope you had a great time at the races.

Does the job posting on the NBC assignment board mention "on the clock suntanning" as one of the perks of being a cameraman for Pro Motocross?

Another holeshot, sixteen laps at the head of the pack, the fifth moto win of the summer, and 25 more points for the Pro Motocross and SMX standings. Hunter Lawrence is running up a remarkable stat line in what might end up being his last races in the 250 Class.

The track crew at RedBud wasted no time when it came to prep, a perfected process that included a heavy soak from the water truck as soon as the checkered flag waved on each moto...

And a deep rip from the aptly-named Perfecta 12 field cultivator made by Unverferth, an Ohio company that specializes in farm equipment.

One day, you're a young mechanic spinning wrenches to keep a built-to-the-hilt 250 four-stroke engine together; the next, you're the grizzled 30-something technician who does most of the work on a laptop. Congrats on the promotions, Hutch and Jordy.

Sunburnt drunk dudes passed out on the grass, near-riots in B Lot on Friday night, and Ty Masterpool going fast are all things you can count on at RedBud. The popular independent, who now pits with the HBI Racing squad, clocked the third-quickest lap in the morning's Timed Qualifying sessions and held his own for a spot in the top five against a list of factory racers before a late collision with Adam Cianciarulo turned into a seventh place in Moto One and an expired engine and DNF in Moto Two. The 6-40 results put Masterpool 13th overall on the day and seventh in the championship standings, down one point to Fredrik Noren.

One jump, two shots with Aaron Plessinger.

The Red Bull KTM rider quietly told us on Friday that the time off wasn't all that great due to a practice crash but that he was good to go for the weekend, then revealed on Saturday afternoon during HWYW how the pain in his back was worse than he'd let-on and that he even considered pulling out of the motos after practice.AP made a few pit stops during Friday's media riding session to adjust clickers and suspension settings, the continuance of a test the team did with WP in California during the break.

Props to Brandon Scharer for signing up in the 450 Class at his first outdoor of the summer, getting put in the B Group among a field of 89 riders, clocking the tenth best lap in Timed Qualifying, posting 18-17 results for 19th overall, and scoring seven championship points. The privateer had no set racing plans two months ago, but will now follow the series to Southwick with his wife as his mechanic.

"A game of chess is like a swordfight..."

"You must think first before you move."

Spot'em. The beefy new double in the lower bowl was the perfect place for riders to look and see if the competition was close behind in the dark mulch turn, launching off the tunnel jump, or cresting the ski jump. Jett Lawrence made good use of it during 450 Moto One.

Mr. RedBud.

We didn't see the incident between Adam Cianciarulo and Ty Masterpool, but figured something had happened when the Monster Energy Kawasaki rolled by late in 450 Moto One with mangled handlebars and controls. AC said damage to the throttle body was the reason for the DNF.

Coming around a blind corner and seeing Mike LaRocco's AMSOIL Honda unattended on a Team SoBe/No Fear/Samsung Honda stand was quite the moment. Scroll down for more photos of the CR.

Another pair of holeshots, thirty-three laps at the head of the pack, the ninth and tenth moto wins of the summer, and 50 more points for the Pro Motocross and SMX standings. Jett Lawrence is running up a remarkable stat line in his first races in the 250 Class.

Would you partake in some criminal mischief and light vandalism if it got you a pair of goggles?

It was a bit tense around the Alpinestars Mobile Medical Unit while Hunter Lawrence was inside, as the championship leader's initial reaction to the first crash and blood on the jersey prompted a quick trip on the mule and a DNF in 250 Moto Two. We saw Hunter at the end of the day, and he confirmed that all was okay but that his arm and ribs would be sore in the coming days.

Levi Kitchen got a start and put down sixteen stellar laps on his way to the win in 250 Moto Two and second overall on the day. Keep an eye on the three-way battle for sixth-seventh-eighth in the championship rankings between Shimoda-Cooper-Kitchen, who are split by four points going into Southwick.

A French two-time MX2 world champion, guiding another French two-time MX2 world champion through his first season in America.

The Tom Vialle-Haiden Deegan duel in the waning laps of 250 Moto Two had our full attention. Scroll down for more images of the back-and-forth between the Red Bull KTM and Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha riders.

Blaze Cremaldi got passed by Levi Kitchen at the checkered flag, which kept him from doing a fourteenth lap in 250 Moto Two, while Evan Haimowitz was 1.280 seconds ahead of Cremaldi (with even less of a gap over Kitchen) and had to go all the way around the track one last time.

Seventeen years old, stoked on the first overall win of his career, and waving the flag over a wild crowd.

FMF Racing celebrated its silver anniversary by signing as the title sponsor of RedBud's fiftieth National and building trophies with the famed 4.1 muffler as a centerpiece.

Star Racing sweep.

The podium finishers and random riders were picked for drug testing at RedBud. This is now conducted and managed by Aegis Sciences Corporation, the same group that runs NFL, MLB, NHL, and IndyCar programs and has no affiliation with USADA. Riders were also tested by Aegis at the East Rutherford Supercross.

Can you name every rider in this shot? The rider in the back by the FMF banner had us stumped for a bit because he was an alternate added for the second moto, but figured it out after a while.

We met these guys for the first time at High Point, then bumped into them again in the pits on Saturday morning at RedBud. It's cool to see how fans will travel to see the races in person and we hope to link up with more of you along the fence line.

Dylan Ferrandis was the only rider with a standard knobby for a rear tire during 450 Moto Two, a difference we noticed during the race and that the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha justified in HWYW. To summarize quickly, Ferrandis knew he'd preferred the feel of the block tread over the directional as the track dried out.

Either the flagman held the white flag out a little far, or Trevor Schmidt cut a close line at the start of his final lap because the two made minor contact and ripped the doctor's jacket out of the official's hand.

22-0?

Creative, but you'll need a bigger ball to get GASGAS on there and an even bigger one when Beta and Triumph enter the fold in 2024.

Jason Anderson knew it'd be hard getting up to speed at the midway point of the season, and the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider gave it his all during the two motos for 5-7 finishes and fifth overall. El Hombre explained in HWYW that getting ready after two months off the bike is a balance, as overdoing the weekly work would make the weekend races even harder, and that he'll build back as the summer continues.

How often will we see a variant of this podium in the back half of the summer?

Jett found a ripper on the fence line to share the champagne with. What a life.

Our ears are still ringing from chants of RedBud and USA, but it's almost time to get back to the track for Southwick and round six of the Pro Motocross Championship. Thanks for reading Kickstart.