Frid’Eh Update #25 | Tyler Gibbs | Presented by FXR
By Billy Rainford
Welcome to Week #25 of the DMX Frid’Eh Update this week presented by FXR. Who do you think of when you see the #25? There have been a few classics. Well, in 2020 you’ll be thinking of the young rider from BC, Tyler Gibbs.
Tyler would have liked to have been in Salt Lake City racing the final rounds of Supercross but the border closure and limited numbers allowed have kept him locked down in the Lower Mainland.
Tyler comes from the young crop of riders who were raised on a solid dose of Future West Arenacross and so he’s got skill on the indoor tracks that will see him take on the challenge of Monster Energy AMA Supercross in the future.
We just did an interview with him not too long ago where we talked about him wanting to race in SLC, so we thought we’d do something a little different this week and sit down for a Zoom interview and let the conversation go wherever it wanted.
One Round of Supercross Left
I don’t know about you but I liked being surprised that it was time for another round of Supercross over the past couple weeks. It seemed like it snuck up on me every time! I wonder how the riders would feel about a 35-race season in 2021?
All 3 of the championships are still undecided, mathematically.
In 250 West, Dylan Ferrandis will likely repeat as the champion, unless Austin Forkner‘s teammate, Cameron McAdoo, can get himself involved. We all know Ferrandis has lived by the sword, so…
In 250 East, Chase Sexton will also likely repeat as champion before he moves up to the 450 class next season. This coast has also been a 2-horse race with Shane McElrath. Shane’s teammate, Colt Nichols, is playing the roll of McAdoo so it will be interesting to see if sparks fly. Colt hasn’t been happy with his performance the past couple rounds as he wasn’t in the fight at the front at all. He really want’s to go out with a bang, so we’ll have to watch for that.
In 450 action, Eli Tomac should be able to close out this championship and finally get the monkey off his back. He’s got a 22-point cushion on Cooper Webb, so something drastic would have to happen for him not to do it.
However, I think this season has proven that you can never count Webb out. The dude is a fighter. If there’s a way for him to make the points work in his favour, you know he’s the one to try to find it!
I think Eli will just stay out of trouble and take this one, but as a racer you know that’s tough to do when the gate drops.
All 3 classes give us a reason to stay interested, and there’s bound to be some drama in at least one of them.
Chad Reed “One Last Ride”
2020 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
We’re getting closer to the start of the modified Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship south of the border. We’re starting July 18th at Ironman Raceway in Indiana and then heading to WW Ranch in Florida on July 25th.
MX Sports just put out the list of approved bikes for the series:
APPROVED EQUIPMENT LIST
Posted: 6.18.20
| Motorcycle | 450 Class |
| Honda | 2016 – 2020 CRF450R |
| Honda | 2019 – 2020 CRF450R Works Edition |
| Husqvarna | 2018 – 2020 FC450 Rockstar Edition |
| Husqvarna | 2016 – 2020 FC450 |
| Husqvarna | 2016 – 2020 FC350 |
| Husqvarna | 2016 – 2020 TC250 |
| Kawasaki | 2016 – 2020 KX450 |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 250SX |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 350SX-F |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 450SX-F |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 450SX-F Factory Edition |
| Suzuki | 2016 – 2020 RMZ450 |
| Yamaha | 2016 – 2020 YZ450F |
| Motorcycle | 250 Class |
| Honda | 2016 – 2020 CRF250R |
| Husqvarna | 2016 – 2020 FC250 |
| Husqvarna | 2016 – 2020 TC125 |
| Kawasaki | 2016 – 2020 KX250 |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 125SX |
| KTM | 2016 – 2020 250SX-F |
| KTM | 2016 – 2017 250SX-F Factory Edition |
| Suzuki | 2016 – 2020 RMZ250 |
| Yamaha | 2016 – 2020 YZ250F |
I still think 250’s should race head-to-head, regardless of number of strokes. And 125’s…well, if you’re crazy enough to race one at this level, you can do whatever you want! And if someone has a 500cc 2-stroke motor mounted in a new, approved frame, have at ‘er in the 450 class, I say! Pro Sport is about the fans and this would line the fences for sure.
Dylan Wright Talks about the First Race of the Season at Gopher Dunes, and More…
I wasn’t able to be at the first AMO race of the modified season at Gopher Dunes last week, so I grabbed #9 Dylan Wright for a Zoom interview to talk about his 1-1-1-1 performance and a bunch of other stuff, too, like Derek Schuster in a tank top.
Rumour Mill
With racing starting back here in Ontario at the amateur level with the AMO, you’d think things would be cheery and good. Well, hold onto you hats because we’re hearing that a couple calls from another series inside Ontario were made as complaints about the event held at Gopher Dunes and also with regards to the upcoming event at Walton Raceway set for next weekend.
Derek Schuster and Brett Lee (among others) have been doing everything in their power to get us back to racing this summer and to have complaints lodged against them is one thing, but for them to have come from someone inside the industry is something else entirely!
Steps were made so that the racing would be done within the COVID-19 guidelines and everyone was thrilled to actually be back at the track. This is good news for the entire industry.
We aren’t going to name names here, and will wait until more information comes out on the subject and what it means for future events. Let’s just hope we are able to keep racing.
And on that note, have a great weekend, everyone. It’s going to be a hot and humid one in my area. Enjoy the racing Sunday evening!
