In this month’s instalment of Matthes Answers, led by PulpMX’s Steve Matthes, get his take on a variety of key dynamics, five races into the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship. If you want to send him a question, simply get in touch via the @motoonline socials and we’ll pass on the most timely questions each month.

Image: Octopi Media.

Can Ken Roczen figure out his bike set-up and be legit or is it a mental battle as well?

Well, I think with Kenny it will be more of a physical battle than mental, he’s had legit issues staying fresh throughout a long series with all he’s been through. But the bike issues are real as well, he’s had some clutch stuff holding him back and of course, we’ve seen the switch to Factory Connection suspension from the Showa-provided services he started with. Boy, whoever could see this coming? Well, I did for one. Roczen’s a guy that has to be in tune with his motorcycle (Reed was the same way) and maybe he thinks too much about what the bike is doing underneath him but he is what he is at this point. He’s not changing so with the late start you had to know there would be issues getting comfy on the bike. According to Kenny, nothing from the RCH days can be used on this modern RMZ either so it’ll all be developed by him and the team from here.

Are we going to see more weird Eli Tomac rides, potentially rattled from his crash?

No, I do not think this was a weird Eli ride. He got to fifth and just sort of settled there. To me, ‘weird’ Eli rides are the ones where he gets caught and passed by dudes which didn’t happen. The hard dirt of the Tampa track had him feeling uncomfortable out there so he did the best he could do. I think this weekend is big for him though, not that he has to win but just has to be in the battle to win.

What right does Justin Barcia or his team have being angry at being taken out? Live by the sword…

They weren’t angry at [Jason] Anderson from what I could gather, they were angry at the situation he found himself in with Anderson taking him down. They know that Barcia invites this stuff on themselves and I think when you combine Barcia going down (not his fault) and then Michael Mosiman going down (not his fault) the whole team was not in the mood to talk. Remember these guys live and die with this stuff and I get it, emotions run high.

Image: Octopi Media.

Does Anderson get back on track? And do you think the probation affects him at all?

Well, it’s certainly not looking good though but I think he can still win a race but this title is gone for him. Too many great guys to jump over in my opinion. I know the AMA is getting a little better with this probation stuff, look at Barcia being DQ’d for hitting Dylan Ferrandis at Budds last year which was influenced that he was still on probation from SX, but count me as skeptical that a probation actually leads to Anderson facing real penalties (as in points or DQ) as opposed to fines which he doesn’t care about all that much. I don’t think he changes much really but I do think Kawasaki is frustrated with he continuing to put himself in bad spots.

Sexton crashes blame pie? 1. Sexton himself; 2. Bike set-up; 3. Production bike issues.

Let’s go with 80 percent him because crashing in the V-shaped rut in worn down whoops can happen to a lot of guys and maybe he should’ve switched to the fresh line, 10 percent bike set-up and 10 percent production bike issues. I don’t know, as any of my listeners know I’m not a huge point the finger at the bike guy for issues. These OEM factory teams have a lot of smart people standing around trying to lead you in the right direction that YOU choose.

What are you taking from the 250 class this year so far? Can anybody actually challenge the Lawrences?

Yeah, wow. Double title for the Lawrences is looking good. As far as Hunter, read my observations column for who exactly is racing Hunter for the title on this coast. He’s in the prime of his career on a factory bike while his competitors in this class aren’t exactly there you know? And Jett, well he’s a special talent for sure.