With familiar winners and another mix of podium scores, Unadilla kept the suspense flowing as Pro Motocross resumed with round nine of the 2024 season. Quotebook features compiled comments from riders over the weekend.

450MX

Image: Octopi Media.

Chase Sexton (Red Bull KTM) – First:
I’ve worked on my starts a lot, that was my first holeshot of the summer in Moto2, and I felt so good at the beginning of the race. I sprinted away and managed it from there – that was a fun moto! The track felt a lot better to me in that second moto, so I’m excited for the next two to finish out the season.

Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM) – Third:
Man, I was so far back on the first lap! It felt like they held the gate for 20 seconds and I almost sat up, then sure enough, they dropped it. I was not ready at all, but it was a hard-fought ride and I just clicked another gear – I felt so good, it was such a good ride. Definitely hard-fought, I could hear the fans and I knew I just had to keep taking over the positions. In the end, we found ourselves on the podium for the weekend.

Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – Fifth:
The weekend started off well for me, placing third in qualifying. The Monster Energy® Kawasaki team has my bike feeling the best it has been all season and we are trending better and better each day I ride it. The motos were good, but I lost a bit of pace near the end which resulted in fifth overall on the day. I know I belong up front and we are going to continue working towards that to put myself where I belong. Budds Creek has always treated me well and I am looking forward to putting my KX™450SR back on the box.

Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – Second:
It was a pretty good day for a debut on the ’25. We made some good changes throughout the day that absolutely helped out for the motos. Shoutout to the team and everyone involved at Honda for pushing everything through so we could race the new bike. I know how hard everyone worked to get us here, so I want to say thank you to everyone.

Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Sixth:
It was fun being home, but it wasn’t the greatest day with sixth overall. I had a good first moto, and worked my way to fourth and almost got to third. In the second moto, I got a pretty bad start. I came together with some people in the first turn, bent up the shroud, and basically came back from last and charged all the way to seventh and almost got sixth. That’s all I could do today. I rode really well in both motos, so I’m happy with my riding and will take it into next weekend and try it all again.

Cooper Webb (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 15th:
It was an up and down day – my first race back in Pro Motocross and first race with the team outdoors. We were kind of around that seventh-eighth spot all day. We qualified 10th, and in the first moto I was definitely a little bit tight in that first race back. I actually had a great battle with Kenny that whole moto, but ended up eighth. Then in Moto 2, I had a great start and was running second for a few laps. I felt really awesome in that second one, and was around sixth or seventh and then just had that crash. Unfortunately, I kind of reinjured my thumb. I think it’s okay, and I just shocked it. We’ll get it checked out first thing next week. Overall, I’m just happy to be back at the races and taking these last few Nationals to keep building into SMX.

Malcolm Stewart (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Ninth:
I had a crash in practice and banged myself up a bit, and then the track was very technical in the motos. We ended up ninth overall, which we’ll take, and I’m looking forward to moving forward at these last couple.

Christian Craig (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Eighth:
Today wasn’t too bad and it was a decent first moto. I was feeling good for the second moto, and was just outside of the top-five, but unfortunately had a crash and am pretty banged up.

Ken Roczen (Progressive Ecstar Suzuki) – Seventh:
The first weekend back in Unadilla was definitely exciting for us. This was the first pro motocross we have attended this year for me personally, so it was really hard. We had a lot of rain on Friday, and we thought it was going to be a mudder, but since the track crew sealed the track, it actually ended up being fairly hard pack and pretty beat up. On the first race I had a terrible start and worked my way up and finished seventh. I was unhappy with it, so we made some small adjustments to my Suzuki for the second moto. It ended up being better, and I had a much better start in moto two, working my way into second until about halfway. I had a train of three riders behind me that were clearly faster; I tried to latch on and stay there as long as I could, but obviously after three months off the bike it’s hard to expect to ride up front right away. But I feel we made strides throughout the day and improved from the first to the second moto. Of course, we always wish we could have done better, but at the same time, it’s somewhere to start. I want to improve the setup a little bit and I’m excited to come back for Ironman on the 250.

Kyle Chisholm (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – 19th:
This is a fun track for me, I like it. We had a lot of rain coming into the weekend, but the Unadilla crew did a great job on the track. My first moto wasn’t that great, I had a terrible start. I rode much better in the second moto. It’s still not the results I want on paper, but my riding was much better so I’m happy about that.

Colt Nichols (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – 17th:
That was an interesting welcome back at Unadilla. Outdoors is very tough – in the first moto it was a real struggle. I got smacked in the face pretty hard with some reality, and ate a big piece of humble pie. Moto two was better, we made improvements on the bike to get it more comfortable for me. I knew we were going to have to do that coming into this race, being the first race of the season for me, and with a really gnarly race track. Overall, it was a productive day, I am super, super happy with all the progress we made today and it’s on to Budds Creek.

Max Miller (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – DNF:
After a good qualifying I had the 20th gate pick. I started mid-pack and slid out towards the end of lap one. I had a good pace and was moving through the pack when I had a big crash after the Sky Shot. My body is pretty banged up, but I’ll be ready for Budds Creek!

250MX

Image: Octopi Media.

Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM) – 11th:
I had a big crash in the opening lap of the first moto and was last, then had to stop to make some adjustments on the bike, so came back to P22 and that was the best I could do. In the second moto, I started around seventh or eighth and finished the moto third, so of course I am a little bit frustrated, but we will keep fighting across these two races to go.

Julien Beaumer (Red Bull KTM) – Ninth:
It was a good day. Qualifying wasn’t the best, but I turned it around in the motos. In both races I had bad starts, but really good riding. In that second one I made a mistake late in the moto, but came back to ninth, so I’m happy with my day and the progress we were able to make over the three-week break.

Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – First:
It was an incredible day for me. Two holeshots and 2-1 for the overall. The first moto was tough with the track being so rutted and I was able to hang onto second place. I came into the second moto not wanting to get beat, so I put my head down and made sure to hit my marks each lap. I want to give a huge thank you to my entire Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki team for keeping my bike feeling amazing all day. I’m excited to carry this momentum into Budds Creek.

Ty Masterpool (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Eighth:
he track turned out very good considering how much rain we got on Friday. It wasn’t as deep as I wanted it, but it shaped up to be a good race. I have a lot of positives from this weekend, including the two great starts I had, but costly mistakes got the best of me. I made a charge in both motos from way back and managed to salvage an eighth place. I am looking forward to redemption next weekend in Maryland.

Garrett Marchbanks (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Fourth:
My debut weekend with the team went very well. I started the day qualifying 13th, but I have never been the best at qualifying. I came into moto one feeling solid and got off to a top 10 start. I stayed consistent and rode the best I could and finished in fifth. I didn’t get the best start in moto two and had to work my way up from mid pack, but managed to get back up to fifth. I tried to get into fourth after battling with Jalek (Swoll), but I didn’t end up having enough time. Overall, I am pumped on the whole team and everything they have done so far. I’m looking forward to Budds next weekend.

Jo Shimoda (Team Honda HRC) – 12th:
It felt great to be up front and battling for the lead, but unfortunately the battle didn’t end the way we wanted it to. I ended up with a broken collarbone, and I’ll have to get a plate put in. Obviously, that’s not how we wanted the day to go, but we’ll come back stronger once I’m healed.

Chance Hymas (Team Honda HRC) – DNF:
That’s not the way I thought my day was going to end. I’m a bit disappointed in myself because it was the best I’ve felt all year, but it just wasn’t my day. I’m sorry to the team for letting that one get away, but big thanks for sticking behind me through all the ups and downs. Luckily, I’m just bruised and beat up, but blessed to be walking away from that one.

Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Second:
Today was solid. I qualified fourth and had two awesome starts. I came from around fourth and won the first moto. In the second moto, I got a good start right behind Levi (Kitchen) and rode it in for second. I have a pretty big points lead, so I didn’t want to do anything dumb because this track’s sketchy, it’s really high-speed. I’m happy where we’re at. We have a 70-point lead with two more rounds. Let’s go have some fun at Budd’s Creek.

Max Anstie (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fifth:
It was a solid moto one with a third-place finish and a really good start. We made a lot of big changes during the break and we were definitely in it that first moto. In the second moto, I messed up the start, but I came back through the pack to eighth. It was sketchy out there; it was really fast. So, a solid top five overall and good steps in the right direction. I’m happy with that, but that being said, I definitely want to be on the box at these next two. The mindset has shifted a little bit from the first few, which was to figure out the bike and myself. Now I feel like I’m in a good spot. So it’s just execute and try and be in contention for the top three in these last two, and to keep that momentum going into next year. We’ll keep pushing. We’ll go to work again and build off of it at Budds Creek.

Jordon Smith (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Seventh:
It was kind of an up-and-down day. I didn’t qualify the best. I was kind of struggling with the track and a little bit of set up issues. Then I didn’t have a very good first moto. I was in eighth and went down on the second lap and battled back to 12th. In the second moto, I came out decent and battled up to sixth place. Overall, it was not a terrible day, but not where we want to be. I’m just trying to grind it out these last few rounds and get into SMX with some good points and feeling good.

Nick Romano (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 13th:
The home race at Unadilla was pretty good to me. I ended up 13-14, which isn’t great on paper, but from where I’ve been, I’m pretty happy about it. I think I started outside the top 20 in both motos, which is tough. I had to come from the back, which is never great because the roost here hurts, but overall it was a better day. We’re going to go back, test some more this week, and keep putting our best foot forward in these last two races.

Daxton Bennick (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 14th:
It was a tough start to the day, but I came out pretty good in the first moto and was running seventh or eighth in the first 15-20 minutes of the moto. I’ve been really struggling this year with arm pump, so that hurt me. We’re going to get that fixed before Supercross for sure. Then in moto two, my start wasn’t as good, but I did fight my way up to ninth, and I was running 10th for a while. There were some fast guys in the back, and Savagty and Marchbanks got me. Overall, it was a better weekend than Washougal. I’m not happy with the result, but I know it will come for sure.

Casey Cochran (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – 16th:
Today wasn’t too bad and it was a decent first moto. I was feeling good for the second moto, and was just outside of the top-five, but unfortunately had a crash and am pretty banged up.

Ryder DiFrancesco (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GasGas) – 10th:
Unadilla was okay, but my starts were off and I had to come from behind all day. Second moto, I got up inside the top 10 and ended up going down… I just need starts, because everything else seems to be there at this point of the season.

Pierce Brown (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GasGas) – Sixth:
It was an alright day today with sixth overall. My riding was good, I just didn’t execute how I would really like to, but the track was gnarly and I’m happy to come out of this one with the result we managed.

Joey Savatgy (Triumph Racing) – 17th:
I felt good this weekend! I am just kind of at a loss for words. I just need to get off of the gate – I would love to have the chance to see what I have got. Getting off the gate is the elephant in the room for me. We have two rounds left before the SuperMotocross playoffs. I cannot expect to start where I have been and be competitive. We will go back to work this week.

Jalek Swoll (Triumph Racing) – Third:
Wow, what a day. It was good all around. I would have loved to be fourth in the first moto, but it has been amazing for the most part. I was consistently there and it paid off today. It is so special to get a podium for the Triumph Racing team. It is brilliant to reward those guys with a podium. Everyone has been working so hard and that makes a difference!”

Dilan Schwartz (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – 20th:
I really struggled with pain after having surgery after Washougal. I did the best I could, but the pain was too bad during the second moto, and I had to pull off.

Preston Boespflug (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – 34th:
The track was extremely rutted and rough, but I was very happy on how my Suzuki tracked and handled in the long ruts.