Pro Motocross Championship
Pala, CA
Fox Raceway National
MONSTER ENERGY® KAWASAKI RIDERS BRAVE TOUGH CONDITIONS AT ROUND 1 OF THE PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
Monster Energy® Kawasaki rider Jorge Prado made a strong statement in his Pro Motocross debut, proving he’s a championship contender with a solid sixth overall (7-6) finish at the Fox Raceway season opener. Teammate Jason Anderson demonstrated his speed in Moto 2, securing seventh overall (9-5). Monster Energy® Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider Garrett Marchbanks impressed with a consistent pace all day, earning sixth overall (6-5), while Seth Hammaker remained in the fight up front to claim seventh overall (8-7). Ty Masterpool pushed hard in Moto 1, showing podium potential before rounding out the day 10th overall (7-15). Rookie Drew Adams turned heads in his first Pro Motocross outing since entering the pro ranks with Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki, finishing a promising 11th overall (9-14), signaling a bright future ahead. Despite a tough second moto, Levi Kitchen showed heart, finishing 16th overall (10-38) after being forced to retire from Moto 2.
Fox Raceway Results
Levi Kitchen
“It was a tough day for me. Qualifying went pretty well, but in Moto 1 I got buried off the start and finished 10th. In Moto 2, I didn’t get a great start again, but I worked my way up near the Top 10 before my chain came off and went into the engine cases, which ended my race early. Unfortunately, it was a DNF, but we’ll regroup and give it our best next weekend.”
Garrett Marchbanks
“It was my first time racing a 250 in a while in motocross, so it was cool to kick things off on the smaller bike. I felt good all day. The first qualifying session was okay; I didn’t get a clean lap in, but in the second session I was P1 for a while before ending up P4 overall—one of my better qualifying results in a long time for outdoors. In Moto 1, I had a rough start but worked my way through the pack and finished sixth. Then in Moto 2, I felt really strong, especially in the early laps—made some good passes and got into sixth quickly. I tried to push to the end, but just came up a bit short. Ended the day with a sixth overall. All in all, it was a good day.”
Ty Masterpool
“The day started out pretty good—qualifying went well, and in the first moto I got a good start and made a nice move around the outside. I felt like I rode well, just battled hard and did the best I could. Unfortunately, on the last lap I took a rock to the throat and ended up throwing up everything. I lost all my nutrients, so the second moto was really just about survival. But we’ll bounce back and be better next weekend.”
Seth Hammaker
“Overall, it was a pretty solid start to the season. Qualifying went well—I ended up sixth, which wasn’t too bad, and I felt good on the bike. In Moto 1, I got a good start and came out of the first corner in third or fourth. I put in a few solid laps early on, but had a small tip-over just before the halfway mark. I got back up, made a few passes, and finished the moto in eighth. For Moto 2, I had another decent start, running around fifth or sixth. The first few laps were hectic as always with high intensity, but I stayed consistent, made a few passes, and then lost a spot to Chance [Hymas] late in the race. I finished seventh in that one, which gave me 8-7 for seventh overall. It’s a good starting point. Obviously, not where we want to be, but it’s something to build on. We’ll keep putting in the work during the week and come out ready for Hangtown."
Drew Adams
“Just finished up at Pala and went 9-14 on the day. My starts weren’t where I wanted them to be, but I felt good about how I charged forward in both motos. I focused on making progress every time I hit the track. I had a couple crashes in Moto 2 and had to come back from around 25th, but I was able to regroup and finish strong. All in all, it was a solid day, and I’m looking forward to building on it next weekend.”
Jorge Prado
“Round 1 is done here at Fox Raceway and I'm a little bit disappointed. I expected more, but realistically, it's fair that we struggled. I’m coming off an injury, and on top of that, I’ve never raced outdoors on the Kawasaki. We only had four weeks on the new bike, trying to build a setup, so it’s normal that it wasn’t 100%. But that’s the mentality of a racer—you always want to be battling up front. And as a world champion, even more so, especially when you're used to it. Still, the season has started. We got some good feedback, we know what to work on, and hopefully the next rounds will be better. Qualifying was okay—nothing crazy. I was trying to push a bit to get a better start. I made some passes on the first lap, but then I lost the rear wheel of the rider ahead and had to push to the end. I was catching the two guys ahead of me in the final laps, but it wasn’t quite enough. The second moto was P6—a little better than the first one. Small steps. I did my best, and that’s what counts.”
Jason Anderson
“Coming into the weekend with just seven days on the bike, I didn’t really know what to expect. In the first moto, I was able to just ride around, conserve some energy, and ended up ninth. In the second moto, I was able to dig deep and put in a little more effort to get into the Top 5. So it was nice to be able to do that, and hopefully we can keep building.”
