Steve Cox | May 17, 2018
2018 AMA National MX Preview: The 2018 AMA Pro Motocross Nationals are coming right up starting this weekend at Hangtown, and here’s a breakdown of the series, its teams and riders, and how to watch from home.
2018 AMA National MX Preview
The Hangtown Motocross Classic hits in just a couple of days, and it marks the start of the 2018 AMA Pro Motocross Championships. Time to bring the heat. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
2018 Schedule
The 2018 Schedule is as follows, and it should be noted that all first motos will be aired live on MavTV. As for the second motos, they will be aired live on NBC and NBCSN at various rounds, but all motos should be available to watch with the NBC Sports Gold app/website.
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| Round 1 May 19 Hangtown Rancho Cordova, CA Live on MAVTV/NBCSN |
| Round 2 May 26 Glen Helen San Bernardino, CA Live on MAVTV/NBCSN |
| Round 3 June 2 Thunder Valley Lakewood, CO Live on MAVTV/NBCSN |
| Round 4 June 16 High Point Mt. Morris, PA Live on MAVTV/NBC (450cc) and NBCSN (250cc) |
| Round 5 June 23 Tennessee Blountville, TN Live on MAVTV/NBCSN |
| Round 6 June 30 Southwick Southwick, MA Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 7 July 7 RedBud Buchanan, MI Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 8 July 21 Spring Creek Millville, MN Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 9 July 28 Washougal Washougal, WA Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 10 August 11th Unadilla New Berlin, NY Live on MAVTV/NBC, 2nd 250cc moto tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 11 August 18 Budds Creek Mechanicsville, MD Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
| Round 12 August 25 Ironman Crawfordsville, IN Live on MAVTV, 2nd motos tape-delayed on NBCSN |
2018 AMA National MX Preview
As always, the Nationals promise to bring tight racing, high speeds, and give the racers a new shot at a championship in 2018. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
2018 Rider Numbers
|
| 1 Eli Tomac (450cc) |
| 1 Zach Osborne (250cc) |
| 2* Cooper Webb |
| 4* Blake Baggett |
| 5* Ryan Dungey |
| 6* Jeremy Martin |
| 7* James Stewart |
| 10* Justin Brayton |
| 11* Kyle Chisholm |
| 12* Jake Weimer |
| 14* Cole Seely |
| 15* Dean Wilson |
| 16* Zach Osborne (450cc) |
| 17* Joey Savatgy |
| 18* David Millsaps |
| 19* Justin Bogle |
| 20* Broc Tickle |
| 21* Jason Anderson |
| 22* Chad Reed |
| 23* Aaron Plessinger |
| 24 Dylan Ferrandis |
| 25* Marvin Musquin |
| 26* Alex Martin |
| 27* Malcolm Stewart |
| 28 Shane McElrath |
| 29 Martin Davalos |
| 30 Mitchell Harrison |
| 31 Colt Nichols |
| 32 Christian Craig |
| 33* Josh Grant |
| 34 Weston Peick |
| 35 Austin Forkner |
| 36 RJ Hampshire |
| 37 Fredrik Noren |
| 38 Luke Renzland |
| 39 Kyle Cunningham |
| 40 Chase Sexton |
| 41* Trey Canard |
| 42 Dakota Alix |
| 43 Sean Cantrell |
| 44 Lorenzo Locurcio |
| 45 Jordon Smith |
| 46* Justin Hill |
| 47 Jimmy Decotis |
| 48 Henry Miller |
| 49 Nick Gaines |
| 50 Dan Reardon |
| 51* Justin Barcia |
| 52 Mitchell Oldenburg |
| 53 Bradley Taft |
| 54 Phil Nicoletti |
| 55 Vince Friese |
| 56 Anthony Rodriguez |
| 57 John Short |
| 58 Matt Bisceglia |
| 59 Cole Martinez |
| 60 Benny Bloss |
| 61 Heath Harrison |
| 62 Justin Cooper |
| 63 Hayden Mellross |
| 64 Michael Mosiman |
| 65 Gannon Audette |
| 66 Cameron McAdoo |
| 67 Justin Hoeft |
| 68 Justin Starling |
| 69 Tyler Bowers |
| 70 Jesse Wentland |
| 71 Josh Mosiman |
| 72 Josh Hansen |
| 73 Brandon Scharer |
| 74 Jon Ames |
| 75 Noah McConahy |
| 76 Kyle Peters |
| 77 Ryan Surratt |
| 79 Nick Schmidt |
| 80 AJ Catanzaro |
| 81 Chase Marquier |
| 82 Cody Williams |
| 83 Cole Thompson |
| 84 Scott Champion |
| 85 Joshua Cartwright |
| 86 Dylan Merriam |
| 87 Dylan Wright |
| 88 Paul Coates |
| 89 Jerry Robin |
| 90 Dakota Tedder |
| 91 Alex Ray |
| 92* Adam Cianciarulo |
| 93 Mark Worth |
| 94* Ken Roczen |
| 95 Joey Crown |
| 96 Zack Williams |
| 97 Cade Clason |
| 98 Ryan Sipes |
| 99 Dillan Epstein |
| 800* Mike Alessi |
2018 AMA National MX Preview
Although there are a lot of prognosticators out there, no one really knows what’s going to happen until the gates drop this Saturday in Northern California. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
450cc TEAM BREAKDOWN
Team Honda
Cole Seely will be out for the Nationals as he continues to recover from his broken pelvis suffered during Supercross. His motorcycle will be raced by Christian Craig. And Ken Roczen – a two-time champ in this series – will be racing himself into shape following his right-hand injury from the San Diego Supercross, but he should be at Hangtown.
14 Cole Seely (OUT)
32 Christian Craig
94 Ken Roczen
Cole Seely will be missing the 2018 Nationals after probably his best year outdoors in 2017. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna
Newly crowned 450cc SX champ Jason Anderson will be going it alone for the outdoors, as teammate Dean Wilson suffered a torn ACL recently while practicing at Glen Helen. He’s out for the Nationals.
15 Dean Wilson (OUT)
21 Jason Anderson
Dean Wilson blew his ACL when he collided with another rider at a Glen Helen Thursday Practice. He’ll be out for the Nationals. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
Monster Energy Kawasaki
Eli Tomac will be defending his first 450cc title starting at Hangtown. He usually wins Hangtown by a massive margin when things are working well, so don’t be surprised if he does that again on Saturday. His teammate Josh Grant has been riding to get ready for the Nationals, but the tibia he fractured in supercross is not done healing so he has had to delay his return. If there’s any way possible for Grant to line up at Glen Helen, for round 2, he will. He could podium at Glen Helen with one leg. We’ll have to wait and see, but as of now, he is unlikely to be at the first couple races.
1 Eli Tomac
33 Josh Grant (OUT)
Although Josh Grant has been out at the tracks putting in laps, his tibia isn’t healed quite enough yet for him to commit to racing, so he’s scheduled to miss the first couple of rounds. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
Red Bull KTM
Marvin Musquin hopes to be a contender for the 450cc title in 2018. He won races in 2017. But he’ll be doing it alone, as his teammate Broc Tickle had his contract terminated following a failed urinalysis during supercross.
20 Broc Tickle (OUT)
25 Marvin Musquin
Marvin Musquin is the sole Red Bull KTM 450cc rider now, and he’s very likely to win races and contend for the 450cc championship. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM
Blake Baggett is a fan-favorite to win the 2018 MX title. He was leading the points in 2018 as the series headed RedBud, but a broken thumb there in a clash with Jason Anderson cost him a shot at the title. He will be joined by Benny Bloss outdoors.
4 Blake Baggett
60 Benny Bloss
Blake Baggett (4) is a fan favorite to take the 450cc title in 2018. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Toyota/Monster Energy/Joe Gibbs Racing Suzuki
Justin Bogle is still recovering from his supercross injuries, so he’ll have Phil Nicoletti “Philling” in for him for select rounds. But Weston Peick is scheduled to compete throughout the entire series.
19 Justin Bogle (OUT)
34 Weston Peick
54 Phil Nicoletti
Weston Peick is the only JGR 450cc pilot scheduled to do the whole series. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing
Cooper Webb is still recovering from his fractured tibia, and he won’t return until he’s ready to race, so Justin Barcia will be doing the heavy lifting for the Yamaha squad while Alex Ray is being borrowed from the CycleTrader/Rock River Yamaha team to fill in on Webb’s bike for select rounds, starting with round two at Glen Helen.
2 Cooper Webb (OUT)
51 Justin Barcia
91 Alex Ray
Justin Barcia should be a contender on his factory Yamaha. The last time he raced a Yamaha in the Nationals he was a podium threat late in the series once he was healthy. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
250cc Team Breakdown
GEICO Honda
The GEICO Honda team is switching to Shift MX gear as of the 2018 MX Nationals, and they’ll be headed by a two-time champ and 2018 title favorite Jeremy Martin. RJ Hampshire should be at Hangtown, his first race back since fracturing his T3 and T4 vertebrae at Daytona, and Cameron McAdoo will miss the start of the series with an injured shoulder.
6 Jeremy Martin
36 RJ Hampshire
40 Chase Sexton
66 Cameron McAdoo (OUT)
Chase Sexton is hoping to build on a strong debut campaign from last year’s AMA Nationals. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna
Although he was originally scheduled to race a 450 outdoors, Zach Osborne’s move up to the big-bike class will be delayed at least one year while he gives Husqvarna the opportunity to sport the number-one plate outdoors, which is great for marketing. His teammate Mitchell Harrison has a broken arm and he will miss at least part of the series, while Michael Mosiman will be entering his first full 250cc MX series along with rookie Jordan Bailey, who will be making his pro debut at Hangtown after winning 7 titles at Loretta Lynn’s.
1 Zach Osborne
30 Mitchell Harrison (OUT)
64 Michael Mosiman
133 Jordan Bailey
Zach Osborne (16) was tough to beat in 2017, and he hopes to continue that streak this year. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki
The PC squad is pretty badly wounded, but their stalwart title contender Joey Savatgy should be ready to go at round one. So will Austin Forkner, following his broken collarbone from a few weeks back. They’ll be joined by rookie Garrett Marchbanks, but both Martin Davalos (injured MCL, herniated disc, C7 fracture) and Adam Cianciarulo (ACL) are out for the series.
17 Joey Savatgy
29 Martin Davalos (OUT)
35 Austin Forkner
92 Adam Cianciarulo (OUT)
182 Garrett Marchbanks
Rookie Garrett Marchbanks will be making his pro debut at Hangtown. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
TLD/Red Bull KTM
Alex Martin has been injured since early in supercross, but he’ll be back for Hangtown along with all three of his teammates, who managed to make it through supercross healthy (or at least healthy enough to race).
26 Alex Martin
28 Shane McElrath
43 Sean Cantrell
45 Jordon Smith
Alex Martin is all healed up and is hoping to return to the form he showed outdoors in 2016. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM
Dakota Alix will be the lone 250cc pilot out of the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM rig.
42 Dakota Alix
Dakota Alix will be the lone 250cc pilot for the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM team. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
AutoTrader/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing
Justin Hill should be in his last year racing a 250 outdoors before moving up to the 450s next year. He’ll be joined by rookie Enzo Lopes from Brazil as he makes his AMA pro debut at Hangtown. Jimmy Decotis is still recovering from fractured ribs and vertebrae suffered at Daytona, while Kyle Peters has a torn ACL/MCL.
46 Justin Hill
47 Jimmy Decotis (OUT)
76 Kyle Peters (OUT)
816 Enzo Lopes
Justin Hill will be trading in his number-one plate for 46 as the series heads outdoors. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
Monster Energy/Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha
Aaron Plessinger is riding high on his first-ever professional title and should be a contender outdoors as well. Outside of him, though, there are a lot of injuries and questions. Justin Cooper should be good to go for Hangtown, but Dylan Ferrandis is unknown at this time as he continues to recover from a broken arm and injured jaw from the Atlanta Supercross. He just signed a two-year contract extension with the team, though, so that might motivate him to show up at Hangtown, or it might do the opposite and encourage him to finish healing before he shows up to race. Mitchell Oldenburg has an injured ACL/MCL in his knee, so he’s out. And Colt Nichols is recovering from a broken arm. Although the official word is that Nichols will miss a few races, this is a guy who showed up to race only 8 weeks or so after breaking his femur in 2017, and only weeks after breaking his arm in 2018. You never know.
23 Aaron Plessinger
24 Dylan Ferrandis (TBD)
31 Colt Nichols (OUT)
52 Mitchell Oldenburg (OUT)
62 Justin Cooper
Aaron Plessinger should be a title contender in the 250cc class. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
CycleTrader/Rock River Yamaha
The CycleTrader team will be 250-only for the outdoors, with Alex Ray riding Cooper Webb’s factory 450. Along with Bradley Taft, the 250cc team will be bolstered by Australian Hayden Mellross (who comes over from the SX-only 51Fifty Energy Yamaha squad) and Brandon Hartranft, who is a rookie but had a very solid supercross series.
53 Bradley Taft
63 Hayden Mellross
114 Brandon Hartranft
Bradley Taft (pictured) will be joined by rookie Brandon Hartranft and Aussie Hayden Mellross starting at Hangtown this weekend. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE COX
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