Ten Things We Learned In Tampa

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10. Max Anstie is Flying on the Race Track:

For the past few seasons, there has been a lot of talk about Max Anstie “flying at the test track” during the off-season. Although he has won a few races and shown glimpses of speed that could justify the hype, his new team’s primary goal is to win championships. Fast forward to Tampa and a switch to Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing, and it appears that an off-season at the farm could be just what Anstie needs to compete for the 250 East title. He dominated the series’ first race, finishing on pole in qualifying, winning the heat race, and winning the main event. Can he string together results worthy of a championship run?

9. The Lawrence Camp will be tested in 2025.

Jett and Hunter Lawrence have not had a good start to 2025. After a disastrous A1 for both brothers on the track, two weeks later off-track news broke, revealing a split between them and their longtime agent Lucas Mirtl. Jett overcame all of that with a win, only to tear his ACL last week in Glendale, putting him out for the season. Hunter had been gradually gaining momentum, with three fifth-place finishes in a row. Tampa put a stop to that momentum. The elder Lawrence suffered a serious heat race crash, knocking him out for the night. Early reports indicate a head injury that is day-to-day, but Lawrence may not be on the gate in Detroit next weekend.

8. Pierce Brown Can Get Started

Pierce Brown had a strong finish at the SMX Finals in Las Vegas last year. In the final race of his five-year tenure with the Red Bull TLD GasGas team, the Utah native finally took the lead and won his first professional race. Brown has spent much of his career working his way through the pack, but he now has one race with strong starts—and a win—to demonstrate what he can do if he starts at the front. Would switching to the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing fix the starts? The one race test indicates that yes. He got out ahead early in his heat and led until the restart. In the main event, he took the lead early and led for six laps before being eliminated due to a violent crash in the whoops. Pierce has since updated us on Instagram, saying the crash left him with a broken T5 vertebrae and that he has already undergone surgery. Get well soon, PB, and here’s to continuing where he left off when he returns.

Pierce Brown up front off of the start.Align Media

7. Eli Tomac and McAdoo are Gnarly.

During the pre-race press conference in Tampa, Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider Cameron McAdoo revealed that he had a torn ACL due to a recent crash caused by a bike failure. He intends to race through it, and so far so good. He was consistent throughout the day and managed to finish on the podium.While Eli Tomac’s ride was not as impressive as McAdoo’s, it was equally gritty. Everyone feared the worst after an awkward dab of the foot in the second qualifying session left him looking up at the sky and riding off track. Fortunately, he did not reinjure his Achilles, but early reports of a calf bruise forced Eli to battle through the night to finish 17th and earn five championship points. According to a Yamaha press release, there was a sprained ankle and severe bruising. He was sometimes navigating the whoops on one leg! Both guys had unbelievable rides.

6. Forget What You Know About 250 East:

It is unusual for both divisions’ previous year’s champions to face off in the following season’s 250 SX championship, but that is what we will see in 2025.In the 250 East Series, defending champions Tom Vialle and RJ Hampshire will compete against one another. In 2024, Levi Kitchen nearly beat Hampshire for the title, so surely one of the three will be on the podium. Wrong. Vialle was the highest finisher in the group, finishing fifth!

“I had a big crash through the whoops in qualifying, so I was lucky to get away with that one,” said Vialle in a KTM PR. “I didn’t feel great during practice or qualifying, but I felt a little better for the night show and P5 in our first Main Event of the year. It’s not bad, and while it’s not where we want to be, we’ll work from here and improve for next weekend.

“Qualifying wasn’t great, but it wasn’t bad,” Kitchen explained in a Kawasaki statement. “During the Heat Race, I had to make a quick stop in the mechanics’ area due to a bike issue, which set me up for a poor gate pick. I didn’t execute my start in the main, and then I crashed in the sand section, so I was quite far behind. I simply tried to make do with what I had. I’m not particularly pleased with my performance. I feel like I’m riding pretty well right now, so I’ll just put this one behind us and move on to the next.”

There are no podiums for this group.We’re left scratching our heads about what to expect this weekend in Detroit.

RJ Hampshire and Tom Vialle.Align Media

5. RJ is gonna RJ.

RJ Hampshire is known for consistently putting forth his best effort. The reigning 250 West Division Supercross champion entered the series unprepared, having suffered a wrist injury on Press Day at Pala Raceway prior to last year’s Pro Motocross opener. Despite his preseason struggles, RJ managed to qualify second and win his heat race. After a mediocre start to the main, the Rockstar Husqvarna rider jumped onto a tough block in a rhythm section and became entangled for more than a lap! He charged the entire main despite being a lap down, but only managed to finish 18th. Hampshire needs to make a big comeback in Detroit.

4. Sophomore jump:

Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha’s Daxton Bennick began his rookie season in 2024 with a podium finish in Detroit. That was the best we could get from Dax, as his season gradually deteriorated, and he was even benched for the last few Pro Motocross events and the SMX Playoffs. Bennick blamed his problems on illness, and after a quiet off-season, he returned to the podium at the opener, finishing second. Dax rode brilliantly, keeping his teammate Anstie in check the entire time. Is 2025 the year he breaks out, or is he only a round one specialist?

3. Lightning can strike twice.

Tampa Supercross 2023.Chase Sexton leads for 21 laps before losing control in the final four laps.Cooper Webb took advantage of Chase’s mistake and won the race. Fast forward to 2025, and Sexton takes a rare holeshot in the main and leads the first eighteen laps before throwing it away in the whoops. Almost a carbon copy of 2023. Webb did not win this time, but he did manage to cut Chase’s deficit in half. Is this an unusual coincidence or cause for concern?

Chase SextonAlign Media

2) Cooper’s Webb:

Cooper Webb is heating up. Webb admitted that Jett’s injury provides an opportunity to win the championship, and he was fired up all day in Tampa. He was quick in qualifying and won his heat race. He may not have won the race, but all of his title rivals were hit last weekend, and he senses blood in the water. This is dangerous territory for his opponents, but Coop still needs to win a race. Is Detroit where he will put his Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing machine on top of the podium?

1. Hometown Hero.

Malcolm Stewart’s 10-7-9-10 scores to start the season were adequate, but there was no reason to expect him to charge through the field and win his first career 450 SX. Nobody is complaining about Mookie’s hometown atmosphere and gnarly set of whoops!Raymond James Stadium had a Denver/Eli Tomac vibe, with cheers following Malcolm around the track during the final laps of the main event. Malcom was just as excited as the fans after the race, and it was refreshing to see such emotion and gratitude following a victory.