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00:00We get ready to crown a winner in North Carolina.
00:03Revs are up.
00:04Gates down.
00:05Not as good a start for Tomac this time.
00:12Still a pretty good start.
00:15Is that Jett Lawrence on the other side?
00:16Yeah, that's Jett up front.
00:17Yep, Jett is going to have it on one end.
00:19Justin Cooper on the other side gets the lead.
00:22That outside line is faster coming through that right-hander when they dip down in between
00:27that valley right there.
00:29Watch Tomac on the outside.
00:30This double is challenging Lawrence.
00:32Now, let's see how this plays.
00:34Eli wants to get in front of Jett Lawrence early in this race.
00:37He's going to go around him.
00:38He's got it.
00:39He's on the inside.
00:40Tomac makes the move on Lawrence.
00:41Yeah, nice move.
00:42Nice move.
00:43It looks like Chase Exton makes a move on Hunter Lawrence as well.
00:46Yeah, Sexton up to fourth and right there with Jett Lawrence.
00:50Joining the party right here.
00:51This is going to be an absolute showdown with these four guys right here.
00:57It ain't going to be easy to get by Justin Cooper now.
00:59Oh, Eli almost went in the back of him.
01:02He hit that little braking bump.
01:03Let's see what Justin Cooper, he was our fastest qualifier today, so we know he's got pace.
01:08Now he's got the start.
01:09Let's see what he can do with it.
01:10Oh, Hunter trying to make the move by Sexton.
01:14I believe he did.
01:15Let's see the order.
01:17Sexton and Hunter side-by-side into the split lane for fourth.
01:21Can Tomac get the split lane to take the lead?
01:26He gets a willy over that.
01:27Nice.
01:28Justin Cooper got out of that corner pretty good.
01:31Oh, but he's got the sand tire, and we're headed into the sand.
01:33Is there room to make a pass?
01:35No, he's got to funnel back in.
01:36Yeah.
01:37But Eli, you notice how he can lean his motorcycle in that sand section, and that's where he was.
01:42He was the fastest in the sand and the open part of the racetrack.
01:47Motor Bros. part.
01:48Sexton responding back around.
01:51Hunter Lawrence stares to quad from Tomac.
01:53Oh, he's going to have the line.
01:55No, that was a good scrub that Justin Cooper did over that single.
01:59He drove through there.
02:00He was able to keep that speed going, that forward momentum.
02:03Great job.
02:05And now back into the motocross section.
02:07Yeah, this is where Eli was really quick in the opening part of the first moto.
02:12James, do you think that through this section that, number one, Eli is an incredible rider,
02:18but do you think that the scoop is a huge advantage right here for him?
02:21Yeah, I think so.
02:22And it doesn't hurt him here because of how fast it is.
02:26I think where the other tire, since it would be hard packed, going slower, you really need
02:30that tire to grip.
02:31Since it's so fast, it doesn't hurt him.
02:33So if anything, it would help him as he almost loops out.
02:36That scoop was hooking up then.
02:38So Justin Cooper looking to put two laps lead in the books here.
02:45Tomac again right back to him in that corner.
02:47Yeah.
02:48This is what we wanted to see right here.
02:51All the best guys in the series.
02:55Neck and neck.
02:56Yeah, I think with it being a little bit more overcast, it's not drying his track out as
03:00quickly as we thought it would be.
03:02So that's helping Eli as well.
03:04Also with the overcast as well, James, as you know, it kind of cuts down on the glare
03:08and the shadows as well.
03:09So that's super helpful for these riders.
03:11Eli was trying to turn that bike.
03:13He couldn't get it turned quick enough.
03:15But now he's got the funnel back in.
03:18Send it to Will.
03:20Guys, I think this is the position that Jeremy Coco, the team manager over at Monster Energy
03:25Yamaha Star Racing, was expecting to see Justin Cooper in.
03:28When I spoke to him earlier on today, he said watch out for him today.
03:32He's going to be kind of a dark horse, if you like.
03:34He said there's no works which aren't something that Justin Cooper loves.
03:37And he said on top of that, he's one of the fastest guys in the rhythm.
03:41As Eli Tomac looks to make work of his teammate there and take that lead.
03:45But Justin Cooper obviously still in a great position now, guys.
03:48I said he's fast in the rhythm section.
03:50He's good in these fast wide open sections.
03:53So now we're going to see if he can hang on the back of Eli Tomac.
03:56But for the rookie, Justin Cooper, great start to this.
03:59He's fast in the rhythm, but Tomac will figure it out a faster way.
04:03And now you're going to see the number three really pour it on and try to open up this gap.
04:08You know, I'm surprised, James, that Jet Lawrence hasn't went to that on off quad rhythm section.
04:16Like Eli is doing.
04:18He's right there in front of him.
04:20You know, probably because the G force is on there.
04:23It seems like it would be harder on his thumb or his wrist injury.
04:26So maybe he's not doing it because of that reason, J.T.
04:29We've got a 16.
04:31Sorry, J.T., go ahead.
04:33No, I just think Jet is a little hesitant, right?
04:35You're wondering, okay, what does a layoff do?
04:37What does an injury do?
04:39And I think he's a little conservative.
04:41He's still riding incredibly well.
04:43We saw him move up in motor one.
04:45But he doesn't have quite that burst.
04:47He doesn't want to be as aggressive.
04:49You see a little mistake there.
04:51Those are the subtle signs of taking time off.
04:53And I also think Jet's willing to take what comes.
04:55And you see the battle here.
04:57We'll see how he responds.
04:59But I think he's willing to take whatever result comes today versus forcing it when he's not back to 100% yet.
05:03There's the broken thumb and surgery for Jet Lawrence.
05:0566 days since surgery.
05:07Back to racing now.
05:09Tomac had a similar injury.
05:11He's had about four months at this point.
05:13And an incredibly quick recovery for these two, James.
05:15Yeah, absolutely.
05:17I mean, the fact that he's out here riding is impressive.
05:19But, yeah, going over that table top, I think it's just a g-force.
05:21And right before the finish line when he went in that wall, you can see how his body collapsed.
05:25That would be an injury.
05:27If it is hurting, that would be a problem.
05:29Yeah, I just want to throw you guys in on this recovery.
05:31Because it is, like you said, Jason, incredibly fast compared there to the other two riders with similar injuries.
05:37And talking to his physiotherapist, Dr. G, as everyone calls him, Dr. Gubnik.
05:41He said, honestly, this was just the work that Jet Lawrence put in.
05:45He's asked him to come to California during his six weeks of rehab there.
05:49And he said he went into physio two times a day, every single day during that time.
05:55He'd go to lunch.
05:58And he said that work, we can't prove it necessarily.
06:00But that work there definitely shows.
06:02Obviously, he's got youth on his side, too.
06:04Well, it's helping. He needs everything he's got.
06:06Because he's battling Cooper.
06:08He's familiar foes from the 250 class.
06:10And now Lawrence is up to second.
06:12You talk about force on a thumb.
06:14Breaking that hard.
06:16And the resistance coming through the handlebars is a lot of force, Adam.
06:22One thing that really impresses me with Jet Lawrence, I know he's not winning.
06:27I know he didn't win the first moto.
06:29But to be able to come out here and stick to your game plan, James and Ricky, I know you guys know how hard that is.
06:34You come out here, all you want to do, all the prides on the line, all you want to do is win.
06:38But staying within yourself, I really think that's why before, prior to Outdoors, he's had seven straight championships.
06:45He's going for Tomek right now, boys.
06:49It's the discipline.
06:50The discipline is the toughest thing in my mind, Adam, what you're talking about.
06:54Yeah, incredibly hard to do, especially in moments like this, in moments of battle.
06:59Yeah, 100%.
07:01It looked like Eli, he was excited, got past all these guys, got that burst of energy and kind of laid up a little bit, Ricky.
07:08And Jet closed in on him really quick.
07:11We've been talking, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you.
07:15We've been talking so much about Sexton and so much about Jet Lawrence, but, dude, Eli came to play today.
07:23Oh, yeah, no, that's what I said.
07:24ET3, don't forget about me.
07:26Well, look at this.
07:27This is also the battle for today's overall, and Lawrence is all over Tomek.
07:32Sexton looking to make the move on Cooper in the bottom box for third.
07:36He has it.
07:37Yeah, nice move by Chase, but kind of like auto-repeat, you know what I mean?
07:42Like this is what we thought maybe would change during the motocross season.
07:45So let's see if Chase can start closing in and see if he can close these guys in because he's got the speed, JT.
07:51I have a question for you two guys.
07:53You're both multi-time champions, and the mental game, the mental aspect of this for Chase Sexton.
07:59If Jet Lawrence comes out here, and whether he wins this overall or not, if he beats Chase Sexton in both motos in his first race back,
08:07how does Chase recover from that?
08:09How do you go to sleep at night knowing Jet just showed up and beat you in both motos in your first race back?
08:14I mean, it would be tough for sure.
08:17I mean, look here, especially the way it is.
08:20But not only that, you've got Eli.
08:22You know, Eli just came off an injury to show up and is out here performing.
08:26But it is a different format.
08:27You know, Chase did struggle a little bit in the supercross season, so maybe that's a different formula to have to go work.
08:33But I can tell you what, it would make me have a few nightmares for sure.
08:36But Chase Sexton is a champion.
08:38I'm sure he'll figure it out.
08:39It's definitely not ideal, J.T., that's for sure.
08:42And I don't think it's going to sit well.
08:44It wouldn't sit well.
08:45Well, I know it wouldn't sit well with you, James, and it wouldn't with me.
08:48I'd be annoyed by it.
08:51I'd definitely have to go to the drawing board and figure out what to do because, like James, you talk about it a lot.
08:57It's such a mental game at this level.
09:00Yeah, and the thing is with Chase, he can't be mad at it.
09:03He can't be mad at like he's not fast enough because he'll probably close back in on these guys.
09:07But the problem that we thought maybe would change is once he got there, would he be able to have that race craft and be able to make moves, switch up the lines, get around them?
09:16That's the part where I see like he's struggling with.
09:18But we'll find out.
09:19He was your fastest rider on the last lap.
09:22You know, I think other than supercross, this is really like the first time that Jet Lawrence has been able to get in a really good battle on a faster track
09:32with Eli Tomac.
09:35So I think this is, it would be cool to hear Jet's reaction to what this battle is like riding behind Eli on a faster hybrid track and not only supercross.
09:47Remember last year in Jet's rookie pro motocross season, Eli was out.
09:51Yes, and Jet had a lot of thoughts about coming into supercross that he had not raced Eli, and he wanted to learn from the hands of one of the greatest riders to ever do it.
10:00And we are finally getting that type of battle.
10:03We had so much talk about Sexton versus Lawrence, but let's not take the multi-time champ, the living legend, the man who is second on the all-time wins list for supercross.
10:14Phil Micheletti, the veteran, is out for a great first moto.
10:18But this is the battle between the living legend and the next star of this sport.
10:23They're fighting for the win today, and who knows what momentum that could mean for the future.
10:28Absolutely, and this race is going to come out.
10:31Eli missed that quarter out there, but Eli, this is all to experience your whole career, because he knows at one point he's not going to pull away from Jet.
10:39And so what you start doing, you start having that race against him.
10:43Like, okay, once he closes in, I'm going to have to pick it up here.
10:46So Eli's racing to win this race, but he's not racing to pull away from Jet.
10:50He knows that ain't probably going to happen, so we'll see how this plays out, and hopefully that number four kind of stays in that distance.
10:57Well, I mean, Chase is keeping it close.
10:59He actually gained a little bit here.
11:01Oh, yeah.
11:02Three-rider battle now as we go into the second half.
11:05Halfway through this moto.
11:06A reminder that monster energy is available now.
11:09These are three titans of this sport, and what a showdown to kick off the first run of the playoffs.
11:18Sexton still closing.
11:20See how rough that track is, and this is where that supercross suspension maybe hurts him a little bit.
11:26You see that body bouncing around, jiggling, jiggling up there.
11:31Yeah, and the accelerating bumps like James was talking about coming out of that corner.
11:35I mean, that is where these guys really have to be.
11:39Well, watch this section right here.
11:41Now, Eli Tomek, they're entering the sand section.
11:43Watch Jet behind Eli.
11:44He's doubling into the sand.
11:46You'll see Eli drop in.
11:47Watch Jet jump behind him.
11:49Jump, and he connects those two sand rollers.
11:51When we first saw Jet start to add pressure, that's where he was making the time-up.
11:55He's able to pull away from Sexton.
11:57He's able to pull away from Tomek.
11:59He's able to pull away from Sexton.
12:01He's able to pull away from Tomek.
12:03He's able to pull away from Tomek.
12:05That's where he was making the time-up.
12:06He's able to pull away from Sexton and make up a little bit of time.
12:09It seems like Eli's a little bit faster everywhere around.
12:12So, if Eli can put, I think, that together, maybe figure out a couple things,
12:15I think he's capable of pulling away.
12:17But Jet just has a couple lines that are keeping him in this race.
12:20Yeah, no, I agree.
12:22I mean, Jet's definitely has, and he's keeping his momentum up,
12:25which obviously is going to help him.
12:27But to me, I don't think it's whether Eli can pull away.
12:30I think Eli could.
12:31He's just not trying to do that
12:33because it's going to be harder for him as far as,
12:36he can't pull away enough to make this race easy,
12:38but he's got to make sure that Jet,
12:40it's almost somewhat easier to keep him close to you,
12:43keep him contained.
12:45And the veteran rider that Eli is, right,
12:48he's going to run his pace.
12:50I don't think that, he's not going to try to pull away.
12:53Does he want to pull away?
12:54Of course he does, but I think he rides at the highest level that he possibly can.
12:58And what that rewards him is what that rewards him.
13:01I mean, a lot like when you and I used to race, James,
13:03I mean, if I go over the limit trying to beat you,
13:06and I know I can't pull away from you,
13:08I'm either going to go into the red zone and get tired and fatigued,
13:12or I'm going to risk falling down.
13:14So Eli and how much experience he has,
13:17I think this is helping him in that situation.
13:20Yep, got it.
13:21Great point, and that's exactly what I meant.
13:23Like, Eli, yeah, he could probably go faster,
13:25but what does that put him at?
13:26But it's a lot easier just keeping him here.
13:28When he gets close, get on the gas.
13:30Eli looks very aggressive to me.
13:31He looks really comfortable.
13:33And with that paddle tire,
13:35there's going to be parts of his racetrack that he is going to struggle.
13:37If you notice, some of the exit is at the corner.
13:40It's like he's sliding out a little bit more than Jett.
13:43But then in the sand section, this latter part, it's working for him.
13:47So find out. Six minutes left.
13:49And I'm going to tell you, like, Jett's in a tough spot right here.
13:52I mean, the dude is getting absolutely pelted with roost.
13:56And those things are like sitting in front of a paintball
13:58and just getting absolutely annihilated by it.
14:01And you have to hold your breath at times.
14:03And he's in a tough spot.
14:05Yeah, and you notice when Eli went on that tabletop and jumped off,
14:08his rear end was spinning.
14:09That's that paddle tire, and the difference between the two,
14:12maybe he can't get the grip that he wants to because it's so hard right there.
14:16But still, those guys are running, and that number four,
14:19he's still right there.
14:21Problem is not getting there. It's getting past them.
14:24And that's where the challenge comes with chase.
14:26And it's so hard to pass these guys at this level.
14:29They're so good at their craft, and they have a sense.
14:32You know, they know they have a good idea, most of the time,
14:35of where you might get by them.
14:37So they'll close that opportunity off for you, trying to get by,
14:41which makes it that much harder to make a move.
14:45Towback, 31 years old.
14:47Lawrence, 21.
14:50Towback, a six-time champion of motocross and supercross.
14:55And here is this year's pro motocross champion, Chase Sexton,
14:58closing and closing and closing on those two.
15:01A little bit further back, Justin Cooper, then Ken Rockson in fifth.
15:05And Hunter Lawrence, who is up front early,
15:07shuffled back to sixth ahead of Malcolm Stewart.
15:10Better run for Ken Rockson here.
15:13Maybe they got that bike tuned up for him.
15:15Maybe they changed the gearing or something,
15:17give him a little more power where he needed it,
15:20like you were talking, James.
15:22But certainly from a time perspective,
15:24he's much closer to the lead than he was to first moto.
15:27Yeah, absolutely.
15:28And people are asking, well, somebody as close as Jet Lawrence to the lead.
15:32And he's been closing in.
15:34As J.T. Mentioned, I guarantee you it's that entrance of the sand doubling in.
15:37I just noticed Ken Rockson doing the same behind him.
15:41So see if Eli can get that quad.
15:44Doesn't get it.
15:47And it does seem like a jet would actually hit that.
15:50You have made guys so much more time.
15:52I mean, I wonder.
15:53I mean, but like you brought up an extremely fair point,
15:57maybe just because of the G out and what doing it the way that Eli does,
16:02it just puts too much force on that thumb.
16:04And I'm totally speculating right here.
16:06But it would seem like it hurt a lot more.
16:10And how much strength does Lawrence have?
16:12First race back from injury.
16:14And as this race is going, he is only getting better.
16:17It's about as close as he has been to Tomac.
16:20This is where he got by Justin Cooper right here.
16:22Came up the inside.
16:24Got a good run.
16:26Yeah, he does that scrub.
16:28Big scrub.
16:30Looks pretty good.
16:31But Eli is closing that off.
16:33So long as Eli gets to the inside here.
16:35I like this outside line.
16:37I like it a lot better on the body it seems like.
16:40We're going to be down to three minutes and a lap.
16:42It's a stretch run.
16:44Battle for the win.
16:45Lawrence and Tomac.
16:46I think Jets had enough.
16:48Yeah, I mean that number one plate is covered up.
16:51But let's see.
16:52Eli should just fade back out to the outside.
16:55Because he knows that inside great move.
16:57A split lane.
16:58Oh, Lawrence trying to find room where there isn't any.
17:00Yeah.
17:02I mean this is the first time these guys battle like this.
17:05As you mentioned earlier.
17:06Here comes the sand double.
17:08And he's got it.
17:10Command move.
17:12You talked about it, James.
17:13You talked about it in the pro motocross championship.
17:15The power moves to go by the dude.
17:18Eli Tomac on the outside.
17:20That was weird.
17:22Yeah, Jett was coming in.
17:24But it looked like Eli laid up on there.
17:26He just somewhat, I wouldn't say gave up.
17:28But he kind of gave Jett the position to do these young kids.
17:31They've come in.
17:33But Jett Lawrence coming off the injury.
17:35Number one is back.
17:37And it only took him, what, 20 or 30 minutes to get back up where he belongs at.
17:41Hey, J.T., you're down track side right now.
17:44Are you surprised in this comeback from Jett Lawrence?
17:48I don't appreciate you putting me on the spot right here.
17:51Because you know I told you in confidence I didn't think he could win.
17:55But I'll tell you right now, I'll never doubt this kid ever again.
17:58End of the story.
18:00Yeah, and you got to believe following Eli, seeing all these lines, knowing that, okay.
18:05Once he realized that Eli, once he pulled away and he started closing him.
18:09Jett probably was like, all right, I'm here to fight.
18:12And then Eli, one mistake.
18:14I'll take it, baby.
18:16James, how about this, though?
18:18How happy do you think Jett Lawrence is right now not getting pelted by Roost?
18:23I mean, that's worth half a second a lap easily.
18:26Yeah, well, I tell you what.
18:28He's happy in a lot of different ways right now.
18:30There's going to be some upset folks after this if this number one continues to do what he's doing.
18:35We theorize what would it mean to the others if Jett was able to come off the injured list
18:41and win, and now it has gone beyond theory.
18:44This is practice now.
18:46And the way he's doing it at the second moto at the end of the day,
18:49the place that you thought maybe you might have a chance because of that wrist being faded,
18:54he hasn't raised, he'll probably get tired.
18:56He's looking like the strongest rider on this track.
18:59Aw, just insult to injury.
19:01He can't let up, though, because Tomac is right there.
19:05And this is interesting.
19:07This is the championship points at SMX as they run.
19:10Putting in one last charge toward Lawrence.
19:13He cannot get that quad, though, through the rhythm.
19:16Aw, Jett messed that rhythm up well, and then Eli messed it up, too.
19:21Man, that's like when you get excited.
19:23It's like, oh, I got him, and then you make a mistake.
19:25But say nothing more.
19:27Eli Tomac and Jett Lawrence, I mean, all these guys that came up.
19:30But really cool to see these two riders out front have stepped up.
19:33They came for this playoffs, and, man, they must have missed racing.
19:38Two injured riders, Tomac and Lawrence, out for the summer with thumb injuries.
19:42And they are going to go 1-2 and quickly make up a lot of ground in the SMX championship
19:47because they were pretty far back in the rankings.
19:50I believe 8th and 11th ranked coming in because they missed so many pro moto cross rounds.
19:55But they're making up that ground in a hurry.
19:58And there you see Lawrence with the only four points off of Sexton in the championship.
20:04Yeah, you can tell these guys are struggling.
20:06Oh, yeah.
20:07Yeah, the overcast has broke it off, and the sun is actually blaring down.
20:11And take a look at it when they come back this direction.
20:14Watch Jett how he'll put his head down coming over this wall jump.
20:17It is gnarly right there.
20:19Yeah.
20:20Looking down.
20:21One lap left.
20:23Eli still there.
20:25Oh, the old veteran isn't going to take this laying down.
20:28Now we've seen these guys, both of them, struggling on this rhythm section.
20:31So if Eli can get this thing good, you know, he might not pass him in the rhythm section.
20:36If he can get out, we know how fast it is once you hit that quad towards the end, too.
20:41You tell anyone in these stands you're getting Lawrence and Tomek battling for the lead in the last lap.
20:46That's what they paid the ticket price for, as advertised.
20:49This would be huge for Eli if he can get him.
20:52See, Jett went a little wide.
20:54He wants to make sure he got over that rhythm.
20:56Come on, Eli.
20:57Oh, he missed it.
20:58He missed the quad.
21:00Oh.
21:02I tell you what, though.
21:03Overall, in my opinion, James, I think this is a win-win for both riders for their own reasons.
21:11It's kind of twofold.
21:12Jett coming back from an injury, competing at the level that he is right now.
21:17And then for Eli Tomek to come out here, win the first moto, and be right on the rear tire of Jett.
21:24I mean, this is probably not the result that he wants.
21:27But hindsight, this is a really, really strong performance for both of these racers.
21:34And they have pulled away from Sexton, who had the momentum coming into this as the pro moto cross champion.
21:38He's now seven and a half seconds off of Jett Lawrence, who incredibly, in just over two months,
21:45in what should be a much longer injury recovery from that thumb surgery, first race back.
21:51Only three weeks on the motorcycle.
21:54And on the new 25 Honda as well.
21:57So a lot to adjust to.
22:00But one thing hasn't changed.
22:02Jett Lawrence is number one on the bike coming in.
22:05And he's number one at playoff number one.
22:08He's back.
22:10Yes.
22:12Hunter Lawrence still battling out here.
22:14You had Lawrence and Roxan fighting.
22:17See the final order there.
22:19It's going to be Tomek, Sexton, Justin Cooper, a great ride.
22:22Roxan gets that fifth place.
22:24Hunter, who is ranked second in SMX in the seeding coming into the playoffs, will take sixth in this moto.
22:31Third in moto one.
22:32But Jett Lawrence.