MXP: Hey Newf! Welcome back after being sick last week. We hope you’re feeling better. This past weekend in Anaheim we watched our Canadian riders continue to ride well. Most notable was Preston Masciangelo qualifying for his first-ever 250SX West main event. What did you think of Preston’s night, as well as the rest of our Canadian riders?
RL: Yes I’m back to 100%. Last week was miserable for me and the whole family, but I’m glad to get the wintertime sickness out of the way. Preston had an awesome night in Anaheim, and honestly, the other two rounds were good for him as well, He executed the start in the LCQ and did what he needed to do. I’m impressed with his SX skills, and hopefully, he can keep the ball rolling in Glendale this weekend. It was a bummer for Cole Thompson as he was sick and had a big crash in the whoops, but I’m sure he will be back in that Top 10 fight this weekend. Blake Davies keeps getting better and better. He was close to making it in the heat race, but will need a start if he wants a chance to qualify for the 250SX West main event. Julian Benek has the speed and looked good considering he has no time on the bike after his pre-season crash, and St-Cyr is still battling that injured shoulder. Either way, it’s a fun time to be a Canadian fan since we have all these guys to cheer for.
MXP: After an incredible battle in San Diego between Eli Tomac and Jett Lawrence, we saw Jett finally get his first win of 2025 this past weekend in Anaheim. From here, do you think Jett goes on a roll, or will Tomac rebound and return to the top step of the podium in Glendale?
RL: Well, Jett is definitely more comfortable than he was a few weeks ago and it looks like they continue to get the new Honda better and better, which is scary for the rest of the guys. I still think we are a few weeks away before we see Jett start to click off the wins, and with saying that I still think that Tomac is the best guy right now. Tomac is also really good in triple crowns, and in the past, he’s been fast in Glendale. In two out of three rounds so far Eli has complexly blown the start and in my opinion, it has cost him the win. We also cannot forget about Ken Roczen, this is the best Kenny we have seen in several years.
MXP: Last week, one of the questions was about Ryder McNabb and what it took to get him to come to the Rimbey AX next weekend. Sadly, McNabb won’t be in Rimbey, but Quinn Amyotte will. Since you’re back, we’ll ask it again. Also, in your career what was the largest amount of start money you ever received to attend a race?
RL: I reached out to Quinn a few weeks back and gave him the run down and he was all in. Like honestly why not? There is money to be made, gate drops to get in, and new fans to race in front of. To me, it’s a no-brainer for these guys. A local dealer in the area is hooking Quinn up with a new KTM450 so big thanks to Riderz for that. What is cool about Rimbey is that the entire town and local moto community get behind this event to help make it as big as it is. As far as myself and start money. I used to be able to do pretty well. When I was going to Germany, I was getting around $2500 per weekend start money plus all expenses. For AX events in Quebec, I was always getting around $1000-$1500 plus hotels. Those days are long gone for the most part in Canada, but I was happy to get that kind of money to go to a race that I was probably going to go to anyway.
A few Notable Riders Going to Rimbey AX:
Quinn Amyotte
Tyler Gibbs
Tiger Wood
Blake Davies
Julien Benek
Liam Dodds
