10. Sexton Controls His Destiny:
I wrote this exact headline in 10 Things last week, but it may be even more relevant this week. Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton is often the fastest rider on the track, but he continues to make rookie-esque mistakes. In Arlington, Sexton had two tip-over-style crashes and stalled out of the lead. At this point, we have all seen what happened in race three and it must be beyond frustrating for Chase and the team to be handing points, and now the red plate, over to Cooper Webb. In the press conference Chase said he, “races to win,” which is commendable, but there are times where you need to pick your battles and separate racing to win the race from racing to win a championship. This title fight is far from over, but Chase is feeding right into Cooper Webb’s playbook. One would argue Daytona is a must-win, or at least a must-beat-Webb, for Chase Sexton.
9. Coty Schock’s Rise:
To say Muc-Off/FXR/ Club MX Yamaha’s Coty Schock’s progression over the last five years is impressive would be a massive undertaking. I personally out qualified Coty in his SX debut in 2019, so I can relate to how far away he was from where he is now! It is amazing to see his progression and can only be attributed to arduous work, believing in yourself, and surrounding yourself with people who believe in him as well. It all paid off in Arlington with Schock landing on the podium for the first time of his career. He was brilliant off the gate in race one and two, putting himself in great position and even leading a few laps in race one. His 2-4-6 scores put him second overall. The Club MX Yamaha guys are looking like genius’ by taking chance on him last year and even signing him to a three-year deal. He has gone from night show guy, to podium guy. Can he take the last step?
8. Lux Turner is Really Good:
AEO KTM’s Lux Turner opened some eyes with a breakout race in Arlington. Lux went 8-7-9 for a career best ninth overall and spent eleven laps on the night running inside the top five. Lux kind of came out of nowhere as a rookie last year, showing a couple signs of potential, but also missed a substantial chunk of time with a hip injury suffered at A1. He has made a huge leap this year and should be on the radar of many teams going forward.
7. Jordon Smith’s huge get off:
Arlington was tough blow for Jordon Smith and the Triumph Factory Racing team. Coming off a win in Glendale and being just two points out of the points lead, Smith and the team came into the weekend with championship aspirations. He got into the lead around halfway of race one and seemed poised to take advantage of poor starts by Championship rivals Haiden Deegan and Julien Beaumer. A mistake allowed Muc-Off/FXR/Club MX Yamaha’s Coty Schock to take the lead momentarily, but Smith got it right back and fended off a late race charge by Deegan. It looked like he had the win in the bag until a massive crash in the whoops took him out for the night. He took to social media saying he suffered four broken ribs, a punctured lung, and small laceration to the spleen. Smith may not miss a ton of time, but his title hopes are bleak at best.
6. Return of the Danger Zone
Haiden Deegan made a statement in Arlington. The Monster Energy/Star Racing Yamaha rider dominated the night going 1-1-2 for his second win on the season. But it was more than winning; it was the way he won. Deegan put in rides reminiscent of what we saw during Pro Motocross and the SMX Finals, making impressive charges though the field to win in race one and two. Deegan announced on Friday that over the two week break he stopped his one-on-one training with Christian Craig and went back working under Gareth Swanepoel and riding with his teammates during the week. If that was the fix, I suggest he sticks to it. Deegs made it known that this 250 Championship goes through him.
5. Bad Juju:
Red Bull KTM’s Julien Beaumer came into Arlington as the 250 points leader. He left without the red plate, after having his worst race of the season. Beaumer went 6-8-4 for sixth overall and was off all night. It seemed strange until the news broke after the race that he had dislocated his shoulder in a qualifying crash. He got the shoulder popped right back in and put in his best qualifying lap of the day afterwards. However, he was clearly a tick off in the races. An injury ahead of the first East/West Showdown next weekend in Indy is not ideal. Let’s hope Juju can recover quickly enough to bounce back and keep the title hopes alive.
4. Marchbanks Shows a Sign:
Garrett Marchbanks and the Monster Energy Pro Circuit team have not had the greatest start to the 2025 250 West Championship. Garrett did get an impressive heat race win in San Diego but suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out of A2. He finally showed a tiny glimmer of what he is capable of in race two this weekend in Arlington. Marchbanks got a rare good start and finished in third. He went 7-3-5 on the night for fifth overall. I know he and the team expect more, but it was a step in a positive direction. In his interview with Jason Thomas after race two, Garrett explained that he is dealing with three tears in his labrum and a fractured shoulder socket. While the injury is an obvious setback, his starts have also been abysmal. Garrett is capable of podiums and batting for wins, and he needs to start proving that if he wants to stay with this team for 2026.
3. The Enigma of Justin Hill
Justin Hill has been exceptionally good in 2025, but in Arlington he took it to the next level. Hill topped qualifying by half a second and backed it up in the races. He went 4-4-8 for fifth overall, his first top five since Salt Lake 2023. He battled with the Championship contenders all night and it has been fun to watch. On the Pulp MX show on Monday night, Justin praised Monster Energy Team Tedder for providing an atmosphere that is allowing him to excel. He also explained that while Tedder is a private team, they do get a lot of support from KTM, and he does not look at his program as a privateer effort. It would not be shocking to see Jr. Hill on the box at some point this season.
2. Michael Michael Motorcycle
Michael Mosiman has shown massive improvement through the first five rounds for the 250 West Division. The end of his tenure with the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull Gas Gas team was littered with injuries and poor results. The signing with the Monster Energy/ Star Racing Yamaha team in the middle of Supercross last year came out of nowhere. He made his debut with the team in Seattle, qualifying on pole and finishing a solid sixth. But when he crashed out of St. Louis and then suffered a broken neck (for the second time) preparing for Pro Motocross, it seemed like that could be the end of Michael Mosiman. It was a surprise just seeing him on the gate at A1, so seeing him on the podium and leading laps in Arlington was extremely impressive as well as an impressive comeback story. It will be interesting to see what level Mosiman can get to by the end of the season.
1. Coop’s got ‘em where he wants ‘em:
Cooper Webb’s wins in Detroit and Arlington were his first back-to-back wins since 2021. He now has the red plate to himself and has watched his title rival crumble three weekends in a row. By no means does that mean Coop has walked into his situation. He is riding at an aggression level we have not seen in years, getting good starts often and has been sneaky fast, even in qualifying which is usually not his specialty. Despite Chase Sexton’s charge late in race three, it was Webb who had the fastest lap of the race. His ability to balance when to skim and when to jump whoops has also become a secret weapon. Coop has the competition right where he wants them.
