Troy Dog
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Cooper Webb
We’ve known that Cooper Webb is a gamer. He’s a two-time 450SX Champion for a reason. Yet, after last year when he took the summer off from racing I wasn’t sure we’d ever see the same Webb racing anymore. Well, this season, Webb has taught me to never ever doubt him again. It’s basically like the “Chad Reed Effect” where all of the times media and fans would doubt Reedy and he would come back better than ever. Webb is going to be very tough to beat in this final stretch of the season. Tomac may have more wins, but it’s on now.
Hunter Lawrence
This year we have learned just how good Hunter Lawrence is at riding Supercross. Yeah, he’s always been great, but this year I think we can all agree that he’s on another level. He’s peaking at the perfect time. I’ve been thinking lately that Hunter may even go on to have a better 450 career over most of his peers in the 250 class at the moment. One thing that is for sure is that the Honda HRC team is stacked right now and they will be set up for many years with their depth of riders and rumored signings for next season.
Ken Roczen
Roczen proved many people wrong at Indianapolis when he won the main event. I was not one of those people. I truly believed that Roczen would get some wins this year. We’ve already got one (and I was his teammate for that one). I refuse to call him Kickstart Kenny, but he seems to be embracing that. That HEP Suzuki is a great bike and if you didn’t know that before this season, well now you do.
Nate Thrasher
Through all of the Levi Kitchen, Jordon Smith, and Haiden Deegan news for Star Racing we seem to be forgetting that Nate Thrasher is having the best season of his young career. He’s figured out his consistency and so far he’s the only rider who has had the speed to beat Hunter Lawrence. If he keeps progressing like this then he will be the rider to beat in the 250 class for the next couple of seasons. He has filled the void for the team after some big name departures.
Chase Sexton
We know that Chase Sexton is the fastest, but what have we learned from him this season? I guess we’ve mostly learned that through all of the hardships he’s had this season, and losing races late, that he’s very great at handling it all. Sexton has been great at explaining his feelings through the media and to his fans. He’s been really open about everything and I truly respect that. I grew up in an era where riders never said anything and hid inside their motorhomes. Chase is mature well beyond his years and we should all respect him for that.
Main image: Yamaha
