Slaw Dog
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We’re back to talking dirbikes for Power Rankings! The days of ranking Christmas songs and movies is OVER. With Anaheim 1 this Saturday, it’s time to start getting amped for the upcoming season.
I’ve already ran through my Power Rankings for the 250SX West Region and now it’s time for the big dogs, the 450 Class.
This is NOT for Anaheim 1. This is for all the marbles… the 450 championship. Below you will see my favorites for the title. This is the only list that matters and I reserve the right to change it after Anaheim 1. Those are the rules.
Slaw Dog
1: Jett Lawrence
This is obvious, right? Do I need to explain this? Okay, I will provide further details. In his rookie season Jett Lawrence ranked first in:
Wins: 8
Avg Qualifying: 3.6
Holeshots: 8
Avg Start: 4.9 (tied with Cooper Webb)
Laps Led: 155
Avg Finish: 3.4
Let’s break a few of these down even further:
Jett led 155 laps last year. Chase Sexton was second… with 56. Jett was one lap away from having 100 more laps led than the SECOND RANKED rider!!!!
He had 8 wins, the second best was Webb with four.
He had 8 holeshots, the second best was Sexton with 5.
That right there is why Jett is the favorite.
2: Chase Sexton
If anyone can challenge Jett on purse speed, it is Sexton. I don’t think we saw Sex Dog at 100% last year, his first with Red Bull KTM. They won’t spell it out, but Sexton wasn’t the biggest fan of the bike at the beginning of last year. Have they figured it out? If so, I have Sexton 1A behind Jett. If they haven’t, it could be a long season under the KTM tent.
3: Cooper Webb
Never ever, ever, ever count out Cooper Webb. Dude has that dog in him and will always be near the top of my list as title favorites. If not for a thumb injury last year, Webb maybe could have pulled it out.
Want to feel old? Cooper is 29 and is now a veteran of the class.
“I just turned 29, I don’t know how much longer I really have,” he said in the SuperMotocross Preview Show. “I joke about it, but I say all the time, this is only thing I’m good at so might as well keep it going.”
As long as Webb is racing, he will contend for a championship. 2025 will be no different. With that said, he HAS to get off to a faster start than 2024, where he went 6-11 at the opening two rounds. You can’t let Jett get that big of a gap and expect to crawl out of it.
4: Eli Tomac
This is it. Tomac’s last run at a Monster Energy Supercross title. Last year, Tomac was coming off a devastating injury and still got a win, racked up five runner-up finishes and finished fourth in points. A career year for most riders. And while 2025 will mark his last full-time season, it won’t be a “farewell” tour.
“That’s what’s in my head, that I can still be that guy, still be the top guy, battling with Jett Lawrence and Chase Sexton,” said Tomac in the 2025 SuperMotocross Preview Show. “There’s no way I would have signed up for 2025 for just a farewell tour. I still feel like I can be there. I’m not chasing a specific championship now, I’m just still chasing that checker flag.”
Does Tomac have one more title run in him? I don’t know. What I do know is: he will contend for wins and be top five in the points at the end of the year.
5: Hunter Lawrence
I wrote about this earlier in the week, but I not only have Hunter for the A1 win, but I think he will be the breakout rider in 2025. Why? He develops a tad slow than most and look at his 2024 rookie season.
I’ll break it into three parts: The first 5 races, the next 5 and the last 5. Seeing as this was a 17-round series, and Hunter missed a round due to injury, I broke it into 15 races. Note: He did finish 15th at the season finale at SLC.
First 5
Anaheim 1: DNQ
San Fransisco: 10th
San Diego: 7th
Anaheim 2: 11th
Detroit: 8th
Avg Finish: 11.8
Note: I gave him a 23rd place finish for Anaheim 1.
Second 5
Glendale: 5th
Arlington: 5th
Daytona: 21
Indianpolis: 11th
Seattle: 7th
Avg Finish: 9.8
Third 5
St. Louis: 3rd
Foxborough: 7th
Nashville: 7th
Philadelphia: 7th
Denver: 2nd
Avg Finish: 5.2
This is why I have Hunter HIGH on my list entering the new year.
Troy Dog
