The Ricky & Robb Podcast – Ep. 15

The Ricky & Robb Podcast Show – Ep. 15

Budds Creek looked like a lost cause. We watched second practice, saw the rain coming down, and figured the whole thing was going to be a mud race decided by whoever could keep a bike from grenading. Then a text from BMX legend Greg Hill sent us back to the screen, and the track had completely transformed. Ricky Johnson breaks down exactly what goes into prepping a Pro Motocross track when you are staring at a 50/50 chance of a deluge all week, the ripping, the watering, the packing, the stuff nobody gives the crew credit for because they assume the place just got lucky sitting in a valley. From there we get into Chance Hymas, because that 250 class win was not handed to him. RJ thinks it permanently changes the kid’s career, and he explains why the first real win rewires a rider in a way no amount of coaching can.

Then there is Levi Kitchen and the goggles. He ripped them off, rode blind through the roost, and salvaged 14th. Was it worth it? RJ has a scar on his eyeball from a no goggle moment at 13 years old that he can still describe second by second, and he still says he would have done the same thing. We go deep on mud racecraft nobody teaches anymore, the lens trick he used to save tear offs, the towel tucked in the jersey, and why modern helmets have made this whole problem worse. We also get into Haiden Deegan going full send in the slop when he had nothing to gain, why his mechanic leaving for Formula 1 is a bigger deal than people realize, and the one adjustment RJ believes turns Deegan into the guy nobody can touch. His comparison list for Deegan is Danny Magoo Chandler, James Stewart and Ricky Carmichael, and he thinks Deegan can end up better than all three.

And then the part that gives us both goosebumps. Hunter Lawrence and Jett Lawrence go into the final round separated by one single point, two brothers, one championship, and somebody is going to be heartbroken and happy in the same moment. Cole Davies takes a 14-point cushion over Kitchen into the 250-title fight, and RJ knows exactly how fragile that feels because he blew a 20-point lead in 1982 and lost a championship by two points on a production bike. He tells that story here, including what it actually cost him. We also get into why the asterisk crowd needs to let it go, whether Deegan gets real credit if he wins the last one, and why the check cashes the same no matter how the race played out. If you follow the 450 class or the 250 class at all, this is the setup for the biggest weekend of the season.

Timestamps and Subjects:

00:00 Budds Creek Mud Race: How Track Prep Saved the Racing

03:54 Chance Hymas Breakout: Has He Finally Turned the Corner?

08:16 Cole Davies vs. Levi Kitchen: Championship Strategy & Pressure

10:48 Big Changes at Star Yamaha: Deegan’s Mechanic Heads to Formula 1

12:35 Haiden Deegan in the Mud: Confidence, Commitment & Winning Over Fans

15:20 Deegan vs. Hunter Lawrence: How Quickly Is the 450 Speed Gap Closing?

23:53 What Haiden Deegan Still Needs to Find to Beat the Lawrence Brothers

28:20 Deegan Compared to James Stewart, Ricky Carmichael & Danny Chandler

30:45 Racing Without Goggles: Levi Kitchen, Mud Racing & Rider Safety

43:37 Jett vs. Hunter Lawrence: The 450 Pro Motocross Championship Showdown

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