Welcome to Racerhead, coming to you on the eve of Halloween and the end of October. It's been a very long week here, as we had something of a horror story unfold at last weekend's GNCC in Indiana. Shortly after the start of Sunday's final bike race, a tree limb snapped and fell on my sister, Carrie Joe, who was managing the race. If you've ever been to a GNCC or an AMA Pro Motocross Championship event, you've almost certainly seen her out on the track checking on everyone and everything. In this case, she was checking on one of the RacerTV camera stands, which was next to the tree. She heard it snap, as did others around her, but she did not have a chance to get out from under it, and the limb came down on her back and shoulders. She suffered breaks to both shoulder blades, five ribs, fractures to four vertebrae, and more. She was very lucky that it wasn't worse. Carrie Joe was tended to quickly by nearby fans and some fast-acting paramedics. She was stabilized and life-flighted to a hospital in Indianapolis, where she underwent surgery on Monday. She's still at the hospital, but fortunately she's been moved out of ICU. The plan is to transport her tomorrow back here to Morgantown, but she's already well on the road to recovery. Doctors expect her to make a full recovery.

On behalf of Carrie Joe and our whole family, I want to thank all of the people who have reached out, sent their thoughts and prayers, and offered their support. I don't think Carrie Joe realized just how much so many people love and appreciate her, and those messages and posts certainly lifted her spirits. She made her first joke as soon as she woke up from surgery (something about starting a toothpick company) and then asked how the race went (ironically, incredibly, it was her stepson Kailub Russell who won). She's got a great team of friends and coworkers here that are ready to help her in the healing process, and she will finally be forced to take some time off. Again, thank you to everyone out there who has been thinking about her and praying for her. Everything is going to be all right.

Okay, back to Racerhead. Last Friday, we posted a photo I had snapped of Chase Sexton up in the air in the Kawasaki lobby in Irvine, California. He's still up in the air, but probably not in their lobby anymore. Not long after Racerhead went live, a press release went out from Kawasaki saying they were parting ways with Sexton, effective immediately. That came as a surprise to some, not so much to others. The rumor mill did not stop; instead, it grabbed a gear, as Quad Lock Honda, Pipes Motorsports Suzuki, Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati, even back to Red Bull KTM, and even a switch to MXGP were all in the conversations. I heard from one very good source that he was "100 percent going to Quad Lock Honda" as well as "99 percent done deal back to KTM." Ducati went off the table when they announced that they had added Joey Savatgy to the roster, and Suzuki seemed unlikely (to me, anyway) because Ken Roczen announced that he was in fact returning to defend his #1 plate in Monster Energy AMA Supercross.

Maybe by the time this Racerhead goes up this afternoon, we will hear some news about Chase Sexton's eventual landing spot, and hopefully this time we will get to warn Carrie Joe to get out of the way...

Too soon?

Just 71 days until the Anaheim 1 SX...Shout-out again to Josh Gagnon for his jersey countdown! Follow Josh on Instagram: @alwaysbelieve331.

Round two of the 2026 AUSX Championship is at the home of Cole Davies, in Auckland, New Zealand. In fact, rumor has it that North Harbour Stadium is within shouting distance of his neighborhood. What a homecoming it will be, too, as he is coming off a double championship season at only 19 years old. For a rider who moved away to chase the dream and has literally never raced in front of his friends and family on this stage, this will be quite the scene. It hasn't been smooth sailing on every front, though, as his factory Yamaha still hasn't arrived as of the evening before the event. The Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team sent a last-minute passenger to the far side of the world with enough factory parts to build up a new bike at the latest possible moment to make it in time, and that's the production bike he rode today (thanks to Yamaha Down Under). The plan is still to ride his factory bike, as it's scheduled to arrive for delivery tomorrow morning via air freight. All glamour and glitz, right? On either bike, Davies will still enter the SX2 racing as the clear-cut favorite. He won't have it easy, though, as riders like Max Anstie, Brodie Connelly, Lux Turner, and Michael Hicks on his Stark will want a piece of the champ.

In the SX1 category, all eyes will be on Ken Roczen as he makes his New Zealand debut. K-Roc has raced all over the world with great success and will add NZed to the list. Much like Davies, his resume as the defending Monster Energy AMA Supercross champ screams that he's the favorite. Christian Craig is dangerously good at races like this, though. He was lights out at the opener, and don't forget how good he was at last year's WSX round in Australia. We don't always see Christian's best, but when we do, watch out. Kenny knows that all too well and won't be caught by surprise. They'll be flanked by Aussie Luke Clout, who has taken former AUS-X champs to the limit in prior years. He will likely be outclassed by Roczen and arguably Craig, too, but he is a great starter and could make things interesting. Throw in a veteran like Cedric Soubeyras and another Stark in the form of Jorge Zaragosa, and we should be in for a great night in Auckland.

These races are about more than the actual battling on track, though. For two solid days, Davies and Roczen have been PR machines. As I type this, they are doing one-on-one fan interaction sessions. They've been on radio stations, TV stations, done PR hits in memorable spots, and generally just been spreading the magic of SMX (AUS-X in this case). There is simply no way you could tune into any local media or open a social media app in this part of the world and not hear about this sport. I think those two are likely cooked by now, and riding will be a relief. But as far as getting people engaged, it would be hard to imagine a better job being done than this crew.

When I say, "Chasing Chase," I mean I've spent more than a few days chasing down Chase Sexton rumors. As we saw, he split with Monster Energy Kawasaki after year one of a three-year deal. The dude must really not like the bike and/or team because, like Jorge Prado last year, he left millions on the table. Yes, millions.

So, what's next? Yeah man, I really don't know. I got some calls and texts from seriously connected people within the industry that all said different things: Quad Lock Honda, Pipes Motorsports Suzuki or back to Red Bull KTM. Those are the three landing spots most mentioned. I think, as I type this Thursday night, it's looking like he might join the SX champ on yellow, but what do I know? Not much I guess, because info is all over the place. I even tweeted out that Sexton rumors were ruining my MTB ride the other day, which got me a funny text from Chase himself saying that I love it. To which I replied, "I do not. It's my off-season, dammit!"

I don't know if the Quad Lock Honda or the Pipes Suzuki rides would include outdoors, though, as neither team commits to the full MX schedule, but I would hope so. Sexton outdoors, when he's feeling it, is a pretty cool thing to watch. Remember, he won the 450 Pro Motocross title just two years ago! So, we'll wait and see what Chase gets on—remember he's coming back from an ACL repair, so knowing that, knowing he's going to be on a new bike—it'll be a tough off-season for the #4 wherever he lands. I just hope he's happy.

The ever-busy Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing fleet is once again expanding, as they have added Casey Cochran and three amateur prospects: Easton Graves (from Husqvarna) and Levi and Jagger Townley, the sons of Ben Townley.

Also, AEO Powersports and BarX Racing are switching to Husqvarna for the 2027 SMX season, joining Team Tedder and Cooper Webb on the white bikes.

Team ROKiT Partzilla PRMX Yamaha is welcoming Colt Nichols to the team for the 2027 season.

Avery Long has joined the Phoenix Racing Honda team and has confirmed that he will race in the 250 SX East Region.

And, unfortunately, the MX6 Kawasaki team is closing down, which means Cullin Park, Enzo Temmerman, and Jett Reynolds are now looking for '27 rides.

I caught up with the new Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati rider, Joey Savatgy, for a short little podcast and despite what you may think, Savatgy didn't jump at the offer to return to a factory team right away. He did get a multi-year deal to go there, which has to be nice, but Savatgy was riding very well on the Quad Lock Honda team and was at home. But as he mentioned, he did have to travel to races in Australia and the now-defunct WSX series to get as much money as he was making, which made it tough for him and his family. Now he's in the USA, indoors and out, for two years, and he told me he is looking forward to getting back at it outdoors, as he's raced a very limited amount of those the last two years. Either way, I look forward to seeing Joe Dawg on the Duc!

We recently got a chance to head to Chaney Ranch in Southern California to meet up with the Italian Ducati brand.

Ducati is officially entering the 250cc four-stroke motocross market with the all-new 2027 Desmo250 MX, and it's bringing some unique technology to an already competitive class. Following the introduction of the Desmo450 MX, Ducati is looking to shake things up against the established Japanese and Austrian manufacturers.

At the heart of the Desmo250 MX is an all-new engine featuring Ducati's signature desmodromic valve system. This engine produces a claimed 44.5 horsepower at 12,500 rpm and can rev all the way to 15,000 rpm. Ducati's goal is to deliver a broad power character with plenty of over-rev, allowing riders to stretch each gear without constantly reaching for the shifter.

The chassis features an aluminum perimeter frame, 49mm Showa spring forks, a Showa rear shock, Brembo brakes, and Pirelli MX32 Scorpion Mid-Soft tires. Ducati also brings an impressive electronics package that includes adjustable traction control, two riding modes, engine braking control, launch control, and an upshift quick-shifter.

At a claimed 227 pounds wet, the Desmo250 MX isn't necessarily rewriting the weight category, but Ducati is banking on its engine character, chassis balance, and electronics to separate itself from the competition.

The big question was whether the Desmo250 MX can deliver the kind of usable power, comfort, and predictability that everyday motocross riders need, or if its high-revving personality will cater more toward aggressive racers. With an already stacked 250 class, Ducati has its work cut out for it, but it's refreshing to see another manufacturer bring something different to the starting gate. With that being said, I tried to break down all of the "important aspects" of the bike on a very fast track right here:

Levi Kitchen's latest vlog on MXoN:

Joey Savatgy on his new Ducati:

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