Monster Energy’s Tristan Prueitt Caps Off Breakout Week at Loretta Lynn’s

Had it not been for some misfortune in his opening 250 B moto at the Monster Energy AMA Amateur National MX Championship at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills, TN last week, Monster Energy’s Tristan Prueitt would have put up a perfect weekend.

Following that 11^th place (from dead last) effort in 250 B’s Moto 1, Prueitt would go on to sweep the next two 250 B class motos – as well as all three Schoolboy 2 motos – to take one overall Loretta’s national championship, along with a runner-up. And for that, the AMA recognized him with this year’s prestigious “Amateur Rider of the Year” award.

“I had a really good week winning 5 out of the 6 motos, I was feeling great on my bike all week and glad I could put the Schoolboy 2 class together for a clean sweep and win the last 2 motos of 250B,” said the Husqvarna rider who hails from West Linn, Ore. “It felt great to get the 125 B/C (class) win at Loretta’s last year, and carry the momentum into this year as well.”

In addition to all those heroics at Loretta’s, Prueitt also found out that he was appointed to “Major” in the Monster Army – a title that very few Monster Army members have received over the years. So the ‘Hits just kept on coming’ for the soon-to-be pro motocross racer.

“It definitely feels great to get moved up to the Major tier… super grateful to be a part of the Monster Army for the fourth year,” he said.

Back to Loretta’s, Prueitt’s week at the Ranch didn’t quite start out the way it finished. He expanded on the moto that kept him from going a perfect 6-for-6 on the week… “I spun really hard off the start and I was pretty far back. Then, before the Ten Commandments (jump sequence), I went inside and someone ran into me from the side and we both went down. So I was in last on the first lap and had to put a charge to try and salvage every position. Then, into the fourth lap, my subframe and plastic bolt came out so my plastic was hitting my leg and my seat was moving a little bit in the corners.”

A deflating situation like that, especially on the opening day of 250 B racing at Loretta’s, could have been devastating. However, Prueitt somehow seemed to put it behind him and rally back with two straight wins in the class – along with a three moto 1st/1st/1st sweep of Schoolboy 2.

“I knew that my riding wasn’t how I’ve been training, so I just put that moto beside and restarted mentally,” explained Prueitt. “I executed my next start and just dug deep the whole moto, then kept the ball rolling from there.”

And roll he did – putting up the best week of racing, results-wise, in his long history of racing the Monster Energy AMA Amateur National MX Championship – dating back to racing 51cc Cobras, then a long run with KTMs on 65s and 85s, a quick stint with Yamaha in 2023, and onto Husqvarnas beginning in 2024.

One of the main keys to Prueitt’s success? None other than Aldon Baker, all-time MX champ Ricky Carmichael’s former trainer, who runs the highly acclaimed Baker’s Factory in Central Hill, Fla.

“The last two years, I’ve been down at the Baker’s Factory with Aldon, Timmy Badour and Justin Boyd,” said Prueitt. “We have put in a lot of work on and off the bike since I moved down there. We have been cycling two to three times a week and a century (ride) every Saturday for five weekends. It was a lot of work but it definitely all paid off!”

Understanding that motocross is more of a team sport than people on the outside get to see, Prueitt was also quick to share props with his parents and grandparents, who Prueitt said “Made so many sacrifices” for his racing career when they moved from Oregon to Florida.

Back at Loretta’s, Prueitt ran some all-white gear that never seemed to get dirt at the Ranch, despite all the mud getting slung around. He talked about importance of being up front at Loretta’s, and the feeling of winning not just one – but five motos.

“Being in the front of the pack off the start helps so much with the whole moto makes it a lot easier on yourself - especially towards the end of motos, you don’t have to pass people,” he said. “And winning a moto, let alone five motos at Lorreta’s, just feels great to do it in front of everyone there.”

Though the summer’s winding down, Prueitt still has a lot of events on his schedule, including national amateur MX events at Ponca (Okla.) and the season-ending Mini Os (Fla.). He’s also set to be in the gate at the MX Nationals’ final event, the Ironman in Crawfordsville, Ind., to contest the final MX Combine of the season.

Beyond dirt bikes, growing up in Oregon, which is a definite action sports hotbed with mountain biking and other gravity sports, Prueitt was asked if there’s any X Games/Dew Tour-style sports he’s into, outside dirt bikes, that MonsterEnergy.com readers would find interesting.

“I grew up going to Mt. Hood as a snowboarder and enjoy watching snowboarding a lot,” he said. “Some of the top guys do some insane stuff.”

And we’re sure they’d (Monster Energy-backed snowboarders Scotty James, Rocco Jamieson, Ethan Morgan and Mason “Jar” Lemery) say they same if/when they got a chance to see Prueitt race a dirt bike.

Up next… Check out Monster Energy racer results here on MonsterEnergy.com, and you can follow the action – via replays - from Loretta’s through www.mxsports.com and on www.floracing.com. The next major amateur national motocross events are the Moto Playground Race at Ponca City, Sept. 30 through Oct. 4, and the Nov. 21-28 Thor Mini O’s (Winter National Amateur Motocross) at Gatorback Cycle Park in Alachua, FL.