Tomac, Webb & Team USA Spray Podium Champagne at MXoN
There’s no champagne shower quite like the explosion of fizz on the podium at the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations (MXoN). Team USA made a triumphant return to the box as silver medalists at the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in Matterley Basin, Great Britain, thanks to strong performances from Monster Energy’s Eli Tomac and Cooper Webb. Joining them center stage was Glenn Coldenhoff, and Team NL.
No pressure, no diamonds! No one knows this better than Tomac, who pushed through damp, rough, and rutty conditions to finish second in the premier class. Meanwhile, Webb, with limited time and preparation on the 250, wrapped up a hard-fought weekend, finishing fifth in MX2.
“We gave it our best effort and came up just a few points short of what we wanted to achieve this weekend,” said Tomac. “But wow! The track and the conditions were very tough; we were able to stay consistent and put up some good results. Of course, we wanted more, but it was still a good effort.”
Webb echoed his teammate: “The track conditions and the level this year were insane; all the teams are so strong, especially the European ones. To be up here and just a few points off winning is huge. Obviously, we wanted to win as a group, but for us to finish in second place was something I don’t think anybody expected. We shut a lot of people up, and we were in the fight until the end. We rode great, but we just have to be better when we come back next year!”
At the same time, Team Latvia’s 18-year-old sensation, Karlis Reisulis, delivered a phenomenal performance. The young Latvian edged out some of the biggest names in motocross to finish second overall in his class, MX2.
“This weekend started out rough, man,” Reisulis explained. “I crashed out of the qualifying race on Saturday, which meant Latvia was in the B-Final this morning. It was nice to win the B-Final and make it into the main event. I got two good starts in the races and managed to finish P2 in the MX2 class, so it ended up being quite a good weekend.”
Rounding out Monster Energy’s podium success, ‘The Hoff’ (Glenn Coldenhoff) powered through a brutal weekend to celebrate with his teammates, Jeffrey Herlings and Kay de Wolf, as Team Netherlands claimed the third step of the podium.
“It was a difficult weekend for me,” Coldenhoff admitted. “I struggled quite a bit in the first moto and went down at the end, so I didn’t get any decent result. I knew I had to go for it in race two. I had a decent start, but a few guys crashed in front of me and took me down, so I knew I had to go all-in, and that’s what I did. That effort helped Team NL secure the podium, and I’m proud of that and these guys. I’m just so happy we managed to do it again.”
Despite coming up just short of the top step, Team USA can never be written off. They’re already counting down the days to the 2025 edition of the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations, which will take place on home soil at Ironman in Crawfordsville, Indiana, next September.