With a 20-point lead going into the last round of the AMA 450 championship this weekend, Eli Tomac is very much in the driver’s seat to be crowned champion and join a very impressive list of riders to win the American 450 championship two years in a row.

In fact, the last guy to win the premier class two years in a row was Ricky Carmichael, who of course won seven years in a row, from 2000 until 2006, when he retired full time from racing.

In the last 25 years only Jeff Emig in 1996 and 1997 and Carmichael have doubled up in the premier class, so Tomac is joining a very elite group.

In Budds Creek last weekend he did what he often does, and his performance was first class. With the pressure on, the former 250 AMA champion and defending 450 AMA champion showed resolve.

“Winning the championship is the ultimate goal, and today we were able to add some more points to put us in the best possible position going into the final round next weekend. In Moto 1 I struggled a little bit making my way through traffic, but in Moto 2 I was just feeling it and after I got around a couple guys I knew I could catch the leader and win. I am pumped I was able to do that!”

In the mud in Unadilla he struggled somewhat and finished second to Marvin Musquin, not surprising as Musquin is the king of the mud in USA.

Unadilla was a nasty one for the second year in a row. I promise you, this is Tomac under the mud. Photo by: Octopi

“Wow, what a crazy day of racing,” Eli said after the Unadilla mudfest. “That first moto was intense because of all the rain and mud. I couldn’t have pulled off the moto win or the day without the entire Monster Energy Kawasaki team behind me, they put in a lot of work today. Obviously, we would’ve liked to take both moto wins today, but winning the championship is the ultimate goal and I felt more comfortable playing it safe and staying on two wheels in the second race to hopefully achieve that goal.”

In Washougal it was another 1-1 result for the fastest American in the World and he once again showed, when he is on it, he is hard to beat.

“Washougal was great. It was another 1-1 which is what we want to do, and that second moto was crazy. I was only anticipating getting 2nd, but we got it done and took the win and overall. Washougal was good to us, and I felt great all day. We’ll take the weekend off to rest and prepare for the last three rounds.”

Millville he again went 1-1 and his aura in the series continues to grow as his American fans grew excited for another championship for the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider.

“I had so much motivation from how the last race went and I carried it into this week. The team and I were focused on coming back with a good race and to get back on track. I always have fun here, but I was really ready to go this week and happy to get the red plate back. We’re going to keep working hard and looking forward to some good racing at Washougal next week”

Redbud was a disaster for Tomac. The circuit where he will lead Team USA wasn’t kind to the Kawasaki rider, and he struggled to finish with 36-9 results and 15th overall.

“Obviously Redbud didn’t go the way we hoped. It’s unfortunate because I felt really good on the bike in Moto 1 and to come away with no points was tough. Moto 2 was frustrating as well but I focused on salvaging any points I could. We’ll take advantage of the week off and come back strong and ready to get back to our winning ways.”

Just one more race away from history. Then on to MXoN to make a little more. Photo by: Chase Yocom

Now we head to Indiana, and the final round. Can Tomac join Emig and Carmichael in a select group from the last 25 years, or will he find the going tough and hand the title to Frenchman Marvin Musquin?

25 Years of AMA 450/250 champions

1994 Mike LaRocco (Kawasaki)

1995 Jeremy McGrath (Honda)

1996 Jeff Emig (Kawasaki)

1997 Jeff Emig (Kawasaki)

1998 Doug Henry (Yamaha)

1999 Greg Albertyn (Suzuki)

2000 Ricky Carmichael (Kawasaki)

2001 Ricky Carmichael (Kawasaki)

2002 Ricky Carmichael (Honda)

2003 Ricky Carmichael (Honda)

2004 Ricky Carmichael (Honda)

2005 Ricky Carmichael (Suzuki)

2006 Ricky Carmichael (Suzuki)

2007 Grant Langston (Yamaha)

2008 James Stewart Jr. (Kawasaki)

2009 Chad Reed (Suzuki)

2010 Ryan Dungey (Suzuki)

2011 Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki)

2012 Ryan Dungey (KTM)

2013 Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki)

2014 Ken Roczen (KTM)

2015 Ryan Dungey (KTM)

2016 Ken Roczen (Suzuki)

2017 Eli Tomac (Kawasaki)

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