Eli Tomac will not be part of Team USA at Motocross of Nations 2017 – Here’s why

At the press conference post round 9 of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship at the Washgoul National circuit, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac announced that he will be skipping Motocross of Nations 2017 due to contractual obligations. Eli Tomac is one of the most sought after riders this season owing to his bright winning streak at the on-going 12 round Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. Tomac is currently leading in the 450 Class with 373 points – 32 points ahead of Blake Bagget, who is second in lead.

As disclosed by Eli Tomac, he is scheduled to race at the United States Grand Prix (USGP), from October 20 to 22. This event comes just a week after the Monster Energy Cup, which takes place on October 14, 2017 and will see the presence of Tomac, Hence, traveling to Matterly Basin, England merely a week after USGP 2017 to race at Motocross of Nations 2017, from September 1 – 2 sounds pretty stressful!

Talking about his plans of missing the event, Eli Tomac said, “Right now, it’s looking like a no. It’s schedule. We have to go race USGP and then you have two weekends off then you make your way to England and then a couple weeks after that you have Monster Cup. For us, and for me, it’s like…. we’ve been racing since the first weekend in January and you’re basically putting yourself through the meat grinder all the way through the middle of October. Right now, it’s probably a no.”

Eli was the first preference for Team USA in the 450 class but with him out – the second preference falls on Blake Bagget. However, Bagget is slated to go under surgery on his thumb towards the end of the season – leaving selectors with the next best rider, Jason Anderson for Motocross of Nations 2017. However, there is no doubt about the fact that the spot under the 250 Class is going to go to points leader Zach Osborne this year.

Team USA Manager, Roger DeCoster is expected to announce the rider roster at the Unadilla National on August 12, 2017. Stay tuned for more updates!

Photo credits – Instagram