It was a milestone night for the Jordon Smith and the second-year Triumph Factory Racing Team. Smith’s third place finish was the 25th podium of his career, but the very first for Triumph in Monster Energy AMA Supercross. Triumph CEO Nick Bloor was on hand, so this was an exciting way to start Smith’s multi-year deal with the team.
“Having him here was really cool,” Smith said after the race. “I think he had a blast and the whole team was just stoked.”
Smith’s podium finish did not come easy. He qualified fifth as he and the team worked together for the first time in a race environment.
“I was a little uncomfortable at the beginning of the day, especially in the whoops and that’s typically a strong point for me,” Smith said. “We made some bike changes throughout the day and got better there, and the main event was the most comfortable I felt.”
Jordon got a good start in the main, running third early, but tagged a Tuff Block in a turn, went down and fell back to sixth. He put in a few solid laps and was able to battle—and better—Ryder DiFrancesco for the final spot on the podium.
![Smith, one of the better whoop riders in the 250SX West Region, said he and the team were working on some settings for more comfort in the whoops section at A1.]()
Smith, one of the better whoop riders in the 250SX West Region, said he and the team were working on some settings for more comfort in the whoops section at A1. ![Jordon Smith pours some champagne for his mechanic Justin Hopson.]()
Jordon Smith pours some champagne for his mechanic Justin Hopson. Align Media
At the press conference he reacted to the crash saying: “There was two ruts, and I went to the inside and caught my clutch lever on the Tuff Block.” He clawed his way back up to third with a pass on DiFrancesco with two laps to go.
“I had some clear track once I got going and started putting in some pretty good laps and could kind of see in front of me and was like okay, I really think I can get back to a podium spot,” he explained after the race.
“We had a blast, and I mean the whole team was just stoked afterwards,” he added. “…It was a lot of fun. Everyone's stoked back at the rig. …it's part of the draw of coming to a Triumph is like kind of to be able to hit those milestones for them and be part of that legacy.”
One thing Smith, a veteran of the class, tried not to do was chase bike settings too much. This team does all of its testing at its facility in Georgia, so California dirt could throw things off. But Smith said last year at Anaheim he made a big change to the bike after riding on press day, and realized he should have just stuck with his pre-season settings. So he kept it simple this year.
There was some extra pressure on Smith to deliver, as all of the big brass from Triumph HQ in England was on hand to watch, including the owner of the company. Jordon joked that it's unlikely you'll ever catch the owner of Yamaha from Japan at a race. Triumph, Smith noted, is not a small company, but it's smaller in that sense.
Smith looks to keep the ball rolling and get Triumph their first win and contend for this 250SX West Region title as the series heads into San Diego coming up this weekend.
Anaheim 1 (A1) - 250SX West Main Event
January 11, 2025| Rider | Time | Interval | Best Lap | Hometown | Bike | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Jo Shimoda | 15 laps | 1:05.790 | Suzuka, Japan  | Honda CRF250R Works Edition | |
| 2 |  Julien Beaumer | 4.747 | 1:06.063 | Lake Havasu City, AZ  | KTM 250 SX-F Factory Edition | |
| 3 |  Jordon Smith | 6.852 | 1:06.199 | Belmont, NC | Triumph TF 250-X | |
| 4 |  Ryder DiFrancesco | 1.482 | 1:06.732 | Bakersfield, CA | GasGas MC 250F Factory Edition | |
| 5 |  Haiden Deegan | 5.865 | 1:06.693 | Temecula, CA | Yamaha YZ250F |
