The Proud Warrior

Eli has had to adapt to a new line of questioning over the last two years. He’s been battling back from injury, and he’s now positioned, in the eyes of fans and the media, as the old guard against a slew of younger talent trying to take his spot at the top. But Eli doesn’t give in to those narratives, or really any narratives. Narratives and excuses have no place in his world.

“Yeah, it was last minute, but as racers, we know. That’s why we came here, and we showed up and raced,” he said on the Yamaha Blu Cru Instagram. “I wasn’t going to come here if I wasn’t going to put in my 100 percent effort…it’s just… yeah… second place doesn’t sit well.”

No one else involved with Team USA could be anything less that proud of Tomac’s efforts.

“Eli totally killed it,” said Aaron Plessinger. “To get second overall [in the MXGP class], or physically second overall [in the first moto], is crazy, when you think about this being what his third outdoor race of the year. “

Saturday wasn’t great for Team USA, as they took ninth overall. Sunday was much better, indicated by Tomac logging the fastest lap time in the morning warm up session. In the first moto, he emerged from a massive battle in the early laps to get to second place and pressure Tim Gajser for the lead. He eventually ran into vision problems —a huge factor all day for everyone with most laps run under a drizzle—but tried to manage his vision enough to keep his goggles on. Vision was tough for everyone. Eli never tossed his goggles, but France’s Romain Febvre was closing on him late in the first moto and had to toss his. That helped Eli hold on for second. In the final moto, he nailed that epic holeshot and put a bunch of time into the best riders in the world right now (sans Chase Sexton, out with the hand injury that opened the opportunity for Tomac). He couldn’t hold it all the way to the end and took third behind Gajser and his new nemesis Jett Lawrence.

Still, that’s nothing to be disappointed about.

“I’m so proud of our team,” said Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing Team Manager Jeremy Coker, which supports Tomac and Webb. “Everyone gave 100 percent, and both our guys rode great. We came here to win, so it’s disappointing to finish a few points shy of that. It was definitely challenging to come in here on short notice and make the trip to England, but everyone stepped up. We were able to fight for the win with some of the best riders in the world on a pretty gnarly track. So, to leave here with second, in my eyes, it’s a win.” 

Eli Tomac has done a lot in his career, so much so that there aren’t many things left to accomplish. He’s already cemented as an all-timer. He’s also won this event before, at RedBud in 2022. But this race in England was perhaps one more moment that took his legend even higher. With no excuses, as always, he still had the stuff to battle and lead the world’s best. 

“It was a strong effort from everyone,” Tomac said. “Coop, AP (Aaron Plessinger), we all stepped up and rode our hearts out, that’s for sure. It was a gnarly track. These GP tracks are tough. The ruts were pretty insane, and it was very technical riding. We were very close in points in the end. Second doesn’t sit well, but it is what it is. We all tried hard, and I’m proud of our team.”