10 Things to Watch in Austin

The final regular season round of the 2025 USABMX pro series is upon us. This weekend in Pflugerville, Texas will have huge points ramifications for who hoists the cup at the end of the year and goes down in the history books Friday night in Tulsa. 

The action will be electric, and it will all be on FloBikes. 

I know, I know, everyone is mad that they are paying a few bucks to watch. BUT, $20,000 has been added to the pro purse this year, all coming from the viewership fees. We have tried to provide the fans with significantly better content. We are working to build these racers into the heroes of the next decade.  By watching, you are supporting the pros and helping provide opportunities to them and future generations of BMXers. 

This year has been a year of winners. 

On the Vet Pro and Women pro side, we are talking Extreme domination. Jeff Upshaw has 14 wins. Molly Simpson has 9 wins. No one has beat Jeff when he has signed up. Only 2 have beat Molly, Olympic Gold Medalist Saya Sakakibara, and Louisville’s Second turn. 

On the Men pro side, we have had 10 winners. TEN!!!! That is incredible. I remember years where we would get 3 or 4. Most years its around 5. TEN winners this year, including 6 first time winners. The Men pro class is as stacked as it’s been in years. Just last weekend in Tulsa, the main featured half of the 2024 Olympic final. Day 1’s main event featured 7 racers who have won a race this year. 

The ABA Futures class has been a hit. It’s fun to watch as a fan, but the development it will provide these riders can’t be understated. The payoff will be clear in a few years when the current ABA futures generation transitions seamlessly into the pro class. 

Let’s do a breakdown of what to watch in Austin as we get ever closer to the Grands. 

Quick refresher: for pro points, it's best 8 scores + Grands. Like amateurs, Grands is double points. The Pro Series has 9 rounds, plus the ROC, for a total of 19 available scores. Rider count doesn’t matter here. Less scores means every race has all the top racers and you can’t dodge. Racers have three scores left on the table, plus the Grands. Let’s break it down. 

The Point Scale

Main:

1st – 100

2nd – 90

3rd – 80

4th – 70

5th – 60

6th – 50

7th – 40

8th – 30

Semi:

1st – 20

2nd – 15

3rd – 10

4th – 5

*Points Doubled for Grands

1. Consistent Cam 

Defending Champion Cam Wood has been the definition of consistency this year. In 12 races, he has finished on the podium 10 times, with 3 wins. This puts him deservingly in the lead of the series, and in control. As it stands, he has a 70 point lead, which is a 4 position buffer headed into Grands. Cam will want to do well in Austin for 3 main reasons. First, he will want to extend his points lead and build that cushion even more to help take some pressure off himself in Tulsa. Second, by winning, he blocks anyone else from closing the gap. Third, he has not won a round since Albuquerque back in May and he will want to build some momentum headed into Tulsa. The Cowboy will be feeling right at home in Austin, and looking to cross the line first for those three main reasons (and because winning is awesome). 

2. Izaac is tired of getting Second

Newly crowned World 2 back in Copenhagen has had a great and consistent year, but I am sure he is frustrated. You don’t train to get 2^nd, and Izaac has been doing a lot of that this year. 2^nd at Worlds, a couple World Cups, and 4 times this year on the USABMX circuit. Those 4 seconds, plus a win, a third, and a 4^th are all solid scores. However, Izaac is still holding onto a 6^th place as his 8^th score. If he was to replace that with a win, he could pull right up to Cam in the championship. If he can win both days, he would take over the lead. Izaac will be fired up. Cam will be fired up. I will have my popcorn ready.  

3. Surging Simon 

Simon has really found his stride in the second half of the season. I have huge respect for anyone who travels across the world to compete in a new series. It takes some time to get used to things and isn’t easy. Joris won 6 championships, and is widely considered the GOAT, but his first 2 years in America (2013, 2014) did not go well. Eventually, he figured it out, and the rest is history. 

It seems Simon has figured it out. Back-to-back wins in Tulsa and a 1^st and 2nd in Minnesota have him firmly in the mix. Simon has 3 wins (Tied with Cam & Josh for the most of anyone) two 2nds, and a 4^th. He is still currently holding two 8^th place finishes in his best 8 scores. If he can get 2 solid finishes in Austin, he will VAULT up the leaderboard. If they are 2 wins, he will put himself in a heads up race with Cam Wood for the title in Tulsa. Simon and Josh Jolly have the most to gain in Austin. 

Simon is a quiet guy, but American fans should know he has won both the UCI World Championship (Nantes, 2022) and UCI World Cup Series (also 2022) was in the Main at the Paris Olympics, and is an experienced winner. He is trying to join Maris, Sam, and Joris as the only Modern riders to win all three Major Championships. I think he is also the first Swiss rider to ever participate in the full series. Pretty cool! 

4. Josh / Drew 

The future is in good hands. Both Josh Jolly and Drew Polk have really come into their own this year and become consistent contenders. Both picked up their first wins (3 in the case of Josh) and will be contenders for years to come. 

Drew has 4 podiums, Josh has 3 (and two 4^ths) and both will be looking to add to that total in Austin. As it stands, both are long shots for the title, but a couple of good scores could vault them up into more serious contention. Josh only has 7 main events. In Josh’s case, 2 wins would vault him all the way up to the top end of the leaderboard, right with Cam. 

Regardless, they are both exciting racers and always mix it up. The older established riders will have their hands full. These 2 might be in the same section here, but Drew and Josh tangled in Louisville and there is no love lost between them, so if you see them near each other on the track, watch that battle. 

5. The Chasing Pack 

Have you ever seen the meme of Jack Sparrow running away from all the pirates? 

This must be how Cam feels as he goes through his title defense. You have the established guys he has battled for years like Izaac and Kam. Then you have the new foreign additions like Olympic finalists Simon Marquart and Mateo Carmona. Add in the up and comers who are grabbing their first wins like Josh Jolly, Drew Polk, Cam Bramer and Ryan Tougas, guys like Jack Davis and Jordan Callum who are coming into their own, and the rest of the group and he must feel like it isn’t getting any easier. The real winner is us, the fans. 

6. Marvellous Molly 

Molly has been nothing short of spectacular. Olympic Gold Medalist Saya Sakakibara doubled up at the season opener, but ever came back stateside. Since then it has been the Molly Simpson show. She has not been beat, other than when the Louisville turn 2 monster decided her day was done. Molly will be looking to continue her winning streak in Austin, while also blocking Lauren and Payton from closing the gap. Molly has really found her footing this year, and seems to be filling the (massive) shoes left by Alise Willoughby as the dominant force in the women’s class. Oh Canada! 

7. Closing the Gap

Lauren Reynolds and Payton Ridenour are at 710 points apiece, 90 points behind Molly. That is a 5 position spread at the Grands. 

Lauren has 10 podiums, but only 1 win (But it was a SLUGGER!) so with a win she can replace a 3^rd, bringing the points gap to 70 and a 4 position spread. 2 wins and it drops to 50 and a 3 position spread, much more manageable. 

Payton has 8 podiums, but 7 of them are 2nds. She would be in the same spot as Lauren points wise if she was able to get a win, but just like Izaac, I am sure she is tired of second place and just wants a dang win! 

8. Vet pro still to play for (kinda) 

While Jeff Upshaw has absolutely been the dominant force in Vet pro this year, his path to the title isn’t completely locked up. Dominant is an understatement. Jeff has not been beaten in 2025. He did skip one race, and that was the only race anyone else was able to secure a victory at. 14 races for Big Jeff, 14 wins.

BUT with the format being 8 best score + grands, you don’t get bonus points for extra wins. While Jeff has 8 wins, Alan Hudson has 1 win, 6 podiums, and a 4^th as his best 8 scores. Corey Reid has five 2^nd place finishes, and three 3^rd place finishes. Corey and Alan are tied at 690 points apiece, 110 points behind Jeff’s perfect score of 800. With the grands being double points, that spread is 6 positions meaning if Alan or Corey wins, Jeff needs to get 7^th or worse. Essentially, they have to hope Jeff doesn’t make the main. 

Corey can move up 20 points with a win, 40 with 2, Alan can move up 30 points with a win, 50 points with 2. In Alan’s case, 740 points is only a 3 position spread, which means if he wins in Tulsa, Jeff needs 4^th or better to secure the title, a 5^th wouldn’t do it. 

Jeff’s best case scenario is to keep winning in Austin and block Alan and Corey from Moving up, giving him a cushion going into the grands. Alan and Corey need to win, and win in Austin. Personally, I think the grands track will favor Alan more many of the other tracks on the series, so I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he can win the Grands, but the cushion Jeff built may be too much. 

9. First Futures Women’s Champ

Who will be the first ever women’s futures champion? Derin Mertin is currently leading the class, but you can throw a blanket over spots 2-6 with only 100 points separating the bunch. Derin will be looking to block and extend her scores, while riders like Thomson, Burian, Boecker, Gould, and Herrera will be looking to close the gap. 

The futures class has been a huge plus this year. The dividends these riders will see will come years down the road, when they are truly prepared to step up into the women’s pro class. 

10. First Men’s Futures Champ

Ethan Popovich called his shot and put it out there that he wanted to be the first ever Men’s futures champ, and he is certainly doing what he needs to do to get that done. He is at 780, one win away from a perfect score. 

Werts picked up a big win in Tulsa, which helped close the gap and get him within striking distance. Santos is right there as well, and Deegan Brown only has 7 scores. Deegan needs an 8^th score in Austin, and Werts and Santos will be looking to close the gap to Ethan. Ethan is known for his skills and track speed, but would definitely feel more comfortable going into Tulsa with a bit of a cushion, rather than a heads up title battle. Ethan will be looking to block, while the other 3 (and the rest of the stacked class) will be looking to close the gap. 

Deegan is the interesting one to me. He only has 7 scores, but 5 of those are podiums. Another couple podiums or wins in Austin and he vaults right up into major title contention with those other 3