WIND
IN THE
P32
(Above) Eli Tomac made his public debut on the
factory Red Bull KTM last week. (Left) Tomac asked
KTM to build his race bike with a cable-actuated
clutch versus the manufacturer's hydraulic clutch,
and KTM obliged.
PHOTOS: KIT PALMER
KTM Reveals 2026 SuperMotocross Team
T
he Red Bull KTM Factory
Racing team was officially
revealed at KTM's testing site,
RD Field, in Murrieta, California,
on November 4. Returning riders
Aaron Plessinger and Julien
Beaumer were introduced along-
side newcomers Eli Tomac and
Jorge Prado.
A rejuvenated Tomac has
only ridden the KTM "a couple
of times," but he says he already
feels good on it and is looking
forward to a fresh start at age
33. The multiple-time champion
has spent his entire profes
-
sional racing career on Japa-
nese machinery and is making
a big change by switching to a
European brand, most notably
a motorcycle with a steel frame
versus the Japanese aluminum
frames.
"The steel frame has a very
different sensation," Tomac
said. "To me, it felt like I had an
extra G [force] on the motorcycle
when the tires are on the ground;
you're sucked down on the earth
a little more. It was interesting.
It has a very planted feel; it's
something I didn't have when I
was on the Japanese bikes. For
me, it feels like I'm getting a ton
of traction, and that is a good
thing."
One thing that hasn't changed
for Tomac is the KTM's clutch,
which Tomac asked to be
changed back to a cable-actuat
-
ed rather than the manufactur-
er's hydraulic clutch. For months
now, KTM has been redesigning
the clutch on Tomac's bike.
"They tried very hard mak
-
ing the hydraulic clutch feel as
close to cable as they could;
they actually got very close, but
