Max Vohland and Hunter Yoder, teammates on the ClubMX Yamaha team, are making impressive strides in the 250 West Supercross. Vohland, who has been mastering the hand brake and arm pump, led laps in Houston, a significant achievement for him in supercross. Yoder, on the other hand, is riding through an ACL injury and still outperforming his 2025 results. Their strong starts are a testament to the team's quality and the hard work they've put in with Director of Performance, Chad Reed. After Houston, Steve Matthes caught up with both riders to discuss their season so far.
Racer X: Max Vohland, great starts tonight. Led laps, fourth overall on the night. Pretty cool deal for you.
Vohland: Yeah, it was a good night for me. Three amazing starts. I got good starts all night, and that boosted my confidence, allowing me to ride up front. I haven't done that in a while, so it was a big deal.
Racer X: Reedy was telling me that was the first time you've led laps, but I feel like you've led laps before?
Vohland: Maybe during my rookie year at Pala. But it's been a while since I've literally been in first leading laps. So, in Supercross, that was probably my first time, besides a heat race. But yeah, I have positives to take away from tonight. This class is tough, man. I felt like I rode some of my best ever, and these guys are fast.
Racer X: It was one of those tracks that didn't make for great racing because it was kind of a freight train, but then also, the over-the-table section, and the three-three. I noticed the over-the-table thing gave you a little trouble.
Vohland: Yeah, absolutely. That's what really hurt me. I felt good in my corners and was getting all the other rhythms, but especially that last main, they had prepped and lowered the lip a little bit. The guys who passed me were going out to in, while I was going in to out, and into the rough side of the transition on the right side of the track. That was costing me. I missed that rhythm probably two or three times. And, honestly, those are the little mistakes that happen when I'm riding up front, pushing my limits. But if I can lead for four laps, I'll try for five next time.
Racer X: That was a good night for you overall, even though you didn't get on the podium. I felt like there was a moment where you checked up on Cameron McAdoo, and I was like, 'Oh, he's gonna get him back.' But it looked like you checked up when you could have maybe made it a little greasy. Do you know what I'm talking about?
Vohland: Yeah, for sure. I mean, I have no reason to be extremely dirty. But there was, I think it was the second main, I had closed back in on them a little bit. It's hard with the ruts; you have to follow the berms to make the three in. If you make an aggressive pass and don't make the connection, they get the three and you lose time. That was probably a thought process through that scenario. It was a tough track.
Racer X: Listen, Deegan crushed it tonight, and it took a while for him to get you in that third one, right? Like, that had to feel pretty good. He was great, and you had him covered for four or five laps.
Vohland: Yeah, absolutely. When I holeshot, to be able to run the pace and hold him off, and honestly run his speed by myself without any tow, was pretty good. That's a huge step for me. I'm just clawing away at it, inch by inch. I've been slowly getting better since the first round, and I'm constantly building. I feel like this is what Chad told me, but I have to take those stepping stones. I can't skip any. So, I'm taking them one at a time, and I'm slowly getting better and better.
Racer X: We discussed the pant gate all week on our shows. Daniel told us it made more sense when he explained sliding back, then your arms are there. We're working on a solution, right? And it was something?
Vohland: Yeah, we tried a lot of stuff to help it, with seat covers and suspension, and moving my levers out so I'm not gripping so tight. We changed a lot of stuff on the bike this week to try to eliminate the arm pump, and it worked. I had no arm pump.
Racer X: But also, at the same time, you know, you ruffle some feathers and stuff starts moving quick.
Vohland: Exactly. So, we're fixed now. Sometimes, you gotta do what you gotta do to solve problems.
Racer X: Hunter Yoder, good starts with your teammate. Not quite as good as your teammate, but good starts. And yeah, you had a good solid night. These triple crowns, the track was really cool to ride. I think it'd be fun, but it doesn't race well because you're all freight training. Top 10 overall, with that in mind.
Yoder: Yeah, I wanted fifth overall. We've shifted our sights on fifth. That's what we want.
Racer X: I remember with the other team, you were like, 'I want top 10 overall.' And now you're building and building.
Yoder: And you're not wrong. Because you don't know what I'm up to. That's no diss.
Racer X: No, this is cool. This is a cool story. I've talked about it on my show. You've seen it. I've talked to you a lot over the years. You've seen the growth. So, I think for the people who have seen it, it's cool. And for the people who are new, I try to give them the best backstory. The track was crazy. I called it the triples at the Triple Crown because nothing was doubled; everything was tripled.
Yoder: Yep, over the table. The berms were insane; it was like a roller coaster. But I had a little tip over in the second one, which cost me solid sixth place, possibly a fifth. I'm a little bummed about that. My start in the first one was terrible. I was the trail sweep, which is never good in Supercross. So, I got eighth in that one, and then seventh and seventh. The riding was good, but the starts were terrible. And the fitness was really good. I felt like I was catching some dudes. There were some guys on factory bikes that weren't passing me in the last one. That got second last weekend; I'm not saying names, but you figure it out.
Racer X: So, that's positives in my eyes to take away. And I stayed strong. I stayed in it. When I crashed, I stayed in it. When I started in the back, I stayed in it. It's all positive. Last year, if I started in the back, I'd probably finish 13th or 14th. But that's why we're looking for top fives now; we've leveled up. There are some things we have to get out, some kinks we have to get rid of. But if we sharpen our skill sets and put them together in one night, the results would be pretty good.
Racer X: Look, this is just the start of the season, there's a lot more to go. But you're in a spot for the first time where you're actually feeling pressure. You want to perform for the team, and you have your expectations of top five or better. The point I'm getting at is do you feel more pressure now, like if you have a bad night, we'd say, 'Yoder sucked.' Where before, we just wouldn't even talk about you. So, there's pressure on you now as you become a guy. Do you notice that?
Yoder: I'll hit you with this: Getting to ride for this team is a privilege. The pressure that comes with it, I'm gonna put that in quotations, 'pressure,' is a privilege. I don't feel pressure. This is the best job in the world. Riding dirt bikes on Saturdays for a living is incredible. Getting the opportunity I have is incredible, and I don't feel pressure. I put a lot of pressure on myself. The gains I've made in the last couple months, I felt more pressure when I got 14th. You're on the chopping block there. I was getting fourteenth last year. I was getting some top tens. I finished top ten in points. But if you look at my results and do a deep dive, the results weren't that great. I probably lucked into a top 10. Pressure is just something that doesn't really register for me. I'm extremely happy to still be doing this. I'm extremely happy to be on what I think is one of the best teams in the pits. Even though it's not a factory team, that doesn't mean nothing to me. I know what these guys put in for me, and I see it every day. And I think it's one of the best teams. Getting this opportunity is anything I could ever wish for, and so I don't feel pressure. I'm gonna go out there and do my best, and whatever my best is, that's the result. If there are dudes better than me, then it is what it is. But I'm gonna go and do my best. The pressure I put on myself is the most I feel, and none of the other stuff will really get to me.
