At times in sport, our top athletes are perceived one way off the field of play but are completely different once the competition begins. Our 2026 Triple Crown Series 450 Champion Dylan Wright is a perfect example. Yes, at times he can come across as focused and intense in the paddock, but mostly away from the track he’s relaxed and funny. However, once the gate drops, he becomes one of the fiercest competitors this sport has ever seen.

His teammate, Dylan Rempel, is another rider who appears to have two separate personalities. Off the bike, he’s always smiling and seemingly in “chill mode,” sometimes giving off the vibe that he doesn’t really care what’s going on. But like Wright, once the gate drops he instantly transforms into a warrior who simply refuses to give up. This was more than evident two weeks ago when he faced the pressure of a championship battle with Ryder Malinoski at Walton Raceway.

The night before Round 8 of the Triple Crown Series, while waiting for the Team Canada MXON announcement, Rempel could be seen eating a large plate of pasta at 9 p.m.—with, you guessed it, a big smile on his face. With the biggest day of his racing career only hours away, he appeared oblivious to the magnitude of the impending battle. But over the years, this is exactly what everyone has come to love about Dylan Rempel: one minute you wonder if he cares, and the next he’s leading a national moto and refusing to let anyone past him.

Even going back to his 85cc days, when he began dominating motos on his Suzuki RM85, he always carried that nonchalant attitude off the bike that everyone in the paddock loved—and every racer on the starting line envied. As he progressed through the ranks and racing became more serious, Dylan never wavered in his off bike persona, while becoming increasingly focused on the bike.

After several seasons with the Partzilla PRMX Kawasaki Team, Dylan made a late change last season and joined the KTM Canada Factory Team for 2025. At the time, many in the industry were curious how he would gel with the ultra serious KTM program. However, after an off season training with Kaven Benoit, Rempel delivered his best season to date—winning motos and challenging for the 250 class title.

When the season concluded and KTM wanted him back, Dylan opted to switch again, signing with the Honda Canada GDR Fox Racing Team for 2026. Once again, people questioned whether leaving a team that had given him a great bike and program was wise. But to Dylan’s credit, he and his family have always been exceptional at choosing the correct path at the correct time. Years ago it was racing an RM85 when no one else rode Suzukis. Two years ago it was joining KTM Canada for very little money. And last year it was returning to what many consider his hometown team—GDR Honda. Even if it’s not the popular decision at the time, you can bet Dylan and his family are making the right one.

Heading into the 2026 Triple Crown Series, Dylan certainly had his hands full as the 250 class was stacked with young talent. The three visiting Americans—Malinoski, Wey, and Johnson—came north planning to dominate their Canadian counterparts. Early in the series, Rempel was okay at Round 1, not great at Round 2, and then managed to find the podium again at Round 3 in Quebec. His results were good, but not yet championship worthy.

However, just as many expected, something clicked at Gopher Dunes. From that point on, Rempel raced himself back into the title fight. Yes, he got some help with Wey and Johnson going out with injuries, and Malinoski suffering a DNF at Round 6, but when Dylan needed to perform, he found a way to get the job done.

And that brings us to the final round at Walton Raceway, where he arrived with a slim three point lead over Malinoski. With just two motos remaining, the title could have gone either way—and both riders would have been deserving champions. But as you’ll read in the interview below, Dylan had one goal: win the opening moto and head into moto two in control of his own destiny. We all know what happened in the end. Now let’s hear from Dylan on how he got the job done at the final round of the 2026 Triple Crown Series.

When it mattered the most, Dylan Rempel was at his best at Walton Raceway. Photo by Max Dobie

MXP: Hey Dylan! What have you been up to since winning your first 250 Triple Crown Series Championship?

Not much really, just hanging out and trying to keep busy. This week I was up at Brody Craig’s house riding and training. That’s about it.

We understand you tried to get into Ironman Raceway Combine race this weekend but were unsuccessful?

Yeah, we tried hard but it didn’t work out. I don’t know why, I guess a lot of riders want to get into the final one of the year.

Well, that’s too bad, you probably had a good shot at taking the victory. Other than that, what are your plans as you get ready for your first MXON appearance with Team Canada?

The plan is just to keep riding and training and not let up at all. This is a big opportunity for me and I want to make the most of it. There might be an AMO Racing event I can do, or some money races. I don’t know—I love riding, so I’ll just keep doing what I’ve been doing.

By the time the 250 Series reached Round 6 at SDL, it was down to Rempel and Malinoski for the title.

The Baja Brawl is coming up next weekend. The pro class pays well and it’s a great track. Going back to Walton Raceway and that opening moto—you got to the front quickly and pulled away. What was going through your mind in those early laps?

When Ryder got the holeshot, I figured it was going to be a moto long fight for the win. But I was able to get around him right away, and then I just went as hard as I could for five or six laps and tried to pull away.

You were definitely charging hard. Given the rutted and challenging track conditions, was it difficult to ride at that pace?

I mean, I don’t think I looked too smooth, but it was working. I’ve always been more of a sand rider since my home track and most of my local tracks are sand, but for some reason I’ve always ridden Walton well. I just feel comfortable there, and that really helped at the final round.

You also won there last year, so that must’ve given you some extra confidence?

I wasn’t really thinking about last year, but yeah, maybe. I just rode as hard as I could and hoped Ryder wouldn’t catch me. I knew I needed to win that opening moto.

It must’ve been awesome having so many friends and family there.

Yes, I had a bunch of buddies there and of course my whole family. I could see them cheering me on all over the track.

Being a born and bred Ontario rider, winning the title at Walton Raceway is such a great story. One more question about that final round—were you nervous heading into Sunday? Because you didn’t look nervous.

Honestly, I wasn’t nervous at all. I was more excited about the possibility of winning the title in front of my friends and family. Even right before the first moto, I felt calm. I don’t know, I really don’t get nervous. All week, whenever I thought about Sunday and racing for the title, I felt excited, not nervous.

It was great to see the GDR Honda Team find success again with Dylan Rempel and Dylan Wright winning titles.

Very cool, and a great lesson for younger riders. Looking ahead to the off season, what do you think your training and preparation will look like?

We haven’t really talked about it yet, but I think we’ll go down to Florida and train there. Also, I’m trying to get some support to race the 250SX East class in Supercross. If I get that, then I’ll head down sooner to train on SX tracks. I like riding SX, so I’d like to try and race some events in the future.

Sounds like a great plan, Dylan. Thanks for your time, and congratulations again on winning the 2026 Triple Crown Series 250 Championship! It was a great summer for you and your team, and it was good to see them back on top.

Thank you, Palms! Everyone worked hard. I just want to thank my mechanic Abe for a great bike all summer long, and of course thanks to the entire team. Hopefully we can do it again in 2027.