The Kawasaki USA team has entered the 2026 season with a new rider line up hoping to put the disappointment of the 2025 season behind them. Team manager Dan Fahie is at the heart of that effort. With Chase Sexton joining the roster, the team has found itself taking a fresh approach to bike setup, balancing innovation with experience to meet the demands of a rider whose style is as aggressive as it is precise. From frame modifications to swingarm tweaks, Fahie explains how the team is working to fine-tune the chassis and suspension to match Sexton’s unique needs, while also navigating the challenges of a lineup reset with the addition of Garrett Marchbanks.
Fahie opens up about the lessons learned from past seasons, the flexibility required to satisfy top-level riders, and the mindset that drives Kawasaki to provide the “best equipment” for every rider on the team.
On Chase pushing the team in a different direction than the past…
“I mean, every rider brings something different to the table. You know, some guys need, a certain kind of a feel and they’ve got to achieve it in a certain way. Chase is a different rider than what we’ve had in the past so he’s done things a little different. Some of the parts have been hard parts, like for example, we’ve made some modifications to our frame, we put some braces on there. We made some modifications to our swing arm with the idea of getting the chassis feeling right, almost like a bicycle, and then the suspension will come after that. So those are the things that we’ve worked on. It’s a different mindset, but not something we haven’t done in the past or anything like that, it’s not anything new. It’s just something we haven’t done in some time”.
On Chase making so many changes from A1 to San Diego…
“Well, first of all, I think it’s normal. I think that a lot of the changes that we made, I’ve been coming to Anaheim for a long time now, and this is not the first time we have flipped the bike upside down. We have done a lot of work before Anaheim, and we got to Anaheim and it wasn’t quite right. So we went in a different direction. I think San Diego showed it was a positive direction, and I hope that translates into something this weekend”.
On if Sexton pushes the team more than any other rider in the past because of the way he rides being so big and strong pushing through the jumps…
“I don’t think so. I think anybody that’s followed Eli along, for example, I mean, he’s very aggressive, he’s very strong, and I consider Chase very similar to that. He’s very strong and pushes the bike hard, as you mentioned, like you said, in the faces of the jumps and everything else. But like Eli, like a lot of the guys, like Jason, they know what they want, and that’s the key. They understand and say okay, I need this feeling to be comfortable, and that’s the feeling that we’re chasing, so we’re going to change whatever we have got to change to get that feeling”.
On if there’s been much of a reset after signing two new riders for the 2026 season…
“It was a significant reset, but I don’t think that’s a negative thing. I think they’re just different people, so different people require different things, and it’s our job to make them comfortable. Chase is a different dude than Jason or Jorge was, or anybody we have had before that. Garrett, he’s taking is in a different direction again, so it’s our job to customize the bike for our guys, and that’s what we’re working towards, and each guy is a little bit different. Chase is very aggressive, and Garrett’s not as aggressive, meaning he doesn’t push the bike as hard – I don’t mean that negatively, either”.
If the team have become more flexible and less rigid than in the past when it came to bike changes…
“I don’t think those rumors are founded, to be perfectly honest, so I don’t agree with that at all. I think when RV was here, for example, I mean, we were very flexible. We did what we needed to do to get him comfortable. I think we’re doing that today, so I don’t think it’s any different”.
On if last year was one or if not the toughest year for the team…
“It was a challenge. I mean, no one wants to go through that. You don’t want to see anybody go through that. It wasn’t fun. I don’t think it was fun for anybody. I don’t think it was fun for anybody on either side of things. I think that, we’ve been doing this a long time, and it’s our job to provide the best equipment and the best resources we can, and I believe we did that all the way to the end”.
An update on Garrett Marchbanks…
“Garrett fell in practice, got a mild concussion, and so, of course, we went and had him tested, evaluated and everything. At the doctor, he failed his physical, so he wasn’t able to participate in San Diego, and then early this week, he was re-evaluated by the doctor and got through tech. He rode on Wednesday, and here we are today”.
