The 2019 KX250 arrives, unchanged, in the middle of a dry spell. Aside from some sporadic wins and Justin Hill’s Western Regional 250 Supercross in 2017, the Kawi just hasn’t been winning at the highest level—not like it used to. This is, after all, the winningest bike in Pro motocross.  Yet, no one at Kawasaki is too concerned. What’s going on?

Kawasaki has no changes for the 2019 KX250 other than the removal of the “F” suffix.

A NEW ROLEThe current KX250 is as good as it has ever been. In 2016, the chassis was redesigned and it became the lightest of the Japanese 250 four-strokes. Then, Kawasaki went after a little more power for the 2018 250. The compression ratio was changed, the angle for the injectors in the throttle body was changed; it got a new intake cam, a new head pipe and a redesigned intake tract. All those things made the bike better in incremental steps. What’s changed is the rest of the 250 class. The KTM and Husqvarna have electric start and much more peak power. The Honda was redesigned from scratch last year with electric start, and it got more peak power too. This year the Yamaha YZ250F has electric start and, you guessed it, more peak power. And while the 2019 Suzuki is still a mystery, it will be mostly new. Where does that leave the Kawasaki? Is it just a placeholder for the next big thing out of the Kawasaki factory in 2020?