Inside Adam Cianciarulo’s Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250

Adam Cianciarulo’s 2019 Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250

It was a wild night of racing in Las Vegas for the entire 250 class. With 3 minutes left on the clock Adam Cianciarulo made a small mistake that cost him the championship. Adam has worked extremely hard to be competitive in a stacked field of riders and over came an immense amount of adversity including 2 shoulder surgeries. We know it wasn’t the best night for Adam but there is a lot left in the tank for the young all star. We caught up with Brandon Zimmerman under the Pro Circuit tent prior to the race to inspect all the goodies the team has come up with in order to keep Adam on the box every weekend. Adam is surely going to be a contender for the Pro Motocross Championship starting next week at Hangtown in Northern California.

Adam runs a Renthal half waffle kevlar grip and 997 Twin Wall handlebar.

ARC levers and perches are mounted to the Renthal handlebars. The master cylinders both front and rear are stock items from Kawasaki. The throttle is actually made in house at Pro Circuit. Adam’s levers are a little higher than average more so on the clutch end. The front brake line is stock.

AC’s handlebar set up is fairly neutral. The team has an array of options due to the fact of them making their own triple clamps in house along with mounts. You’ll notice that Adam’s bars are in the forward position to give him more room in the cock pit. Notice how close the forks are to the handlebars. The A kit suspension is as far as it can possibly be in the clamps. Tedesco and AC have worked on this set up and is not something the entire team does. The forks have an option to run air for finer adjustments if the rider needs them. The steering stem nut is aluminum and drilled out so you can wire tie it. The steering stem is aluminum as well and is built to Pro Circuit’s spec through prior testing.

An item that has popped up on previous Pro Circuit bikes is the data acquisition component resting below the handlebars. The red plug is a data port that stores an SD card with all the information on the bike while it was running. The crew chief can pull the data from this bike and make changes. The data can show throttle position, false neutral situation, or even if the rider is in a wrong gear on a particular section of the track. Data also helps the mechanics find a problem before it becomes a problem.

A piece sold at Pro Circuit and built by Pro Circuit is the front brake hose clamp. Brandon explained that this piece is stronger than stock and ties into the factory look of the motorcycle.

A Light Speed carbon disc guard protects the entire lower end of the motorcycle including the lugs, BRAKING rotor, and caliper on the motorcycle.

Spec Dunlop tires, Excel A60 rims, and KHI (Kawasaki Heavy Industries) supplies the hubs to the team.

A titanium axle with DLC coating is used in the front wheel of Adam’s bike. This is used for feel and smoother rolling of the entire front wheel.

A magnesium works Nissin front caliper is supplied to the team by KHI. The brake hangars are made specifically for the team and are aluminum. The pistons on the front brake are also larger than stock.

A 1.8 radiator cap is used on Adam’s bike to help with boil over when the bike starts to get hot. This cap is actually off a KX85.

Pro Circuit has radiators made for the entire team with a carbon fiber braces. The radiators are longer than stock so the leuvers are modified slightly to protect the entire length of the part from rocks and debris.

A Light Speed carbon full coverage skid plate is used on Adam’s bike. This skid plate is developed with the team and matches what specifics they asked for during testing.

The engines are done completely in house at Pro Circuit in Corona, California. Brandon explained to us that Mitch is big on having a strong engine with tons of horsepower. The team designs their own cams, intake air boots, and do throttle body modifications to get more ponies out of their KX250 race bike. Some of the parts like the cases are cerakoted or hard anodized for added protection and looks.

Pro Circuit runs their own water pump cover/impeller as well as oil pump cover which improves flow.

Pro Circuit also uses their own radiator hoses that are made to their specifications for the race bike.

A complete Pro Circuit exhaust system is used on the bike including this Ti-6 pro muffler with red carbon end cap to match Adam’s red plate in Las Vegas. The entire system is tailored for the riders need and motor package.

The engine hangars caught our eye immediately. Both engine mounts are stock components that have an electrolysis nickle coating on them to give them that factory look. This also helps prevent them from wearing down as fast. Some of the riders at Pro Circuit run the standard head stays while AC prefers to have the set that is drilled out. This gives him a more positive chassis feel.

The team uses Hinson clutch components. It is a stiffer spring than what comes in the bike stock. They can and do change leverage ratios based on the riders preference.

It is rare that the team has a part made by Pro Circuit that isn’t sold to the public. One of those parts is the holeshot device and tailored to each riders preferences. It is a double button design and the lock ring is incorporated to the forks. If its a muddy race or raining the higher button would be preferred but typically AC runs his in the lowest setting.

Bob over at ARC makes an aluminum transponder mount specifically for the team.

You’ll find numbers like this littered around the motorcycle. These help the mechanics manage an inventory system on parts of the engine, suspension, and other crucial components. All these parts have a particular amount of hours that can be put on them before they are replaced. Each rider has 2 engines that go on rotation. Something worth mentioning is that the Pro Circuit engines are done by the mechanic. On other teams there are dedicated mechanics and an engine department that only do engine work. At Pro Circuit, the mechanic breaks the bike down and does the work themselves. Brandon explained that the entire team is dedicated to winning.

Oil and Dyno check marks are laser engraved into the clutch cover as another way to keep track of the motorcycle. Both have check boxes for the team to mark as it is passed through the cycles of Dyno runs and being put into the race bike.

AC’s bike has a stock kick starter with titanium bolt .

The rear brake pedal is an SR Kawasaki part. What makes it a factory component really is the folding tip. This just helps save the brake in the event of a collision. From this angle you also notice the huge amount of foam that Brandon Zimmerman adds to the bike between the brake pedal and clutch cover. This is another additional protection piece to keep from things getting caught and causing brake failure during the race.

The infamous brake snake. This protects the brake from being ripped away from the motorcycle and from debris getting trapped between the foot pedal and clutch cover. It attached so an engine mount on one side and brake tip on the other.

Another preventative piece on the motorcyle is the aluminum stop placed at the end of the swing arm pivot. This stop prevents the rear brake pedal from over extending upwards which would cause the guts of the rear master cylinder to be ripped out. The swing arm pivot is titanium and hollow.

Pro Circuit has their own foot pegs made from one solid piece of billet titanium that are made to the teams specifications. Adam runs the stock foot peg hangars. Some of the other riders on the team have a titanium version but  AC runs the stock because he has them in the lower position for his long legs. They are shined up and coated for looks to go along with the rest of the motorcycle. The team uses titanium pins, stock springs, and the makes their own titanium peg covers that protect the entire assembly from rocks or debris.

The team runs a Pro Circuit link arm and knuckle. This is pretty similar to what you can purchase from their shop in Corona, California. The team and mechanics have a laundry list of options as far as lengths go for a rider to test. Brandon explained to us that shock length has to be the same at all times. They actually do a measurement similar to sag where they check the length from top to bottom using two reference points on the motorcycle. That way every time the bike is the exact same regardless of the changes made. They record what is called chassis height.

Adam runs a Showa A-kit shock that has an 18mm titanium nitrate coated shaft with a steel spring and billet clevace that has been anodized grey.

The team makes a device called fork guard straps. It goes just above the middle hole on the right hand side of the fork guard. It’s essentially just a piece of metal and bolt that prevents the fork guard being ripped out when its compressed for so long and locked in with the hole shot device.

Adam opted to add more grip tap to his motorcycle than in years past. He added more on to the shroud and side number plate area to lock his legs more on the bike. You can also get a peep at the supercross specific Twin Air air filter. This filter is called by the team a Super Moto filter. It is larger in surface area and designed specifically for Pro Circuit.

The PC team has an array of options when it comes to sub frames. This year they have a standard height sub frame and Brandon told us that the overall balance of the bike out of the box is really good.

Out back you’ll find a stock rear master cylinder with Pro Circuit clevace. The team also runs a stock rear brake line.

The team runs a stock Kawasaki KX250 caliper in the rear with titanium banjo bolts to hold it into place. They drill and wire them up to make sure there is never an issue and there is no way air can get into the line. The team does modify the brake caliper by adding a vent hole in the top of them to allow more air flow to the pads and to the Braking rear rotor. A custom molded carbon Light Speed caliper guard protects the entire assembly.

On the rear caliper you will find a KHI titanium nitrite piston with holes drilled into it which is done at the shop. The holes allow more air flow to the rear brake.

Out back is a KHI rear hub and Dunlop spec tire. Adam likes to run what the factory teams call the “paddle tire”. He doesn’t run it in supercross often other than Daytona. They did test it out at San Diego when the rain poured all day. Adam is also running a 110 rear tire. He feels that because of his size the 120 makes the bike feel a little heavy. More riders are going to a 110 rear tire in Supercross. Both 250 and 450.

In the drive train department Adam runs an RK chain and Renthal sprockets. The gearing is 14/52.

For straight line stability the rear axle is pushed to its furthest point on the swing arm. The axle itself is titanium and DLC coated. The coating helps slide the axle in and out easier as well as wear resistance. An item available to the public is the Pro Circuit axle blocks you see here that are made out of aluminum. Topping off the rear end are titanium adjuster bolts and nuts.

Pro Circuit designs their intake boot in house at their shop in Corona. It is specifically tailored to the engine package. They also make one for customers to purchase.

Adam opted out of running a seat bump for the 2019 season like he has in years past. Guts makes the foam but it is stock in hardness and covered with a Throttle Syndicate ribbed seat cover. Over the years working for Adam, Brandon has been through every style seat to test with Adam. They have come to a conclusion on keeping fresh for 1 or 2 rides then replacing the foam.

Throttle Syndicate handles all the graphics on the motorcycle. They screen print them to make them a little brighter for the team. Pro Circuit went with an old school look going more black on the R tech plastics and adding some gold flake to the bike.

A CMI shift lever is added to the bike with a 10mm offset that allows more room for riders with bigger feet. You can also see here the carbon fiber counter shaft sprocket guard. It is smaller in size and lighter than stock. Pro Circuit also runs their own billet aluminum ignition cover and plugs that you can purchase through their shop.

A really trick item on Adam’s bike is the manual cam chain tensioner located just above the ignition cover. It allows the mechanic to fine tune the measurement on the cam chain and they can adjust it throughout the day if needed for performance.

The Pro Circuit catch can always catches the eyes of race fans and media when passing by AC’s KX250. It’s all made out of titanium and has the Pro Circuit globe logo engraved into it. Rather than coolant coming out of the over flow hose and onto the ground, the coolant will go into the catch can and circulate back into the system as the bike cools down.