The second big move of the silly season going into 2020, was Dakotah Phend moving from AKA to fellow American brand JConcepts. West Coast to East Coast in one swift move for the Phenom.
The industry is split on this decision, with part of the industry stating that due to AKA's well documented lack of management, communication, and tire stock, Phend would actually now have the correct tires at the correct time, and thus this deal would see him improve at the races.
However, the other half of the industry claims that now he may have the right tires, but that won't help, as the other well documented fact in the industry is the likelihood of JConcepts tires coming unglued being high. With Phend's DNF rate at an all time high, topping the charts along with Ryan Lutz, the critics say that Phend's likelihood of having his tires come unglued is "yes". Only time will tell if this move turns out being a successful one.