Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship: Glen Helen
Tuesday 26 May: Round 2 of 12 at Glen Helen Raceway - San Bernardino, California. Copy and images courtesy of Brandon Short for mxsports.com
The second round
of the 2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro
Racing, signified the series' lone visit to Southern California on Saturday
with the FMF Glen Helen National at Glen Helen Raceway. One week after
dominating the field to make the first statement in the battle for the
450 Class title, GEICO Honda's Eli Tomac enjoyed another convincing
outing with his second straight 1-1 moto sweep, extending his early
points lead. In the 250 Class, Red Bull KTM's Marvin Musquin took
advantage of an off day by co-points leader Jeremy Martin to take sole
possession of the championship lead following a perfect 1-1 effort and
his first overall win of the season.
Tomac is a perfect 4-0 in motos to start the season. Photo: Simon Cudby
The
afternoon began with RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory
Racing rider Ken Roczen, the defending 450 Class Champion, claiming the
Bud Light Fastest Qualifier. When Moto 1 got underway, it was
Autotrader.com/Toyota/Yamaha's Justin Barcia claiming the Motosport.com
Holeshot Award ahead of his teammate Phil Nicoletti. Roczen experienced
misfortune, crashing on the opening lap, while both Tomac and Red Bull
KTM's Ryan Dungey asserted themselves at the front of the field.
Nicoletti
slipped past Barcia lead the opening lap, but Barcia got back around to
lead Lap 2. On Lap 3 Dungey took control of the race, while Tomac soon
followed into second. The top two were able to open a gap on the field
and soon started to inch closer to one another. On Lap 7, Tomac
pressured Dungey for the top spot and was able to move out front after
Dungey's bike stalled. While Tomac checked out, Dungey was able to
resume, maintaining second. Once in the lead Tomac cruised to the win,
but Dungey experienced another stall on the final lap and fell outside
the top five. That allowed Barcia to move into second and Nicoletti into
third, for his best career moto result. Dungey crossed the line in
sixth.
In Moto 2, Tomac ensured he controlled the race from the
get go by earning his second Motosport.com Holeshot Award of the season
ahead of Dungey. While he kept Tomac within reach during the opening
laps, Dungey ultimately couldn't keep pace, which allowed the Honda
rider to move out to a multiple second margin early in the moto. While
Dungey locked down control of second, Roczen was rebounding from his
first moto misfortune to ride consistently in third ahead of Barcia.
Tomac took the checkered flag by 23.426 seconds over Dungey, with Roczen
third.
As he had in each of his two career wins entering the
afternoon, Tomac relied on a 1-1 effort to claim his third career
overall victory. Barcia tied his career-best finish in second overall
(2-4), while Dungey recovered from his first moto troubles to round out
the overall podium in third (6-2).
Tomac won at Glen Helen in his first professional start there. Photo: Simon Cudby
"I'm
really comfortable right now. I've never been in this position before
[feeling comfortable] this early in the season where I feel like I'm one
with the bike," said Tomac, who won in his first professional start at
Glen Helen. "The motorcycle is just really easy to ride right now. I've
improved my starts a whole lot and that's been huge for me. I battled
with Ryan [Dungey] there for a while in the first moto and he stalled
his bike, which made it a little easier [to make the pass and win]. In
Moto 2, I just ripped the holeshot and had fun."
Tomac's perfect
4-0 moto record to start the season moved him to 19 points ahead of
Dungey in the 450 Class standings. After a fifth-place overall finish
(5-6), Autotrader.com/Toyota/Yamaha's Weston Peick moved into third, 36
points back.
"Third place isn't necessarily something to be
bummed at, it's a respectable spot. But we want to win. That's what
we're here for," said Dungey. "The bike wanted to shut off in the first
moto and it kept getting worse and worse before it eventually did. In
the second moto we just wanted to focus on a good finish, so I got a
good start and just followed Eli. We made up some ground from last week
and we'll keep working at it."
Dungey overcame a pair of stalls in the first moto to salvage an overall podium result and maintain second in the championship.
Photo: Simon Cudby
In the 250 Class, Martin claimed the Bud Light Fastest Qualifier, but
his day took an unfortunate turn after that. Before the first moto
began, Martin and his Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha team were scrambling
to get his bike started. The team was able to fix the issue right before
the gate dropped on the field and Martin entered the race a handful of
seconds after the moto got underway. Out front, Troy Lee Designs/Lucas
Oil/Red Bull/KTM's Jessy Nelson earned the Motosport.com Holeshot Award
and maintained the lead over Red Bull KTM's Marvin Musquin for the first
six laps.
Musquin gradually chipped away at the deficit to
Nelson and made the pass for the lead on Lap 6. Once at the point,
Musquin consistently pulled away from his competitors. That left the
battle for second amongst three riders in Nelson, Monster Energy/Pro
Circuit/Kawasaki's Joey Savatgy and Red Bull KTM's Justin Hill. On Lap
11, Hill passed Savatgy for third after a long fight for the position.
On the ensuing lap, Hill's charge forward continued with a pass on
Nelson, who would later drop another spot to Savatgy. Musquin took the
win, while Hill followed with a career-best moto finish in second and
Savatgy third. After starting at the tail end of the field, Martin
battled his way to an impressive fifth-place finish.
Musquin has started the season with 1-2-1-1 moto finishes. Photo: Simon Cudby
In
Moto 2, Musquin seized control from the start by grabbing the
Motosport.com Holeshot Award ahead of Nelson and CycleTrader.com/Rock
River Yamaha's Alex Martin. Jeremy Martin also got an improved start
over the first moto and was in the lead group as they exited the first
corner, but contact with another rider sent him to the ground and to the
back of the field again.
The top three jockeyed for position on
the opening lap and Alex Martin emerged with the lead to pace the field
on Lap 1, with Nelson second and Musquin third. The following lap,
Musquin got back around both riders to reclaim the lead and never look
back. With Musquin pulling away, Martin continued to assert himself in
second while Nelson engaged in a battle for third with his teammate
Shane McElrath. Musquin took the win 6.612 seconds over Martin, who
enjoyed a career-best moto finish in second, while McElrath earned a
career best moto finish of his own in third after a last-lap pass on
Nelson. Jeremy Martin again was impressive in his climb through the
field, finishing sixth.
Musquin's 1-1 effort gave him the win he
missed out on via a tiebreaker last weekend as well as sole possession
of the championship lead. Hill earned his first career overall podium in
second (2-5), while Nelson tied the best finish of his career in third
(4-4). It marked the first time in history that the KTM brand swept the
overall podium.
KTM swept the overall podium for the first time. Photo: Simon Cudby
"I
always like racing at Glen Helen," said Musquin. "I remember coming
here for the first time for the [FIM] USGP and won both motos. It's
great to do it again in the U.S. [AMA] Championship. The track was great
and I really enjoyed it out there. The first moto was a great battle
with Jessy [Nelson], and I finally was able to get the lead and win the
moto. In the second moto I got a great start but made a little mistake
early, but I recovered and got back out front. That allowed me to ride
my own race."
Musquin opened a 19-point lead over Jeremy Martin,
who finished seventh (5-6), in the 250 Class standings. A fifth-place
finish (11-2) allowed Alex Martin to move into third, 32 points back.
The 2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues next Saturday, May 30, with the True Value Thunder Valley National from Lakewood, Colorado.
450 Class (Moto Finish)
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda (1-1)
- Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha (2-4)
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM (6-2)
- Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki, (8-3)
- Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Yamaha (5-6)
- Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki (4-8)
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki (7-7)
- Christophe Pourcel, France, Husqvarna (9-10)
- Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda (14-9)
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna (38-5)
450 Class Championship Standings
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 100
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 81
- Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Yamaha, 64
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki, 61
- Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha, 58
- Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki, 51
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna, 50
- Christophe Pourcel, France, Husqvarna, 48
- Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki, 46
- Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki, 43
250 Class (Moto Finish)
- Marvin Musquin, France, KTM (1-1)
- Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore. KTM (2-5)
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM (4-4)
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki (3-7)
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (11-2)
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM (9-3)
- Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (5-6)
- Matt Bisceglia, Tualatin, Ore., Honda (6-11)
- Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda (7-12)
- Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki (12-10)
250 Class Championship Standings
- Marvin Musquin, France, KTM, 97
- Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 78
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 65
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Georgia, Kawasaki, 58
- Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore. KTM, 52
- Chris Alldredge, Powell Butte, Ore., Kawasaki, 49
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM, 46
- Matt Bisceglia, Tualatin, Ore., Honda, 45
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM, 44
- Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki, 42
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