Nathan Woods not only won his first World Off-Road Championship Series race of 2007, but did so in a dominating manner, leading every lap of the two hour plus event. Behind Woods it was Honda’s Robbie Bell in second and the man who pulled the holeshot, Red Bull KTM rider Justin Soule standing on the podium at the end of the race. For both Bell and Soule, Honey Lake would be their best finishes at a WORCS event to date.
Woods, on the Monster Energy Kawasaki, sat in third place off the start with Soule and defending champion Bobby Garrison in front of him, but as they left the motocross track, Woods forced his way into the lead and was never challenged from that point on.
“I enjoy this course and the fact that the off-road portions of the track are the real thing,” Woods said. “To win this race, you need true off-road riding skills, great bike preparation and the right mental attitude and today was my day; nothing was going to stop me.”
As the racers completed the first lap, Woods was followed by Garrison, Bell, WORCS points leader, Ryan Hughes with Justin Soule rounding out the top five. Woods, the two-time WORCS champion, had already put an eight-second gap over second place and was setting a blistering pace at the head of the pack.
As the race progressed, both Bell and Soule would put on a charge that would place them in second and third, respectively.
“I had a great start and this was a super-fun course,” Bell said. “Staying calm was the key for me today.”
Soule, who lives less than an hour from the track, had a great day at the races.
“All of my family and friends came out today and I didn’t want to disappoint them,” Soule said. “Riding smart was all I could think about. The course was tough, but awesome and my KTM has never worked better.”
Destry Abbott, who was 18th on the opening lap, finished fourth and Bobby Garrison rounded out the top five in only his second race of the of the ’07 season.
Points leader Ryan Hughes would have his worst finish of the year at round five of the WORCS series. Seventh place was the best “Ryno” could salvage, as he battled bike set-up, difficulty with the “Pro” off-road sections and his own composure throughout the event. Hughes still maintains the series lead by 31 points over Kurt Caselli. The Red Bull KTM rider, Caselli, also suffered a poor finish with a disappointing 19th place due to a number of mechanical problems throughout the race.
The Pro 2 class saw Joshua Morros leading the way for a Kawasaki sweep of the podium. Behind Morros (who finished 7th overall), it was Jamie Lanza in second and Ryan Abbatoye taking third.
