Tomac Tops 250s At Washougal

Shan Moore | July 20, 2013
Eli Tomac.

(Washougal, Washington; July 20, 2013) – Eli Tomac grabbed his third overall victory of the season in the 250 class with a dominating performance at Washougal, as the GEICO Honda rider swept both motos of the day.

In moto one, Tomac’s teammate Justin Bogle grabbed the Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot and led the field on the opening lap but it didn’t take long for Tomac to put himself out front.

Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett caught up to Bogle and the two went to battle for second place early in the race. Baggett eventually moved past Bogle for second where he maintained a comfortable position until a mechanical issue ultimately took the defending 250 Class champion out of competition in moto one.

The Red Bull KTM duo of Ken Roczen and Marvin Musquin caught the front-runners from behind in the first moto, each capitalizing on Baggett’s misfortune. Roczen inherited the second place position, while Musquin remained close behind in third. Bogle dropped back to fourth, where he ultimately finished in Moto 1, just ahead of rookie Justin Hill who rode his Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki machine to a career best finish of fifth place in Moto 1.

In Moto two, GEICO Honda’s Wil Hahn took the early lead after grabbing the Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot but a small mistake on the opening lap allowed his GEICO Honda teammates of Bogle and then Tomac to take over the lead. Similar to Moto 1, Tomac generated a comfortable lead on the rest of the field from the early stages of the race.

Roczen settled into the second place position in Moto 2 and despite a hard fought attempt to catch the leader, Roczen wasn’t able to contend for the lead position. Tomac secured the overall victory with a (1-1) sweep for the day, while Roczen’s consistent (2-2) moto score awarded him second overall.

The battle in moto two ensued for the third place position as Bogle attempted to hold off GEICO Honda teammate Zach Osborne and Musquin late in the race. Bogle eventually dropped back a few spots, while Osborne pushed his way to a third place finish, followed by Musquin in fourth. Musquin earned third place overall with a (3-4) moto score for the day, returning to the podium for the first time since Round 5.

Only one point separates Tomac and Roczen in the ultra-competitive 250 Class Championship after eight rounds of racing.

Results

1. Eli Tomac (Hon) 1-1

2. Ken Roczen (KTM) 2-2

3. Marvin Musquin (KTM) 3-4

4. Justin Bogle (Hon) 4-6

5. Justin Hill (Kaw) 5-7

6. Zach Osborne (Hon) 14-3

7. Jason Anderson (Suz) 11-5

8. Martin Davalos (Kaw) 7-9

9. Cole Seely (Hon) 9-10

10. Adam Cianciarulo (Kaw) 6-16

 

 

 

Shan Moore | Contributing Editor

Moore covers all facets of off-road racing for Cycle News – from AMA Supercross and Motocross to GNCC and National Hare Scrambles events.