Wild and unpredictable are words that are starting to describe the 250SX East Championship on a regular basis. Another crazy night unfolded, this time in Toronto, Canada at the Rogers Centre, where a first-turn crash, second-turn crash and two riders with flat tires were among factors that effectively shuffled the 250SX main event results. The absence of points leader Martin Davalos (who had to miss the third round of the season due to “personal reasons”) also played into the volatility of the night, as riders knew it was an open invitation to take over the lead in the championship.
Jeremy Martin, Malcolm Stewart, Justin Hill and Aaron Plessinger all stood within striking distance of the points lead, and although it was factory KTM rider Hill who celebrated the win in Toronto, it was Jeremy Martin (Yamalube Star Racing Yamaha) who took the advantage in the 250SX East Supercross Championship with his second-place finish. MAD Racing Suzuki rider Matt Bisceglia rounded out the podium in third – his first podium finish of 2016.
The short start straight into a flat left-hand sweeper was the scene of a lot of carnage in the Rogers Centre in Toronto, especially anytime GEICO Honda’s Malcolm Stewart was on the track. In the 250SX main, Stewart made a move to the inside, coming over on Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Tyler Bowers, but Stewart bounced off of Bowers, sending Stewart ricocheting to the outside, and into about half the field. The result was a pileup that collected a number of riders, including RJ Hampshire, the Yamalube Star Racing Yamahas of Martin and Aaron Plessinger, and of course, Stewart.
Stewart had a similar occurrence in his heat race when he appeared to cut across on Plessinger off the start, which resulted in Plessinger hitting the ground hard. Plessinger was clearly displeased by the incident, commenting “Malcolm made a pretty dirty move on me…”
Stewart, who went on to win the heat, commented from the podium, “Look how short the start is. You gotta make it work. I didn’t feel like it was that bad. At the same time, I’m trying to win.”
In the heat race, Stewart got away clean, but in the main event he was taken down with the group, and got up with a shredded jersey.
The riders who sneaked around the inside were able to break away with the early lead, and riders Hill, Bisceglia, Bowers and Shane McElrath were the early front-runners. Bisceglia enjoyed a clear track for the first time this season, leading the way in the first two laps before yielding to the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTMs of McElrath and Hill. Unfortunately for McElrath, the first flat tire of the evening belonged to him. While in second place, McElrath was forced to pull into the pit area to get a fresh rear wheel – a move that dropped him down to dead last. While he would work his way forward in the remaining laps, his teammate Justin Hill remained out front, leading the way to the checkered flag. Hill, who was the top qualifier on the day, had a fantastic night, putting together flawless laps on the slippery and technical Toronto track.
Behind Hill, more crashes and mechanical issues continued to shuffle results. Bowers, who had been running third, crashed and dropped back to seventh place. Hampshire, who had been working his way forward and was nearly inside the top-10, also pulled into the pits with a flat tire.
Stewart made a good push through the pack, making his way all the way up to sixth place, but it was Martin who had the comeback ride of the night, coming from 19th place to second, a feat that earned him the points lead.
After three rounds, Martin has 65 points – only two points ahead of Justin Hill. Stewart is now 10 points down at 55 while the absent Davalos slips to fourth in the championship chase at 45 points.
Toronto 250SX East Main Event Results:
- Justin Hill (KTM)
- Jeremy Martin (Yam)
- Matthew Bisceglia (Suz)
- Alexander Frye (KTM)
- Jesse Wentland (Hon)
- Malcolm Stewart (Hon)
- Benny Bloss (Yam)
- Gannon Audette (Kaw)
- Paul Coates (Hon)
- Arnaud Tonus (Kaw)
- Tyler Bowers (Kaw)
- Aaron Plessinger (Yam)
- Cedric Soubeyras (Kaw)
- Anthony Rodriguez (Kaw)
- Joshua Cartwright (Yam)
- Justin Starling (Kaw)
- Jimmy Albertson (Suz)
- Shane McElrath (KTM)
- Logan Karnow (Kaw)
- Daniel Herrlein (Hon)
- Cody Church (Kaw)
- RJ Hampshire (Hon)
Results>> http://results.amasupercross.com/
