Kit Palmer | October 10, 2020
2020 Fox Raceway Pala Pro Motocross Results: Zach Osborne and Dylan Ferrandis are your new first-time Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Champions. Neither of them came away with the overall wins today at the Fox Raceway National in Pala, California, but they both accomplished what they wanted to do and that was to get through the day unscathed, put in a couple of solid motos, and lock up their respective championships, Osborne’s in the 450MX class and Ferrandis in the 250MX class.
Fox Raceway National Video Highlights
450MX
Osborne (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) came into the final race of the season holding a comfortable 24-point lead over Adam Cianciarulo (Monster Energy Kawasaki). Technically, Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM) and Eli Tomac had a shot at Osborne but realistically they were out of it, both trailing Osborne by more than 40 points.
Hoping for the best, Cianciarulo had to win both motos, and he nearly did just that, getting out in front early both times, but his teammate, Tomac, wasn’t into team tactics and reeled in Cianciarulo, passed him, and ran off with the first-moto win, denying Cianciarulo three very valuable points in the championship.
Third in the moto went to Chase Sexton (Honda HRC), followed by Christian Craig and Musquin.
After jumping out to a quick lead, Osborne played it safe and slipped back to sixth by the finish.
Cianciarulo grabbed the holeshot in the second moto, ahead of Craig and Sexton, and was again going for the win, while Osborne settled into fifth. Cianciarulo, however, had a tip-over on lap 11 (of the 18-lap race) and surrendered the lead to Sexton, who had earlier gotten around his teammate Craig.
Craig also got around Cianciarulo when the Kawasaki rider fell.
Sexton went on to take the moto win, giving him his first career overall victory in the 450MX class. Craig followed Sexton across the finish line in second, followed by Cianciarulo.
Tomac couldn’t pull another come-from-behind magic ride out of his hat and took fourth, giving him second overall on the day. Cianciarulo was third overall with a 2-3.
Craig just missed out on the podium with a 4-2, while Musquin, who led a few laps early in the first moto, had to settle for fifth overall via a 6-5.
But the man of the hour, and season, was Osborne, who took it easy and cruised to seventh in the second moto. It was more than enough to wrap up the 2020 450MX Championship with 12 points to spare over Cianciarulo.
Tomac ended up third in the championship, followed by Musquin and Sexton.
“I considered actually retiring in March after I broke my back,” said Osborne who turned pro 11 years ago. “My wife gave me a pep talk and we decided against it, went to Salt Lake and that went well and it just carried into this outdoor season. I came out swinging and was able to take home a national championship which is something I never ever dreamed of doing, I felt it was way out of my league–so dream big is the moral of the story and don’t ever give up. Find people that believe in you even when you don’t and keep pressing on. It’s such a relief to win this today. What an incredible day. Thank you to everyone who has been behind me.”
Barcia dropped from sixth to seventh in the championship after sitting out both motos due to a previous injury.
Blake Baggett, who also sat out the Fox National with an injury, ended up eighth in the championship, followed by Max Anstie and Broc Tickle.
250MX
The 250MX Championship came down to a two-rider shootout, but it was Ferrandis’ for the taking. He came into the race leading Martin by 18 points. Despite winning the second moto, Martin watched Ferrandis celebrate the championship at the end of the day.
Ferrandis came from one position of clinching the title in the first moto after finishing second to first-time moto winner Jett Lawrence. So, the Frenchman pretty much just needed to finish the second moto and the title would be his. No problem. A 2-5 gave Ferrandis third on the day but more importantly his first 250MX National title. Ferrandis finished out the season with 390 points to Martin’s 377.
Lawrence, however, captured his first career overall win giving Geico Honda a 1-2 in the day’s overall standings. The Australian chased Martin in second place pretty much the entire race, but Martin was dead-set on finishing out the season with a moto win.
Shane McElrath finished out the championship in third, followed by Lawrence and Justin Cooper, who took third in the first moto but suffered a mechanical during the sighting lap in moto two and did not start the race. That cost him two positions, to McElrath and Lawrence, in the final championship standings.
Sixth in the championship went to Alex Martin who suffered a broken leg during practice and did not start the Nationals at Pala.
Another rider who did not start, RJ Hampshire, finished out the year seventh, followed by Kawasaki fill-in riders Mitchell Harrison and Cameron McAdoo.
Brandon Hartranft rounded out the top 10 for the season.
Japan’s Jo Shimoda made it an all-Geico Honda podium in the second moto by finishing a career-high third, behind his winning teammate Martin and runner-up Lawrence. It was a fitting way to end the team’s long and successful run. The team announced that it will dissolve at the end of the season after long-time sponsor Geico revealed it would not return in 2021. CN
2020 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship
Fox Raceway National
Fox Raceway
Pala, California
Round 9 of 9
2020 Fox Raceway National Results: (October 10, 2020)
450MX Overall (Top 10)
1. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
3-1 |
2. |
Eli Tomac |
(Kaw) |
1-4 |
3 |
Adam Cianciarulo |
(Kaw) |
2-3 |
4. |
Christian Craig |
(Hon) |
4-2 |
5. |
Marvin Musquin |
(KTM) |
6-5 |
6. |
Zach Osborne |
(Hus) |
5-7 |
7. |
Max Anstie |
(Suz) |
9-6 |
8. |
Justin Bogle |
(KTM) |
7-8 |
9. |
Broc Tickle |
(Yam) |
8-9 |
10. |
Coty Schock |
(Hon) |
12-10 |
250MX Overall (Top 10)
1. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
1-2 |
2. |
Jeremy Martin |
(Hon) |
4-1 |
3. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Yam) |
2-5 |
4. |
Shane McElrath |
(Yam) |
5-4 |
5. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Hon) |
9-3 |
6. |
Jarrett Frye |
(Yam) |
8-6 |
7. |
Brandon Hartranft |
(KTM) |
7-7 |
8. |
Mitchell Harrison |
(Kaw) |
6-9 |
9. |
Carson Mumford |
(Hon) |
11-8 |
10. |
Cameron McAdoo |
(Kaw) |
10-11 |
450MX POINT STANDINGS (After 9 of 9 rounds)
1. |
Zach Osborne |
(Hus) |
355/4 wins |
2. |
Adam Cianciarulo |
(Kaw) |
343/2 wins |
3 |
Eli Tomac |
(Kaw) |
321/2 wins |
4. |
Marvin Musquin |
(KTM) |
314 |
5. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
290/1 win |
6. |
Christian Craig |
(Hon) |
235 |
7. |
Justin Barcia |
(Yam) |
234 |
8. |
Blake Baggett |
(KTM) |
232 |
9. |
Max Anstie |
(Suz) |
193 |
10. |
Broc Tickle |
(Yam) |
170 |
250MX POINT STANDINGs (After 9 of 9 rounds)
1. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Yam) |
390/5 wins |
2. |
Jeremy Martin |
(Hon) |
377/1 win |
3. |
Shane McElrath |
(Yam) |
288 |
4. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
277/1 win |
5. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
271/1 win |
6. |
Alex Martin |
(Suz) |
242 |
7. |
RJ Hampshire |
(Hus) |
217/1 win |
8. |
Mitchell Harrison |
(Kaw) |
190 |
9. |
Cameron McAdoo |
(Kaw) |
186 |
10. |
Brandon Hartranft |
(KTM) |
176 |
QUALIFYING
2020 Fox Raceway Pala Pro Motocross Result: Qualifying for the final round of the 2020 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship has concluded on a warm, sunny day in Southern California. And no real surprises so far. Chase Sexton captured his fourth pole of the season in the 450MX class, and Justin Cooper, last week’s winner in Colorado, was the top 250MX qualifier.
Cooper is flying in the MX250 class. His time of 1:54.381 is third quickest overall, which includes the two 450MX riders ahead of him, Chase Sexton and Adam Cianciarulo. Cooper, who is no stranger to the Pala track, says he’s riding a wave of confidence after his win in Colorado. “I’m confident and feel real good on the bike right now,” Cooper said. Cooper, who trains often at the Pala track mid-week, said that he doesn’t feel he has any home advantage, since many riders also train at Pala.
Cooper’s Monster Energy/Star Racing Yamaha teammate Dylan Ferrandis is second-best in the class but nearly a full second behind Cooper. Ferrandis doesn’t need to be the fastest today, though, because he just needs a solid ride on the day to win the 250MX Championship. Jeremy Martin, who is 18 points behind Ferrandis, is third quickest.
In the 450MX class, Sexton edged Cianciarulo for top honors. Christian Craig, Marvin Musquin, and Zach Osborne round out the top five.
Osborne is in the same situation as Ferrandis. The Rockstar Husqvarna Team rider only needs a top finish to wrap up the 450MX title for the first time. He leads Cianciarulo by a comfortable 24 points. So, at the end of the day, we should have two new outdoor champions.
It’s been a tough morning for the JGR/Suzuki Team. Three of its riders have withdrawn after qualifying. Alex Martin broke his tibia (but didn’t crash), Fredrik Noren fell and broke his kneecap, and Joey Savatgy pulled out with a previous foot injury. Isaac Teasdale (12th in qualifying) is the only rider who’ll be representing the team later in the national motos.
450MX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
1:53.682 |
2. |
Adam Cianciarulo |
(Kaw) |
1.54.025 |
3. |
Christian Craig |
(Hon) |
1:54.932 |
4. |
Marvin Musquin |
(KTM) |
1:55.388 |
5. |
Zach Osborne |
(Hus) |
1:55.946 |
6. |
Brock Tickle |
(Yam) |
1:56.247 |
7. |
Justin Bogle |
(KTM) |
1:57.221 |
8. |
Justin Barcia |
(Yam) |
1:57.235 |
9. |
Fredrik Noren |
(Suz) |
1:57.406 |
10. |
Max Anstie |
(Suz) |
1:58.366 |
250MX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
1:54.381 |
2. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Yam) |
1:55.302 |
3. |
Jeremy Martin |
(Hon) |
1:55.344 |
4. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
1:56.408 |
5. |
Brandon Hartranft |
(KTM) |
1:57.099 |
6. |
Jarrett Frye |
(Yam) |
1:57.744 |
7. |
Shane McElrath |
(Yam) |
1:57.821 |
8. |
Joe Shimoda |
(Hon) |
1:57.943 |
9. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
1:58.135 |
10. |
Cameron McAdoo |
(Kaw) |
1:58.154 |
2020 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship Schedule
Round 1 |
August 15 |
Loretta Lynn’s Ranch |
Hurricane Mills, Tennessee |
Round 2 |
August 22 |
Loretta Lynn’s Ranch |
Hurricane Mills, Tennessee |
Round 3 |
August 29 |
Ironman Raceway |
Crawfordsville, Indiana |
Round 4 |
September 4 |
RedBud MX |
Buchanan, Michigan |
Round 5 |
September 7 |
RedBud MX |
Buchanan, Michigan |
Round 6 |
September 19 |
Spring Creek MX Park |
Millville, Minnesota |
Round 7 |
September 26 |
WW Ranch MX Park |
Jacksonville, Florida |
Round 8 |
October 3 |
Thunder Valley MX Park |
Lakewood, Colorado |
Round 9 |
October 10 |
Fox Raceway at Pala |
Pala, California |
Click here for all the latest Supercross and motocross news.
Click here for complete results.