Cycle News Staff | November 2, 2020
Less than a week after the first two rounds of the 2020 AMA EnduroCross series, the riders were back at Glen Helen Raceway for rounds three and four on Thursday, October 29 and Friday, October 30. The direction was reversed, and the obstacles were changed with a second pro-only section added. Trystan Hart broke through for his first-ever win to serve notice that he wants to take down both Colton Haaker and Cody Webb, both three-time champions. But for round four, Haaker came back for another win while Webb finished second to restore some order.
Hart Gets First Win
FMF KTM’s Hart has been extremely fast in his debut season as a factory rider and in round three, he put in 2-2-1 moto scores to get that first overall win. He has had the fastest hot-lap time in three of the four rounds so far in 2020 and has been able to win motos when he gets a good start. The three-moto format for EnduroCross inverts the 16-rider starting positions for moto two (which puts the top eight riders on the second row), and Hart has not been as quick to work through the field as Haaker and Webb.
In round four, Hart was in a position to get back-to-back wins when he took the Fox Holeshot in the third moto, but a crash on the first lap while leading took him out of contention. He was lucky to recover for a third in the moto and overall but will need to take more wins in the final two rounds to have a chance at the championship.
Hart was happy about taking his first-ever win at round three but is more focused on the championship. “It is pretty crazy to take my first win, but I am not overly excited because I am more focused on the championship,” Hart said. “I have a bit of a deficit to overcome, still.”
Rockstar Husqvarna’s Haaker is the defending AMA EnduroCross Champion, and he is making it difficult for Hart or Webb to wrestle the number-one plate away from him. Haaker now has three wins in four rounds with a second in the one race he did not win. Haaker’s intensity throughout the three motos has led to the most moto and overall wins so far. And he has come through more often than not when the pressure has been on. For both rounds three and four, the top three riders were tied on moto points going into the final race and all have been within a point for all four rounds. So, although Haaker has dominated the overall results and points that go with that, the margins have been very close.
Haaker has been getting wins despite dealing with a back injury. “I injured my back during my practice crash at round two, so I had to go see Ty Davis [former champion racer] to use one of his tricks to help relieve the pain and loosen me up. I am hoping to get a 1-1-1 score at one of these last two rounds next week.”
Webb is a three-time AMA EnduroCross Champion, but he missed the 2019 season due to injury and switched from the KTM team to the FactoryONE Sherco team during the offseason. He has had a strong year with several wins in extreme enduro races, but he did that riding a two-stroke 300 and as he said, “I have been pacing myself for all-day races, and I came in a little unprepared for the intensity of EnduroCross. The tracks for the first few rounds were also pretty jumpy, and I ride looser when the tracks are technical. I am looking forward to these last two races to try to get some wins.”
Webb was very close to taking the critical moto wins necessary for the overall at round four. He is not out of the championship chase but will need to get some wins to get it done.
As for the rest of the riders, Cooper Abbott has had a breakthrough season with a third, two fourth and one fifth-place finish so far. He has proven to be very tenacious with some last-lap passes to make every position count, and he is currently holding fourth position.
Veteran rider Cory Graffunder had eighth- and sixth-place finishes at rounds three and four, respectively, but top-five finishes at rounds one and two have helped him hold fifth in the championship so far. Beta USA-backed Max Gerston had a pair of fifth-place finishes at rounds three and four to make up for a tough round two.
In the Women’s class, defending champion Shelby Turner won for the fourth consecutive time. The KTM rider has also been a top finisher in the Amateur/Intermediate class. In the women’s class, Sherco rider Louise Forsley finished second at rounds three and four and holds second in the championship. Beta’s Morgan Tanke finished third at both races to hang onto third in the championship. CN
2020 Geico AMA EnduroCross Championship
Rounds 3 & 4
Glen Helen Raceway
San Bernardino, California
RESULTS (October 29-30, 2020)
Round 3 (Thursday, Top 10)
1. |
Trystan Hart |
(KTM) |
2-2-1 |
2. |
Colton Haaker |
(Hus) |
1-3-2 |
3. |
Cody Webb |
(She) |
3-1-3 |
4. |
Cooper Abbott |
(KTM) |
4-5-5 |
5. |
Max Gerston |
(Bet) |
5-6-4 |
6. |
Benjamin Herrera |
(Bet) |
6-8-7 |
7. |
Noah Kepple |
(Hus) |
9-4-9 |
8. |
Cory Graffunder |
(Yam) |
7-12-6 |
9. |
William Riordan |
(KTM) |
12-11-8 |
10. |
Spencer Wilton |
(KTM) |
14-7-10 |
Round 4 (Friday, Top 10)
1. |
Colton Haaker |
(Hus) |
3-1-1 |
2. |
Cody Webb |
(She) |
2-2-2 |
3. |
Trystan Hart |
(KTM) |
1-3-3 |
4. |
Cooper Abbott |
(KTM) |
4-4-6 |
5. |
Max Gerston |
(Bet) |
6-5-4 |
6. |
Cory Graffunder |
(Yam) |
5-6-5 |
7. |
Noah Kepple |
(Hus) |
8-10-7 |
8. |
Ty Cullins |
(TM) |
7-9-9 |
9. |
Spencer Wilton |
(KTM) |
9-7-10 |
10. |
Ryder Leblond |
(KTM) |
14-8-8 |