| April 19, 2021
FMF KTM’s Taylor Robert swung back to the top step of the podium with the win in the Pro 450 Motorcycle race in the Rocky Mountain ATV-MC WORCS Series, presented by Polaris RZR and Dirt Bike event at Honolulu Hills Raceway in Taft, California, April 17-18.
Mateo Oliveira won the Pro 250 race, while motocross racer Ryder DiFrancesco finished first in Pro-Am.
Brandy Richards remains undefeated in Pro Women with her fourth victory of the season.
The event was held at the combined off-road and motocross course at Honolulu Hills. Situated at the edge of the San Joaquin Valley, warm and dry conditions leading up the race made for a challenging course with visibility issues reported late in the two-hour run.
In the Pro race, Robert wasted no time getting into the lead on his KTM with the Husqvarna of Austin Walton and the KTM of his teammate Dante Oliveira trailing him. Though Walton made several hard charges on Robert, he held onto the victory, his second of the season. Walton was second, ahead of Oliveira.
Cole Martinez (Honda) and Travis Damon (Yamaha) rounded out the top five.
Robert and Oliveira have split victories this season with two apiece. That is making for a serious points battle early in the season, one that is likely to keep going until the season finale in Arizona.
“This is going to be an intense battle this year,” said Robert. “Dante and I keep swapping back and forth and these kids are moving. It should be a pretty hectic last race.”
Walton took second for good late in the event and kept Robert in his sights throughout. Though dust made it tough for him to mount a charge, he did keep Robert honest.
“I was trying to give Taylor a run for his money, and I always respect racing with him because I know he’ll race me clean,” said Walton. “To try to stay behind Taylor, I had to really trust my lines, and I did everything I could to stay with him.”
Oliveira was third and lost the points lead to Robert. He swapped second and third with Austin early in the race before settling into the final spot on the podium for the remainder of the race.
“I was charging behind them just a few seconds back,” said Oliveira. “I was feeling good, and I was looking for a place where I could make a pass. I just couldn’t put it together, but my KTM worked awesome, and I just have a few things I want to work on.”
In Pro 250, Mateo Oliveira extended his points lead with his third win of the season on his RPM KTM. The victory didn’t come easy, though, and after taking the lead early in the race Oliveira had to use every bit of his fitness to keep it.
Tallon Lafountaine took several shots on Oliveira late in the race and finished second on his Honda.
Colton Aeck was third on his 3 Bros KTM.
“I got a decent start, and got the lead fast,” said Mateo Oliveira. “From there I just tried to ride my own race and do everything I could to keep the lead. I saw Tallon coming right before we pitted, and I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to hold him off. But I did it, and I’m just stoked to get the win.”
Lafountaine made it into second early in the race and looked everywhere for a chance to pass for the lead. At the end, with visibility decreasing due to dust, he throttled it back and settled for second, earning his third podium of the season.
Aeck learned that WORCS’ longer format worked to his advantage. After hitting a hole and doing on endo early in the race, he recovered to finished third.
“Today I found the only mudhole on the track and flipped trying to make a pass,” said Aeck. “I just need to minimize those mistakes, and I think we’ll move up higher on the box.”
In Pro Am, Difrancesco came in hot right from the start, taking the holeshot and leading every subsequent lap in dominating fashion on his Kawasaki.
Brandy Richards was second on her KTM, backing up her victory in the last round.
Matt Canepa was third on his KTM.
“I think the longest moto I’ve ever ridden was an hour and that was only halfway there in this race,” said DiFrancesco. “The first hour was super fun, and then the track got torn up and powdery. So, I had to slow it down a little bit and I cruised to the finish.”
Richards stuck with DiFrancesco for the first lap before she crashed. She recovered to run second for the rest of the race.
Canepa is another motocross convert and he enjoyed the high speed of the Honolulu Hills track. The third-place finish marked his first podium of the season.
Richards remains unbeaten in Pro Women. She rode her KTM to her fourth consecutive victory ahead of Kaitlyn Jacobs and Eva Silvestri.
The WORCS motorcycles return to action June 11-13 at Cache Valley MX in Preston, Idaho.
-Harlen Foley
2021 Rocky Mountain ATV-MC WORCS Series, presented by Polaris RZR and Dirt Bike
Round 4
Honolulu Hills Raceway
Taft, California
RESULTS (April 18, 2021)
PRO (Top 5)
1. |
Tyler Robert |
(KTM) |
2. |
Austin Walton |
(Hus) |
3. |
Dante Oliveira |
(KTM) |
4. |
Cole Martinez |
(Hon) |
5. |
Travis Damon |
(Yam) |
Click here for complete Taft WORCS Round 4 results