After what he considered a disappointing start to the season, Josh Toth got things on track with an impressive win at round three of the U.S. Sprint Enduro Series at Dreamville MX Raceway in Raeford, North Carolina, February 26-27.
Photos by Shan Moore
Toth was second overall at the series opener in January and then fourth overall at round two at South of the Border MX in South Carolina. The FMF/KTM Factory rider stepped up his game in round three, winning eight of the 12 tests for the weekend (five on Saturday and three on Sunday), finishing the two-day event with a 35-second advantage over runner-up finisher Cody Barnes for the victory.
“It’s been a while since I won a sprint race,” said Toth. “I was riding good this weekend, like I felt like I should have been at the first two rounds. It was very slippery: dry and slick the first day, and then wet and slick today. I laid it down a couple times, but nothing serious.”
The race marked the second race in a row where Barnes has challenged the Pro riders from the Pro 2 class and the Phoenix Honda rider drew first blood on Saturday, posting the fastest overall time in test one ahead of Toth. AmPro Yamaha’s Layne Michael, who was nursing a grade 2 AC tear to his right shoulder from a crash the previous weekend, posted the third-fastest time.
In test two, Toth stormed back to take control of the race, reeling off five-straight test wins to finish out the day.
Michael finished second in tests two and three but couldn’t maintain the pace due to his shoulder and gave way to Barnes and Seven-Sixty Husqvarna’s Thorn Devlin in the final three tests.
After six tests, Toth sat at the top of Saturday’s standings in first, while Barnes finished second overall (first in the Pro 2 class), and Devlin was third overall (second Pro 2). Michael was fourth overall and second Pro rider, while Tely Energy Racing’s Liam Draper was fifth overall and third in the Pro division.
While Saturday’s race took place under clear skies and dry conditions, Sunday’s event was wet and slippery thanks to an all-day rain that set in over the area.
Toth got off to a quick start in Sunday’s mud, taking the win in the opening test of the day. Barnes, however, kept Toth on his toes and would end up splitting wins with the Connecticut rider, with each rider claiming three wins.
At the end of the day, Toth was quickest where it counted and beat out Barnes by 11 seconds for Sunday’s win, which also sealed the overall win for the weekend.
Toth felt the win would give him momentum heading into the remainder of the year.
“This gives me a boost,” said Toth. “I feel like I should have been a little bit closer at the first two rounds. The first round I was close. Second round, I was a little off the pace. I’m looking forward to the next round.”
Barnes won four tests outright for the weekend (one on Saturday and three on Sunday) and claimed the runner-up slot for the weekend in addition to first place in the Pro 2 division.
“The track was fast and the cross-test was really hard packed, so I just tried to eliminate mistakes and not crash,” said Barnes. “Today we got a bunch of rain and it made the track gnarly. The woods test got super rutted and super rough. So, really it was just about not making mistakes and going down or even getting stuck. There were a couple spots that really rutted up. Overall, it was a great weekend. Hopefully I can carry this momentum into the rest of the year.”
Despite the injury to his shoulder, Michael managed to salvage third overall and, more importantly, second-place points in the Pro class.
“That was the plan coming in, to salvage as many points as possible,” said Michael. “I wasn’t sure if I was really going to be able to race, but I knew I was going to give it a go. It went okay. Yesterday was all right. With it being dry I was able to just ride smooth and kind of manage it. Then today with the rain it made it a lot tougher on the shoulder. I lost my rear brakes the beginning of the last test. Pretty much had to ride without rear brakes, and then obviously with not having much upper body strength it was quite difficult. Overall, the plan was to at least show up and get decent points.”
After three rounds, Toth leads the series standings with 152 points, followed by Michael with 143, and Draper with 118. Coastal Racing GasGas’ Johnny Girroir, winner of the first two rounds of the series, was forced to miss the race due to an injury suffered the weekend before. He sits in fourth overall with 115 points.
Draper turned in an excellent ride on Sunday and finished out the weekend with fourth overall, just four seconds behind Michael.
“It was a really good weekend for me,” said Draper. “I finally found myself riding up to what I know how to ride. Yesterday was good. I was close with the boys all day. Then today I rode really well. Me and Layne came down to the last test. He got me by four seconds for the weekend.”
Devlin, who is still adjusting to a four-stroke, was second in the Pro 2 class with a fifth-overall finish.
“I rode really well this weekend, as I’m trying to progress and learn the four-stroke,” said Devlin. “I rode pretty well yesterday, but I messed it up today. I lost too much time. Pretty disappointed in myself how I rode today, but happy to be second.”
RPM Racing KTM’s Angus Riordan continues to gain momentum as he gains experience in the sprint series. The Australian finished off the weekend with sixth overall and third in the Pro 2 class.
“I’m slowly getting there; it’s just the terrain I need to get used to,” said Riordan. “I’m slowly improving. I’m enjoying it.”
After getting off to a rough start on Saturday, Massachusetts rider Bubz Tasha (KTM) claimed his best finish of the year with seventh overall and first in the Pro-Am class after coming out on top of a good race with Cade Henderson for the win in the Pro 2 class.
After running as high as seventh overall on Saturday, Forbes Racing’s Cole Forbes turned in his best performance to date with an eighth overall and first in the 250 A class. Forbes was also top amateur.
Capitalizing on a great race on Saturday, Henderson finished up with ninth overall and second in the Pro-Am class.
Rounding out the top 10 and third in the Pro-Am class was Neil Enman (GG).
The Women’s Pro class, Trail Jesters Racing KTM’s Kori Steede topped Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Tayla Jones by over a minute for the overall win. Steede won nine tests over the course of the two-day event, while Jones won three.
“I stayed super consistent and it ended up paying off big time,” said Steede. “This weekend you just had to be super consistent with how gnarly the tracks were. So, I’m pumped.”
Third overall went to FXR Racing KTM’s Shelby Turner.
Round four of the U.S. Sprint Enduro Series is scheduled for March 19-20 at Boswell Farm in Greensboro, Georgia.
2022 Dreamville Sprint Enduro Results
1. Josh Toth (KTM)
2. Cody Barnes (Hon) Pro 2
3. Layne Michael (Yam)
4. Liam Draper (KTM)
5. Thorn Devlin (Hus) Pro 2
6. Angus Riordan (KTM) Pro 2
7. Bubz Tasha (Hus) Pro-Am
8. Cole Forbes (KTM) 250 A
9. Cade Henderson (KTM) Pro-Am
10. Neil Enman (GG) Pro-Am
Click here for all the latest Off-Road Racing news.
