Ryan Nitzen | June 4, 2022
What a day of racing at Hangtown for round two of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. We don’t normally expect this close of racing in the outdoors but the field absolutely delivered today. Nearly every moto saw photo finishes, with Jason Anderson and Jett Lawrence ultimately taking their respective overalls.
450MX
Moto one started off with Chase Sexton barely edging Jason Anderson for the holeshot. The rest of the top five was stacked with heavy hitters like Ken Roczen in third, Aaron Plessinger fourth, and Eli Tomac fifth. Plessinger later tipped it over and handed the position to his KTM team mate Ryan Dungey. Up front however it looked to be all Chase Sexton for the second week in a row.
Towards the half way mark of the race, Jason Anderson began to chip away at Sexton’s lead. The Kawasaki rider stalked the points leader and executed a decisive pass with only three minutes left on the clock. With only a few laps remaining, Sexton remounted a charge and got right back on the rear tire of Anderson. The two would cross the line with a margin of only 0.39 seconds. Anderson claimed the moto win, Sexton second, and Roczen third, over 25 seconds back.
Moto two saw the nine-time MXGP champ, Tony Cairoli, grab the holeshot just ahead of Ken Roczen and Chase Sexton. Roczen quickly grabbed the lead and began to break away in the early stages. Meanwhile, moto one winner Anderson was left outside the top five on the opening lap.
Chase Sexton eventually caught and passed his team mate Roczen with Eli Tomac quickly following suit. Roczen hung tough but dropped back as the race wore on. Sexton again found himself up front an being hunted by a recharged Eli Tomac. Just past the 10-minute mark, Tomac made the pass for the lead and never relinquished. Sexton stayed close all the way to the finish but never managed to re-pass the number-three. Late in the race, Anderson worked his way up and passed Roczen for the final podium position. This move earned him his first ever overall win with 1-3 finishes.
450MX Overall Results (Top 10)
1. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
1-3 |
2. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
2-2 |
3. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
4-1 |
4. |
Ken Roczen |
(Hon) |
3-4 |
5. |
Christian Craig |
(Yam) |
5-5 |
6. |
Antonio Cairolo |
(KTM) |
7-6 |
7. |
Ryan Dungey |
(KTM) |
6-7 |
8. |
Aaron Plessinger |
(KTM) |
9-8 |
9. |
Joey Savatgy |
(Kaw) |
11-9 |
10. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
10-11 |
250MX
More exciting action from the young bucks in the 250 class. Moto one kicked off with Justin Cooper and Jalek Swoll starting up front, while local boy Michael Mosiman lurked behind in third. Last week’s winner Jett Lawrence came into round two with a bit of a sickness but started up near the front in moto one. With a clear track, Cooper immediately began to extend his lead.
About 10 minutes in, Mosiman made his way up to the back of Cooper and went for the pass. Mosiman had a strong lap while Cooper suffered a few mistakes and the GasGas rider was able to make the pass stick. Meanwhile, Jett and Hunter Lawrence were busy making their way though the field. Hunter eventually fell and was forced to re-pass a number of riders late in the race. Up front though, Mosiman took his first career moto win with Cooper finishing second and Jett Lawrence third.
Moto two began in similar fashion with Cooper holeshotting over Jett and Swoll. A big mistake for Cooper sent him off the track and allowed Lawrence to sneak by and take over the lead. Nick Romano, Cooper’s Star Racing Yamaha teammate, was also up front early in moto two and not giving Cooper any room for error.
Mosiman started inside the top five in moto two and looked to capitalize on a great overall day. Unfortunately he hit the deck early on and bent his handlebars. He did not finish the race, but amazingly finished eighth overall with 1-39 finishes.
Jett Lawrence continued to lead, but Jo Shimoda was obviously the man on the move. The Kawasaki rider made his way past Cooper and quickly set his sights on the lead. He continued to close the gap but fell after the big step up jump and later finished fourth in the moto.
Cooper and Hunter Lawrence benefitted from Shimoda’s fall and the two locked into a tight battle in the final laps of the race. Lawrence made the pass stick on the final lap to move into the second position and tailed his brother Jett at the line. Jett won the moto with Hunter second and Cooper third. 3-1 finishes earned Jett the overall with Cooper’s 2-3 being good enough for second.
250MX Overall Results (Top 10)
1. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
3-1 |
2. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
2-3 |
3. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
4-2 |
4. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Kaw) |
5-4 |
5. |
Max Vohland |
(KTM) |
7-5 |
6. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Yam) |
6-6 |
7. |
Seth Hammaker |
(Kaw) |
8-8 |
8. |
Michael Mosiman |
(GG) |
1-39 |
9. |
Stilez Robertson |
(Hus) |
11-7 |
10. |
Nick Romano |
(Yam) |
10-9 |
QUALIFYING
Round two of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship is underway here at the Hangtown Motocross Classic just outside Sacramento, California. All of the heavy hitters are in attendance and after an exciting round one, we’re looking forward to more action here today. Let’s dive into qualifying.
Jason Anderson set the record straight after a lackluster round one. He put down the fastest qualifying time this morning with a 2:06.2. Last week’s winner Chase Sexton clocked second with Eli Tomac third.
450MX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
2:06.296 |
2. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
2:06.660 |
3. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
2:06.726 |
4. |
Christian Craig |
(Yam) |
2:06.726 |
5. |
Ken Roczen |
(Hon) |
2:07.861 |
6. |
Joey Savatgy |
(Kaw) |
2:08.050 |
7. |
Ryan Dungey |
(KTM) |
2:09.466 |
8. |
Garrett Marchbanks |
(Yam) |
2:09.911 |
9. |
Antonio Cairoli |
(KTM) |
2:10.030 |
10. |
Shane McElrath |
(Hus) |
2:10.056 |
250MX
In the 250’s it was Justin Cooper on top with the fastest qualifying time. J Coop is always a good qualifier and nice to see him up front after a tumultuous start to the year. The two Lawrence brothers, Jett and Hunter were second and third, one second behind Cooper with only 0.1 seconds separating second and third.
250MX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
2:05.812 |
2. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
2:06.874 |
3. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
2:06.986 |
4. |
Mitchell Mosiman |
(GG) |
2:07.081 |
5. |
RJ Hampshire |
(Hus) |
2:07.792 |
6. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Yam) |
2:08.325 |
7. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Kaw) |
2:08.438 |
8. |
Seth Hammaker |
(Kaw) |
2:08.535 |
9. |
Derek Drake |
(Suz) |
2:08.954 |
10. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
2:09.086 |
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