Tomac Racing 450 in Atlanta
Monday, February 18, 2013 | 9:45 PM
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ATLANTA (Feb. 19) -- Eli Tomac will take the final step in his professional evolution this Saturday at the Georgia Dome when he makes his debut in the top tier of motocross aboard a GEICO Honda CRF 450R. Tomac will join teammates Wil Hahn and Georgia native Zach Bell, who will be racing in the second 250SX East of the season.
"I'm fired up and excited to race this 450," Tomac said. "I don't think I could have picked a better place to make my debut because Atlanta is always a packed house and the fans are loud. I love that crazy feeling you get in that building.
"It'll be fun racing against some different guys and this also will be the first time in my career that I'll be running in the East in Supercross so I'm anxious to see how the tracks are set-up."
Tomac will contest four 450SX races while the tour is in the East -- Atlanta, St. Louis, Daytona, Fla., and Indianapolis -- before returning to a 250 when the West series completes its final three races in Seattle, Salt Lake City and Las Vegas. He currently ranks second in the 250SX West standings after winning four of the first six races. Tomac is the defending 250SX West champion.
"I love the new Honda 450," Tomac said. "I rode it at the Monster Energy Cup and came away in third place overall so I hope I'll be able to contest for some podium finishes in these four races. The 250 class is very fast and a lot of times we're running the same lap times as the 450s so I expect to feel fairly comfortable right from the start. I really can't wait to run 450s full time. I'm ready."
Like Tomac, Hahn anticipates being in the mix for a top-three finish in Atlanta. He opened the 250SX East series last weekend in Dallas with an impressive third-place result and says a better start in Atlanta could be the key to moving up a spot or two.
"I got the opening round jitters out of my system and I really can't wait to get back on my bike and race again," Hahn said. "I need a better start and I need to stay on my program and ride smart. I feel very strongly that I can stay right there with (Dallas winner Dean) Wilson. I had some good laps in practice and in the heat race and just had a few little mistakes that set me back. I'm third in the points and definitely looking to move up."
Rookie Bell is sure to be a crowd favorite in Atlanta as he spent his formative years riding the hills of Cairo, Ga. He had a highlight-reel pro debut in Dallas, leading the way in his heat race and running away from the chase pack before coming off a footpeg during a jump and crashing hard. He still made it into the main event via the Last Chance Qualifier but another spill left him with a DNF.
"I'm ready to have some fun," Bell said. "I went for it last week and had some accidents. I'm sore and beat-up but I'll push through it. If I can get up from that first crash and make it to the main event, riding this weekend shouldn't be a problem.
"I need to stay healthy and ride a little safer. I've got a great group here and my mechanic and the rest of the guys on the GEICO team are behind me 100 percent. Plus, I'll be racing in front of all my friends and family from Georgia. Hopefully I'll give everyone something better to cheer about."
This Saturday's racing action will be shown live beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on SPEED TV. The 450SX race will repeat at 11 p.m., Saturday.
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Podium or Top 5
I think he could win one. Eli is really fast.
How many crashes for "ring my Bell" this week?
I'm callin 3 and a denial.
Daytona a mini-preview of the 450 mx series??
Boy Tomac will throw a monkey wrench in the points ! LOL !
i wish bell would get some wins but after crashing in all of his professional races so far, big crashes are becoming a tendency for him
Go Toe Toe - Go Toe Toe!
If Tomac and RV both nail the starts, I think Tomac will be giving Ryan fits. He's fast and could easily take a win. He sort of rides like Marty Smith back in the old days with that aggressive stance.
Let the bidding war begin. A LOT of folks are going to want this kid on their 450 next year.
i love when the series goes east. this is one of the great things about the supercross
@seattlemx rumor has it he's already signed with geico for the 450's
Tomac can do very well, but lets not forget, it is easier to race a 250 in supercross than a 450.. I think Tomac will do well, but that 450 is a big powerful bike.. Barcia has always been kind of a supercross specialist, and had more success in supercross than Tomac, and he has struggled off and on on the 450.. But Tomac does have an advantage of racing in Atlanta with better dirt too.. At least we can all hope..But I wouldnt give Tomac the win just yet..RV Dungey Stewie, Reed, they all kicked butt in the 250 class too..
Anyone know which race Roczen is running the 450 class?? My guess is Daytona..
@klrman1 - as much as I like Tomac you are selling RV short - he has honed his craft for since 09' in this class and he has strengthened his body accordingly - When Tomac begins to wilt around lap 15 RV will still be doing work - as will Dungey and Millsaps...
Get it through your head guys 250 racing is not 450 racing - the bike reacts completely different - this is NOT the MEC. This is AMA Supercoss - not a circus sideshow.
Again I like Tomac and his style but give the veterans their due - they have earned it.
Woohoo! Go Tomac! While I would love to see an upset first time ever winner I really just hope Eli stays safe and runs up with the front pac.
This is also awesome in so many other ways, hopefully Tomac can get in-between RV Dungey and Davi and help to tighten up the point race even more!
THE BIKE: Will it be a K Dub's bike with different suspension and number plates or maybe Shorties old bike ? U know, the one with the hydraulic clutch ? Ahhhh... I would bet that Am Honda would salivate on having him on the factory bike and trying to get a "RED" podium at ATL..
Daytona prediction:
Tomac, barcia, villo, stewie
It's definitely not windhams bike there's a picture of it on Instagram and it has works Showa suspension windhams has factory connection forks windham also said Saturday night his are conventional forks not even the stock air ones
aliasmx's photo http://instagram.com/p/V7EcuVJhvo/
Dungey Tomac Barcia Reed lil Poto DNF....... Epic!
Why would Tomac ride K-Dubs 450 and not his own?? Tomac is going to ride the 450 outdoors anyway, I am sure he already has at least 2 with the Geico Team..
@dinosaurmedia; Maybe you're right as I thought Barcia would take this series and it's proving to be much more difficult for him than I imagined it would be. I think Tomac had mentioned before that the 450's are much more suited to him, but we'll all know more this Saturday I guess.