Ohlins USA Washougal Recap
In a World Where Superstars Soar, Noren Nails Eighth in Washougal MX!
Washougal, Washington: Unpredictably, privateer Fredrik Noren rode his MX Heaven Racing Team’s Honda CRF450F, fitted with Öhlins, to an incredible eighth-place finish in last weekend’s Lucas Oil AMA Pro 450 Motocross Championship Round 8, Moto 2, at the Washougal, Washington MX track.This fantastic finish, a best for Noren in the AMA Pro Motocross series, was highlighted by his advancing up to eighth from a start that left him in about 20th-place in turn one, and then used his riding ability and stamina to maintain his pace to the end of the race. In other words, Noren didn’t luck into a great start and then fade back to eighth, he earned it the hard way.
From an approximately 20th-place position into turn one from his 22nd-place starting position, Noren moved up to 13th by the end of the first lap, and then within a few more laps he secured eighth, defending it to the checkered flag, on his number-867 bike. This finish, combined with his 22nd-place finish in Moto 1, credited Noren with a 14th overall for the weekend. After missing the first six rounds of the season, Noren is now 31st in points.
About his great finish, this astonished yet confident native of Sweden said, “I’m faster in the Motos than in qualifying. I don’t know why. It was my first Moto without a mistake, including all of last year. I didn’t crash and I didn’t stall my bike.” And this was only Noren’s second race since coming back after breaking his wrist just before the first event of the season. “Now I know what I can do”.
MX Heaven Racing Team owner, Gunnar Lindstrom, said, “It’s somewhat down to the start. He didn’t have to make up for a bad start. This track is hard. It has hard ground underneath with a loose surface, and the suspension worked great in those conditions. This was just his second race back and he didn’t let any wrist pain slow him. He worked for this and we’re proud of him.”
Stacey Berger, Öhlins USA Off Road Manager, said, “This was a great ride by Fredrik. In just a short time back from his injury he’s shown his true potential. We look forward to seeing him at the sharp end of the order for the rest of the year. I’d also like to thank the MX Heaven team for all of their hard work. Their commitment to help us better our product is greatly appreciated.”
Öhlins USA distributes and services the world’s leading performance suspension components for automobiles, motorcycles, and ATVs. Öhlins develops its proprietary and trend-setting suspension components, steering dampers and oils, at the highest levels of racing from open-wheel car racing, to Moto GP, to off-road competition on two and four wheels. Öhlins USA also provides training for service centers and dealers. Öhlins USA can be contacted at: 828-692-4525; www.Ohlinsusa.com
