Wil Hahn to Return at Budds Creek

MECHANICSVILLE, Md. - Wil Hahn has happily watched his GEICO Honda teammates get off to such a strong start this season that he has decided to join the fun at Saturday's Red Bull Budds Creek National, part of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship.

Hahn hasn't been sitting out by choice. He was sidelined for the first chunk of the outdoor season after suffering a wrist injury in the Supercross finale in Las Vegas, but he is ready to pick up where he left off.

"I was looking forward to carrying that momentum from Supercross into Motocross, but it didn't work out for me that way," Hahn said. "But since the surgery on my wrist, I've been working as hard as I can. I've had some good therapy to get this thing healed and get back on the bike as soon as possible."

Even though Hahn hasn't been racing, it doesn't mean he has been idle. The only days he has taken off since Vegas have been following his wrist surgery and after he had his wisdom teeth removed.

"I've been focusing on my cardio, so I've logged a lot of miles on my bicycle," Hahn said. "The main thing for me was getting back on my GEICO Honda motorcycle. After the testing I've done, I feel like I've got a strong bike."

Teammate Eli Tomac is looking forward to having Hahn back on the track.

"It's going to be a good thing to have Wil back and have another GEICO rider on the gate who can get between myself and (Ken) Roczen for points," Tomac said. "It'll also be fun to have everyone back in the hauler."

Tomac, who is second in the 250cc standings (five points out of the lead), took the week between races to give his body a chance to recover following the first four events of the season.

"I took my first couple of days easy and got some rest because that's what my body needed," Tomac said. "I'd been going hard for quite a few weeks. I'm in good enough shape that I just needed to rest.

"If you are trying to gain fitness at this time of year, you are kind of behind the ball."

Zach Osborne is looking to continue his recent run of strong finishes and attempt to move up into the top four in the points.

"Sometimes when you are riding well you don't want to take that break in the schedule, but I think we all needed that time to recover," Osborne said. "It'll be good to come out refreshed and ready to race this weekend."

Justin Bogle moved into eighth place in the 250cc points and is happy with the steady progress he has made since the start of the season.

"I know I have the speed; I just need to get the starts and have some things go my way," Bogle said. "My next goal is to get a top five (overall finish). I got sixth last time, and it was the first time I got two single-digit moto finishes this year.

"I'm just going to try to keep building on that. I've not been to Budds Creek before, so I'm going to have to pick it up quick."

Practice for the Red Bull Budds Creek National will get under way at 8:30 a.m. EDT on Saturday with the opening ceremony scheduled at 12:40 p.m. FUEL TV will air the first motos starting at 1 p.m. EDT. The second 450cc moto will air on NBC affiliates nationwide starting at 3 p.m. Coverage of the second 250cc moto will air on NBC Sports Network at 4 p.m.