Honda HRC’s Trey Canard wasn’t able to follow up on a podium performance last weekend at Unadilla, never getting comfortable in Utah en route to sixth overall. “Today didn’t go well at all, but I’m walking away healthy, which is something positive to take away from it,” he said in a team statement. “The track was really tough; I struggled all day and never was able to really get comfortable. My starts were bad in both motos, which is extremely frustrating. I know it’s only my third race back, but I shouldn’t be back there like that.”

We reported yesterday that Honda HRC’s Fredrik Noren would miss this weekend’s Indiana National after fracturing the knuckle in his right index finger in the first moto at Utah. Despite not scoring any points over the last four motos, Noren is locked into the tenth spot in 450MX, matching a career-high finish from a season ago. Noren filled in for Trey Canard and Cole Seely the entire Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship with Honda HRC, but has not officially announced a deal for the 2016 season. Most think a return to MotoSport.com/GPI Honda is a possibility. "I’m really bummed, but I’m happy I’ll at least finish the season in the top ten in points, even without getting points today or at Indiana," he said in a statement. "I’m grateful for everything that Team Honda has done for me."

Road racer Jake Gagne, who we profiled last week, was impressive in his first career Lucas Oil Pro Motocross race. After qualifying twenty-third in practice, Gagne finished a respectable twenty-second in moto one. Unfortunately, Gagne aggravated a bruised hip flexor he sustained in Indianapolis the week prior in the moto, and with the end of the season approaching, the MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 points leader decided to sit out the second moto. "This was perhaps one of the greatest experiences in my life," he said in a press release. "I grew up riding motocross and riding with a lot of the guys that are regulars in the pro motocross series. I've always wanted to race in a pro outdoor, and I can't believe that I actually got the chance." 

No matter what happens in the 250 Class championship battle this weekend, Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha is loaded for 2016, as they return Cooper Webb, Jeremy Martin, and Aaron Plessinger, and add Alex Martin, Jeremy’s older brother. In Utah, the Star squad finished 1-3-4 overall, including moto scores of 3-1-2-2-4-4. The rookie Plessinger has really turned it on down the stretch. Over the last three races, he has secured his first career overall podium (Washougal), first moto podium (Unadilla), and finished a consistent fourth overall (Utah). In the last six motos, the rookie has averaged a sixth place finish, even with a sixteenth in moto one at Unadilla. Once the most overlooked team in the pits, Star Racing has the most promising future full of young stars.

Speaking of teammates, Marvin Musquin may not have any direct protection (though the TLD team is also KTM supported) at Ironman, as his Red Bull KTM teammate, Justin Hill, who has struggled since his return from a concussion suffered in qualifying at Thunder Valley, missed the second moto in Utah after sustaining a compound fracture to a finger in the first moto. Hill received treatment from the Asterisk Medical Unit at the track and was then taken to a local hospital to be treated. While the team hasn’t officially announced Hill’s status for the weekend, it’s likely he will miss the final round in Indiana on Saturday. 

GEICO Honda’s Matt Bisceglia, who’s had a very up and down second professional season, rode to consistent 6-6 motos for a career-high fifth overall Saturday. Utah was the first time this season that Bisceglia has finished inside the top ten in both motos. "That's my best finish this year and my best finish in motocross, so I can't complain," Bisceglia said in a team statement. "The heat definitely started getting to me; twenty minutes into the moto you start getting overheated. I'm in good physical shape and rode consistent overall." 

RJ Hampshire was this close to earning his first career podium in Utah, before falling some thirty odd feet before the finish line. “I don't think I've ever felt so bad in my life. But it's hard to stay down when I had the best moto all year going,” he wrote on Instagram after the race. Hampshire told Racer X’s Steve Matthes that he thought a lapper late in the race was Jeremy Martin, so he pushed it way too hard at the end. “I probably had an eight-second gap back to Martin and didn’t know,” he said. “[I] sent it into the last turn and went down. Honestly, I thought the lapper was Martin coming to pass me, so I sent it a little too hard. I picked up, was still in third, and I stalled it.” He would go on to finish the moto seventh and went seventh in the second moto, good for seventh overall on the day. The good news for Hampshire is he led four laps in the first moto, one more than he had in the first ten rounds combined. He coulda, shoulda, woulda collected his first career podium. 

The battle for third in points between Zach Osborne and Joey Savatgy tightened up Saturday, as Osborne, who has struggled since a 3-2 day at RedBud, finished sixth overall to close the gap to just 5 points with one round remaining. "Today was a step in the right direction,” he said in a team statement. “After struggling the last couple of rounds, I feel like I made some progress today. To be able to push the way I did all the way through the motos in the heat and altitude helped my confidence." 

As for Savatgy, last week’s overall winner, he was in the first-turn pileup that also hampered Jeremy Martin, and charged back to an impressive fifth in the first moto. Savatgy also got caught in the back on the restart in moto two and had to come from outside the top twenty to eleventh. If you take where Savatgy finished the first lap in both motos, he passed an incredible thirty-eight riders on Saturday. “I had a lot of confidence coming into the weekend,” said Savatgy in a team statement. “I felt like I rode really well, but with every step forward I took, it seemed like I was still fighting. My results don’t show how well I rode this weekend, but looking ahead to the final race, I have a lot of good memories from the Indiana National, even if they came during the mud race last season.” Savatgy scored his first career podium with second overall last year in Indiana. 

Christian Craig tweaked his back in practice and was forced to pull out of the second moto after running just six laps. "Pretty much every bump, I hit I was gritting my teeth in my helmet," Craig said in a team statement. "Hopefully it is something minor, so I should be good for next week."