By Jason Weigandt, Aaron Hansel, and Steve Matthes
Ken Roczen |Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s/RCH Suzuki | 2nd in 450SX
We’re making steps in the right direction, we’ve been doing a crap ton of starts. We switched to a different clutch and it seemed to help me on the starts. Obviously not a holeshot but I was somewhat up front. It felt really good not to get blasted the whole time. I have to give it up to Ryan [Dungey], three in a row is really hard to do, especially with how deep the field is. He’s been really on point with his starts, and no mistakes, so bottom line he’s doing really good at the moment. But like I said, last week we were third, this week we were second, so we’re moving in the right direction. Track was tough out here. I didn’t have good line choices early in the race, I was trying to figure my stuff out.
Where you experimenting and trying to change lines?
Yeah I was because I got uncomfortable on some of the lines and I switched it up. It’s really hard to hit your marks every lap. So I switched it up a little bit and he gapped me, and ended up winning, so, give it up to him.
Any sections where you felt he was going a little quicker, or you can improve on?
I think he’s just confident right now. He’s known for being super consistent. He’s definitely hitting his marks and going really fast at the same time. But I think we’re doing the right things, there’s nothing to stress on even though he already has a pretty good lead already. But the season is so long already and you never know what’s going to happen. It’s been a long time coming for me, obviously last year was tough, and we’re doing good this year, and we’re really enjoying the racing. I think that’s what matters and that’s what counts. – Jason Weigandt
Marvin Musquin | Red Bull KTM | 3rd in 450SX
To be right behind Ryan Dungey, it was a really good feeling. I was thinking about the whole team, everybody, and to be first and second, even on the first lap, felt great. I knew I had twenty laps so I tried to ride the best and smooth. Someone was pushing behind me and I thought it was James [Stewart] and it was actually Roczen. I started to tighten up, to be honest. I felt the pressure coming from behind and I started making mistakes and Roczen went by. I tried to follow and keep my third place. It felt great to get a podium, in my first year it’s awesome. Now the goal is to stay on the podium! Or even top five every weekend and fight with those guys. It’s where I want to be.
With that start did you feel like you could finally show how you were feeling at the test track during the week?
Yeah. Finally up there in second place, behind Ryan, it was like practice! Do a twenty-lapper and be consistent. Obviously Roczen was faster, and the track was difficult. I stayed in my line every single lap and didn’t really try anything else. In some areas, with more confidence and experience, I would move around and try different things while I’m racing. But I was a little bit scared to try some new things. I race for myself, but I also race for the team that puts so much work in. And for my brother and my family, they follow me and support me 100 percent. – Aaron Hansel
Roger DeCoster | Red Bull KTM team manager
Marvin has had the ability, the thing he was missing the most was confidence to be able to do it. He’s also coming back from an injury, and stepping up to the 450 at the same time. He came back, and came back in the big class, it’s two steps. This result should help his confidence, and help him ride more free. Already in practice today, and during the week, he looked better. His settings now are close to Dungey’s settings and I don’t know if he’ll be on the podium every week, but I think we can expect him to have better results regularly. – Hansel
Jason Anderson | Rockstar Energy Husqvarna | 4th in 450SX
My weekend was not what I wanted but not horrible, by any means. I rode great and came out with a fourth. Just going to try and if I can start up front I can be on the box and battling for that win. But I’m kind of making it hard on myself. I came through the pack and I had a little bit of a sketchy moment with Reed there in the double, triple, double. I thought he was going to go triple and I clipped his back tire and almost looped it. But all in all I came out fourth so it’s not a bad deal. Just going to try and keep moving forward.
Did that track offer a lot of passing opportunities or not really?
There were a couple 180 corners but it was so one-lined coming in the section before that it was tough. There were passing opportunities but it was very kind of sketchy to pass in some spots. There’s a lot of jumps into corners where you’re coming into the corner super fast and the corner’s like right there. So it’s hard to make gnarly passes. But I made it happen and came through. But I really want to make it easy on myself and get up front and battle with the top dudes. – Weigandt
Cole Seely | HRC Honda | 6th in 450SX
Positive of the night was the heat race. Of course it had to be between me and Jason Anderson, we have a history of bar banging and usually I’m the one who gets the short straw so it was nice to kind of fight back. There’s no blood in the water though, or anything like that, it’s just racing. I actually had no idea that was the last lap, I actually thought we had one more. I went over the finish line and was ready to defend that position.
Sixth is still sixth in a stacked 450 class, but at the same time I was in fifth, it took me a little longer than I wanted to get around [James] Stewart. Once I got to fourth there was such a big gap to Musquin, I just tried to focus forward, focus forward. But I was fighting the track, fighting a lot of things, and those guys were applying the pressure and I was trying to not let it get to me. Once Anderson showed me a wheel I kind of had to just lay down and take it. There wasn’t much I could do. I don’t know, it sucked. We’re going to go back and study some footage and see what we can make of it. It’s supposed to rain in SoCal a lot this week, but I’ve got a pretty experienced group behind me and we can make some good changes with settings. We know what we need to do.
Gnarly track?
Really gnarly track. It was actually kind of weird because it was one of the most simple tracks, rhythm wise, and the whoops were small. But it was tacky in some places, it would just grab the rear wheel and throw you one way. – Hansel/Steve Matthes
Jake Weimer | Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s/RCH Factory Suzuki | 8th in 450SX
It was a track where I think the fast line required you leave the door open in quite a few spots. If there was someone on you, you had to ride protectively and the last seven laps were a fight.
Millsaps got you in the semi. Was that in your head when he was on you in the main?
I guess it could, but the mentality is just one more guy. In that situation I just wanted to finish one spot better.
Talk about racing the new bike.
I thought it was fine and I think over time things will get better. I’m comfortable, I like it, feel good on it, and I think I can approve. I matched my best result of the season and I think I can get better. For five days on it, I’ll take it. It’s good, it’s different, but I’m really enjoying it. Tonight we dealt with a little bit different track, it was choppy and had ruts. I had someone on me the whole twenty laps and I think I rode a little tight and made a few mistakes. But I’m not mad or bummed about that, I’m excited that I feel like I can improve. I felt good. – Hansel
Colt Nichols | CycleTrader.com/Rock River Yamaha | 2nd in 250SX
Racer X: Good race for you.
Colt Nichols: Thanks! It honestly didn’t start out very good at all. I got a horrible start. I made some good passes and stayed smart the first few laps and really had no idea what place I was in. Christian Craig went down and I got around Jordon Smith, and I think I was reeling in Alex Martin a little bit and he crashed. I think the next lap I looked over at the leaderboard to see how many laps we had left and I saw 69 in third place. I was like, ‘No way!’ Then Webb’s bike did whatever it did and I was sitting in second place. It was just a really surreal feeling for me and I didn’t really ride well in the final laps. We’re going to keep the ball rolling for next weekend.
When you saw you were in a podium position did nerves start setting in?
Honestly not until the last two laps. When I saw I was in third I told myself to calm down because we still had five or six laps to go. But with about two to go I got tight and made a few mistakes but that’s okay because we got through it. It was a solid finish for us and the team. I’m just really happy, it’s been a long time coming and there’s been a lot of hard work put into this. To see it come true like this is a big deal. I have a really good team around me and that’s the whole reason I am where I am right now.
Did this deal come around kind of late?
Definitely. It came around at the beginning of December. I’d been in talks with GEICO about that fifth ride, and they ended up going with Jimmy Decotis, and I’m very lucky this deal came around. I have to give a big thanks to Robbie Reynard on this. He’s the one who kept dropping my name to Christina Denney [CycleTrader.com/Rock River Yamaha team manager] and I’m happy they took a chance. They didn’t know what they were going to get out of me so to repay them with a podium is awesome.
Guys were crashing all over the place. Was tonight more about staying up than going fast, or was it just one of those nights where guys just crashed?
The track was easy to make mistakes. Coming into the turns they were a little loose, but midway through and beyond it was rutty. You had to be patient coming in, but once you got there you could go. I saw a few guys try to come in too hot, push the front end, and crash. It was an easy track, but with the way the dirt broke down it was very technical, so being able to consistent was the main thing. I was consistent all night and put it on the box. – Hansel
Bobby Regan | Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha Team Owner (Webb, Alex Martin)
Alex Martin hit a Tuff Block and crashed under the tunnel on the track, he was in third at the time. I think there were maybe seven or eight laps in. We’re not sure about Webb. We think maybe it was an electrical issue, but it’s nothing wrong with the internal parts of the motor. It ran a few minutes later. Maybe a loose connection got reconnected. We’ll know on Monday when we look at it.
What was that smoke?
Yeah, that was fuel. Raw fuel.
What was he doing ripping that gas cap off?
We’re not sure, it may have been a vapor lock in the gas cap. After he undid the line on the gas cap it cranked over. We’re not sure what it is. – Hansel
Christian Craig | GEICO Honda | third in 250SX
Racer X: I bet when you were down there early it kind of sucked for you to crash. You probably never thought a podium would be something you could get, but that’s the thing. It’s got to be all right.
Christian Craig: Yeah, I wanted that win, especially after that holeshot, my first holeshot ever. I felt better than last week. I knew Webb was right there and I was like, all right, let’s do this. I was confident. I ended up throwing it away myself. Just a stupid mistake on my part, but got up, remounted. I’m like, I got to go. I just got to push until the end. I got sixth and then I made a couple passes, then people just started dropping. It sucks to kind of get it that way but, hey, that’s racing. People go down and I ended up going down. I put myself in a good spot, third. It didn’t feel as good last week, my first podium. Now I’m all mad. It’s like the same thing as last week. I wanted that win. I felt like I threw it away tonight, but we got more races for that.
Heat race thing, he passed you, he won. Did you see something that he was doing differently?
His intensity was unreal. Those first couple laps I just heard him. I’m like, “God, he’s right there.” So I tried to do the same thing, just run away with it, but he was flying in that heat race. I knew he was going to do that in the main so it was all about just staying in front of him. I knew a couple spots that [Mike] LaRocco [GEICO Honda team manager] showed me in video where he was faster so I did fix that in the main, and it did show when I was leading. He wasn’t as close as he was in the heat race. So I was happy with my riding, just got to quit that falling.
It’s shaping up to be a good series now of course with that DNF. Joey’s got the red plate. You were right there. Things are going to get good now I think again. You guys are almost reset now again and anybody can win this title.
You guys are almost reset now again and anybody can win this title.
It’s up for grabs. I started off with a seventeenth at A1 and back in fifth. It sucks that if I would have even top tenned A1 I could have been even closer. Sixteen points out, but there’s a lot more racing left. – Matthes