With his 2-1 scores for the overall win at High Point, Eli Tomac has his first Lucas Oil Pro Motocross victory of 2022. This makes for four winners in four rounds, and Tomac, of Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing, is now up to second in the 450 standings. Chase Sexton has remained strong at each race, though, and actually split motos (and points) with Eli for the day, with a 1-2. He’s still the points leader.
Sexton was clearly the best of the best in the first moto on his Honda HRC machine, as he pulled far ahead of the field, but Tomac was the better man in moto two, getting around Sexton and Ken Roczen to grab the lead and the win. Why was Chase better in moto one, and why was Tomac better in moto two? Here’s their explanation from the post-race press conference.
Eli, when you went into that mode with about twelve minutes to go in both motos. It just seemed like the ability to come to the next level was very easy and very natural on the track. It seemed like the track suited your style.
I’ll say that for moto two, those things. Moto one, to be honest, I was kind of caught off by quite a few lines. I was missing some lines. The one far into the track, I was missing an outside rut. Jason [Anderson] got really close to me again over there. I felt like I was kind of just fighting the ruts in that moto one. In moto two, I felt like I had the better lines on the track and was able to make things work and make the lines just feel right. Just had good riding in moto two. That was nice for us to finally come forward with a win.
Going into a week off, so you’ve got great momentum, great confidence. Again, sure that you have some things that you’re going to do with the family and this, but it’s just basically going to be another day at the office for you this week
Yeah. It will be a normal week for us. This was important for us. Obviously, Chase is riding really well right now and he won the first moto. So, just trying to do what I can to keep him from running away with it.
Eli, this is a couple races in with the Yamaha. How are you feeling? You’re clicking. Obviously, moto wins and everything are starting to come now. You got the overall win. How do you feel like you’re setting up the bike? Do you feel like you’re in a good spot now moving forward fighting for this championship?
Yeah. I feel like we’ve been in a good spot since Hangtown. Since then, I feel like we’ve been able to do our normal thing and not really searching for a whole lot right now. We’re in a good place.
Chase Sexton
Chase, here we go again. We talk about smooth riders. I have to tell you. Bevo gave you quite the compliment today. He compared you to Ron Lechien and a couple other riders of the past that are just super smooth, flowy riders. Today some of the rough spots didn’t seem to faze you whatsoever. Some of the chatter, some of the braking bumps. I don't know if it was setup or just technique, but made the track look a lot smoother than it was, compared to some riders.
First moto I had the luxury of being able to ride my own lines. It felt like a practice moto for me. That was obviously really good. When you’re out front on a track like this, you’re able to be a little bit more creative and are able to take your time on places that are rough, and also charge in spots that are not. So, that was nice. Second moto I didn’t really ride that great, I didn’t feel like. Especially in the beginning. I was just kind of bull-dogging a little bit and not riding super smooth. That was a little bit difficult. Then I made a mistake when I got by Kenny. He got me back and then Eli got me. So, I got sucked up. Actually, I think Dunge almost got me too. So, I kind of had to kick it in gear there and got Kenny. Then Eli was pretty far ahead at that point. So, I just tried to ride as hard as I could. Obviously, wasn’t enough to win. It was a good day for me. Obviously, first moto was a great moto and then the second moto was a good fight. Looking forward to going into the week off and then having my home race at Red Bud.
We’ve had a great four rounds so far. You’ve put yourself in a great position. Going to swing the clubs, maybe shoot some hoops this week?
Maybe a little bit of golf. I haven’t gotten to golf since the season started. Hopefully I get a little bit of free time, but it’s going to be a lot of work, too. I got some stuff I need to work on, whether it’s the bike or me. Probably a little bit of both.
In the second moto your side plate was kind of hanging off. Was that something from the tip-over? Was that bothering you at all?
I actually did that in practice too, not from tipping over. In that back long sweeper, I don't know what I was doing. I was catching it in the rut and ripped it off. I did that in practice. I thought it was just kind of a one-time thing. Then the second moto, it was probably third lap, maybe. It was hanging off. It didn’t really bother me. I thought it was actually going to fly off at one point, and then it just kind of hung on there.
You’re still leading the points. Is there kind of a little bit in the back of your mind like play it safe, be cautious a little bit when you can, obviously still pushing it?
The game plan is pretty much the same. I just want to go out there and do the best I can. There’s so many good guys out there that you have to be on your toes every moto. If I can get good starts like I did today and just ride like I know how, I think we’ll be in a good spot. Like I said, it’s not going to be easy, but I think my riding is really good right now. I just want to keep that going.
Strong ride in the first moto. The second moto wasn’t bad. Was there anything bike changes you’re looking forward to the next race, or just kind of keeping everything the same?
I wouldn’t say we’re going to change a whole bunch, but I think the second moto we could have been a little bit better adjusting to the track. The track got a lot drier and a lot more choppy. That kind of caught me off-guard a little bit. I wasn’t really riding that for the first couple laps. Clean that up and overall just adjust better to the track second moto.
