Four Different Winners
The racing has been tremendous to start the 2022 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship season and that point is further emphasized by the fact that we’ve had four different overall winners in the 450 class through four rounds. Chase Sexton, Jason Anderson, Ken Roczen, and now Eli Tomac have each found ways to hold the winner’s trophy at the end of the day so far this season which is a pretty rare feat in Pro Motocross. You have to go back to 2001 to find the last time it has happened where four different riders won the first four rounds, and it’s actually only happened just five times ever if you include this season. Eventually, someone is going to be the first to two wins and perhaps they will take off from there, but we’ll just enjoy the terrific racing we’ve had for now.
![Chase Sexton at the Fox Raceway 1 National.]()
Chase Sexton at the Fox Raceway 1 National. Align Media ![Jason Anderson and crew at the Hangtown Motocross Classic.]()
Jason Anderson and crew at the Hangtown Motocross Classic. Align Media ![Ken Roczen at the Thunder Valley National.]()
Ken Roczen at the Thunder Valley National. Align Media ![Eli Tomac at the High Point National.]()
Eli Tomac at the High Point National. Align Media
Cairoli Says Ciao
Antonio Cairoli has called time on his American journey as the nine-time World Motocross Champion will not be on the line at RedBud this coming weekend. Things were going quite well for the Sicilian up until High Point when he made contact with Christian Craig in the first moto and went down. Unfortunately for him, the contact seemed to aggravate an existing knee injury and Cairoli was forced to DNF the first moto as well as the second moto. He was already planning on High Point being his last round anyway, so the knee injury is just adding on. However, it has not officially been ruled out yet that Cairoli is 100 percent done for the season as he would most likely race for Team Italy at the 2022 Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations seeing as they are the defending champions. With that in mind, there’s a chance at least that we see Cairoli come back to race a few more nationals late in the year to prepare for that title defense which will of course happen at RedBud in late September.
Second Moto Tomac
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Eli Tomac won the overall at High Point, as mentioned above. But a strange pattern is starting to emerge for Tomac as the Pennsylvania track. Tomac has raced in the 450 class at High Point six times in his career now and won three overalls in the process. However, he’s only won four of the 12 motos he’s raced at High Point and all of them have been the second moto. He won the second moto in 2017, 2018, 2021, and now 2022. We’ve always known Tomac to be a rider that seemingly has never ending fitness and gets better as a moto goes on, but this is specific to him getting better as the day goes on. Now with three moto wins to his credit for 2022, we’ll see if this becomes the springboard for Tomac to launch into one of those iconic runs he’s had many times in Lucas Oil Pro Motocross.
Laying Down the Law
It’s one thing that both Jett and Hunter Lawrence are teammates, but it’s a whole different thing when both of them are the class of the field. At High Point, the brothers went 1-2 and 2-1 on their respective motos with Jett getting the nod for the overall as he claimed the second moto victory. Through the first four rounds, the dynamic duo are just 12 points apart at the top of the 250 class standings and they boast a 37-point advantage over third place man Jo Shimoda. Jett has all four of the first four overall victories to start the year, but it seems like Hunter Lawrence is knocking on the door to stop that train soon. It’s been fun and games for the brothers so far but are we about to see a little rivalry form between the two in the coming weeks?
Podium Hangover (Levi Kitchen)
A week after Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Levi Kitchen broke through for his first career moto victory and overall podium, the 21-year-old Washington native had a weekend to forget at High Point. Highlighted by crashing and overall struggles for pace, Kitchen was only able to 15-12 scores up for 12th overall. The good news for Kitchen is he now gets to come back to a track he at least knows a little bit in RedBud. Kitchen made his professional debut at the racetrack in 2021 where he went 9-19 for 12th overall. Now with that rough round out of the way, Kitchen will want to right the ship moving into the midpoint of this 2022 campaign.
Vlogs
Team Fried
Rider Quotes
450 Class
Ryan Dungey | 6-4 for fifth overall
“It was awesome. This week we made progress with the bike and it really translated to the weekend. I didn’t get a great start in the first moto but I was happy that we made a lot of passes and came through the pack. I got off to that good start in Moto 2 and it was so nice to just get clean air and run up there with the fast guys. A little slower start, got passed a little bit but got into the mix and it just felt good. The setup felt good, track felt good and it was nice to be up front and one step closer to the podium.”
Justin Barcia | 4-7 for sixth overall
“We’re taking steps in the right direction. I had a pretty good practice and had some great starts in my motos. The first moto was really good, I charged hard and ended up fourth. The second moto was a little bit of a let-down for me. I felt really good, the bike setup was really good, but I just over-rode a little bit. The track was really gnarly but all-in-all, a lot of positives. I’m really looking forward to this off-week to catch up on some motos and just keep working on things so I can send it into RedBud!”
Joey Savatgy | 5-8 for seventh overall
“I ended up finishing seventh overall today and got the chance to race with the lead pack early in Moto 1, which was a big confidence booster. I know I have the speed and the skill to mix it up with those guys so it’s nice to see we’re trending in the right direction and getting better each week. We’re going to do some extra bike testing this week and enjoy the weekend off before we head to RedBud for Round 5.”
Christian Craig | 8-6 for eighth overall
“Our day started off alright. I felt pretty good in practice and qualified seventh, which wasn’t bad. We went into the day wanting to put in two solid motos, and that’s what we did. In the first moto, I didn’t have any flow with the track, but in the second moto, I was able to rebound and battle up towards the front and went 8-6 on the day. I didn’t have the best ride, but we were battling, and our starts were better. We are kind of back on track after a tough Thunder Valley last weekend, but we were just a tick off today and we still need to be a little bit better. We’ll get back to work and move on to RedBud.”
Shane McElrath | 13-9 for 10th overall
“It was a little bit rough today, I just struggled with the track from the first time out. I felt pretty good in practice but it’s a tough track to flow on and I didn’t quite figure it out. I’m a little bit disappointed but I know that I can be better and we can make some good changes to continue making progress.”
Brandon Hartranft | 12-12 for 11th overall
"It was a much better weekend for me. We made some improvement this past week. We actually went to a slower [detuned] engine, moving towards last year's set-up, but with a few differences. The day went a lot smoother. I feel like I rode really solid in both motos. I definitely like the east coast tracks. High Point was very gnarly. This track was rough, and you had to be pretty on the money and, those are some of the conditions where I can excel. We ended up eleventh overall, just shy of a top ten. The field is very competitive right now, so I need to work on my starts. I'm definitely happy with my progression, but I'm bummed that it's round four and, I’m only now starting to figure it out. But it's all good; we'll keep fighting and will be in the top ten shortly."
Aaron Plessinger | 9-15 for 13th overall
“The bike was feeling good in practice and I made some changes going into Moto 1 that didn’t really benefit me. I rode really tight in the first one and salvaged ninth. Second moto, I was feeling really good – ready to rumble – and I got a good start and was running really good laps, but I ended up twisting my ankle pretty bad with two laps to go. I’m pumped on the way I was riding all day, it’s unfortunate that that had to happen at the end but we’ll focus on RedBud and try to get up there on the podium.”
Marshal Weltin | 16-14 for 15th overall
"Round four went pretty well. The team's doing great, the bike's great, and I'm happy with everything. We're working well together and are just going to keep picking away and try breaking into that top ten. I feel like I’m riding pretty strong, but was a little tight this weekend. Overall, I think I'm in a good place and I’m stoked for my home race at Red Bud, coming up. I'm really aiming to put in some strong results and show up for the home crowd."
Antonio Cairoli | 40-39 for 40th overall
“I look forward to this race because the track I really like. In practice this morning, I felt better than the previous race, of course the pace was much better and we worked a little bit on speed this week, so the feeling was good. First moto, the start was okay with sixth on the first lap and I knew I needed to attack to win some positions but I made a mistake and touched together with another rider and I put down my knee really hard. I felt it immediately because this knee is giving me some trouble already and it was a big hit. It started swelling up and fluid inside, so I pulled off. Second moto, I was last off the start because it's a different format than in GPs and I was a little surprised at the silly mistake I did and I had to line up on the outside, which is not the ideal place to start. With the knee in this condition, I couldn’t really pull a good start and then I was out of the top-20. I got back up to 13th but I was struggling a lot with my knee, so I decided it’s not really a good day, let’s move on. We had a good time here. For sure I would like to end up in a different situation but it’s okay. We are not hurt so bad, just a bad day.”
250 Class
Michael Mosiman | 5-4 for fourth overall
“Today was a day of mixed emotions! This track is extremely technical and tough and I think it really fell into a lot of my strengths. I’m proud of where the bike was at and just my riding and speed. It’s a really cool feeling to pass for the lead in the first moto! I was able to make up some really good ground, make good clean passes and that’s a feeling I’m going to remember and replay over in my head and look to repeat throughout the season. I made some mistakes, too, and I’m really going to work on staying engaged and focusing on solutions to put together a solid 35 minutes out there.”
Justin Cooper | 8-3 for fifth overall
“The day started off all right, I just didn’t get very good starts today and didn’t put myself in a good position. I didn’t make much progress in the first moto, but in the second one, I was able to make a few passes and get up to the Lawrence Brothers (Hunter and Jett). I even made a pass on Jett for a second, but I just didn’t have the pace to run with them. I wasn’t that comfortable out there; this is always one of those tracks that is a little tough to ride. We’re going to take the positives from this weekend, but we definitely need to be better and need to give those guys a fight.”
Seth Hammaker | 4-6 for sixth overall
“It felt really good to grab both holeshots today and get more experience leading laps at this level. Had I not tipped over in Moto 2 I think I could’ve put on another good fight for the lead. I was hoping this week would be the week we get an overall podium but we’re getting better each week. I just need to work on a few things, and I know that overall result will come soon enough.”
RJ Hampshire | 7-7 for seventh overall
“Today was a tough day but we battled through it. Did what we could, showed up and gave it all I had today. That was probably the hardest 7-7 I’ve ever had in my life. I’m glad we showed up and went racing today, though. We’ll have a good weekend off now and we’re headed to my favorite track. I’m looking forward to RedBud.”
Max Vohland | 6-9 for eighth overall
“The day went pretty good, I feel like the riding was the best-ever so far. We nailed the bike setup today – I felt like we could go where we wanted to. The 6-9 results didn’t show how good I rode but still getting ninth the second moto after being down in the first corner and almost dead last was great. The riding was good, bike is good, just need to work on some starts before RedBud.”
Pierce Brown | 10-10 for ninth overall
“I had just a tough day all-around. I had some decent starts and I was up there in the fight for a little bit but I just struggled today and couldn’t put it all together. I ended up ninth overall, a step forward from last week, so that’s a positive. We’ve been trending in the right direction results-wise from Hangtown until now but still nowhere near where I should be, or where I want to be, so we’re going to do some work during the off-week and be ready for RedBud.”
Nate Thrasher | 9-11 for 10th overall
“It started off pretty good in qualifying. I felt like I had a pretty good pace today, but there were some things that kind of held me back. I felt good in that first moto and got a good start and ran up there for a little bit, but I didn’t make passes early enough. I got stuck there and then pumped up a little bit and went back at the end. In the second moto, I got a horrible start and I had to work through the pack. So, it was an okay day, but it also was my first time here, so we’ll just learn from it and come back stronger.”
Stilez Robertson | 14-8 for 11th overall
“The day was up and down for me. I went into the motos confident and really happy. I didn’t get a good jump and in the third-turn, I went down and hit someone’s back tire so I came from last up to 14th. Second moto, I got an okay start and stayed around that position. I battled the whole moto, it was fun, but definitely not where we want to be. We’ll take this weekend off and rest/recoup and come back to my favorite track swinging at RedBud.”
Levi Kitchen | 15-12 for 12th overall
“I’d say the only positive today was two good starts. I just really struggled with kind of everything. I fell the first lap in both motos while I was up front, so I could blame that, but to be honest, just riding-wise I didn’t feel comfortable out there. At the end of the day, I’m glad I’m healthy and we’ll come back stronger at RedBud and do our best.”
Nick Romano | 13-14 for 13th overall
“It was another up-and-down day. I qualified really well in eighth, which is the best I’ve qualified so far. When it came to racing, I just wasn’t really riding at my full potential. I wasn’t really gelling with the track or my bike. This track is tough. It was my first time here and it was completely different from what I expected, but no excuses. We’re going to go back and work on our weaknesses during this off-weekend and come back at RedBud.”
Matthew LeBlanc | 12-15 for 14th overall
“It was kind of a tough day. My qualifying wasn’t that great and then in the first moto, I was around 10th and ended up getting something stuck in my rear brake. I had to roll around a little bit, then it finally freed up and I made a few passes and ended up 12th. In the second moto, it was just a bad first lap and I didn’t put myself in a good spot. I was kind of in the same place the whole moto and didn’t really gain or lose much. Overall, the day wasn’t that great, but we learned some things and we’ll move on to Red Bud.”
Derek Drake | 17-23 for 19th overall
"In the first moto, I worked my way up to eleventh. Then I got fatigued from being sick all week. I just had no energy for the second moto. On the positive side, the bike felt solid out there. The track was super rutty and really tricky!"
Preston Kilroy | 18-22 for 23rd overall
"Overall, the weekend was better than last weekend. I'm still working to find my groove. The track was really tough, which didn't make things easy. I’m making small improvements each weekend. There's lots of work to do with this two-week break, but I'm excited to get after it."
