Saturday Night Live: Washougal

Time and time again this season we’ve seen Lawrence respond to challenges by lowering his lap times and sprinting away, leaving everyone wondering just how much speed he’s got on reserve. But today, when Sexton got on Lawrence’s rear fender, the definitive response never came, and for the first time in a long time, Lawrence wasn’t able to drop a challenger. Lap after lap Sexton hounded Lawrence, the gap never getting above a couple seconds. The crowd was glued to the battle, and as the race wound down, Sexton started ramping up the pressure even more. Then, in a turn, Sexton stalled his motorcycle and went down. A collective groan escaped from just about everyone in attendance, realizing one of the most epic battles of the summer wouldn’t go down to the wire. Lawrence wasn’t complaining though!

“It’s a first time for everything you know,” said Lawrence. “I was just pumped I was able to make my way around Chase at the start [of the second moto]. I was pushing hard because I was like, ‘Ah damnit he got a good start.’ I was kind of down on myself and I was like, ‘I hope he’s feeling it as much as I am now.’ It was a good battle. He ended up going down again and that’s a bummer, but it was good to capitalize on that. Yeah 16-0, it’s been an unreal rookie season. It’s sick.”

Even with the small crash from Sexton, the gap never exceeded ten seconds, and Sexton crossed the line just three seconds back of Lawrence. The battle for the championship is all but done, but with Lawrence’s perfect season still at stake, the action in the 450 Class has taken on a new level of intrigue, not unlike a watching a major league pitcher in the closing stages of a perfect game. And thanks to the heat from Sexton and Lawrence's perfection thus far, every gate drop of every moto has gotten exponentially more exciting.

“I was starting to get a little closer toward the later stages of that race,” said Sexton. “I came into that corner and just stalled it and then fell over. It was a good ride for me. I felt like I had good speed, and I could charge and catch him, but I didn’t really know where I was going to get the pass at. The track was a little bit rougher this year than it had been and it was a bit different. Overall, it was a solid weekend. Obviously not what we wanted but my riding has been good. Got to just keep plugging away and trying to improve in the next three weeks off and come into Unadilla swinging.”

Taking third overall was Jason Anderson, who’s really turned a corner the last two weekends after coming back from a neck injury sustained during supercross.

“It’s been a long year you know,” said Anderson. “Getting hurt and coming back and these outdoors don’t get any easier as the years go on. I’m getting older but I’m enjoying being in the battle with these guys. I feel like this third place is a success for me. When I hurt my neck in supercross I couldn’t ride for a while because the vibration can damage the bone, so I was just chillin’. It’s hard to come back after that.”

In 250 action Haiden Deegan put in the best performance of his pro career to date. He got a killer jump, fought a wheelie the whole way down the start stretch, and took off with the lead. Just like that, it was over up front, as nobody was able to challenge him for the remainder of the moto. The second moto would be different, however, as Justin Cooper, who expressed frustration at a lack of intensity following the first moto, took the holeshot and started running away with it. Local boy, Levi Kitchen, ran second, with Deegan a few seconds back. Deegan would eventually make his way around Kitchen, but Cooper was quite a way out front. Undeterred, Deegan, who joked about having kid energy afterward in the press conference, hammered down, setting his fastest lap of the race on lap thirteen of sixteen.

Up front, meanwhile, Cooper, who’d been experiencing stomach issues, started running out of steam, and the gap he had for most of the race was suddenly gone. Deegan pounced, then absolutely disappeared to become the first 250 rider of the summer to score a perfect 1-1 on the day. He now trails Lawrence by just three points in the championship.

“Those last few laps, I’m like, ‘I’m putting my heart into this thing baby,’” said Deegan. “Man, it’s nerve wracking. I’m sure it’s nerve wracking for Hunter too. He’s supposed to be winning these things. I’m glad I can put the American up front for all the fans.”

Cooper would collect second overall, via 3-2 moto scores.

“I honestly felt good all day, even after both motos I felt good,” Cooper said. “Probably all the way up until 25 minutes in the first moto. I started falling back. I tried hanging on, but Haiden was riding really good. Hats off to him.”

Rounding out the podium with a 2-4 was Hunter Lawrence, who charged up to second after a mediocre start in the first moto, but slowed his pace somewhat in the second moto after having a small crash.

“Tough day in the office,” Lawrence said. “The shadows are tough but it’s the same every year and I just have got to be better. It’s tough, it’s very tough on this track if you don’t get a great start. So, we’ll go back, get to work, and come out swinging for the last three.”

Tom Vialle crashed in the first moto, and while the word is he's okay, he was banged up enough that he pulled out of the second moto.

Jett Lawrence, Sexton, and Deegan weren’t the only sources of intensity on the day—the Washougal crowd was fantastic! There was a sea of people at the podium in both classes, with the crowd taking turns chanting multiple riders’ names. And when Deegan borrowed an American flag from a fan to wave it on the podium, the U.S.A. chants came out in earnest. The vibe was the same when Plessinger was interviewed on the podium after taking third in the second moto, and Plessinger waved his hat to the crowd amid chants of, “A.P.!,” and, “U.S.A.!”

With an insanely tight championship battle boiling down in the 250 Class and a perfect season hanging in the balance in the 450 ranks, we’re in for some great racing when the season resumes at Unadilla on August 12.