Carson Wood, Landon Gibson Battle at SMX Next Combine

Qualifying

• Wood set the tone for motos by topping the charts in both SMX Next timed sessions, with his second session time of 2:23.248 putting him 1.7 seconds ahead of Australian Quad Lock Honda rider Kayd Kingsford [#20] and his time of 2:25.022.

Moto 1 [25 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The field took to the track amidst the hottest period of the day on Friday and out of the gate it was Wood who led the way with the holeshot ahead of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Landon Gibson [#23]. Behind them, Kingsford and Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Kade Johnson [#177] jockeyed for third.
• The top two were able to put some distance over the rest of the field, with Wood able to take advantage of the clear track to establish a firm hold of the lead. A brief stall of his Yamaha erased Wood’s advantage, but he was able to resume just ahead of Gibson.
• The lead duo were separated by no more than a handful of bike lengths the rest of the way, with lapped riders ultimately factoring into the battle for the win. While Gibson kept Wood within reach, he was unable to mount enough of an attack to make a pass attempt.
• Behind the leaders, Kingsford and Johnson continued their fight for third throughout the first half of the moto until Kingsford encountered misfortune, which handed the position to Johnson as Kingsford remounted in fourth. The Australian would lose additional positions as the moto wore on.
• Wood took the Moto 1 win by a slim 1.5 seconds over Gibson, with Johnson nearly 50 seconds behind in third. KTM Orange Brigade’s Luke Fauser [#46] was fourth, with MX6 Racing Yamaha’s Owen Covell [#24] in fifth and Kingsford sixth.

Moto 2 [15 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• After a severe thunderstorm halted Friday’s activities race officials were able to schedule a shortened second moto on Saturday, which served as a precursor to the National and led into opening ceremonies.
• The second moto got underway in front of a massive crowd, with Gibson charging to the holeshot and early lead over Wood. Behind them, several riders duked it out for third, with ClubMX Yamaha’s Jesson Turner able to grab hold of the position.
• Gibson’s grasp of the lead was short lived, and Wood was aggressive on the opening lap and muscled his way by his Husqvarna counterpart. With the shortened moto, Wood was then able to sustain a sprint pace that prevented Gibson from mounting a serious challenge.
• As the leaders once again pulled away from the rest of the field, the fight for third was thrilling as Turner was forced to do battle with both Johnson and Kingsford. When a minor miscue just past halfway resulted in Turner’s slowest lap of the moto it allowed both Johnson and Kingsford to get by. From there, the Kawasaki and Honda rider renewed their battle from Friday, this time with the Australian coming out ahead.
• Much like it was in Moto 1, Gibson kept Wood honest throughout the moto, but the Yamaha rider carried on to complete the moto sweep by an even slimmer margin of just over a second at the checkered flag. Kingsford completed an impressive podium run in third after starting sixth, with Johnson right behind in fourth.

Overall

• Wood’s 1-1 effort served as a breakthrough performance for the Florida native, no doubt aided by the experience he's gained in two Pro Motocross starts this summer leading into the Combine.
• Gibson’s 2-2 effort gave him a fourth runner-up finish in SMX Next competition, which includes his third second-place result in the past four Scouting Moto Combines.
• Johnson captured his first SMX Next – Motocross podium result in third following 3-4 finishes.