Written by: Dan lamb – Lap-time graphs by: Steven Loyer – Photo: Suzuki

The 2012 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship is now in high gear, and with one round complete, it looks like we are in for another insane season of racing. The Hangtown National has come and gone, and round one is officially in our rear view mirror. Heading into Hangtown, we had all those questions that come with the first round of any motocross season. As the series left the Prairie City ORV park in Rancho Cordova, California, some of the answers were exactly what we expected and some, not so much.

One thing we definitely expected in the 450 Class was that Yoshimura/Suzuki’s newest addition, James Stewart, would be fast, but nobody really knew how fast. Well, at the end of the day, James was fast enough to score a 1-1 and his first outdoor motocross win since 2008. In the 250 Class, Hangtown was once again Monster/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett‘s play ground. The #12 used his superior fitness and blazing speed to beat down the competition, riding in a manner reminiscent of his 2011 performance. Like James, Blake left Hangtown with a perfect 1-1 score and a fifty point tally.

Both James and Blake were able to clock the fastest laps of the day as well. In moto one, James recorded the fastest single lap of the day (2:04.8) and Blake scored the fastest lap of the day for the 250 Class (2:05.1), but between the two of them, Blake was consistently faster. Blake dipped under the 2:06—which no other 250 did all day—six times in moto one, and his average lap time of 2:06.9 was the fastest average from both classes. Make sure, after you look at the lap-time graphs from each moto, you check out the head-to-head graphs (250 vs. 450) to see how they matched up.

On the left of each graph, you will notice the lap times and the numbers on the bottom signifying each lap. Below that, we have the top five riders in the order they finished and each lap time from the Main Event after their name. Also, note that each rider’s fastest lap is shaded in blue.

Click graphs to enlarge and to view in slideshow

250 Class – Moto One

250 Class Moto One - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge

250 Class – Moto Two

250 Class Moto Two - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge

450 Class – Moto One
450 Class Moto One - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge

450 Class – Moto Two
450 Class Moto Two - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge

250 vs 450 Moto One
250 vs 450 Moto One - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge

250 vs 450 Moto Two
250 vs 450 Moto Two - Lap Time Comparison Graph - Click to enlarge