After a three week break, the Monster Energy Motocross Nationals rolled into Gopher Dunes in Courtland, Ontario for round 5 and the beginning of the eastern swing. The Gopher Dunes track is all sand and is regarded as one of the toughest tracks in North America. Combine the punishing beach-like sand with high heat and lots of sun, and the riders were in for a challenge.
Some new faces joined the series at Gopher Dunes, these riders electing to race the eastern rounds of the series only to stay closer to home. Among them were Kaven Benoit and Tim Tremblay, both French Canadian riders from Quebec. Benoit—who finished 2nd in the 2011 MX2 National Championship—would be riding a KTM in MX2, while Tremblay—who did not race in 2011—would be riding a Go Fast Sports/Les Chutes Kawasaki in MX1.
The first race of the day was the first MX2 moto, and it was Brad Nauditt taking his Honda to the front of the field early ahead of Kaven Benoit on his #12 KTM. Series favourites Teddy Maier and Jeremy Medaglia both suffered mid-pack starts and would have their work cut out for them. Benoit, who had looked very impressive in practice and qualifying, quickly took the lead from Nauditt and began to instantly check-out. Behind Nauditt was Topher Ingalls along with Jeremy Medaglia and Teddy Maier who were working their way through the field quickly.
For a while, it appeared as though Medaglia was the fastest guy on the track aside from Benoit as he slipped past Nauditt for 3rd and began closing in on Ingalls for 2nd. Maier, though, seemed to be fueled by watching Medaglia move forward and began mirroring Jeremy’s moves, eventually latching right onto his rear wheel as they both got around Topher Ingalls.
While Benoit still had a large lead, Maier began searching for lines to get past Medaglia as they worked through lapped traffic. As the 2-lap card came out, Maier was able to use lappers to his advantage and make the pass for 2nd on Medaglia. Benoit held on to take the win over Maier and Medaglia.
In moto 2, it was Topher Ingalls taking the early lead ahead of Benoit, Medaglia and Maier. Benoit and Medaglia were in a tight battle for 2nd as Maier stalked them. Medaglia made the pass and brought Maier right along with him.
Medaglia, Maier and Benoit were all able to get around Ingalls, but a mistake by Benoit put him behind Ingalls and quite a way back. At the same time, Maier made a pass for the lead on Medaglia. From there, it was all Maier. He checked-out just as Benoit had in moto 1.
With the checkered flag flying, Teddy Maier was able to claim the moto win and the overall. Jeremy Medaglia would claim another 2nd place moto and finish 3rd overall. Benoit would salvage 2nd overall with an eventual pass on Ingalls that landed him in 3rd place in the second moto.
In MX1, it was young Ryan Millar grabbing the lead in moto 1 ahead of series leader and sand specialist Matt Goerke on his Monster Energy Leading Edge Kawasaki. Also running towards the front early were Colton Facciotti, on his Red Bull KTM, and series new-comer Tim Tremblay on his #777 Kawasaki. Red Bull KTM’s Dusty Klatt wasn’t as fortunate, exiting the first turn in dead last. He would be forced to come through the pack on the roughest track of the year.
Goerke quickly took the lead and began rounding off perfect lap after perfect lap, putting a huge gap on the rest of the riders. Behind him, Tim Tremblay was making moves as he had taken over 2nd place ahead of Facciotti. Bobby Kiniry and Tyler Medaglia were both working their way from mediocre starts and were rounding out the top 5.
Facciotti, still ailing with a separated shoulder, appeared to be struggling mightily on the ultra-rough sand track. A hard-charging Kiniry was able to make the pass and take 3rd place as Facciotti made a mistake. Medaglia was also able to take 4th, with Facciotti collecting himself in 5th.
As the laps wound down, Bobby Kiniry began to reel-in Tremblay for 2nd. With only a few laps to go, Kiniry was able to take the position. Goerke would eventually take the checkered flag over 1 minute ahead of Kiniry in 2nd. Dusty Klatt, who ran down nearly the entire field on his way, finished a solid 6th and would be the last rider on the lead lap. Kiniry would finish 2nd, with Tremblay finishing off the first moto podium.
In moto 2, it was the Red Bull KTM of Dusty Klatt with the early lead ahead of Goerke, Medaglia and Facciotti. Tim Tremblay would suffer a poor start and crash out on just the second lap. Despite some solid laps by Klatt, the dominant Goerke took the lead on lap 4 and instantly began checking-out. The real battle was for 2nd as Medaglia and Klatt battled hard for much of the moto until lappers eventually allowed Medaglia to gain a sizable advantage.
As the riders at the front focused on holding their positions, Bobby Kiniry was moving through the top 10 after a mediocre start and seemed to be finding his groove as the moto went on. With only a couple laps to go, Kiniry had managed to hold down 4th place, but an unaware Klatt had some last lap troubles, and Kiniry took advantage for 3rd. Defending champ Colton Facciotti was visibly ailing and was ultimately able to hold-on to a 6th place finish in the moto.
Goerke would claim the overall with a perfect 1-1 score. Kiniry would take 2nd overall with his 2-3 motos and Tyler Medaglia would round-out the podium with 4-2 motos.
Monster Energy Motocross Nationals
Gopher Dunes – Courtland, Ontario
June 14, 2012
Round 5 of 9
MX1 Pro Class (Moto Finish)
1. Matt Goerke, Lake Helen, Florida, Kawasaki (1-1) 2. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, New York, Yamaha (2-3) 3. Tyler Medaglia, Kemptville, Ontario, Honda (4-2) 4. Dusty Klatt, Campbell River, British Columbia, KTM (6-4) 5. Colton Facciotti, St Thomas, Ontario, KTM (5-6) 6. Joshua Clark, Lemington, Ontario, Honda (7-8) 7. Gavin Gracyk, Blissfield, Ohio, Kawasaki (11-5) 8. Jason Burke, Hamilton, Ontario, Honda (9-9) 9. Tyler Villopoto, Poulsbo, Washington, Kawasaki (8-10) 10. Liam O’Farrell, Hamilton, Ontario, TM (12-7) 11. Morgan Burger, Nampa, Idaho, Kawasaki (10-12) 12. Tim Tremblay, Dolbeau, Quebec, Kawasaki (3-DNF) 13. Bryar Perry, Woodland, California, Kawasaki (14-15) 14. Zeb Dennis, Berkley, Ontario, Yamaha (DNF-11) 15. Ryan Lockhart, White Rock, British Columbia, Yamaha (18-14) 16. Derek Hamm, Springfield, Ontario, Honda (20-13) 17. Shawn Robinson, Gatineau, Quebec, Yamaha (13-DNF) 18. Ryan Millar, Miami, Manitoba, Kawasaki (15-DNF) 19. Dylan Langlois, Kingsville, Ontario, Yamaha (23-16) 20. Davey Fraser, Halifax, Nova Scotia, KTM (16-DNF)
MX1 Pro Class Championship Standings
1. Matt Goerke, Lake Helen, Florida, Kawasaki – 247 2. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, New York, Yamaha – 211 3. Tyler Medaglia, Kemptville, Ontario, Honda – 182 4. Colton Facciotti, St. Thomas, Ontario, KTM – 175 5. Dusty Klatt, Campbell River, British Columbia, KTM – 143 6. Tyler Villopoto, Poulsbo, Washington, Kawasaki – 137 7. Gavin Gracyk, Blissfield, Ohio, Kawasaki – 126 8. Morgan Burger, Nampa, Idaho, Kawasaki – 108 9. Jason Burke, Hamilton, Ontario, Honda – 101 10. Brock Hoyer, Williams Lake, British Columbia, Kawasaki – 76 11. Shawn Maffenbeier, Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Yamaha - 64 12. Jaromir Romancik, Czech Republic, Kawasaki – 58 13. Kyle Keast, Lindsay, Ontario, Yamaha – 54 14. Shawn Robinson, Gatineau, Quebec, Yamaha – 48 15. Bryar Perry, Woodland, California, Kawasaki - 43 16. PJ Stratton, Whitecourt, Alberta, Honda – 39 17. George De Graaf, Coalhurst, Alberta, Kawasaki – 38 18. Josh Allen, Kamloops, British Columbia, Kawasaki – 35 19. Zeb Dennis, Berkley, Ontario, Yamaha- 33 20. Jared Stock, Medicine Hat, Alberta, Yamaha – 27
MX2 Pro Class (Moto Finish)
1. Teddy Maier, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Kawasaki (2-1) 2. Kaven Benoit, Drummondville, Quebec, KTM (1-3) 3. Jeremy Medaglia, Kemptville, Ontario, KTM (3-2) 4. Topher Ingalls, Templeton, California, Honda (4-4) 5. Richard Grey, Keswick, Ontario, Yamaha (9-5) 6. Jared Allison, Delburne, Alberta, Yamaha (7-7) 7. Nathan Bles, Varna, Ontario, Honda (6-10) 8. Jerry Lorenz, East Lansing, Michigan, Kawasaki (8-11) 9. Brad Nauditt, Spokane, Washington, Honda (5-14) 10. James Roberts, White Lake, Michigan, Honda (10-12) 11. Jared Boothroyd, Amherst, Massachusetts, Kawasaki (17-8) 12. Parker Allison, Delburne, Alberta, Yamaha (12-13) 13. Dylan Kaelin, Grand Bend, Ontario, Yamaha (22-6) 14. Kyle Beaton, Surrey, British Columbia, Kawasaki (28-9) 15. Anthony Lunghi, Delhi, Ontario, Kawasaki (13-17) 16. Cam Fenton, Millgrove, Ontario, Kawasaki (11-19) 17. Alexandre Morin, Mascouche, Quebec, Yamaha (15-16) 18. Jordan Churcher, Victoria, Ontario Kawasaki (14-24) 19. Spencer Knowles, New Westminster, British Columbia, Yamaha (DNF-15) 20. Kyle Sidle, Jonestown, Pennsylvania, Honda (18-18)
MX2 Pro Class Championship Standings
1. Teddy Maier, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Kawasaki – 231 2. Jeremy Medaglia, Kemptville, Ontario, KTM – 211 3. Jared Allison, Delburne, Alberta, Yamaha – 154 4. Kyle Beaton, Surrey, British Columbia, Kawasaki – 142 5. Brad Nauditt, Spokane, Washington, Honda – 141 6. Topher Ingalls, Templeton, California, Honda – 138 7. Parker Allison, Delburne, Alberta, Yamaha - 115 8. Dylan Kaelin, Grand Bend, Ontario, Yamaha – 111 9. Spencer Knowles, New Westminster, British Columbia, Yamaha –107 10. Richard Grey, Keswick, Ontario, Yamaha – 106 11. Ross Johnson,Tenino, Washington, Suzuki – 101 12. Keylan Meston, Calgary, Alberta, Honda – 53 13. Kaven Benoit, Drummondville, Quebec, KTM- 45 14. Zach Deiana, Coleville, Saskatchewan, Suzuki – 45 15. Trae Franklin, Fort St John, British Columbia, Honda – 44 16. David Gassen, Arnold, California, Honda - 39 17. Nicky Beatty, Wyoming, Ontario, Yamaha – 37 18. Cody Woodworth, Palmer, Alaska, Yamaha – 36 19. Eric Jeffery, Oshawa, Ontario, Yamaha - 29 20. Jared Petruska, Calgary, Alberta, Kawasaki – 29
