Photos by: Hoppenworld

Ryan Dungey: I didn’t have the best practice, but we got a decent start in the first moto. I was able to make some quick passes but there weren’t a lot of lines to make passes. By the time I got into second Barcia was gone. I got another good start in the second moto but couldn’t make the pass on Barcia because he’s riding so good right now. I lost some ground when we hit lappers, but I was able to make up some ground again, then he made a mistake that allowed us to take the win.

Cooper Webb: The day was good and we were able to make some good changes after practice that really helped. I got a good start in the first moto and led most of it, but had a goggle issue that allowed Marvin [Musquin] to get around me. We came up short there, but got another good start in the second moto and made our way around Jeremy [Martin] early. He was able to get around me, but made a mistake that put us on top of the box. I feel like I’ve been a competitor every race and I’m proving I can win.

Justin Barcia: I think it was a good day, for sure. I’ve gotten starts down so it feels good. The first moto was great and we won pretty comfortably. The second moto was a barnburner. I could tell Ryan [Dungey] was behind me, but I was able to keep him behind me and still ride my lines. Then I pretty much just blew it in one turn and gave it away. It hurt [to not win] today. This was the hardest loss for sure because I felt like I had this one, but it was still good.

Marvin Musquin: It felt good to be myself today. The last two races have been tough with my [injured] wrist, but this week was really great and I came into Washougal with a lot of confidence. I went 1-1 here last year and I wanted to do that again today. The first moto was tough because it was easy to make mistakes, but I was able to win. In the second moto I made too many mistakes early, but we finished second and it ended up being a really good day for the championship.

Marvin Musquin arrived at Washougal with a 19 point deficit and left just 4 points behind Jeremy Martin.
Marvin Musquin arrived at Washougal with a 19 point deficit and left just 4 points behind Jeremy Martin.

Ken Roczen: I struggled in moto one, really bad. I got off to a bad start and just got blasted. My helmet ended up being so heavy that I could barely see. I had to throw my goggles off and ride without them. It’s really tough in those types of weather conditions to make something happen. I think I ended up seventh. Going into the second moto, I got a better start. I raced with (Ryan) Dungey and (Justin) Barcia for quite awhile. We were all running pretty close. In the end, I ended up in third place. Obviously, not where we want to be but it is what it is.

Jessy Nelson: Today was a tough day with the rain. Vision was definitely a key factor to running a good race in Moto 1. Thankfully I got a good enough start to stay up near the front group. I’m looking forward to the final off weekend before heading back east to Unadilla.

Joey Savatgy: Coming off of a podium last week, I thought we could have another strong weekend. The weather and the track threw us a curveball though as that added another challenge to go along with all of the great riders in our class. We know we have the speed to be up front so we will keep working to get back on the podium at Unadilla.

Broc Tickle: Washougal, all in all, was a tough weekend. I didn’t qualify that well. It was pretty sloppy during practice and it was tough to get a fast lap. I thought I had a decent gate for the first moto but I spun the rear tire quite a bit so that didn’t help. I think I worked myself up to 10th and crashed, got up and crashed again. On top of that, I didn’t have any goggles after the third lap. The first moto was just an all out struggle fest. I got hit in the eye with a rock but still managed to salvage 16th. It was tough. After the first moto, I went to the Asterisk Medical Unit, got my eyes flushed, and did my best to be prepared for the second moto. I still felt a little bit off, even before I started the second moto. I think the rock to the eye made it tough. My vision was a little blurry. It was the same deal. I didn’t get a good start and crashed. Went all the way back to 35th and salvaged 20th. I’m looking forward to the break. I’m motivated to get back to where I belong and get the starts I need to finish where we deserve. I’m healthy. I’m motivated and ready to head to Unadilla and redeem myself.

Broc Tickle had his worst race of the year at Washougal.
Broc Tickle had his worst race of the year at Washougal.

Aaron Plessinger: [In response to his off-road background helping him in the mud of Washougal] My dad was a four time National Champion. Two-time GNCC Champion and two-time National Hare Scramble Champion. I grew up riding GNCC and just stopped in 2012. My last one was in the Lites Class—I won the Steele Creek GNCC in the Lites Class. I definitely think that it helped me out today. I actually don’t think I would even be here if I didn’t do GNCC’s. Big shout out to my dad for making me do GNCC’s.

Christophe Pourcel: Today was good. Being on the box is always good. First moto I got a good start and I was just kind of stuck in second place. [Ryan] Dungey was kind of pushing, and I just kind of wanted to end up in second place because he was a little bit faster than me. He kind of made an aggressive pass and I tried to kind of fight back, but I think he was looking for more. He was looking for the first place. It’s good to get third in the first moto because then you know you got the chance to be on the podium for the overall. Second moto I got a bad start and you got something to fight, so it felt amazing. The bike, I think, was at its best today, and I felt good. The team has been pretty amazing, and the bike worked very good. I don’t know why, it was going good for me. I felt good on the bike and just came back to 5th, almost 4th, had a good fight. I wish I had passed him [Weston Peick], it was close.

Arnaud Tonus: It was a good race for me today. I was really happy to get on the podium in the first moto because I know I can race with everyone here. The second moto was harder as I started to get arm pump and was fading back. I guess that is to be expected after a long time not racing, but I’m going to keep working and trying to improve every week.

Freddie Noren: I wasn’t sure I was even going to be back with the Team Honda HRC because Trey (Canard) was coming back. I am bummed that Cole got hurt, but happy to give the team another solid finish.

Arnaud Tonus went 3-20 for 10th overall in his first ever AMA Motocross race.
Arnaud Tonus went 3-20 for 10th overall in his first ever AMA Motocross race.

Zach Osborne: Today was ok. I got off to a mid-pack start in the first moto and came up to fifth. I was trying to make the pass for fourth on the last lap, went down, and ended up seventh. I got stuck in the gate in the second moto and came back to finish eleventh. It was a tough day, but I still gained some championship points.

Josh Grant: I’m happy with how I feel on the bike, and I was able to ride well today. With the weather the way it was, the track was one-lined, so you had to get a good start to get a good finish. We are all working hard and having a week off will give us time to get some testing in to find the best settings for my KX450F

Mitchell Oldenburg: I feel like I’ve been getting closer and closer to breaking into the top 10 and I was finally able to make it happen. I’m definitely thankful for the team as they’ve stuck behind me and helped me find ways to improve each week. I want to finish out the season strong.

Jason Anderson: My day was decent. Practice was normal. I had to pull in for goggles during the first lap of the first moto, and ended up coming back to sixth which was pretty cool. I got a good start in the second moto, but then I fell. I got back up to fourth, and was catching third, but then had some issues. But all-in-all I had a pretty good day. I’m excited for next weekend. I like Unadilla, and I feel like I’ve been consistently getting good starts and have been pretty strong. I want to race with the leaders and learn what they do so I can be a championship threat in the future.

Jason Anderson was possibly the fastest man at Washougal, but mistakes were his achilles heel.
Jason Anderson was possibly the fastest man at Washougal, but mistakes were his achilles heel.

Shane McElrath: I’m not sure why I’ve been struggling in the opening motos, but my second motos have been a lot more dialed. I’ll be working on my intensity off the start as we head into a little downtime before the final stretch of racing.

Blake Baggett: [Talking about his crash in moto two] They were running my bike over. It was laid down and the guys on the outside were going over the whole front of it and the guys on the inside would go over the rear tire, over the seat, over the pipe and meanwhile I’m just standing there. I had a good start in moto two. Heading up the hill I got into a little cluster and ended up getting hit from behind. I just went down. The bike was getting run over so I had to wait and pick it up in dead last. I charged as hard as I could and got back to finish 12th.

Author

Dan Lamb is a 12+ year journalist and the owner of MotoXAddicts.