Foothill Ranch, CA (March 19, 2017) – Aboard his No. 3 Kawasaki KX™450F, Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Eli Tomac scored his third win in a row and win number six of the 2017 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, at Round 11 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Tomac started off the night show with a holeshot leading to a six second advantage over the competition and his fifth heat race win of the year. Teammate Grant punched his ticket for the Main Event with a third place finish in Semi Race 1. As the 450SX Class Main Event began, Tomac exited Turn 1 in second with Grant in eighth. A mistake early on relegated Grant to 16th while Tomac took over the lead on Lap 2. By the halfway mark Tomac had opened up at gap of just over two seconds while Grant moved up into 12th position. As the checkers flew, Tomac increased his lead to over five seconds and scored the win, with Grant crossing the line in 13th place. With the past three consecutive race wins, Tomac has reduced his deficit to the series points leader from 29 to 12 with six races to go.
“This is everything you dream of,” said Tomac. “Right now we’re winning races and it’s pretty cool. I don’t know what to say, we’re rolling strong right now and that’s thanks to the whole Monster Energy Kawasaki team.”
“There were some ups and downs tonight,” said Grant. “Before the first lap was over I was near the back but I’m pretty happy with how I was able to turn it around. I feel like I belong towards the front of the pack and I didn’t quite get that tonight, but there’s always something to be learned and a way to move forward. I’m looking forward to being back up there next week.”
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider Joey Savatgy earned the fastest qualifying time on his No. 17 Kawasaki KX™250F while Adam Cianciarulo was involved in a qualifying incident early in the day, injuring his left knee. As the night show began, Cianciarulo transferred to the 250SX Class Main Event with a third place in Heat Race 1 while Savatgy duplicated that result in Heat Race 2. As the gate fell for the Main Event, Savatgy was the first to exit Turn 1 with the holeshot and Cianciarulo in sixth. Five minutes in, Cianciarulo raced into fifth place as Savatgy fiercely defended his lead. A small mistake relegated Savatgy to second place with just over seven minutes remaining. He continued applying pressure to the leader, however, when the checkered flag waved, Savatgy would claim his third podium of the year in second place, while Cianciarulo crossed the line in fifth.
“We’ve made some gains over the last couple weeks,” said Savatgy. “This isn’t the result that we are working for but it’s a step in the right direction and something better to build off. We are focused on the championship so we take it race by race, we will be back fighting for the win next weekend.”
“The race went pretty well all things considered,” said Cianciarulo. “I didn’t think I was going to be able to get back out on the track after the incident that left my knee hurt, but I rode practice and felt like there were points to be made tonight. I felt like I rode well, I would have liked to be up at the front in the opening laps but with everything that happened I am proud of how tonight went. I’ll be back to 100 percent next week and able to challenge for the win.”
