| Foothill Ranch, Calif. (July 23, 2017) – Monster Energy® Kawasaki rider Eli Tomac continued his podium presence and extends his points lead at round eight of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship with a third overall finish overcoming the challenging track conditions. After wrapping up on the podium in Millville, Tomac extended his points lead and will keep the red plate.
The Spring Creek National delivered humidity and a muddy track after early morning showers for the start of Moto 1. Tomac started towards the back of the top 10, but rode his KX™450F aggressively, taking lines away from the competition to move forward. Unfortunately, it was not until halfway through the moto that Tomac made his way into second place and by that time the leader had built an insurmountable gap.
After starting Moto 2 at the front and moving into second, Tomac ran into a bit of tough luck crashing not once, but twice early on due to rutted downhill sections. He was able to remount fairly quickly, but was sitting in 14th place. Tomac was all over the other riders and quickly began his charge back to the front. Determined to salvage his podium opportunity, Tomac snagged fifth at the finish line ending the day with a 2-5 and third place overall. |
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| “I made a few mistakes today,” said Tomac. “Starts weren’t bad, I just had some tough luck and made some errors on my end. I went down twice in Moto 2 and just kept pushing to get back to the front. We will work on some things, but glad I could leave with a place on the podium and salvage some points.“ |
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| Adam Cianciarulo kicked off the weekend in Millville qualifying with the fastest lap time for the second round in a row, but it was teammate Joey Savatgy who stole the show. Moto 1 immediately started with a battle when a fellow competitor edged Savatgy out for the holeshot, but it did not take long for the No. 17 green machine to make a move and take the lead. Never looking back, Savatgy led the pack for 15 laps, building a seven-second lead at the finish line. Cianciarulo was not far behind, with a top 10 finish in sixth. Unfortunately, teammate Justin Hill suffered a wrist injury earlier in the day and was unable to compete in either moto.
The moment the gate dropped for Moto 2, both Monster Energy®/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki riders, Savatgy and Cianciarulo, rocketed to the front. Savatgy continued riding flawlessly, holding on to the top spot for nine laps before settling into second. Keeping his eye on the prize, he finished the day back on top of the podium with a 1-2 and first overall, moving him up to fourth in point standings. Cianciarulo fought hard and continuously exchanged places with a few other contenders for the entirety of the moto and ultimately took another sixth place finish for an impressive fifth overall. |
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| “I had fun riding today,” said Savatgy. “We were able to go back to the drawing board over the break and apply it to the track today. Our lap times in qualifying were good and I think it really set me up for a great start in Moto 1. I felt good and I’m glad we were able to get back on the podium. I’m looking forward to keeping this momentum!” |
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| “I really enjoyed the track today,” said Cianciarulo. “I felt like I was riding well and started the day off right. We’re happy with a fifth overall finish, but I expected to be on the podium at the end of the day. We’ll work on a few things this week, but I’m looking forward to Washougal.” |
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