Photos by: Chase Yocom
The 2018 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship landed in Millville, Minnesota for round number 8 and the Spring Creek National. After losing the points lead with a mechanical DNF-9 score at RedBud, Monster Energy / Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac rebounded with another perfect 1-1 day at Spring Creek. Eli was joined on the 450 podium by HRC / Honda’s Ken Roczen in 2nd for the second weekend in a row and Red Bull / KTM’s Marvin Musquin in 3rd. Eli regained the red plate and a 7 point lead over Musquin heading to Washougal next weekend.
In the 250MX class, Monster Energy / Star Racing / Yamaha’s Aaron Plessinger began to inscribe his name on the 2018 250 AMA Motocross Championship trophy with a second dominant 1-1 performance in a row. Aaron was flanked on the podium by his Monster Energy / Star Racing / Yamaha teammate Justin Cooper in 2nd and Troy Lee Designs / Red Bull / KTM’s Alex Martin in 3rd. Aaron now carries a massive 49 point lead into the final eight motos of the year.
After the racing was over, we gathered numerous quotes from riders about their second outdoor MX race of 2018.
Eli Tomac: (1st in 450MX) “I had so much motivation from how the last race went and I carried it into this week. The team and I were focused on coming back with a good race and to get back on track. I always have fun here but I was really ready to go this week and happy to get the red plate back. We’re going to keep working hard and looking forward to some good racing at Washougal next week”
Aaron Plessinger: (1st in 250MX) “It can’t get much better. I’ve been clicking with the bike and the whole team has been working behind me. Really putting in the work so it’s really paying off right now. It’s a dream come true. ”
Ken Roczen: (2nd in 450MX) “I’m pretty happy with today. I think this is one of the best weekends we’ve had overall. I felt comfortable all day and had a lot of fun. I did pretty good in qualifying, got good starts, and felt like I was flying in the first moto, so I’m happy with second. Obviously in the second moto there wasn’t enough left in the tank, but we have to just keep building from here. We made another small adjustment on the bike, but nothing major. The team and I are still working to refine the bike because this is my first season riding it outdoors and I came into it without much testing, so I’m searching for what works best. We’ve definitely made the bike better and I think it showed today. Normally I’m 4-5 seconds behind in qualifying practice and I was pretty close today, so it was good. I’m doing what I can and am enjoying the process of returning. I feel like once we win again, it’ll just be that much sweeter.”
Justin Cooper: (2nd in 250MX) “I’ve always heard this was a great track. It’s my first time here. I enjoyed it. I like the East Coast dirt, I’m from the East Coast. It’s very familiar to me. I enjoyed the day overall. I’m kind of bummed I didn’t get to do the first practice. The bike kind of cut out on me, but I really enjoyed the track. It was fun. Every lap out there I had fun. ”
Marvin Musquin: (3rd in 450MX) “Millville was definitely a tough weekend but I’m even more motivated now for Washougal. I expected a little more of a smooth day, to be honest. The starts were good but I was a little bit riding tight in the first moto. I started to get better but unfortunately, I cross-rutted down the hill and I couldn’t avoid going down. It was a scary crash down the hill – my clutch lever was all the way down when I picked it up but luckily, I was able to get back on it and salvage some points. In the second moto, I definitely wanted to do better and pick up more points. I was riding well and leading, but unfortunately it was not enough. It was a better feeling at the end of the second moto for sure, compared to the first one. We made some progress and now onto Washougal.”
Alex Martin: (3rd in 250MX) “That was a big disappointment on the day: to be 7th in front of the hometown crowd and AP wins it. A big point deficit there. We made a tire change after practice and I was definitely regretting it after the first moto. So I kind of went back to the paddle tire in the second moto, ripped the holeshot and went back to normal other than AP blowing by me down Mt. Martin I felt good. My fitness was there and my speed was there except for that one downhill. All I can do is ride to the best of my abilities and try to get in front of AP as much as I can. I’ll try to hold him off and maybe block pass him. I mean, whatever. He’s riding well. All I can do is just try to bring my “A” game every weekend.”
RJ Hampshire: (7th in 250MX) “I don’t know how much more I can take! I’ve just been getting beat up every weekend for over a month now. I’m still pretty banged up from RedBud but knew I could be competitive. First moto was decent, I just had a bad start. Second moto I got a much better start. I’m not for sure what happened though. I got hit in the air which pulled me right a bit and then I just got landed on that first lap! My throttle was stuck from where the bike hit, and I was gonna pull into the mechanics’ area but it loosened up a bit so figured I could salvage something. I got 11th. It was tough and pretty bummed on the weekend. Continue to heal up this week and be better at Washougal.”
Weston Peick: (6th in 450MX) “Spring Creek wasn’t too bad of a day for me. I tested some suspension this last week in California, and we made really good progress. I came into the weekend with a fresh mind, especially after having a weekend off from racing, and that ended up helping me out. I couldn’t do much more than what I could with my hand, especially on the downhills. My goal was to keep it consistent and steady, and I did that.”
Joey Savatgy: (5th in 250MX) “I was feeling really good in qualifying and expected a good day. Today’s results definitely don’t show where we should have been. After getting out front with the holeshot in Moto 1, I made a mistake that really cost me. I tried staying positive for Moto 2 and ran a good race, but we need to put two good motos together to get back on the podium.”
Cooper Webb: (7th in 450MX) “Seventh overall at Millville. I need some better starts! I’m ready for a good week and I’l try to be better at Washougal”
Chase Sexton : (6thin 250MX) “I started off the day pretty rough, 12th in first practice and ninth in the second practice. I was having a hard time making the uphill triple and was losing a lot of time on that thing. Felt better when the motos came around. It was going good in the first moto, but I was trying to make a pass on Justin Cooper for fourth but I fell down and finished eighth. Second moto I rebounded and finished fifth. I’ve ridden this track quite a bit growing up, I like it but it’s always been kind of one-lined, where the lines all funnel together. It was hard to make a pass–I was trying everything I could but I couldn’t make it happen. My goal, before the end of the season, I just want to get a holeshot. I know if I do that it will be a totally different story. Supercross my starts were good, but I think the metal grates suit me better. My start was pretty good in the first moto here, but I bogged in the second one, and that was the end of it.”
Justin Hill: (8th in 450MX) “I felt really good at Millville. The track suited my style and was really technical. I had great vibes and qualified well, but I totally messed up my starts. It’s unfortunate, because I believe I had the speed to run a lot higher. Still, I dug deep and came up to tenth in the first moto and seventh in the second. I’m going to put a lot of emphasis on my starting technique this week and try to be prepared for Washougal. Heck, maybe I’ll call my teammate Justin Bogle and see if he will tell me his secret, because his starts are dialed!”
Austin Forkner: (8th in 250MX) “We have to focus on the positives and the fact is I’m feeling good and happy with how I’m riding. Taking second in Moto 1 was a great start to the day and I was focused on a podium finish. What happened in Moto 2 is frustrating but it’s all a part of racing. We’re continuing to work on improving every week and I know it will come together soon. We’ll be back at it next week and we expect to have a good finish.”
Mitchell Harrison: (11th in 250MX) “Overall, it was an interesting day. I needed better line choices, but I still feel strong. I’m pretty good at next weekend’s race at Washougal, so I’m looking forward to that.”
Phillip Nicoletti: (9th in 450MX) “Millville was great. I made some changes over the break. I felt really good in the first moto and ended up eighth. I felt great in the second moto, but mentally I wasn’t there. I’m not sure what happened, but I have Washougal next week and I’m looking forward to it”
Michael Mosiman: (12th in 250MX) “”It was a good day. This is a great track. I had a rough practice, but I started feeling good once I got the flow of things. I was on the outside in the first moto and got a decent start, but crashed mid-sweeper. I got back up and was dead last, but then made it up to 18th. There was such a big gap to the next guy, but I got closer toward the end of the race. It was good and I rode really well. I got a ninth place start in the second moto, then gathered myself and started nailing my lines to move forward. I reeled and got caught up in the lappers really bad. I rode really well and caught up to sixth. I’m excited for next week.”
Jordan Bailey: (13th in 250MX) “The Millville track was awesome. Practice went well, and I got a pretty good start in the first moto but was shuffled back. I got a great start in the second moto but had a small tip over. I stayed around 12th. I’m looking forward to Washougal. I’m going to keep making progress.”
Justin Bogle: (12th in 450MX) “The weekend was an improvement. I felt really good in first practice, but then I had a tough crash in the second practice. That slowed my roll for the rest of the day. I had a tough time getting my momentum back. I had a good start in the first moto, but struggled. In the second moto I got another holeshot, which is always nice. That Suzuki RM-Z450 is a beautiful machine. It makes tons of horsepower! However, I struggled again and ended up 12th for 12th overall. My return to racing has been frustrating. It’s the opposite of what I thought it was going to be like coming back. I’ll get better each weekend, so I’ll keep working hard.”
Cameron Mcadoo : (15th in 250MX) “Spring Creek didn’t end up how we had planned, I just need to start up front and we will be solid. 15-13 on the day. Good thing is we have another opportunity this weekend at Washougal!”
Enzo Lopes: (19th in 250MX) “The weekend was pretty tough. Even so, I was happy to be back at the races with the team and to have an opportunity to race Millville. The sand rollers were awesome! Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a flow around the track. My starts weren’t good, and that made my race pretty challenging. I couldn’t find the right lines. The Suzuki RM-Z250 was amazing, though. It’s all on me. I have no excuses. We’ll work this week to get ready for Washougal. I rode there before and I like the track. The dirt is like what I’m used to in Brazil. I love being around the team every weekend. They work so hard to give me the best equipment. I just got back from injury, so I’m taking things one step at a time. The results weren’t what I was hoping for, but we have next weekend.”
Jimmy DeCotis: (20th in 250MX) “Millville was a better race than the previous rounds, although the results don’t show it. We made good progress with my settings, and I’m mentally in a better place. I had a bad case of food poisoning this week, which really hurt me in the second moto. Overall, I’m taking a step in the right direction. The Millville track was really good. The area got hit with a lot of rain leading up to Saturday, but they let the track develop naturally. It really separated the men from the boys.”
