Feature photo by: Octopi
The 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship went to Florida for the first time since 1997—first time ever at WW Ranch MX Park in Jacksonville, FL—and both classes brought new winners for 2019. In the 450MX class, Red Bull / KTM’s Marvin Musquin won his first overall for 2019, and Monster Energy / Star Racing / Yamaha’s Justin Cooper scored the first win of his young career in the 250MX class.
Cooper was joined on the 250MX podium by his Monster Energy / Star Racing / Yamaha teammate Dylan Ferrandis (2nd) and Monster Energy / Pro Circuit / Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo (3rd). In the 450MX class, Musquin was joined on the podium by and Monster Energy / Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac (2nd) and Rockstar / Husqvarna’s Zach Osborne (3rd).
After the racing was over, we gathered numerous quotes from riders about their first-ever Florida National race at WW Ranch MX Park.
Marvin Musquin: (1st in 450MX) “It would have been nice to win both motos but I tried my best in the second moto and I ran out of energy a bit. The track was demanding – it was tough and to pick up the pace was difficult. I’m a little bit disappointed to not have taken advantage of the championship points but I salvaged third place, which was good enough for the overall.”
Justin Cooper: (1st in 250MX) “The bike was good today. We did some testing to get it right going into this weekend. It was tough to set up the bikes for everyone, but I was pretty comfortable all day. Today was physically and mentally exhausting. It took a lot of heart to get this first win, and it makes it feel that much better. The track was really rough and the heat made it that much more tough, so I am stoked on the day. First in qualifying, and I backed it up with my first win. I’m super-happy.”
Eli Tomac: (2nd in 450MX) “I got totally buried off the start in Moto 1 and I was struggling with my pace; those are the two major factors that played a role in a seventh place finish but we were able to turn it around for Moto 2. I can’t remember the last time I holeshotted like that! I felt good and found my rhythm early on so I was able to put it all together and ride my own race. My entire Monster Energy Kawasaki team worked their tails off in this gnarly heat this weekend. I can’t thank them enough for all their efforts. We’re all excited to head to the Wick with the red plate.”
Dylan Ferrandis: (2nd in 250MX) “In the first moto, I was struggling a bit with the start. I haven’t been so far back, in 15th the first lap, so I had to push really hard in both motos. We have been working really hard on improving our starts. We have tried everything with the team, with my setup, talking with my coach and my wife. We tried everything. So I don’t know; it’s something in my mind. In the second moto, I just figured out how to get a good start and had a great battle with my teammate Cooper. To get my first moto win this season… I want to say finally because it took so long. I was starting to get impatient because I want to fight for the championship and if you don’t win a moto and a race, you can’t. So I’m happy with the start, the race. I just want to send a big thanks to my coach because we work really hard together physically and today that paid off because I think that was one of the most difficult races I ever rode. I’m very happy.”
Adam Cianciarulo: (3rd in 250MX) “That was a scorcher! Honestly, I think I overtrained this week heading into this race. These Florida conditions are no joke; it was a tough one for us all. I have to give credit to my competition out here; they all rode really well and we were all out here struggling together so they pushed me to fight even harder. It’s a long series, I just wanted to be smart and not overdo it so I rode my own race and I’m proud to get my fifth podium.”
Zach Osborne: (3rd in 450MX) “We made some changes in the week after High Point and it really paid off today. I was able to ride much more in my comfort zone during the whole moto, which gave me more at the end. I had a pretty big get-off in the first moto and was only able to manage fifth but in the second moto I had a really good feeling and momentum and I was able to really go out there and show what I can do.””
Jason Anderson: (4th in 450MX) “The weekend went alright. I had a good practice and was able to be P1 but it was a hot day here. The second moto, I was in position to have a good overall and possibly get up to the lead and the heat got to me a little bit and I kind of went backwards.”
Michael Mosiman : (4th in 250MX) “This was definitely the toughest race of the year. I’ve been saying it all along – if I can get a start, I can run with those guys and I got two good starts today! I was up there both motos at the beginning and I tried to save energy but those guys are going so fast and to maintain that pace, you’re pushing pretty good. Overall, I’m happy with my fitness and pleased with the day.”
Cooper Webb: (5th in 450MX) “It was a tough day today – the track was physically demanding and it was hot. I was happy to get the holeshot in the first moto and lead for a little bit but I struggled to maintain a good pace at the beginning. All-in-all, I’m happy to come away with a top-five overall and we’ll continue working hard to get up there next weekend.”
Hunter Lawrence: (5th in 250MX) “Tough weekend in the heat at WW Ranch, first moto was difficult with a bad start. Coming through the pack back to eighth was a really tough ride, I had to push so hard through the field, and that took some energy. Second moto was a top ten start or so, and I fought my way up into fourth behind Cianciarulo. I couldn’t quite get him. The whole day was super hot and tough, it was my first hot race in maybe close to a year. I had to really dig deep, track was very physically demanding on top of all that with seven sets of rollers on the track, plus the bumps and wall jumps. It was tough! The big jumps were good to breathe and regroup but I think it was the most physically demanding track we’ve had this season. Fifth overall is okay for now.”
Ken Roczen: (6th in 450MX) “Jacksonville was a tough one. The brutal conditions made for some crazy racing. I finished the first moto in second, which I was okay with. Unfortunately, I had a hard time cooling down for the second moto. I was okay until the halfway point, when I made some mistakes and went down. After that point it was just about survival and making it through. It’s definitely not the weekend we wanted, but I’ve been putting in a lot of work throughout the week. We’ll be back at it hard next weekend.”
Justin Barcia: (7th in 450MX) “It was really tough out there today. I was hoping for a better finish, but all in all it was a good day and we hopefully learned a few things for next week. I’m leaving healthy and looking forward to Southwick.”
Colt Nichols: (7th in 250MX) “The day was just kind of so-so for me. I struggled to find the magic setting on the bike, and my starts were not very good today. That really put me in a hole from the get-go in both motos. I tried to fight back and got some decent finishes, but overall, I’m not happy with how the weekend went. I just need to be a little bit better. I’m going to take this week to try to improve and get ready for Southwick.”
RJ Hampshire: (8th in 250MX) “Felt good on the bike,. Made a late push in the first moto after a bad start but made a mistake and ended up on the ground. Second moto had another bad start and got caught up in a pile up, then ended up going down again later that lap trying to make passes. Two crashes on the first lap, I was so far back! Wish that second moto would have played out differently that first lap, I really wasn’t affected by the heat but couldn’t show it”
Chase Sexton: (9th in 250MX) “It was strange because I felt really good during the moto!. Actually probably the best I’ve felt all year. I obviously got hot but I didn’t realize it was that bad until after I got off my bike. That was followed by my knees buckling, throwing up, and blurry vision. I tried to get cooled down enough to race the second moto but I couldn’t get cooled down enough, and my vision wasn’t great after the sight lap. So I opted to not race. Obviously, I’m not happy about it, but I just felt it was the right thing to do, being young and I want to be good for the rest of the races. I didn’t want to take a huge risk of making things much worse. Back to work this week to get ready for the ‘Wick.”
Dean Ferris: (8th in 450MX) “Overall, I’m pretty happy with today. I got two really mediocre starts, which kind of made it hard for me, but I put in a big charge. Made a lot of passes in the first moto and was able to get to 10th. In the second moto, the start was a little better. I felt really strong all moto in spite of the heat. I think my big off-season in Australia training in the heat and getting ready for this outdoor championship really helped me today. So I’m really stoked that I could push through and pick up a couple more positions late in the moto because my fitness was strong. We made some improvements while testing throughout the week, as stuff turns out. I’m looking forward to Southwick; onward and upward.”
Lorenzo Locurcio: (11th in 450MX) “WW Ranch was a step on the right direction, had so much fun on the track! Weather was brutal but was able to tough it out for 12-11=11 overall. Junior did an outstanding job with the facility can’t wait to be back next year”
Joseph Savatgy: (13th in 450MX) “Today was a tough day, but we did what we could and got it done. I continue to get better and feel more comfortable on the bike. I’m still making adjustments and trying to play catch up from the time off from my injury. We’re headed in a good direction, I just need to be on the bike a little more and keep getting after it. I’m glad to get this one over with and looking forward to Southwick.”
Jacob Hayes: (10th in 250MX) “What a day it was at the races, hot, humid, brutal track all the above. We showed up, was prepared to battle it out and I did. 13-8 moto scores for 10th overall. It’s been a heck of a journey this outdoor season but if you know me you know I’m a fighter and giving up isn’t in my vocabulary. Onto Southwick”
Jordan Bailey: (11th in 250MX) “It was a good day. It was extremely hot and we needed to be a little stronger that’s for sure, but it was a step in the right direction. I’m happy with what I’m doing off the bike and I just look forward to improving at Southwick and keeping this ball rolling.”
Ty Masterpool: (15th in 250MX) “The first moto was going well then I literally felt like I hit a wall. I’ve never been so tired and hot before. Going into the second moto, I knew it couldn’t be any worse than the first moto, but then I got a bad start. I was moving up, then I went down and got stuck under my bike. I thought I was going to get lapped. So at the end of the day, I’m happy that I continue to learn on the 250 and that I was able to get up and fight back to finish 16th after I fell.”
Mitchell Oldenburg : (16th in 250MX) “The Florida heat got the best of me today. I’m really happy with my speed in the first moto. Unfortunately, in the very last corner, McAdoo fell in front of me, so I had to hurry up and get up and going. It felt really good to pull the second moto holeshot, but I just didn’t have much left in the tank and tipped over on the third lap. Trying to race myself into shape has been pretty tough, but I’m happy with the progress we’ve made and just looking forward to getting better every weekend.”
Martin Davalos: (18th in 250MX) “I’m a little disappointed in my performance this weekend, especially on a track like this where I can usually perform well. I’ll spend some time with the team this week to work on correcting some of the mistakes I made and be ready to fight for a better result next weekend.”
Cameron McAdoo: (20th in 250MX) “Florida National was a rough one on me. I felt really good on the bike coming back to 9th after a really bad start. Unfortunately, I completely emptied the tank and tipped over in the last corner, got up and finished but collapsed pulling into the mechanic’s area from heat exhaustion. I wanna give a huge thank you to the entire Alpinestars medical team for taking care of me in such a timely manner, truly world class medics! Thank you to everyone who has reached out to check on me we’ll be good ”
