Feature photo by: Octopi
The 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship went to the beautiful Spring Creek MX park for the Spring Creek National, and it was Red Bull / KTM’s Cooper Webb taking his first-ever win in the 450MX class and Monster Energy / Pro Circuit / Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo winning another one in the 250MX class.
AC was joined on the 250MX podium by the local boy, JGR / Suzuki’s Alex Martin (2nd), and GEICO / Honda’s Hunter Lawrence (3rd). In the 450MX class, Webb was joined by Rockstar / Husqvarna’s Zach Osborne (2nd) and Monster Energy / Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac (3rd) on the podium.
After the racing was over, we gathered numerous quotes from riders about their eighth outdoor MX race of 2019.
Cooper Webb: (1st in 450MX) “I felt really good today. It’s incredible to go 1-1, I don’t know what happened to everyone else but I got two good starts, stayed out of trouble and it felt really awesome. It’s amazing what a moto-win can do for your confidence! I mean, I’m progressing for sure. Honestly, I think the biggest thing was this weekend, I was really able to unwind and take some time off and kinda recover. I think that was a huge thing for me. We figured a little bit out with the bike this week, and I think I just came in a little fresher mentally and kind of a recharged a bit. So, I think it was obviously good to have that little break.”
Adam Cianciarulo: (1st in 250MX) “Today was one for the books. I am so incredibly proud of my team and the results from today. Days like today are where you can easily throw away a moto due to a mechanical or get swallowed whole by the nasty weather conditions. In the first moto, I struggled badly with my vision as mud got stuck on my goggles and I couldn’t get it off, so then I ditched my goggles but that didn’t seem to help as I kept making some minor mistakes and even tipped over at one point. In the second moto, I was determined to get out front and ride with clear vision and was able to do just that. We were able to increase our points lead a bit and keep working towards that bigger picture, which is all we can ask for at the end of the day.”
Zach Osborne: (2nd in 450MX) “It was a good comeback weekend. I still have a lot of pain in my shoulder and just to be able to grind through it and go 4-3 for second overall is a really solid day for me and the team”
Alex Martin: (2nd in 250MX) “Things started off a little delayed at the home race due to weather, but I felt great on the bike right away and qualified third fastest. The motos went very well, with two second place finishes. It was unfortunate to get docked a position in the second moto. All in all, it felt awesome to finally get an overall podium for myself and the JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki guys! I’m very excited with how things have been progressing.”
Hunter Lawrence: (3rd in 250MX) “It [Moto 1] was pretty sick. We got a good start—a holeshot. In a mud race your race can go two ways and obviously you want to start with a holeshot. It’s so much easier. You’re not getting roosted and all that stuff. I was pretty happy with how that went. The team’s been working and still are working on getting our engine package better. So that was cool to start off with that. AC was on me at the start and just stayed cool. Obviously, being behind someone in muddy conditions like that its just hell. (laughs) It’s pretty crappy with all the roost everywhere, especially how it was today. The track—for how much rain we had—was pretty decent for what we had come through this morning.”
Eli Tomac: (3rd in 450MX) “Man, what a crazy day at Millville. The track was gnarly out there, but the track crew did an incredible job to give us something that we could race on. We only got one practice that was cut short due to lighting, and the track changed drastically throughout the day. It was a bit of survival mode out there for a lot of guys, which resulted in a lot of lapped traffic that held me back at the end of Moto 1. In Moto 2, we got a decent jump but got shuffled back and then I had a small tip over in the back section when I was charging towards the front, so I was only able to climb up to fifth. My Kawasaki team and I worked hard during the off week and have found a setting that compliments my riding style on my KX™, which I think showed in Moto 1. I am happy to be leaving here with a podium and was able to add an additional four points to my lead in the championship points standings.”
Marvin Musquin: (4th in 450MX) “I’m definitely not happy because the riding today was pretty good but the result is not what I wanted. I was looking forward to a good battle for the lead and to make up some points but that didn’t happen. Next week is Washougal and we’ll spend the week in California working with the team, so it will be good.”
Ken Roczen: (5th in 450MX) “It was a crazy day. The weather wasn’t on our side, at least for the first half of the day. We only had about 10 minutes of practice and then it was a waiting game for the motos. My first moto was terrible, so not much to say other than that. I didn’t have a good drive down the start straight and fell way back outside the top 15. Then right after the finish line, another rider went down in front of me and I was unable to avoid him so I went down too. I tried a new setting but just couldn’t get comfortable at all, so for the second race we switched back to my base setup, which is what I’m most familiar with. I hooked up great off the start and came around the first turn in second. Cooper [Webb] and I swapped back and forth a few times before I made the pass. I stayed in the lead for most the race but unfortunately got pretty tired those last few laps and he was able to get back by me. I tried to make a final charge on the last lap and we were right together across the finish, but I ended up second. It was good redemption from the first race, so I’m happy with how it ended.”
John Short: (7th in 450MX) “7th Overall (6-8) at Millville this weekend. It was a good weekend, and a good confidence builder for me as we continue into the final 4 rounds of the season. Thanks to Greg Albertson and Game Moto for working hard and helping me stay focused this weekend, as well as all my family and friends who came out to watch and cheer me on”
Freddie Noren: (8th in 450MX) “Millville was a good weekend, with putting in more solid results. My first moto finish was better, but I honestly felt that I rode better in the second moto. Unfortunately, I ran into a downed rider, which put me back to 11th. I am feeling more and more comfortable on the Suzuki RM-Z450 every weekend. This experience has been awesome! I’m looking for more at Washougal.”
RJ Hampshire: (8th in 250MX) “It was a mess first moto but almost had my first holeshot, just went a little too wide and got stuck in some mud. Was running top five for most of the moto until I cross rutted off the Chadapult [jump] and went down. Ended up getting back into fifth until about three laps to go and my radiator got packed with mud. It got hot and I started losing some power, so I had to cruise it in. We did an engine swap for the second moto and didn’t have a good start. Was hard to pass then got hit pretty hard around half way and went down. Tough weekend.”
Jason Anderson: (11th in 450MX) “This weekend was probably the roughest weekend I’ve had in a couple years. I ended up crashing a lot in both motos and it didn’t go my way at all, but I’m just going to move on and keep trying to be better.”
Garrett Marchbanks: (9th in 250MX) “Well, I sure picked a good round to make my return to racing. Today was fun, but also extremely challenging. In Moto 2, I was able to get a great jump on my KX250 and was able to run in fourth for the first few laps. The nasty terrain didn’t make it easy, but I am proud of the consistency I showed with my 10-9 scores for ninth overall. We will keep building from here and break into the top-5 before the end of the season”
Dean Wilson: (14th in 450MX) “It was definitely one of my rougher days today. It was only my second race back but expectations were a lot higher because I had a really good couple weeks coming into this one. Overall, it was a really rough day but you just have to tough it out on your bad days and enjoy your good days.”
Joey Savatgy: (15th in 450MX) “I’m trying so hard to put two decent motos together but I’ve run into some unfortunate issues these last few weeks. In Moto 1, I did myself no favors with a poor start but was pleased with how we fought all the way up to eighth place. In Moto 2, I made a bad line selection in the back sand rollers and got my bike stuck in the mud. The Monster Energy Kawasaki team has been so supportive and continues to work with me so I can get back to the front where I belong.”
Chase Sexton: (12th in 250MX) “It was nice being back at the races this weekend at Millville! Conditions were tough but I actually really enjoyed the track and just tried to embrace it. Qualified second in practice which was pretty good. First moto came from around 10th and got myself up to fourth. I was trying to run down third and my bike let go with three laps to go. In the second moto I didn’t have a great gate pick due to the DNF in the prior moto, so my start was not good, but I managed to get through the pack a bit…just to fall down on the second lap! I was buried deep in the pack, but was able to salvage a seventh out of it. Overall not a great day, but there are positives to take from it. I was happy with my speed and fitness just need to put myself in better positions! Back to work this week for Washouga!”
Michael Mosiman: (13th in 250MX) “I’m super stoked on my effort and my riding today. But I’m also disappointed in the results because I feel like they don’t reflect how I’m riding. I really want to get inside the top five in the championship and I know it’s not out of the question, so I’ll keep working!””
Kyle Peters: (15th in 250MX) “The rain made conditions challenging. The schedule was weird. We had one 20-minute practice, that went pretty well. The track was one-lined, so it was tough getting a clean lap. I got off to a really good start and hydroplaned in the first turn. I ran off the track and couldn’t find anywhere to get back on. I fell four times in the first moto, pulled in for goggles, and to still get 17th was a surprise. I felt like I rode well. I lined up farther inside the second moto and had the biggest jump out of the gate, but I hit a soft spot halfway down the start. I ran third for a while. Once Alex [Martin] got by me I had a bit of an issue with my clutch-side grip and was in survival mode from there on out.”
Jordan Bailey: (20th in 250MX) “It was a brutal day for everybody. It was super muddy in the first moto and I had a few little mistakes that ended up costing me. I’m looking forward to Washougal. My riding has been good, even though the results didn’t show today, but let’s bring it on.”
Christian Craig: (25th in 250MX) “Despite the results, I actually had a decent day at Millville. I finally felt like myself again in practice which felt good especially with the weather conditions. First moto, I had a mid-pack start and worked by way into the top 10 then I crashed, made my way back up to around 12th and my bike had a mechanical. That kind of weather is hard on any bike especially when you crash a couple times. Either way, I was pumped on my riding first moto. Second moto, I was running pretty good but again, had a crash and that one was pretty bad. Luckily, I was able to get up and kept going but it was too late in the moto to make many passes. Results were terrible but I felt better so I’ll take that as a positive.”