Red Bull KTM rider Ryan Dungey wins again in the 450cc class, while teammate Marvin Musquin ends his 16-race win drought in the 250cc class at Washougal.
It was a memorable day for the Red Bull KTM squad when the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship made its perennial stop in the Pacific Northwest at Washougal MX Park for the Motosport.com Washougal National, presented by Peterson CAT, on Saturday.
Reigning Lucas Oil 450cc Pro Motocross Champion Ryan Dungey was desperate to gain ground on teammate and class leader Ken Roczen in the series points standings, and Dungey came through in spectacular fashion by posting his first 1-1 sweep of the season for his third overall victory of 2014. In the 250cc class, Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin also earned a 1-1 sweep to score his first win of the season and become only the fourth different winner the class has seen this year. On a day in which the sport celebrated our heroes who served the red, white and blue, Dungey and Musquin painted Washougal orange.
450cc Moto 1
Toyota/Yamaha/N-FAB/JGRMX’s Justin Brayton is clearly once again firing on all eight cylinders, health-wise, as he bagged the Motosport.com Holeshot Award, running just ahead of Dungey off the start of the first 450cc moto. Dungey was on a mission, however, and he passed Brayton on the opening lap and attempted to pull away while teammate and title rival Roczen and previous round winner Eli Tomac were caught in traffic. With a clear track ahead of him, Dungey was able to consistently pull away.
Meanwhile, the battled behind Dungey was interesting. Roczen was able to pass Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Trey Canard for second on lap four, and the German rider appeared to be locked into the spot. However, Tomac was on a charge through the field after getting off to an 11th-place start, and the GEICO Honda rider took over third place on lap five and then steadily closed the gap on Roczen. Tomac waited until lap 10 before he made his move, but he overtook Roczen and claimed the runner-up spot.
Out front, Dungey took the moto win by nearly 14 seconds with Tomac second and Roczen third. Canard followed in fourth, and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Brett Metcalfe was fifth.
450cc Moto 2
Brayton swept the afternoon’s Motosport.com Holeshot awards by leading the field once again when the gate dropped for the second 450cc moto. This time Metcalfe and BTO Sports KTM’s Andrew Short were also at the front of the field, running second and third, respectively, ahead of Dungey in fourth. Tomac was seventh, while Roczen had suffered a poor start and was stuck outside the top 10.
Dungey once again bulled his way into the lead on the opening lap, going from fourth to first in one corner, and he immediately began pulling away. Tomac wasted little time picking off multiple riders to secure second by lap two. While the lead duo checked out, Roczen battled with a stubborn Metcalfe for third and eventually made a pass that stuck, putting himself in the final podium spot.
The top three would remain unchanged to the finish, with Dungey crossing the line over 8 seconds ahead of Tomac. Roczen was a distant third. Dungey’s win also marked a personal milestone, his 30th career 450cc class win and his 37th combined victory (including the 250 Class) in the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship.
“Today was just about coming in and not worrying about the championship,” said Dungey, who won for the fourth time in five tries in the 450cc class at Washougal. “There’s a lot of racing left [this season]. We just tried to put out our best effort, and we did that. We got great starts, and Eli [Tomac] kept us honest in that second moto, but I just really tried to put the hammer down and extend the gap. Fortunately we did that. I love it here [at Washougal] and this just feels awesome.”
Tomac followed in second (2-2) with Roczen completing the podium in third (3-3). Metcalfe posted a season-best finish in fourth (5-4), while Short rounded out the top five (6-5). Roczen said that he always want to be up front, but Washougal was just another weekend of work, as far as he is concerned.
“It’ll be good to have an off weekend and recharge the batteries,” Roczen said. “Ryan [Dungey] rode really well today and congrats to him. I’ll take some time to regroup and get some rest in. I really want to keep that red plate [as the points leader]. All that matters is who’s on top in the end, and we aren’t there just yet.”
Roczen will have plenty to think about, as he Dungey made up 10 points on him Saturday, cutting Roczen’s lead to just 14 points. Canard sits third, 77 points behind Roczen, but Tomac may turn out to be just the help that Dungey needs to continue his climb back to the top of the 450cc standings.
250cc Moto 1
In the 250cc Class, Valli Motorsports Yamaha’s Christophe Pourcel led the field into the first turn in Moto 1, claiming the Motosport.com Holeshot Award ahead of Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha rider and class points leader Jeremy Martin. Pourcel fended off Martin for a brief period but soon made his way around and set a solid pace. Behind them, however, Red Bull KTM’s Musquin took advantage of a third-place start to challenge the two Yamaha riders ahead of him. Musquin passed his countryman, Pourcel, on lap one and then came after Martin. Three laps later, Musquin pass Martin and simply pulled away.
Behind Musquin, a five-rider battle developed among Pourcel, Martin, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett, Rockstar Energy Racing’s Jason Anderson and Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha’s Cooper Webb. A mistake forced Martin to drop from second to fifth, putting the battle for second between Pourcel and Baggett. Baggett eventually made the pass on Pourcel, only to give the position back just one lap later.
Anderson began to put pressure on Baggett for third, but Anderson crashed and dropped deep into the field. That allowed Webb to move into third after passing Martin. As the race progressed, Pourcel, Baggett, Webb and Martin would be separated by just over a second. As he looked to close in again on Pourcel, Baggett went down and fell to fifth, behind Webb and Martin.
In the end, Musquin cruised to his first moto win of the season over 8 seconds ahead of Pourcel. Webb made a late-race pass on Martin for third.
250cc Moto 2
Pourcel raced to his fourth straight Motosport.com Holeshot Award in the second 250cc moto, this time with GEICO Honda’s Justin Bogle running second. Bogle took advantage of his strong start to pass Pourcel on the opening lap and take the lead.
While Bogle set a fast pace out front, a flying Musquin made a move on Pourcel for second and set his sights on the lead. Bogle wasn’t willing to give up the lead without a fight, and he held off Musquin until lap nine, when the Frenchman made the pass and easily pulled away. Bogle would also lose second place to Baggett, who was still in podium contention. Baggett methodically wore Bogle down, and when Bogle made a mistake and suffered a minor tipover, Baggett moved into second place. Bogle recovered to hold on to third, ahead of Martin.
Musquin crossed the line to land the 1-1 sweep and celebrate his first overall win since the fourth round of the 2013 season. He now has four career wins in the 250cc class, and he is just the fourth winner in the class this year.
“I’m so glad,” Musquin said. “That was a perfect day. I was fastest qualifying and got both moto wins. It was my first time in America going 1-1 [in motos]. My teammate Ryan [Dungey] went 1-1, and I wanted to join him. I found an outside line that helped me make passes all day, and I’m really happy to know I got some good starts and was able to make the passes I needed to get into the lead.”
Baggett’s runner-up effort in the final moto helped him finish second overall (5-2), while Martin (4-4) edged out his teammate Webb (3-5) for third. Bogle completed the top five (7-3).
The day’s outcome did little damage to Martin’s strong class points lead. He is still 43 points ahead of Webb and 54 points ahead of Baggett.
“I’m pumped,” Martin said. “Last year I went 29-12 at Washougal, and this year I went 4-4, so I’m super, super happy. I was able to get some good starts, find some good lines and get into a rhythm.”
The 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship is now set to take one-week break before returning to action on Saturday, August 9, with round 10 at the Unadilla Valley Sports Center in New Berlin, New York, for the Red Bull Unadilla National.
Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
Motosport.com Washougal National
Washougal MX Park
Washougal, Washington
Results: July 26, 2014 (Round 9 of 12)
450cc
1. Ryan Dungey-KTM/1-1
2. Eli Tomac-Hon/2-2
3. Ken Roczen-KTM/3-3
4. Brett Metcalfe-Kaw/5-4
5. Andrew Short-KTM/6-5
6. Weston Peick-Suz/7-6
7. Trey Canard-Hon/4-11
8. Fredrik Noren-Hon/9-7
9. Justin Brayton-Yam/8-8
10. Christian Craig-Hon/10-12
Lucas Oil 450cc Pro Motocross Championship Series Standings (After 9 of 12 rounds)
1. Ken Roczen-407/4 wins
2. Ryan Dungey-393/3 wins
3. Trey Canard-330
4. Brett Metcalfe-256
5. James Stewart-226/1 win
6. Josh Grant-218
7. Andrew Short-218
8. Weston Peick-217
9. Eli Tomac-212/1 win
10. Chad Reed-156
250cc
1. Marvin Musquin-KTM/1-1
2. Blake Baggett-Kaw/5-2
3. Jeremy Martin-Yam/4-4
4. Cooper Webb-Yam/3-5
5. Justin Bogle-Hon/7-3
6. Joey Savatgy-KTM/6-7
7. Dean Wilson-Kaw/8-6
8. Christophe Pourcel-Yam/2-15
9. Cole Seely-Hon/9-9
10. Jessy Nelson-Hon/11-10
Lucas Oil 250cc Pro Motocross Championship Series Standings (After 9 of 12 rounds)
1. Jeremy Martin-377/4 wins
2. Cooper Webb-334/1 win
3. Blake Baggett-323/3 wins
4. Marvin Musquin-291/1 win
5. Justin Bogle/274
6. Christophe Pourcel/274
7. Jason Anderson/236
8. Cole Seely/212
9. Jessy Nelson/185
10. Alex Martin/156
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