Two European riders and an Australian lead the way after a hectic opening round of the AMA Motocross Championships in the United States at the weekend.
Yamaha YZ450F rider Dylan Ferrandis, from France, enjoyed a stellar debut in the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross 450 class, taking the overall win with a 1-3 tally at the season opener at Fox Raceway in Pala, California.
Germany’s Ken Roczen (Honda CRF450) ended the day overall runner-up after posting 6-1 results at Pala.
For the Yamaha crew, the weekend’s result was made even sweeter with a double podium as Aaron Plessinger ended the day third overall after posting 4-2 results.
Australian Jett Lawrence (Honda CRF250, pictured here) topped the 250cc class thanks to the 17-year-old from Queensland posting a 2-1 score-card.
Qualifying fourth fastest, Ferrandis grabbed great start in the first 450cc race. Although he was passed shortly after, the Frenchmen kept his cool in third and reclaimed second after the race leader, Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo, went down four laps into the race.
Sitting right on the heels of the new front-runner, KTM’s Cooper Webb, Ferrandis was able to take over the lead a lap later and secured his first moto win in his first race in the premier class, although it was extremely close, Ferrandis crossing the finish line less than a second ahead of a hard-charging Chase Sexton (Honda).
In the second race, the 2020 250MX class champion was back in eighth after the start. Undeterred, he put his head down and quickly fought his way forward to sixth. In a multi-rider battle for fourth, Ferrandis came out on top around the halfway mark.
He advanced to third a few laps later, where he ultimately finished, behind Roczen and Plessinger, claiming his first overall 450cc victory.
Next weekend the riders head to Thunder Valley Motocross Park in Lakewood, Colorado, for round two of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship on June 5.
Photo courtesy Yamaha USA
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RESULTS & STANDINGS:
450MX Overall (Top 10):
- Dylan Ferrandis (Yam) 1-3
- Ken Roczen (Hon) 6-1
- Aaron Plessinger (Yam) 4-2
- Justin Barcia (Gas) 3-6
- Chase Sexton (Hon) 2-10
- Jason Anderson (Hus) 10-4
- Marvin Musquin (KTM) 8-7
- Cooper Webb (KTM) 5-11
- Eli Tomac (Kaw) 9-8
- Zach Osborne (Hus) 13-5
250MX Overall (Top 10):
- Jett Lawrence (Hon) 2-1
- Jeremy Martin (Yam) 1-2
- Justin Cooper (Yam) 5-3
- Michael Mosiman (Gas) 4-4
- RJ Hampshire (Hus) 3-9
- Hunter Lawrence (Hon) 6-5
- Garrett Marchbanks (Yam) 8-6
- Austin Forkner (Kaw) 7-8
- Colt Nichols (Yam) 9-12
- Jo Shimoda (Kaw) 14-11
450MX Class standings in 2021 after 1 of 12 rounds:
- Dylan Ferrandis, France, Yamaha – 45
- Ken Roczen, Germany, Honda – 40
- Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha – 40
- Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., GASGAS – 35
- Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Honda – 33
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna – 29
- Marvin Musquin, France, KTM – 27
- Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM – 26
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 25
- Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna – 24
250MX Class standings in 2021 after 1 of 12 rounds:
- Jett Lawrence, Australia, Honda – 47
- Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha – 47
- Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha – 36
- Michael Mosiman, Sebastopol, Calif., GASGAS – 36
- RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna – 32
- Hunter Lawrence, Australia, Honda – 31
- Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Yamaha – 28
- Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki – 27
- Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha – 21
- Jo Shimoda, Japan, Kawasaki – 17
- Jalek Swoll, Belleview, Fla., Husqvarna – 17