Scritto lunedì 13 Giugno 2022 alle 13:00.
CAIROLI ATTRAVERSO IL PODIO DEL NAZIONAL MX THUNDER VALLEY
LAKEWOOD, Colorado – Antonio Cairoli della Red Bull KTM Factory Racing continua a correre verso il suo primo podio 450MX, conquistando i suoi migliori piazzamenti in moto della stagione – con il quarto e il quinto – per assicurarsi il quinto assoluto al Round 3. Il compagno di squadra Ryan Dungey ha seguito l’esempio al sesto posto assoluto, ottenendo un paio di costanti 7-7 al Thunder Valley National.
HIGHLIGHTS: 2022 TOYOTA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONAL
Il nove volte campione del mondo continua a progredire per tutta la stagione con la sua migliore prestazione, a soli tre round dalla serie. Reclamando l’holeshot in Moto 1, Cairoli ha tenuto a bada un Ken Roczen in carica all’inizio della gara. È rimasto nella top-five per la prima metà delle gare prima di accontentarsi del sesto posto. Nella seconda manche, Cairoli ha afferrato un altro solido holeshot e ha corso ancora una volta in testa all’inizio. Aderendo a un ottimo quarto posto, ha combattuto appena fuori dalla contesa del podio per tutta la gara per finire appena prima del suo primo podio nella serie statunitense.
Antonio Cairoli: “Sono molto contento della gara. Certo, so anche del mio stato d’allenamento, tutti quei ragazzi davanti sono preparati per correre e vincere il campionato, e all’ultimo momento, solo un mese fa, ho iniziato a lavorare davvero per essere qui e non è abbastanza. Oggi me la sentivo, ma stavo un po’ peggio con l’altitudine. Abbiamo già un grande miglioramento rispetto al primo round, quindi penso che siamo a buon punto e andiamo avanti da qui e vediamo la settimana e la prossima settimana”.
Ryan Dungey: “Oggi ero abbastanza felice. Nella prima manche, ho avuto una partenza decente e il gruppo non si è semplicemente staccato: siamo stati tutti lì per i primi 15-20 minuti ed è stato incoraggiante. Anche a fine gara il distacco si sta riducendo. Seconda manche, non ho ottenuto il massimo delle partenze e stavo cercando di superare il gruppo. Sono salito su McElrath per il quinto posto e sono rimasto bloccato al suo ritmo e quei ragazzi sono scappati. Due buone manche solide, dovevo solo scavare molto in profondità ma, tutto sommato, una giornata positiva.
Aaron Plessinger: “Non ho avuto la giornata migliore. Ho faticato nelle prove libere ma andando fuori per le manche mi sentivo abbastanza bene. Ho fatto dei buoni sorpassi e sono tornato ma ho faticato a tenerlo sulle due ruote. Nel complesso, sono un po’ deluso per il modo in cui ho guidato, ma siamo bravi e siamo pronti per puntare su High Point e speriamo di poter migliorare un po’ la moto questa settimana e andare da lì”.
Il campionato AMA Pro Motocross 2022 si dirigerà a Mt. Morris, in Pennsylvania, sabato prossimo, 18 giugno, per il quarto round della serie.
Risultati Classe 450MX – Thunder Valley National
AMA NATIONAL THUNDER VALLEY 2022 – Results and points!
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CAIROLI LANDS JUST OUTSIDE THE PODIUM AT THUNDER VALLEY MX NATIONAL
LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Antonio Cairoli continues to race his way toward his first 450MX podium, capturing his best moto finishes of the season – with fourth and fifth – to secure fifth overall at Round 3. Teammate Ryan Dungey followed suit in sixth overall, claiming a pair of consistent 7-7 finishes at the Thunder Valley National.
The nine-time world champion continues to progress throughout the season with his best performance yet, only three rounds into the series. Claiming the holeshot in Moto 1, Cairoli held off a hard-charging Ken Roczen early in the race. He stayed in the top-five battle for the first half of racing before settling in for a sixth-place finish. In the second moto, Cairoli grabbed another solid holeshot and raced up front once again early on. Adhering to a strong fourth, he battled just outside podium contention all race long to finish just shy of his first podium in the U.S. series.
Antonio Cairoli: “I’m really happy about the race. Of course, I know that with my conditioning, all those guys in front are prepared for racing and winning the championship, and last moment only a month ago, I started to really work out to be here and it’s not enough. I felt today, I was a little bit worse off with the altitude. We have already a big improvement from the first round so I think we are in a good way and let’s move on from here and let’s see on the week and next week.”
For Dungey, consistency was key in Colorado as he powered through tough conditions for another great showing in the premier class. With a seventh-place start in the first moto, Dungey maintained a good pace just outside the front-runners and he carried it through the checkers for a strong seventh. With a top-10 start in the second moto, the three-time champ quickly climbed through the field and into the top-five battle but ultimately got shuffled back for a seventh-place finish in the moto and sixth overall at Round 3.
Ryan Dungey: “Today, I was pretty happy. In the first moto, I got a decent start and the pack didn’t just break away – we were all kind of right there for the first 15-20 minutes and that was encouraging. Even at the end of the race, the gap is shrinking. Second moto, I didn’t get the greatest of starts and I was trying to come through the pack. I got up to McElrath for fifth and I just got stuck at his pace and those guys got away. Two good solid motos, I just had to dig really deep but all-in-all, a positive day.”
It was a tough battle all day for Aaron Plessinger, who came through the pack after experiencing crashes in both motos. The Ohio native put forth a hard-charging effort, despite posting 11-12 scores for 11th overall.
Aaron Plessinger: “I didn’t have the best day. I struggled in practice but going out for the motos, I felt pretty good. I made some good passes and came back but struggled with keeping it on two wheels. Overall, I’m kind of bummed about the way I rode but we’re good and we are ready to go for High Point and hopefully we can get the bike a little bit better this week and go from there.”
Coming off a best finish of fifth overall last round, Max Vohland was feeling positive at the start of Moto 1 but unfortunately experienced a mechanical issue at the start of the race and was unable to finish. In Moto 2, Vohland came back strong with a top-10 start and he battled up to eighth late in the race. Salvaging eighth in the second moto, Vohland was able to score some championship points and 15th overall on the day.
Max Vohland: “It wasn’t a terrible day. A little unfortunate in the first moto – in the second corner, the bike quit out on me and I had a little bit of a mechanical failure. It sucks to miss a moto and lose some points but I got a good start from the outside in Moto 2 and worked my way up to eighth. I tried hard. I could have ridden a little better in the second moto but it was still good enough for eighth and I’m still sitting ninth in points.”
The 2022 AMA Pro Motocross Championship heads to Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania next Saturday, June 18, for the Round 4 of the series.
Results 450MX Class – Thunder Valley National
AMA NATIONAL THUNDER VALLEY 2022 – Results and points!
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