Image: Simon Cudby.

The 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship made its second and final stop in the state of California on Saturday for round two of the 12-race championship series.

The 450 Class saw an all-new winner as rookie Ken Roczen captured his first career victory in the premier class, while Minnesota’s Jeremy Martin extended his winning-streak to two in a row at the 46th running of the GoPro Hangtown Motocross Classic.

After last weekend’s season opener at southern California’s Glen Helen Raceway, Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey held the early points lead in the 450 Class, but his teammate Roczen trailed close behind with a pair of second place finishes in his 450 Class debut. The two were poised to do battle at Hangtown but Roczen heightened the pace to a level that the veteran Dungey just couldn’t match on Saturday.

And it all began in the morning’s timed qualifying sessions, where Roczen laid down the fastest lap in qualifying and had the luxury of first gate choice in moto one. Roczen would soon build off that momentum, but first it was the two-time 450 Class Champion of Dungey that earned the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award before Roczen stole back the lead on the opening lap.

Roczen created a gap over Dungey that couldn’t be matched in the first moto, en route to his first career Pro Motocross 450 Class moto win. Behind Dungey was Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Trey Canard, who jumped in behind the KTM duo early on. Canard was followed by his teammate Justin Barcia in fourth, while Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart rounded out the top five.

In moto two, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer claimed the holeshot, immediately followed by his teammate, Brett Metcalfe. Metcalfe wasted no time in getting himself out front, followed by Justin Barcia, Ken Roczen and Ryan Dungey. Metcalfe and Barcia went back and forth for the lead early on but Roczen eventually staked his claim on the lead and never looked back.

Dungey followed suit, where he quickly settled into the second place position behind Roczen. Despite a valiant charge, the round one winner finished in the runner-up position, where he surrendered his early points lead after two rounds of racing.

“Today was pretty good, I got good starts which helped out,” he said. “The first and second moto kind of played out the same, got into second and Kenny was riding really well today. I know I can improve in a few little areas, but overall it wasn’t too bad. It’s going to be a long year.”

It was a big day for Roczen and the KTM brand, as the world champion from Germany earned his first career overall in the 450 Class, giving KTM its first 450 Class win at Hangtown. As the 2013 250 Class winner as well, Roczen adds his name to a select list of riders to ever win the Hangtown Motocross Classic in both classes. Roczen will carry the red number plate background and the points lead into round three next Saturday.

“I really had a good time out there,” Roczen said. “It was good racing, I don’t think I have anything to complain about. I always have done well at Hangtown and I have good memories here. This weekend I was comfortable on the bike and once you have that little bit you need, it’s going good.”

As the second moto wore on, the racing action became more intense as former 450 Class champion Stewart began pushing his way through the pack, eventually getting around Metcalfe and Barcia for third. And Canard soon followed, making up nine positions to overtake fourth place from Barcia by the end of the second moto.

Canard ran down Stewart on the final lap and although he wasn’t able to make the pass on Stewart, the Oklahoma native was able to secure third overall with 3-4 moto scores with an impressive charge in the second moto.

Stewart finished the day with 5-3 moto scores to capture fourth overall for the day, followed by Barcia in sixth with 4-5 scores. Californian Weston Peick put in a season-best sixth place finish aboard his RCH Racing/Soaring Eagle Suzuki.

Metcalfe wound up top Australian in eighth overall via eventual 6-9 finishes, while Chad Reed (Discount Tire Racing Kawasaki) was again 10th overall after racing to 11-12 results.

It was once again a marquee day for Factory Yamaha racing in the 250 Class, as the brand swept all three positions on the overall podium. Coming off Yamaha’s first 250 Class victory in exactly one decade at the opening round, Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin once again led the way with his second straight victory-and 1-1 sweep-of 2014.

“This is what I’ve been focusing on,” Martin said. “Great motos today, my teammate and I went 1-2 and the Yamahas were strong. It was pretty cool for Yamaha that we swept the podium. I don’t think it’s been done in a long time.”

Martin was once again joined atop the podium by his Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha teammate Cooper Webb, who seemingly picked up where he left off as a front-runner at the opening round. Valli Motorsports/Yamaha’s Christophe Pourcel captured a season-best third place finish in moto two, which was good enough to earn the Frenchmen third overall for the day.

Justin Hill put forth a consistent effort to capture fourth overall with 4-6 moto scores, while California native Jessy Nelson rounded out the top five with moto finishes of 7-5 aboard his Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Honda machine.

Jackson Richardson was a standout on board his privateer Honda, finishing 21st in moto one before claiming ninth in moto two to secure 16th overall.

Round three of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship heads to Lakewood, Colorado for the Toyota Thunder Valley National on Saturday, 7 June.

2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
Round two – Hangtown, CA

450 overall results:
1. Ken Roczen
2. Ryan Dungey
3. Trey Canard
4. James Stewart
5. Justin Barcia
6. Weston Peick
7. Jake Weimer
8. Brett Metcalfe (AUS)
9. Malcolm Stewart
10. Chad Reed (AUS)

450 championship standings:
1. Ken Roczen 94
2. Ryan Dungey 89
3. Trey Canard 72
4. James Stewart 66
5. Brett Metcalfe (AUS) 61
6. Justin Barcia 52
7. Weston Peick 52
8. Jake Weimer 52
9. Malcolm Stewart 51
10. Josh Grant 43
11. Chad Reed (AUS) 42

250 overall results:
1. Jeremy Martin
2. Cooper Webb
3. Christophe Pourcel
4. Justin Hill
5. Jessy Nelson
6. Jason Anderson
7. Marvin Musquin
8. Zach Bell
9. Matt Bisceglia
10. Justin Bogle
16. Jackson Richardson (AUS)

250 championship standings:
1. Jeremy Martin 100
2. Cooper Webb 88
3. Christophe Pourcel 63
4. Jessy Nelson 51
5. Marvin Musquin 50
6. Jason Anderson 49
7. Justin Bogle 48
8. Blake Baggett 48
9. Matt Bisceglia 45
10. Justin Hill 43
16. Jackson Richardson (AUS) 23

Click here for detailed results