Image: Octopi Media.

A perfect day out at Southwick saw Jett Lawrence reclaim the 250MX red plate in Lucas Oil Pro Motocross at the halfway point of the 2022 season, as Eli Tomac swept 450MX for the overall.

An action-packed first 250MX moto belonged to Lawrence and he took back the points-lead in the process, winning ahead of Jo Shimoda (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) by 10.841s, with Justin Cooper finishing third.

Lawrence led the opening two laps until a mistake saw Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha’s Cooper hit the front, but it was soon afterwards that Lawrence went back by and powered ahead from there with Shimoda in tow.

Filling the top five were RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) and Michael Mosiman (TLD Red Bull GasGas), however, it was red plate-holder Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) in P6 that turned heads.

The elder Lawrence didn’t get the jump out of the gates, completed lap one in ninth position, then fell heavily on lap six and dropping to 16th. He recovered well including a final lap pass on Stilez Robertson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna), before a heated exchange took place between the pair post-race.

Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha), Max Vohland (Red Bull KTM) and Nick Romano (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha) were the top 10.

Powering to the holeshot in moto two was Jett Lawrence and he came under pressure from Kitchen in the early laps, until finally being able to stretch an advantage and go on to secure a 1-1 scorecard for the overall.

Lawrence’s end advantage was 9.497s, with Kitchen impressive in the runner-up position, while Shimoda was again solid in third ahead of Cooper and a charging Hampshire.

Sixth was Thrasher following a late move on Robertson, while Hunter Lawrence had to settle for a quiet eighth and over a minute back from title-rival Jett. Mosiman and Jalek Swoll (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) finished ninth and 10th to cap-off the round.

Powering to the holeshot in moto two was Jett Lawrence and he came under pressure from Kitchen in the early laps, until finally being able to stretch an advantage and go on to secure a 1-1 scorecard for the overall.

Lawrence’s end advantage was 9.497s, with Kitchen impressive in the runner-up position, while Shimoda was again solid in third after a late pass put him ahead of Cooper and a charging Hampshire.

Sixth was Thrasher over Robertson, while Hunter Lawrence – after chipping his teeth in that first moto incident – had to settle for a quiet eighth and over a minute back from title-rival Jett. Mosiman and Jalek Swoll (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) finished ninth and 10th to cap-off the round.

The podium was Jett Lawrence ahead of Shimoda and Cooper, while in the championship it’s now Jett back atop the standings by 15 points over Hunter heading to Millville next weekend on Saturday, 16 July.

Image: Octopi Media.

Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha’s Tomac has maintained pressure in 450MX after sweeping the premier class of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross at Southwick.

A spectacular performance from Tomac in the opening 450MX moto saw him climb forward from eighth position to the lead by midway, eventually winning by 7.340s over red plate-holder Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC).

It was Team Honda HRC’s Roczen who claimed the holeshot and led the opening laps, before Christian Craig (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha) took charge on lap three and stayed there all the way until Tomac hit the front on lap eight.

Sexton would also make his way by toward the later stages, but Craig managed a top-three result, comfortably ahead of Ryan Dungey (Red Bull KTM) – despite going down during the moto – and Max Anstie (Fire Power Honda Racing), who made a last-lap move on Roczen.

The top 10 was completed by Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM), Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) after he recovered from a first turn pile-up, his teammate Joey Savatgy and Benny Bloss (BBMX KTM).

There was once again no stopping Tomac in the second premier class encounter this afternoon, making his way to the lead within 10 minutes to run and going on to win by 10.079s.

A clutch ride from Sexton saw him work his way into second during the closing stages to maintain the points lead, with Plessinger putting in one of his best rides of the year for third position.

Longtime leader Roczen, who scored his second holeshot of the day, crossed the line in P4, this time ahead of Anstie after he mirrored his result from moto one. Sixth to 10th included Anderson, Dungey, Craig, Barcia and Bloss.

The overall podium for the round saw Tomac on the top step, joined by Sexton and the resurgent Plessinger in third today. At halfway in the series, it’s still Sexton with the red plate by a single point over Tomac leading into Millville next Saturday, 16 July.

Detailed results