Image: Simon Cudby.

The fourth round of the 2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship featured the series’ lone visit to the southeast region of the country and the third annual Red Bull Tennessee National from Muddy Creek Raceway.

One week after taking over control of the 450 Class championship with his first overall win of 2015, Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey made it back-to-back victories on Saturday with a consistent 1-2 outing.

Dungey started the day off on a strong note by edging out RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Ken Roczen by seven one-hundredths of a second for the Bud Light Fastest Qualifier.

However, when the opening moto got underway Dungey had his work cut out for him as he almost went down off the start following contact with another rider.

He kept the bike on two wheels and positioned himself just outside the top five as Autotrader.com/Toyota/Yamaha’s Justin Barcia took the Motosport.com Holeshot Award just ahead of his teammate Phil Nicoletti.

On the ensuing straightaway after the first turn, Barcia tucked the front wheel and went down, allowing Nicoletti to assume the lead and dropping Barcia to the tail end of the field.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson took over second while Dungey made quick moves on the opening lap to slot himself in third.

Dungey’s early march to the front continued as he passed Anderson on Lap 1 and then Nicoletti for the top spot on lap two. Once out front Dungey consistently pulled away.

After losing a position to Dungey, Anderson was able to reclaim the runner-up spot from Nicoletti on lap three. Nicoletti started to feel the pressure of Roczen, who overcame a start deep inside the top 10 to power his way into podium contention.

Roczen made the pass on Nicoletti for third on lap four and stuck within a couple bike lengths of Anderson for several laps. Ultimately, the rookie was able to hold of the defending champion.

Dungey took his second consecutive moto win by 27.595 seconds over Anderson, who earned a career-best moto finish, with Roczen third.

Knowing the overall win was on the line, Roczen seized the opportunity in Moto 2 and earned his first Motosport.com Holeshot Award of the season ahead of Team Honda HRC’s Cole Seely, Barcia and Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Blake Baggett.

Dungey did not get the start he needed and sat outside the top 10 as the field exited the first turn. A quick sprint by Roczen allowed him to open a comfortable lead early, while Seely, Barcia and Baggett jockeyed for the remaining podium positions.

Shortly thereafter Barcia lost his momentum while battling Seely for second and went off track, causing him to lose several positions and moving both Baggett and Dungey up one spot.

Dungey then pressured Baggett and made the pass for third, setting his sights on Seely for second. With a clear track ahead of him, Roczen’s lead continued to grow as Seely and Dungey battled for second for several laps.

Eventually Dungey got the best of his rookie counterpart and moved into the runner-up spot on lap four, facing a near 10-second deficit to Roczen.

Dungey began to pick up the pace and eliminated about half of his gap to Roczen before light rain began to fall. At this moment lapped riders also became a factor and as he battled both the changing conditions and other competitors, Dungey went down.

While he remained second, Dungey lost all the ground he battled to get back as the skies began to clear. That allowed Roczen to take his first moto win of the season, 8.895 seconds ahead of Dungey. Baggett rode to a solid third-place finish.

In the overall classification, Dungey’s 1-2 finishes gave him back-to-back overall wins as well as his second win at Muddy Creek Raceway to make him the first repeat winner at the facility.

It was also the 40th win of Dungey’s career, combining both the 250 and 450 Classes. Roczen finished second overall (3-1) for the second straight week, while Anderson earned his second career podium finish in third (2-4).

Dungey was able to extend his lead in the 450 Class standings to 37 points over Roczen, who moved from third to second with his runner-up effort. Baggett, who finished fourth overall (5-3), sits third 40 points back.

In the 250 Class, defending champion and current points leader Jeremy Martin raced to his third win of the season following a 2-1 effort aboard his Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha.

Competition in the 250 Class began with Martin posting the fastest lap of practice to earn the Bud Light Fastest Qualifier.

When Moto 1 got underway Marvin Musquin, put his Red Bull KTM out front with the Motosport.com Holeshot Award ahead of Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Red Bull/KTM’s Jessy Nelson and Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo.

Musquin faced a brief challenge from Cianciarulo, who passed Nelson for second, but soon opened up a comfortable margin that allowed him to settle into a consistent rhythm.

Cianciarulo and Nelson stayed within a few bike lengths of one another for the bulk of the moto, with Martin lurking on this podium battle throughout.

Just after the halfway point Martin picked up the pace and after a brief battle with Nelson, he took advantage of a slight bobble to take over third on lap 10.

Just a couple laps later, Martin was in a position to take advantage of another one of his competitor’s mistakes as Cianciarulo lost control of his bike coming out of a turn and went down.

Martin made the pass for second while Nelson followed through to take over third. Cianciarulo remounted in fourth, but would drop another spot before the completion of the moto.

Musquin led every lap to capture his fourth moto win of the season by 18.401 seconds over Martin. Nelson rounded out the podium in third.

Nelson put himself in a good position again in Moto 2 with his second Motosport.com Holeshot Award of the year, edging out Martin and his Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha teammate Aaron Plessinger.

As the field came into the second corner, Plessinger used an outside line to his advantage to take the lead for the first time in his career. As that unfolded Musquin, who was fourth, was hit from behind and went down, allowing the entire field to go by.

Out front, the rookie Plessinger opened a three-plus second lead over Nelson and Martin as they battled for second and paced the field for nearly half the moto.

After a fierce battle with Nelson, Martin took over second and methodically closed in on Plessinger. On lap seven Martin got by his teammate and never looked back. Plessinger lost more positions in the ensuing laps and eventually finished seventh.

Martin took his fourth moto win of the season by 5.990 seconds over Nelson in second and Cianciarulo in third. Musquin made an incredible recovery from his early crash to fight his way back to the front, narrowly missing out on a podium finish in fourth.

Martin’s 2-1 effort gave him his second straight overall win and his third victory in four races this season. He also became the third different 250 Class winner in three years at Muddy Creek Raceway.

Musquin’s resiliency in the final moto allowed him to secure second overall (1-4), while Nelson landed on the overall podium in third (3-2) for the second time this season.

Martin’s win allowed him to maintain control of the 250 Class standings, where he currently holds a six-point lead over Musquin. Nelson continues to hold on to third, 53 points back.

The 2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues next Saturday, 13 June, with the UPMC Sports Medicine High Point National from High Point Raceway in Mount Morris, Pennsylvania.

2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
Round four – Muddy Creek Raceway, TN

450 Class overall results:
1. Ryan Dungey (1-2)
2. Ken Roczen (3-1)
3. Jason Anderson (2-4)
4. Blake Baggett (5-3)
5. Phil Nicoletti (4-9)
6. Cole Seely (8-5)
7. Broc Tickle (7-7)
8. Justin Barcia (9-6)
9. Weston Peick (6-11)
10. Justin Brayton (11-8)
22. Chad Reed (AUS, 18-38)

450 Class championship standings:
1. Ryan Dungey 175
2. Ken Roczen 138
3. Blake Baggett 135
4. Eli Tomac 125
5. Justin Barcia 114
6. Jason Anderson 112
7. Weston Peick 104
8. Broc Tickle 103
9. Phil Nicoletti 92
10. Cole Seely 79
14. Chad Reed (AUS) 61

250 Class overall results:
1. Jeremy Martin (2-1)
2. Marvin Musquin (1-4)
3. Jessy Nelson (3-2)
4. Adam Cianciarulo (5-3)
5. Joey Savatgy (4-11)
6. Aaron Plessinger (8-7)
7. Chris Alldredge (7-8)
8. RJ Hampshire (11-5)
9. Zach Osborne (9-9)
10. Matt Bisceglia (6-13)
13. Hayden Mellross (AUS, 15-15)
20. Jackson Richardson (AUS, 16-20)

250 Class championship standings:
1. Jeremy Martin 175
2. Marvin Musquin 169
3. Jessy Nelson 122
4. Adam Cianciarulo 112
5. Joey Savatgy 100
6. Zach Osborne 91
7. Chris Alldredge 89
8. Shane McElrath 87
9. Matt Bisceglia 87
10. RJ Hampshire 85
20. Jackson Richardson (AUS) 25
22. Hayden Mellross (AUS) 20

Click here for detailed results