The race was held on Thursday at 6pm and was carried live on ESPN (it re-aired several times as well). I had the outside gate, which was a disadvantage. Because of live television we did not have time for a sight lap but the track hadn’t been ridden much so it was fine. I was pumped for the race (much more so then practice). I got a good jump off the gate and a decent start (in 3rd or 4th). Right after the first rhythm section I was high in the berm and another racer came in and slammed into me. We both crashed. My throttle was stuck in the other bike’s rear spokes. Her bike kept running, mine died and I was in dead last. I got going again but the main event was only 6 laps (a little over 6 minutes), I finished a disappointing 8th.

I stayed to do some promotion including the Disney Live Radio Show and Autographs in the X Fest (lots of fans).

If you missed the race, X Games usually posts in on the site check http://search.espn.go.com/xgames

I appreciate the support of each one and every one of my sponsors and want to say a special thanks to my team – Suzuki City Nitro Circus for bringing the whole team and the semi down to X Games to support me. That was amazing, to my mechanic Chuck Marchant, and to my new sponsors Bolthouse Farms (check out all the great juices and protein drinks at Bolthouse.com) and to Firestop and Fuel Doctor.

I am still working on rehabbing my back and training for the next WMX Pro National at Southwick, August 28th. I am working towards a podium! Oh, there will be highlights of the women’s race in the AMA 250cc show from Southwick and they always have our first moto live on allisports.com.

THANK YOU – Sherri Cruse

Josh Grant, who suffered a crash last year at X Games 15 breaking both his feet in his heat race was looking for redemption this year in Los Angeles. Both Josh Grant and Justin Brayton qualified easily for the main event. When the gate fell for the final, it was two-time Super X Gold Medalist Josh Hansen in the lead with Grant and Brayton giving chase. On lap two of 15 Brayton was passed by fellow Yamaha rider Ivan Tedesco, but stayed close to the third-place rider. Over the ensuing laps Grant, along with Tedesco and Brayton started to reel in Hansen. Grant closed in and made his move for the lead on lap 11 with Brayton re-passing Tedesco as well as getting by Hansen for second. When the checkered flag flew it was the Muscle Milk/Toyota/JGRMX Team riders claiming X Games Gold and Silver Medals.

Larsen’s top finishing scores throughout the season gave him an 84 point advantage heading to the final round which allowed him to take the championship after Saturday’s race and gave him the opportunity to run his new #1 plate during Sunday’s event.

Saturday’s race was comprised of three 8-lap motos. Larsen pulled the holeshot in the first moto and went on to finish 2nd in the moto. He finished 2nd and 4th respectively in the next two motos to take 3rd overall for the day and the Championship.

The series win marks a fitting finale to what has been a dominant season for Larsen and the JDR Motorsports outfit in its maiden season in cooperation with KTM, the team taking out the title on the weekend using the all-new 2011 KTM 250 SX-F model.

“It means a lot to me to win this title after getting the opportunity to come and do a season in Australia with the JDR Motorsports/Motorex/KTM Team,” commented the 19-year-old, who is originally from South Carolina. “I’m glad that we could come out with the championship.”

The championship victory is a proud moment for the JDR Motorsports team, winning the title in memory of teammate Andrew McFarlane, who was tragically killed in at Broadford’s third round of the title earlier this season.

“The whole team has been working really hard because we wanted to win the title for Andrew – the whole goal was to go and do our best, make Andrew proud, and I think that we did a good job of it,” Larsen said, eventually winning with a comfortable margin of 65 points.

With the pressures of the championship challenge off his shoulders for Sunday’s round, California-based Larsen endured a difficult end to the season by his standards, taking out 4th overall with a consistent run of 4-5-4 results.

“It definitely wasn’t the best weekend for me,” he reflected. “I’ve been resting up an ankle injury that I suffered in the lead-up to Moree, but all in all we made the best of what we had, won the championship and that’s all that matters.”

“Winning the Pro Lites title is a first for PJ, it’s a first for the JDR team and it’s a first for the 2011 model KTM 250 SX-F,” Team Manager Jay Rynenberg commented. “I think PJ really proved a point to the Americans as well that he’s going to be a guy to be reckoned with next year. It’s a credit to his work ethic and a really good day for JDR.

Team JDR Motorex KTM team will now be preparing for the upcoming Super X Australasian

Supercross Championship, which is scheduled to kick-off at Energy Australia Stadium in Newcastle on October 16, 2010.

As for Larsen, he will return to the United States for the next two months and prepare for the Australian Supercross Series while in California. During his first week back he plans to relax and watch some racing instead of participate. “I am planning on going to the X-Games and then to Loretta Lynn’s in order to just catch up with some friends and take a break.”

Visit www.mxnationals.com.au for more information and detailed results on the 2010 Rockstar Energy MX Nationals. For further information on KTM Australia log onto www.ktm.com.au or visit www.jdrmotorsports.com.au to visit the JDR Motorsports team on the web.

While Josh Grant threw some huge inverted whips, the fans were more inclined to vote for the freestyle motocross riders known for performing tricks than the racers in the contest and Grant was awarded fifth by the fan vote.

The Best Whip action was broadcast live on ESPN to a worldwide audience. The Muscle Milk/Toyota/JGRMX Team will resume racing the AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series Aug. 14 at Unadilla Sports Valley in New Berlin, N.Y. The original broadcast from New Berlin will be live coverage on NBC starting at 3:00 p.m. (EST).

Ben Townley was running fourth in the first moto when he suffered a crash in the whoops before the end of the opening lap. Ben was very sore and did not race the second moto. Fortunately, nothing is broken. Ben suffered a bruised shoulder and is still quite sore from the crash, but says that he expects to be 100% for Unadilla.

“Yeah, Washougal wasn’t so good for me,” said Townley. “My shoulder is sore but I’ll rehabilitate it over the next two weeks and I will be ready for Unadilla.”

Cole Seely had a tough day as well. Cole rounded the first turn in moto 1 and took a rock directly in the nose. He broke his nose in three places and had to retire for the day. Cole is doing phenomenally well, and not only does he plan on being ready for Unadilla, he’s still planning on racing at the X-Games in the “speed and style” event this Saturday.

Also returning to the action at Unadilla will be the number 49 of Wil Hahn. After a great start to the season, Wil suffered a shoulder injury during practice before the Lakewood National.

The team is in Los Angeles right now getting ready for X Games 16. Tara Gieger will be racing Women’s SX, and Cole Seely will be racing Speed and Style.

The Troy Lee Designs Lucas Oil Honda race team would like to thank all of the companies that have supported our racing efforts over the years. They include Lucas Oil, American Honda, Red Bull, PPG, Wings for Life, Alpinestars, Avia, Couts Heating and Cooling, Dunlop, Epic Action Video Cam, Leatt Brace, McQueen Racing, Oakley, Pacific Collision, Pro Circuit, Rossignol, Santa Cruz, Selle Italia, Skullcandy, All Sport Dynamics, Cycra, Fasthouse, Flexfit, Hinson Clutch, Hot Wheels, Kahne Racing, Light Speed, Muc-Off, N Style, Nameplate, ODI, Primm, QTM, Renthal, RK Chain, Excel, Twin Air, Vasser Racing and VP Racing.

Follow the Troy Lee Designs / Lucas Oil / Honda team at www.troyleedesigns.com

Taking top honors on this weekend would go to Davalos, who continues to slowly bring his total package together and match it up with the raw speed he holds. However, after a bad start in moto one and a crash that brought him into the mechanics area briefly to bend the bike into proper form, the likeable rider pulled himself up through the field. The task was accomplished, and he successfully piloted the #577 YZ 250F up to 22nd place by the races end. Moto two was a much better showing, sitting 6th on lap one, Davalos battled for 5th through the races entirety. By doing so, he took a hold of 5th and made it his own with four laps until the finish due to his determination and closed this round out positively.

Bringing another positive to a tough day was Izzi, grabbing a 7th place start in moto one, #341 put the hammer down. After moving up one spot very quickly, Izzi kept the fight going. With less than four laps to go, he battled relentlessly to maintain his position. In the end Izzi dropped two spots, seeing him fall back to a finish score of 9th. Nico’s moto two began well with him sitting 11th momentarily. The talented youngster rode hard and held his position by mid race. When the checkers were thrown, Izzi had slipped back into 18th, and his consistency was a building block.

Be sure to tune in to the X Games on Thursday to see Jessica Patterson go after the Women’s Super X Gold Medal!

“The race was good for me,” said Pourcel. “I felt good during both motos, but I didn’t have a clutch in second moto. It was difficult in the slower sections because I was worried about stalling the bike.”

In qualifying Pourcel set the second fastest time with Wilson fourth quickest. Weimer continued to improve finishing qualifying sixth and Rattray was only able to set the 12th best time.

“Nothing really special happened today,” said Rattray. “I’ve been sick all week and my ears are still all clogged. I think I rode well.”

In the first moto, Wilson launched out of the gate and nearly grabbed the holeshot, with Weimer right behind him. Wilson stayed in second through the first two laps but then crashed and got back up in 19th place. Pourcel didn’t get a good start coming out 10th but he worked his way up to second on the 13th lap. Rattray started eighth and worked his way up to fourth with Weimer staying up at the front all moto to finish third.

“It felt good to get on the podium again in the first moto,” said Weimer. “I need to put together two strong motos and get back to the top step for an overall win.”

In the second moto, the start was almost identical for Wilson as he again nearly got the holeshot, but the rookie went down on the first lap falling back to 15th. The rest of the team held down the second, third and fourth spots with Pourcel, ahead Rattray and Weimer. On the 11th lap, Weimer went down and fell back to 11th. During the moto, Wilson worked his way up from 15th to sixth to earn a top five finish.

“I’m kind of bummed right now, but also I feel good about how I rode,” said Wilson. “I never want to crash and especially not twice in two motos, but at the same time I know I rode really well so that’s the positive I’m taking from this weekend.”

Now the team has two weeks off before heading to Unadilla in New Berlin, New York for the ninth round of the series with Pourcel holding a 38-point lead in the standings.

Josh Grant was still suffering the effects of severe heat stroke from the Millville race and with temperatures in the mid-nineties the Muscle Milk/Toyota/JGRMX Team was doing everything possible to keep Grant cool before the race started. In Grant’s condition, a top-10 would have been an admirable accomplishment. Instead, the always determined Grant gutted out a fourth place finish in the opening moto. Immediately after the moto concluded the team helped Grant out of his SHIFT race gear and into a baby pool filled with ice and water. Justin Brayton struggled to find his stride in the first moto and found himself uncharacteristically in 17th at the checkers.

The second motos are the most physically demanding as recovery time from the first moto is minimal. Grant once again attempted to stay as cool as possible prior to the start, but by this time he was visibly fighting the effects of the lingering heat stroke. When the gate fell for the second moto both Grant and Brayton were at the front of the field with Brayton fifth and Grant 10th. Grant started moving forward, working his way into seventh just after the halfway point. On lap nine, suffered a minor crash. The impact of the fall forced his helmet visor down over his face and after remounting he rode partially blinded to a 16th place finish. Brayton, who was disappointed with his earlier ride found some inspiration and put in his best moto of the season finishing just one spot off the podium in fourth. Grant’s four – 16 moto finishes earned him 12th overall, with Brayton’s 17 – four results giving him 13th for the day. Grant moved ahead two positions in series points to fourth while Brayton, who missed the first two rounds due to injury sits in 15th.

The original broadcast from Washougal aired live on SPEED. The next event for the Muscle Milk/Toyota/JGRMX Team will be X Games 16 in Los Angeles, Calif. with Justin Brayton racing SuperX July 29 and Josh Grant competing in the Best Whip competition July 30. ESPN will air the SuperX race live between 8:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. and the Best Whip between 7:00 and 11:30 p.m. (EST). Round nine of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship will be Aug. 14 at Unadilla Sports Valley in New Berlin, N.Y. NBC will broadcast the action from Unadilla live starting at 3:00 p.m. (EST).

Alessi was running practice times within the top five before crashing and tweaking his knee in the first practice session on Saturday morning. He took it easy in the second practice and eventually was credited with 13th gate pick going into moto one.

When the gate dropped for the first moto Alessi came around the corner in 10th place. He rode strong throughout the moto and was able to make up four positions to move into 6th place before the checkered flag.

In the second moto Alessi had a good jump but, oddly enough, came together with his brother Jeff Alessi in the second corner and once restarted was way back at the tail end of the pack. He spent the first half of the moto picking up every position he could and once he had passed about half of the pack he made another mistake that sent him to the ground. Now even more determined Alessi put on a hard charge and ran lap times consistent with the 2nd place runner. He eventually finished 13th for the second moto unable to make up the time lost from the crashes.

“I felt a lot more comfortable today and was glad to finally put down some good lap times. I have suffered from too many crashes over the past few weeks and have found myself at the back of the pack too many times. I need to work on riding more relaxed to help keep it on two wheels. I am just disappointed with my results lately and am more determined than ever to show that my KTM belongs on the podium,” commented Alessi.

His FMF/KTM teammate Tommy Searle had a decent showing in the 250 class in only his second week back from injury. Searle rode to a solid 10th place finish in moto one but turned heads in the second moto when he went from about 13th to 7th. His moto scores earned him 8th overall for the day. “I am still working on my endurance since returning from my shoulder injury. Each day I feel better and I am getting stronger in the end of the race. I hope to be back within the top five at the next round,” remarked Searle.

Taking top honors on the day would be Tickle, starting moto one in 6th after finally getting a decent start due to the heavy testing that was done during the prior week. Lap after lap, Tickle heavily pursued the lead pack, and made his way into 5th and battled to overtake 4th. Riding exceptionally, Tickle kept strong but near the middle of moto he made contact entering an off camber and hit the ground momentarily. Remounting instantly, Tickle pressed on and when the moto came to a culmination, #20 had gotten himself a hard earned 7th. A start in moto two of 10th left some room for improvement. On lap two Tickle had taken his YZ250F to 8th, once there he tried his best for the remainder of 30 min. +2 laps, but things never developed just right and 6th was his finishing destination.

For Davalos moto one started out in a decent fashion, rounding lap one in 11th the Ecuadorian spent much of the race in that spot. Late in the moto, Davalos still had the fighting drive in him and was able to takeover 10th with two laps remaining, which is where he’d go on to finish at. Moto two got underway with Davalos acquiring a 10th place start, now with his potential coming to existence, Davalos held his own and rode up into the 8th spot. Striving to keep his form, his pace fell off momentarily and that shifted the #577 machine back to 12th. Reluctantly, Davalos found some reserve energy and bounced back in the closing laps to nab 8th.

Next in line on the day would be Izzi after a strong start to the weekend. Izzi’s moto one showed great promise, after a 6th place start, Izzi put his head down and worked on building a base after struggling as of late. Lap by lap, the FMF backed rider stayed consistent and maintained his position in the field. This allowed him to very convincingly take a well deserved 9th. An uneventful moto two saw Izzi start 22nd, climb up to 18th by mid moto, and then remain there all the way through the finish.

Max Anstie had a pretty quiet day, having had struggles in both motos. However, in moto two Anstie took the holeshot and the settled back in to the 3rd position. From there, Max held his own as he scrapped it out with the lead pack for much of the race. Unfortunately, Anstie had to pull out of the moto with bike issues and take a tally of 35th to close things out on the day.

Results:

Moto 1 Moto 2 = Overall Finish
Broc Tickle 7th 6th = 7th
Martin Davalos 10th 8th = 9th
Nico Izzi 9th 18th = 12th
Max Anstie 21st 35th = 26th

Jessica Patterson raced like the former champion that she is, in both motos she sat in 2nd and within striking distance. A tick off the leaders speed, rather than risk the title Patterson held onto to the leader’s rear wheel and applied the pressure. With no way of capitalizing on any opportunities, Patterson rode on to a 2 – 2 moto tally and a second overall for the weekend.

Star Racing thanks our valued sponsors for their great assistance.

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