2019 Ironman Motocross | Race Report

250 Class

With one more day of racing to go for the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross series, the pressure was on for points leader Adam Cianciarulo, the championship challenger Dylan Ferrandis, and for anyone else in the field that was looking to better their overall championship standing. It was well known amongst the field that Adam Cianciarulo would grab the title after just the first moto if he placed in the top two positions, so the pressure was on as championship contenders lined the gates for the first moto. However, JGR Suzuki’s Kyle Peters responded to the final race pressure and immediately took the led as he snagged the holeshot. Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM’s Mitchell Falk followed in second with Ferrandis on his tail, though that order only lasted a few sections as Dylan quickly made his way towards the front. Meanwhile, Adam Cianciarulo advanced to fourth place, just behind Justin Cooper. 

With one lap down, Ferrandis and Peters start swapping lines but Ferrandis is ultimately able to grab the lead. Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha teammate Justin Cooper follows to get around Peters, and as does AC. There seemed to be no team orders of any kind for the Star Yamaha guys as Cooper started applying pressure on Ferrandis for the lead. After a couple attempts at the lead, Cooper makes a slight mistake and falls behind striking distance of his teammate. Though, it only took a few fast laps for Cooper to catch right back up, execute the pass, and take the lead for a split second. The teammates charged down the hill and another slight mistake from Cooper allowed Ferrandis to re-secure the lead. The two would continue to swap lines and battle for the lead, but ultimately Justin Cooper would snag the lead yet again from his teammate and began to add seconds to his lead. And as two of Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha riders battle for the led, Mitchell Oldenburg is sent walking his bike off the track with a mechanical. 

Meanwhile, Chase Sexton settled into fourth place and began his charge towards the top three guys. Points leader Adam Cianciarulo was first in line for Sexton to catch, but Adam was able to turn it back up and keep a consistent gap between the two. Back up front, it started to seem like a Justin Cooper show, but Dylan Ferrandis made some line adjustments and went for one last charge at the lead. Dylan Ferrandis grabbed a handful of throttle, choose an inside rut, and re-took the lead for the final time. With a rider now between Adam Cianciarulo and Dylan Ferrandis, AC’s hope of wrapping up the title after the first moto was out of grasp. Adam registered the reality of his title hopes, upped his pace, and began chopping at Justin Cooper’s lead. Just like that, AC erased the gap til Cooper in less than a lap and took second place. With two laps to go, Dylan Ferrandis continued to lead, as Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo enjoyed his final laps before being crowned the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross 250cc Champion.

Though the title was already decided in the first moto of the day, racers didn’t let that discourage them. Dylan Ferrandis took the immediate lead, as he snagged the holeshot in moto two. Teammate Justin Cooper made his way into second after just a few corners, and yet again, the boys in blue were at it up front. After already wrapping up the title, Adam Cianciarulo did not let up one bit in the second moto, as he stayed close to the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha riders while in third. After a few laps down in the second moto, the field stacked up pretty similar to that of the first moto. Behind the top three, GEICO Honda’s Chase Sexton made his way past his teammate RJ Hampshire and into fourth place. Sexton continued to progress in positions as he challenged Adam Cianciarulo for third and ultimately made the pass. Further back in the pack, Michael Mosiman made the move on RJ Hampshire and secured himself a top-five finish. With two laps to go, Justin Cooper still did not let up on hounding his teammate Dylan Ferrandis for the lead, but at the end of the day Ferrandis grabbed the final moto win of the season and goes 1-1 on the day. 

450 Class

Though the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross 450cc Championship had already be crowned, the pressure was still on for 450cc riders. As the final round of the series was riders last chance to earn bonuses and prove their worth for a ride in the 2020 season. As first motos gate dropped, Marvin Musquin led the field into the first turn, Joey Savatgy quickly advanced and led the pack into the second turn, but then Ken Roczen ended up with the lead as they exited the third turn. As HRC Honda’s Roczen began gapping the field, Eli Tomac moved into third and started working on his Monster Energy Kawasaki teammate for second. With no deal for 2020 signed yet, there was certainly some extra motivation for Joey Savatgy. However, Tomac was able to make the pass and head toward Roczen. 

Meanwhile, another rider with something to prove, Justin Bogle, was stuck in the pits as the team swapped front wheels. Back up front, RedBull KTM’s Marvin Musquin caught up to Savatgy and made quick work of him as he moved into the third place position. Ken Roczen continued to lead, but Eli Tomac shorted up the gap and it looked like a great battle was beginning to form. Just as Tomac caught Roczen, Marvin Musquin upped his pace and latched onto the leaders, and the three-rider battle for the lead began. Lapped riders certainly played a role in this battle for the lead, as the top-three worked through a majority of the pack while trying to battle for position. As the track opened back up, the three bunched together and Tomac began taking strikes at the lead just as Marvin began challenging for second. Marvin went for the pass on Tomac and was able to secure the position despite Tomac’s attempts at passing him back. Just as Marvin made the pass for second, he immediately began working on Ken and ultimately took the lead. With two laps to go, Tomac and Roczen put together a last-ditch effort at bettering their position. As the checkered flag flew for the first moto of the 450cc class, RedBull KTM’s Marvin Musquin added yet another moto win to his name.

Following arguably one of the most exciting battles of the year in the first 450 moto, we’d be lying if we said we weren’t excited for the last moto of the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross season. Joey Savatgy snagged the final holeshot of the year and grabbed the early lead. Zach Osborne and Marvin Musquin followed but their lines came together which resulted in Marvin hitting the deck hard. Unfortunately, the RedBull KTM rider limped off the track and was sent out of the race early. Meanwhile, Savatgy continued to lead as Eli Tomac,  Zach Osborne, and Ken Roczen battled for second behind. In the matter of a few corners, Ken Roczen went from fourth to nearly grabbing the lead from Savatgy. And in just a few more sections, HRC Honda’s Ken Roczen grabbed an inside line and took to the lead. Joey Savatgy then fell to Tomac and Osborne’s pace and was forced into the fourth place position. 

Further down the field, Justin Barcia went after Jason Anderson for fifth place and after a few attempts, Barcia was able to seal the deal. Back up front, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac was finally able to make the pass on Ken Roczen for the lead, after exploring some lines for a great chunk of the race. Shortly after, Zach Osborne was able to do the same and settle into second place. With a few laps to go, Eli Tomac continued to check out and race his way to yet another overall win on the season.