2020 AMA Amateur National Motocross | Tuesday Race Report

2020 AMA AMATEUR NATIONAL MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

2020 AMA AMATEUR NATIONAL MOTOCROSS RESULTS ARCHIVE

Racing at The Ranch. Families and riders from all over have flocked to central Tennessee for the 2020 AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship, the crown jewel of amateur motocross competition, for a week of battles, come from behind rides, career-defining results, and an all-around great time. Here’s a recap of Tuesday’s top motos…

450 B

The morning started with a surprise winner in 450 B. Star Racing Yamaha’s Matt Leblanc and MotoConcept’s Luke Kalaitzian were billed as the top two of the class coming into the race, but mistakes by both (a poor start by Leblanc, a late-race crash by Kalaitzian after leading most of the moto) allowed Luca Marsalisi to take a big win. The Yonkers, New York, rider didn’t luck into lead; his lap times were on pace or faster than long-time leader Kalaitzian and he crossed the finish line with a seven-second margin of victory. Kalaitzian recovered to finish second, while Leblanc’s work took him from 16th on Lap One to third place at the checkered flag.

250 B Limited

Levi Kitchen’s pace was the hot topic after the 250 B Limited race. The Rock River Yamaha rider was scored in 12th place on the opening lap of the race, but after logging lap times that were literally seconds faster than those in front of him, Kitchen moved into the lead on Lap Four with a pass on Troy Lee Designs KTM rider Daxton Bennick, and built a 37.729-second cushion by Lap 11.

250 Pro Sport

All eyes were on the track when the 250 Pro Sport riders rolled into the starting gate, and for good reason. The young crop of talent has spent years racing the amateur ranks, which makes for a level experience and the speed that few can match, and this last week at The Ranch could set the tone for their Pro careers.

Rock River Yamaha’s Mason Gonzales snagged the holeshot while BarX Suzuki’s Dilan Schwartz lurked in a close second place through the opening laps. The pass for the top spot came on Lap Two, when Schwartz got by Gonzales and immediately opened a gap over the rest of the pack. While Schwartz clicked off laps with no traffic ahead, Gonzales came under fire from Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Stilez Robertson for second place. Their battle reached its peak around the halfway point of the Moto, after Robertson posted the fastest laptime of the race, reeled in Gonzales, made a pass, and motored away.

The final laps were an all-out push by Schwartz and Robertson, as the two maintained a quick and steady pace. Although it was exciting to see the two duel, a similar speed meant that the gap between them never closed and Schwartz went on to take the win by eight seconds.

250 B

If you follow amateur racing, then you already know that 250 B is one of the most competitive divisions at The Ranch, if not the most competitive. The roster of riders have all spent some time on their “Big Bikes” but their unrestrained style and raw speed means they still move around and scrub like they are on a SuperMini. In fact, it’s common for some of the fastest laps of the week to come from the Intermediate group.

Kyle Smith claimed the holeshot on his Yamaha. but a handful of expected front-runners got around him by the end of the first lap, including Matthew Leblanc and Chance Hymas; Smith held strong through the entire race and scored a solid eighth-place finish.

Hymas went to work early in the Moto, as the Team Green Kawasaki rider took over the lead on Lap One, settled into a groove, and stayed just far enough ahead of Leblanc to keep things interesting through the first part of the race. Leblanc upped his intensity just before the halfway point of the race, though, and the Star Racing Yamaha rider was the fastest person on the track from Lap Five to Lap 11. That speed helped him reel in Hymas, make a pass on Lap Seven, and run off to a five-second win.

Jett Reynolds finished the race a distant third, back 17-seconds of Leblanc, but the Team Green Kawasaki rider’s ability to get through traffic and make the most of the moto after a bad start was worthy of attention. Ranked ninth on Lap One, Reynolds passed four riders and was in fifth place by Lap Two, then picked up two more spots when Nick Romano and Nate Thrasher came together on the last lap and gave up third and fourth place, respectively.

125 B/C

Although two-stroke motorcycles are a rarity to some, they have maintained a strong presence in amateur racing, especially with riders as they transition from mini-cycles to full-size bikes in the 125 B/C Class. It should come as no surprise that the faster riders in the division are the same teenagers that were recent stars in the SuperMini field, including Max Vohland, Talon Hawkins, JR Reyes, Gage Linville, and Crocket Myers.

The first laps of Moto One were exciting, as EBR Performance KTM’s Myers took the holeshot and then was passed by MTF KTM’s Linville while Vohland and Hawkins were further back in the field. Vohland went from fifth-place on Lap One to second-place on Lap Two, proof of the quick pace ran by the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM rider, though it took a lot longer to catch Linville. The excellent start and clear track put Linville ahead by more than four-seconds, but Vohland managed to close the gap with faster laps. The pass for the top spot happened on Lap Five, and once ahead, Vohland ran uncontested to the win.

SuperMini 2

No amateur event coverage would be complete without SuperMini attention and this year’s classes are stocked with mini talent that we’ve been hearing about for years. Getting a good result in this class could change a young rider’s life and Tuesday afternoon’s race was one of the most-watched motos of the day.

EBR Performance KTM’s Benjamin Garib grabbed the holeshot and the Chilean rider held his own against the factory-backed talent of Ryder DiFrancesco, Evan Ferry, and Gavin Towers. The Team Green Kawasaki teammates wasted no time getting to the front, which allowed Towers to hold the lead for a moment until DiFrancesco got by on the opening lap. The distance between the two was close but noticeable in the first half of the race, as DiFrancesco was just far enough ahead to keep Towers in the hunt, but a quicker pace in the last half of the race allowed DiFrancesco to build a big gap. Evan Ferry eventually passed Towers for second place, but the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna rider was unable to close in.