2020 Florida Motocross | Qualifying Report & Results

2020 FLORIDA MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

The 2020 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues the second leg of the season with round seven of the schedule, the 2020 Florida Motocross. This will be the second time that the Nationals have run at WW Motocross Ranch, a massive spread just outside of Jacksonville. With typical deep south weather, a brutal sand track, and only a handful of motos to go, this could be one of the deciding days of the summer series.

It’s hot here at WW. We’re talking near triple-digit temps with the heat index and humidity. This will be the biggest challenge of the season so far and how riders fare could have an impact on their performance at the remaining rounds.

Since WW is a sand track, it should come as no surprise that the majority of riders posted their fastest in the first round of qualifying, when the track was “smooth” and the temperatures were in the low 80s. 

250 CLASS QUALIFYING REPORT & RESULTS

After last week’s 1-1 finishes, Dylan Ferrandis is back at the top of the 250 Class standings and determined to recreate the gap in points that he had earlier in the year. The Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha rider was the fastest rider in both sessions, with his best being a 2:03.882.

Justin Cooper wasn’t far off the pace of this teammate in either session. The Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha riders were split by just fractions of a second on the stopwatch both times out, 0.003 in Session One and 0.583 in Session Two, and Cooper claimed second in the sheets with a 2:03.885 time.

From what we’ve been told, Derek Drake’s future with the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM team in 2021 will be decided by his results in the final rounds of the outdoor series (he and teammate Brandon Hartranft are both in contention for the single spot next season). That seems to be a serious motivation for Drake, as he was on the gas and was third-fastest in the 250 Class thanks to a 2:05.663 lap.

Shane McElrath has been a mix of speed and inconsistency this summer,  but Saturday morning’s session went pretty well for the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha rider. A 2:06.472 lap time put him fourth in the results.

Jett Lawrence continues to make progression in his first full year as a pro racer. The GEICO Honda rider was again in the top-five at the end of practice with a 2:07.364 time. 

Title contender Jeremy Martin was sixth-fastest in the final results. The highlight of the GEICO Honda rider’s morning sessions was a 2:07.369 lap.

450 CLASS QUALIFYING REPORT & RESULTS

And that’s two top qualifier honors for Chase Sexton. The Team Honda HRC rider was on the gas first thing in the morning and posted his best lap, a 2:03.209, just five laps into the first session of the morning. The early pace was certainly an advantage because this stood as the top time through the rest of the session.

Last week’s issues chopped Zach Osborne’s championship lead down to just 15-points, a small number considering the depth of the field and the six motos still to be run. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider knows that he has to finish at the front of the field to keep the red plate and his practice times, particularly a 2:04.867, show that he should be in the mix later today.

Get used to this statement: Adam Cianciarulo is a front-runner in the 450 Class. Still riding high from last week’s 1-1, the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider was third overall in the qualifying results with a 2:05.054 time.

Deep sand. Hot weather. A rough track. Are we in for another big day by Blake Baggett? The Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM rider was near the top of the scoreboard throughout the morning and a 2:05.103 lap put him fourth overall in the 450 Class.

Christain Craig has been very steady during his summer with Team Honda HRC and his pace is noticeably improving at each round. A 2:05.617 time put him fifth in the final results.

Marvin Musquin’s crash in the Second Timed Qualifying Session was the talk of the morning. The Red Bull KTM rider’s bike kicked sideways up the face of a high-speed single, which sent him flying through the air and then head-first into the ground. He was able to get off the track and was tended to by the Alpinestars Mobile Medical staff, but his status for the day is uncertain.