2021 RedBud Motocross | Race Report

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2021 REDBUD MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

We’re in the thick of things now. The 2021 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship made its grand return to Southern Michigan on the Fourth of July holiday weekend for the fourth round of the summer series, the 2021 RedBud Motocross, and the on-track action lived up to the expectations. Different riders claimed the checkered flag in all four motos while the title contenders once again finished near the front of the pack. 

250 Moto One

As the first race of the day left the gate, Justin Cooper was off to the early lead with Hunter Lawrence just behind. Jett Lawrence shuffled in behind his brother and then immediately began pressuring for second. Jeremy Martin sat just behind the Lawrence brothers, but not for long, as RJ Hampshire made the pass before going after the brothers ahead. Jett then made the pass on his brother for second, before RJ passed Hunter. Half a lap later, RJ Hampshire made the pass on Jett, just before Justin Cooper went down by himself on the finish line. That left RJ Hampshire in the lead with Jett Lawrence just behind in second, as Justin Cooper regrouped in tenth place. Jeremy Martin began to give chase to Hunter Lawrence, just as Jett put together another charge at RJ and the lead. While Jett took every line that RJ did not, Hampshire managed to stay on the gas and keep Jett at bay for the time being. RJ Hampshire then tipped over in a corner and allowed Jett to pass into the lead before regrouping. Austin Forkner faded back to 15th place after running in the top-5 early-on. Justin Cooper closed in on Stilez Robertson and made the pass for fifth place immediately. Kaliub Russel was in the pits after a crash. Up front, RJ Hampshire reeled in Jett Lawrence and was challenging for the lead after giving it up earlier in the race. Meanwhile, Forkner then went down and was outside of the top-20. While going for Jett and the lead, RJ went down in a corner again and dropped back to third, just ahead of Jeremy Martin. Justin Cooper reeled in teammate Jeremy Martin, just before diving to the inside after the rollers and taking away fourth place. Back in the pack, Levi Kitchen was charging ahead as he passed Vohland and broke into the top-10. Back up front, RJ Hampshire was back again, as he was challenging Hunter for second place. Through the rollers, RJ pulled past Hunter but Lawrence was able to shut the door in the following corner. A few laps later, RJ swept around the outside and crossed under Hunter to take over second place. RJ Hampshire then focused ahead on Jett Lawrence and the lead. Late in the moto, Michael Mosiman was out and back at the truck. Despite the two crashes, RJ Hampshire was back on Jett Lawrences tail and challenging for the lead on the final lap, but ran out of time, as Jett Lawrence crossed the finish line first to take the win in moto one. 

250 Moto Two

The second 250 moto was off and Justin Cooper was off to the early lead again. Jeremy Martin was just behind his teammate, while Michael Mosiman and Derek Kelly were down in the first turn. RJ Hampshire sat in third place, while Jett Lawrence was stuck mid-pack around 20th place. Up front, Hampshire was pressuring Martin early, while Colt Nichols was in the pits with bike issues. Jett Lawrence went down while battling through the pack and was now listed in 38th place. RJ Hampshire made the pass on Jeremy Martin stick after a few laps of trailing. Ty Masterpool then made a mistake while running in fourth and allowed Stilez Robertson to get by before regrouping. Jalek Swoll went down while attempting to make a pass on Masterpool, dropping him to 19th place. Up front, RJ Hampshire reeled in Justin Cooper and began to challenge for the lead. After a few laps of trailing, RJ was able to make the pass for the lead after diving inside before an uphill. Hampshire then began to pull away, as he built up a 2-second lead on Justin Cooper after just one lap. Stilez Robertson was catching up to Jeremy Martin but then went down while running in fourth, dropping him to seventh place. Jett Lawrence passed into the top-10, as he drifted around the inside of Vohland to take over tenth place. Late in the moto, RJ Hampshire went down again while leading and allowed Justin Cooper to regain the lead. Jo Shimoda caught Hunter Lawrence and began pressuring for fourth place with 2 laps to go. Meanwhile, Jett Lawrence passed Brown and took over sixth place after charging through the pack. As the checkered flag waved, Justin Cooper picked up the second moto win just ahead of RJ Hampshire, who took the overall win at RedBud with a 2-2 performance. 

450 Moto One

As the 450 class left the gate for moto one, Aaron Plessinger was off to the early lead with Cooper Webb and Ken Roczen just behind. Chase Sexton was down on the first turn. Ken Roczen came up short on the uphill triple and nearly went down. Adam Cianciarulo then passed Tomac and began challenging Roczen, but then Ken and Adam both made the pass on Cooper Webb. Aaron Plessinger was attempting to break away from the rest of the field, as Eli Tomac made the pass on Webb for fourth place. Dylan Ferrandis was now pressuring Webb, as Christain Craig passed Musquin and trailed the battle ahead. Ferrandis made a couple jabs at Webb for fifth but Cooper was able to fend him off. It took a few laps, but Dylan Ferrandis was finally able to make the pass stick on Webb for fifth place. Back up front, Aaron Plessinger made a slight mistake, allowing Ken Roczen to close-in. After getting around Webb, Dylan Ferrandis laid down the fastest lap of the moto and caught up to the rear tire of Tomac. Ken Roczen then beat Plessinger to the corner before the leap and took away the lead. Ferrandis made the pass on Tomac and began pressuring Cianciarulo immediately. Christian Craig made the pass on Webb and took away sixth place, just before Ferrandis made the pass on Cianciarulo for third. Eli Tomac then made the pass on teammate Adam Cianciarulo for fourth place. Marvin Musquin was then out of the race after running in the top-10 early-on. Both Aaron Plessinger and Dylan Ferrandis had reeled in Ken Roczen and were on his tail with 11-minutes on the clock. The top-3 sat within a second of each other and the battle for the lead was on. Ferrandis was first to make a move, as he got around Plessinger, but only momentarily, as Plessinger went outside and was able to jump the leap and jump back past his teammate. Plessinger then pulled alongside Roczen, as he dove inside and challenged for the lead. Meanwhile, Eli Tomac laid down some fast laps and creeped closer towards the battle up-front. Ferrandis flew through the rollers and past Plessinger for second place. Eli Tomac cut inside of Plessinger before the leap, but Plessinger managed to thread the needle and still jump the leap to hold onto third place. Ferrandis was now on Roczen’s rear wheel and after diving inside, Ferrandis took over the lead. The battle to watch was now just a few spots behind, as Tomac continued to pressure Plessinger for third place. However, just as it looked like Eli would make the pass, Aaron upped the pace and kept Tomac at bay. Dean Wilson went down hard with two laps to go, as both him and his bike laid on the backside of the large table. As the checkered flag waved, Dylan Ferrandis took the moto win after a phenomenal charge from behind. 

450 Moto Two

Prior to the 450 Moto Two gate drop, both Ken Roczen and Dylan Ferrandis were penalized for jumping through a red-cross flag in moto one, as Dean Wilson was down. Ken was docked two points and Dylan was docked one. 

As the final race of the day left the gate, Aaron Plessinger was off to the early lead after snagging another holeshot. Adam Cianciarulo shuffled into second place, but then went down hard after tucking the front end, dropping him to last place. Eli Tomac was then gifted with second place, with Dylan Ferrandis and Ken Roczen just behind. Ken Roczen dove to the inside of Ferrandis and took over the position. Eli Tomac made the pass for the lead on Plessinger after the finish line, but Aaron wasn’t giving in, as he fought right back. Chase Sexton then passed Craig for fifth place and headed towards the pack up front. Ken Roczen pulled inside of Plessinger before the leap and then cased it hard after attempting to still jump with a short run. The mistake from Ken allowed Aaron to pull away by just a few bike lengths. Chase Sexton began to close in on Ferrandis, but Dylan upped the pace to keep the Honda rider at bay for the time being. Roczen closed in on Plessinger again and again came up a-bit short on the leap to keep the battle close. Ferrandis now joined the battle for second, as he caught up to the rear wheel of Roczen. Aaron Plessinger continued to catch Eli Tomac each lap before the rollers, but Eli managed to pull back away ever so slightly to keep the Yamaha behind. Ken Roczen went down after the leap and regrouped in sixth place, just ahead of Musquin. As Eli Tomac lapped his teammate Adam Cianciarulo(who continued to race a mangled bike) Aaron Plessinger inched closer and closer towards the lead. Eli didn’t jump the leap, while Aaron soured over it once again, placing the duo within a second with 5 minutes on the clock. However, just a lap later, Dylan Ferrandis entered the picture and was just behind Plessinger. Dylan Ferrandis beat Plessinger to the corner after the rollers and took over second place, as Eli Tomac remained in the lead with a 3-second lead. With one lap to go, Ferrandis cut the gap between himself and Eli in half in just a lap. However, it wasn’t enough, as Eli Tomac beat Dylan to the line and snagged the win in moto two. Dylan Ferrandis finished up second place and grabbed the overall win at RedBud.