2022 High Point Motocross | Race Report & Results

INSTAGRAM | @swapmotolive
INSTAGRAM | @swapmotolivedotcom
INSTAGRAM | @onealracing

CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF THE 2022 HIGH POINT MOTOCROSS

The High Point Motocross might go down as an instant classic. DIfferent winners in every moto, close racing from the front of the pack to the back, and ideal conditions made for a great round in the 2022 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship.

250 Moto One

As the first moto at High Point left the gate, Seth Hammaker was off to the early lead after grabbing the holeshot. Jo Shimoda, Hunter Lawrence, and Nate Thrasher followed as they rounded the second corner. Hunter Lawrence made a quick pass on Shimoda during the opening lap, while Michael Mosiman began to pressure Thrasher for fourth. 

Nate Thrasher went off the track while attempting to pass Shimoda, dropping him to fifth. Jett Lawrence then entered this battle inside the top-5, as he passed Thrasher for fifth. Michael Mosiman pulled past Shimoda up the hill and jumped into the inside rut to take over third place. Last week’s moto one winner, Levi Kitchen, went down on the third lap and was limping off of the track. Back up front, Seth Hammaker continued to lead and had already built up over a 5-second lead on Hunter Lawrence. 

Michael Mosiman continued to charge forward and was now pressuring Hunter Lawrence for second place. Mosiman held the position over Hunter momentarily, but Hunter managed to jump over a double and rail an outside rut to retake second. However, just a few sections later; Michael Mosiman made the pass stick and began tracking down Seth Hammaker. 

During the battle for second place, Jett Lawrence made the pass on Jo Shimoda for fourth place and set his sights on his older brother. Up front, Mosiman was laying down the fastest laps on the track and quickly reeled in Hammaker. Michael passed Seth in the same inside rut he used to pass Hunter for second place and took the race lead. Hunter Lawrence was now on Hammaker’s rear wheel and pressuring for the position. After trailing for a few laps, Hunter jumped a double and used an outside line to take over second place. 

While leading, Michael Mosiman tipped over in an inside rut and dropped back to third place. Hunter Lawrence was then gifted the race lead, but also had a close one just a lap later in an inside rut, fortunately the Honda HRC rider saved it. Laps later, Jett Lawrence made the pass on Michael Mosiman for third place. Jo Shimoda also made his way past Mosiman a few laps later.

As the race neared the checkered flag, Jett Lawrence began to reel in Seth Hammaker. After trailing for a few laps, Jett took an outside-to-inside line through a few corners to end up on the inside of Hammaker and with the second place position. With one lap to go, Jo Shimoda squared up Hammaker around the “Wall” corner and raced away with third place. Hunter Lawrence took the checkered flag first to claim the victory in moto one at High Point. 

250 Moto Two

The second 250MX moto was off and Seth Hammaker was off to another holeshot with Hunter and Jett Lawrence trailing. Hunter didn’t waste any time and immediately challenged Hammaker for the lead, however, Seth lost his front-end on the opening lap and dropped outside of the top-10. Hunter was then gifted the race lead, but had his brother in tail. Justin Cooper was lurking in third place, with Rj Hampshire and Jo Shimoda behind.

Stilez Robertson stuffed Nick Romano for seventh place, which also allowed Seth Hammaker to pass Nick. Back up front, Justin Cooper caught and passed Jett Lawrence after using a sneaky fast inside rut around the Honda HRC rider. Half a lap later, Jett was looking to repass Cooper, but Justin took Jett wide in the following corner to hold onto second place. Jett continued to challenge Justin Cooper, and before they knew it, the duo was on Hunter Lawrence’s rear wheel. As Justin searched for a line to make the pass on Hunter, Jett was late to the breaks and dove inside of Cooper to retake second place. 

Hunter Lawrence was now dealing with pressure from his younger brother, as Jett was within half-a-second. Hunter made a minor mistake after sliding out, allowing Jett to close-in even more. Jett made the pass on his older brother and took the race lead at High Point. A few laps later, Hunter closed back in on Jett and the battle for the lead was back on. 

Hunter was late to the breaks on the down hill and jumped into the inside rut to take over the lead, again. Jett tried doing the same thing half-a-lap later and pinning it down the staircase, but was unable to pass Hunter back. Meanwhile, Rj Hampshire had dropped from fourth to seventh place, rewarding Jo Shimoda with fourth place. Back up front, Jett Lawrence jumped past his brother Hunter and retook the lead in the following corner. As Hunter attempted to put in another charge at the lead, both him and Jett had to deal with lappers. As the clock neared zero, Jett opened up to a two-second lead on Hunter. 

With two laps to go, Michael Mosiman jumped past Jo Shimoda down the hill to take over fourth place. On the final lap, Hunter was putting in one last charge and had trimmed Jett’s lead from three seconds down to a few bike-lengths. As the checkered flag waved, Jett Lawrence grabbed the second moto win just ahead of his brother Hunter after the best battle the season has seen, yet. 

450 Moto One

As the first 450MX moto at High Point left the gate, Chase Sexton was off to the early lead with Justin Barcia and Joey Savatgy trailing. Fastest qualifier Jason Anderson got pinched off in the first turn after a great jump and was shuffled back to fifth place. As Savatgy and Barcia battled over second place, Christian Craig and Anderson battled over fourth. Both Kawasaki teammates secured the position in their separate battles, and Anderson began to focus ahead on Justin Barcia. Barcia managed to break away from Anderson after Jason’s first push and Tomac was now pressuring Anderson for fourth place. After fending off Tomac, Anderson pushed forward again and dove inside of Barcia to take over third place. 

Less than a lap later, Eli Tomac got a great drive around the outside of an uphill and rocketed past Barcia for fourth place. A few positions back, Antonio Cairoli went down after attempting to dive inside of Craig; dropping him from seventh to tenth place. Back up front, Jason Anderson made the pass on his teammate, Joey Savatgy, and secured second place. Jason Anderson now switched his focus to reeling in Chase Sexton, who sat nearly 10-seconds ahead. 

Eli Tomac was now pressuring Joey Savatgy for third place, as Ken Roczen began to charge forward and challenge Craig for sixth. After trailing for a few laps, Tomac finally made the pass on Savatgy by railing the High Point wall and cutting under the number-17 Kawasaki. Antonio Cairoli was out of moto one, just a few laps after tipping over while battling with Craig. 

Ken Roczen continued to work on Christian Craig, but now had Ryan Dungey trailing closely behind. Roczen finally made the pass on Craig for sixth after finding a faster line around the Yamaha rider. Back up front, Jason Anderson dropped from second place to fourth place after a mistake. Christian Craig went to respond to Roczen’s pass, but opted for a slower line and allowed Ryan Dungey to also get by. 

Chase Sexton continued to lead and now held a 17-second lead on Eli Tomac. Jason Anderson was back past his teammate and pressuring Eli Tomac with 5-minutes left on the clock. Eli Tomac responded to the pressure by upping his pace and the duo was slowly cutting into Sexton’s race lead, while battling over second place.

Further back in the pack, Ryan Dungey made the pass on Ken Roczen for sixth place, momentarily, as Roczen fired right back to retake the position. A lap later, Dungey was pressuring Roczen again, as the two nearly made contact while battling through lappers. On the final lap, Ryan Dungey made the pass on Ken Roczen stick and although Ken fought him to the finish line, Dungey took the sixth place result. Chase Sexton crossed the checkered flag first to take the dominant victory in the first 450MX moto at High Point. 

450 Moto Two

The final moto at High Point was off, as 450MX moto two left the gate and Ryan Dungey was off to the early lead after grabbing the holeshot. Chase Sexton and Ken Roczen sat second and third after the second corner. Roczen went inside of Sexton to take over the second place position early-on. Just a few sections later, Ken Roczen made the pass on Dungey for the lead, but Dungey responded just a section later to take the lead again. As they began their second lap, Ken Roczen made another pass on Dungey to secure the lead. 

Chase Sexton followed Roczen past Dungey just a few sections later to take over second place. As Jason Anderson began to close-in on the top-3, Dungey attempted to make his way back past Sexton. However, Jason Anderson was first to make a pass, as he passed Dungey for third place. Eli Tomac then railed an outside berm to pass both Dungey and then jump to the inside of Anderson, going from fifth place to third. 

Ryan Dungey continued to fight and battle with Jason Anderson, as he passed back into fourth place. Meanwhile, Eli Tomac was challenging Chase Sexton for second place. While battling for second place, Sexton and Tomac had caught Ken Roczen and the duel for second place had become a 3-rider battle for first. Chase Sexton launched down the hill and into the inside rut, but Roczen railed the outside and carried enough momentum to hold onto the lead for now. A lap later, Sexton took an outside line around Roczen and carried enough speed out of the corner to make the pass for the lead. However, Sexton made a mistake just a few moments later, allowing Roczen to pass back into the lead. 

Chase Sexton made another mistake in the same lap, this time allowing Eli Tomac to make the pass for second place. Ryan Dungey was now pressuring Sexton for third place, just as Eli Tomac railed a rut to blow by Ken Roczen and take over the race lead. A few laps later, Chase Sexton made the pass on Ken Roczen for second place. Then, minutes later, Ryan Dungey found a creative inside line past Roczen to take over third place. 

Ken Roczen was mounting a charge back at Dungey, but then stalled in a corner and lost a few seconds to the RedBull KTM rider. Aaron Plessinger went off the side of the track with two laps to go and then allowed multiple riders by, as he appeared to be in some pain. Jason Anderson was the first rider to pass Plessinger, rewarding him with third place overall. Ken Roczen fought until the end and made the pass on Ryan Dungey late on the final lap to claim third place in the second moto. Eli Tomac continued to log solid laps and ultimately took the checkered flag first to claim the second moto win and the overall victory at High Point.