2021 High Point Motocross | Post-Race Interviews

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2021 THUNDER VALLEY MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

Want to know what riders had to say about the 2021 High Point Motocross without watching a “How Was Your Weekend” video? We’ve transcribed the post-race chats from round two of the 2021 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship with riders in the 250 and 450 Class and added some photos of the riders in action.

AARON PLESSINGER
450 CLASS | 5-8 | 6TH OVERALL

How was it this weekend?

Yeah, I mean, it was a good weekend overall. You know, I’ve been pretty consistent. I would like to be up top, but I got some homework to do, and I’m taking positives out of the day. In the first Moto, my holeshot device came undone on the start and I was like, I don’t even know, 20th, going around the first corner. I made a lot of passes the first couple corners and then worked my way up to fifth. I passed a lot of really, really good people and was riding really, really good. So, went out for the second Moto really confident, got the start, and kind of just road mediocre. It was frustrating; I just couldn’t really push forward. I stayed the same throughout the whole Moto, but you know, it’s taking positives. We’re going to go to Florida for a month, and I’m doing some homework, and I’m going to come out swinging at RedBud.

CHRISTIAN CRAIG
450 CLASS | 11-10 | 11TH OVERALL

How it today?

The day was pretty up and down. Obviously, the biggest thing was everyone’s expecting a mud race, and it ended up barely sprinkling. So that played a little factor and the track got tricky. It was smooth in the morning, and then it just got beat up. I struggled with the lines. There were lines everywhere, and I just seem to pick the wrong one every lap. In the first one, I got off to a good start, was running behind Kenny, and had a big get-off on the second or third lap. I hit a slick spot, and yeah, I think my tire hit here [points toward neck]. It took me a minute to get up, was a little shaken up, but regrouped and got back up to 11th. I made my way back up, which was good.

And then the second Moto, I had a top-10 start probably and was running inside there for a while. I battled with Savatgy towards the end, and he ended up getting me; I made a few big mistakes towards the end, and he ended up pulling away. So, 11-10, probably I’m guessing for 11th overall? A decent weekend, but we obviously want to be up there closer to the top-five, but I’ve got to put it together if I want to do it.

DEAN WILSON
450 CLASS 12-12 | 12TH OVERALL

How was today?

Outdoors is never easy, man. It’s tough. Overall, honestly, I know my results haven’t been good. I’ve been really struggling this year with some blood issues, so I’m really struggling with energy. But I feel like the second Moto for me was an improvement. I mean, I went 12-12, so nothing to be proud of, but in the second Moto my riding felt a lot better. I kind of fell a little bit more like the old Dean, you know. Even though I got 12th, I had a few good laps that were decent, and I just had a good flow. I came from 24th or 25th. Terrible start, terrible start, so I need to just get those and make it a little bit easier on myself, but I’ll keep trying. That’s all I can do.

I completely agree with you that in the second Moto, you looked like old Dean. You were charging and the guys were just in front of you. You were picking up time everywhere.

Yeah, it was like when you have those markers of riders, where you see them. Every rider that I saw, I was catching them. So that was cool for me. The track is real technical here, and I like it because you can jump the bumps.

You have to think about things.

Yeah! Like when you come down the big hill, there are big bumps and you jump them, kind of hippity-hop through them [Laughs]. It’s just about like having a good flow, and I felt like I started to have a flow in that second Moto, and that’s what made me ride good. I’ve just got to really figure out getting the flow earlier in the races, especially in the first Motos, and we’ll be better. I know I’m struggling. It’s been a tough go, but we’ll keep trying.

CHASE SEXTON
450 CLASS | 4-5 | 5TH OVERALL

How was it today?

It was a little better than Colorado. I qualified third, which is better. I had a good first Moto going and caught Adam. We kind of played cat and mouse for a while, but I ended up going down. I hit a rock about the size of a semi, so that was a little bit of a bummer, and went back to fourth. And in the second Moto I just didn’t have anything left in the tank. I was pretty fatigued. I’ve been pretty sick this whole week. No excuse though, I tried to get as much recovery as I possibly could for today, and I put it all out there. I’m looking forward to RedBud, and I’m over this fifth place [Laughs]. I’ve got to get a little better. My starts were better today, which was a positive too. Hopefully, when I’m on point now, we can challenge the wins.

You’re back into the routine now, being in Florida and on the east coast, where it’s summer. You’re ready to go.

It’s been really nice to be back in Florida. AC and I have been doing motos together, which was kind of cool in the first Moto to be 1-2 after riding together for these last two weeks. Obviously, he got the better hand than me today, but it’s been fun and we’ve been getting along good. So yeah, back to the normal swing of things in Florida, and I’m excited to finish out the summer there.

How was the big 450 in those kinds of track conditions?

It was pretty tough. It was probably the roughest track we’ve had this year. Like I said, second Moto, I just was riding like a pansy. It was pretty pathetic, but the first one, I felt good. The rutted tracks are kind of my forte, so I was feeling overall pretty comfortable, but I just didn’t have the speed in the second Moto. I’ve got to go back to work and get faster for RedBud.

MARVIN MUSQUIN
450 CLASS | 10-7 | 8TH OVERALL

How was it today?

I was super excited to come here, I love this track. But we’ve been trying to get better with the bike, and I thought we were better. We had some options on suspensions, and yeah, it’s not the feeling that I used to have and we’re still searching for that. The first Moto was no good. I was trying, but towards the end I didn’t have a good feeling and I’m not happy with that. The team came to me, and we went back to some old settings. Only on the shock, though, that’s all we had today. It paid off in the second Moto. I know the result seventh place is not great, but from where I started, it was some improvement, and at least I was racing the track and passing. Before that, in all the Motos, I was not even passing people, so that was no good. No excuses, we didn’t make the right decisions on settings, even though we worked hard, but you know, it’s not on somebody. It’s me on the bike, it’s a team working, we just need to keep improving and look what we had before. And then just stick to that, I guess. We always try to be better, but you know, it’s not easy. Like I said, that second Moto was just a lot better, just more racy. So that was an improvement, and I’m looking forward to get back to racing again.

You’re very familiar with this bike. It’s not like it changes much, and you know that thing backward and forwards. When the team comes to you, “Hey, we want to try this. Do you want to maybe think about this?” When it doesn’t work, that just goes to show how much you guys are trying to find that next little bit of advantage, right? And sometimes, it’s not always there.

Yeah. Suspension is a huge part of the motorcycle. The feeling for a rider is huge. For me, I’ve been struggling to make it happen when I don’t have a good feeling with the bike. I’m like, “Okay, if you don’t like it, just, you know, do something else and try a little different.” But it’s hard mentally, physically, it’s hard. So it shows that what we did for the second Moto was an improvement. So hopefully, we can only go up from here.

JUSTIN BOGLE
450 CLASS | 16-13 | 14TH OVERALL

The results won’t show it, but you rode well today.

I had an eventful day. First Moto, I crashed twice and pulled into the mechanic’s area for goggles. So I was way far back, and who knows what. I rode my ass off and came up to I thin 16th, but I used pretty much all the energy I had. So that second Moto was tough. I got a pretty good start, and I was running like 10-11 most of it, then I ended up 13th or something. I just had a rough time finishing that one. So it’s all good, though. I mean, I’m riding better. It’s coming around, getting better. Just keep on keeping on, as they say.

Joey Savatgy: He did a good job today. I saw my friend almost die upstairs, though. Yeah. Exerted a lot of energy.

Bogle: I did what you call “depleting the tank.” I emptied the tank.

Savatgy: Ran out of juice in the Tesla, dude.

Bogle: I ran out of juice in the Tesla, baby. I’m a V8, you know what I’m saying? I’m not an electric car, you know what I mean?

JOEY SAVATGY
450 CLASS | 8-9 | 9TH OVERALL

Hey, you’ve been riding really good lately. Today was good.

It’s been good. It’s steps in the right direction, for sure and Colorado was better. We tried some things last week, suspension-wise, and we’ve made some adjustments and gotten better. “Improvement” is the word. Just still struggling in my starts a little bit. So I think if… this class is kind of gnarly right now.

Bogle: Nah.

Savatgy: [Laughs] That second Moto, I feel like I rode really good and charged all the way to the checkered flag. And I was battling with AP for eighth. It’s a little bit of a kick below the belt sometimes, but you got to put it into perspective. There’s a lot of good dudes.

Bogle: Ask him about his pass on me real quick!

How was the pass on him?

Savatgy: He did the ol’…

Bogle: I waved him by!

Savatgy: I know about that. Honestly, it was good. I think eight, ninth overall or something, it’s the best I’ve rode this year. So we’ll go home this week and have the weekend off and just keep grinding.

This has been good, though. Like I said before, you’ve put in solid results, and you’re coming on late in the race. It’s not like you’ve got a good start and then just kind of blocked everybody. I mean, you’re earning your way there. And like you said, you’re battling with AP, who has got a lot of hype around him right now. So that’s a good indicator of where you’re at.

Savatgy: Yeah, like you said, it’s not like I’m getting the holeshot fading. I finished this good and I feel like I’m capable of maxing it all the way to the finish line. Fitness is not really what I’m worried about right now. I need to keep working on myself on the motorcycle, my speed, just being comfortable again. I missed Supercross last year and then I raced outdoors last year, but not in a competitive way by any means. It’s been tough just to kind of remind myself what it feels like to be up there, and it has been harder than I thought it’s been, or harder than I thought it was going to be. But this weekend was big for me. Colorado was going in the right direction, and then I had a little issue in the second Moto, but all I can do is just keep trying and keep giving her the berries.

ELI TOMAC
450 CLASS | 6-1 | 3RD OVERALL

That Moto Two ride is all that anybody’s going to talk about between now and RedBud.

Yeah.

How was that?

It’s weird. I don’t know. I’m just going to call myself on the five-moto slump it was, and this was my normal self. I got off to a way better start. I’ve been starting pretty buried in the pack, but still, that’s not all the problems that I’ve been having. I was really just riding like I should be. I don’t know. It’s weird. I asked myself the question, like, “How can it be that much different?” So, I don’t know.

How did it feel to be back in the front and just flowing? Once you made that pass on Adam, you got going and put some distance on everybody. This was your kind of track, and collectively, it is what all of us have been chomping at the bit to see all year.

Yeah. This was, in my opinion, one of the best High Points, I mean, just for track moisture all around. It wasn’t too muddy early on, but it still got a good enough character to make a difference to where it separated guys. I just really connected the whole track in Moto Two, whereas I was just kind of notchy early on in that first Moto. So that was the difference there. All around, it was a good track.

Did you enjoy the podium? You seem pretty pumped on that. So how is it for you to have fans and stuff like that around? Because I’ve noticed that you really enjoy it when people are around.

It’s cool when there’s like the big crowd. This is always a good one, and then obviously RedBud. We don’t get them every weekend that way. So when you have those good crowds, it’s like, “Hell yeah! This is cool!”

DYLAN FERRANDIS
450 CLASS | 2-2 | 1ST OVERALL

I would have to say that was probably one of the highlights in your career today.

I mean, Pala and Thunder Valley was not too bad, too [Laughs].

But this one was good with the overall, and although you didn’t win a moto, you have the red plate now and all that.

Yeah. Like I said, first Moto at Thunder Valley, that could have been the best Moto of my career, but this rear brake issue. I think without that, I could have won the Moto. But today, for sure was amazing. I was feeling great. Everything is working correctly, and yeah, I show every weekend who I am really deep inside, I think.

That second Moto battle was amazing. Just to watch how all three of you guys were going back and forth, knowing what was on the line. When you’re in the moment like that, how it for you as a racer? Do you really enjoy that?

Yeah. I enjoyed it because Ken and Adam are guys that I really like to ride with. They are clean. And Adam, you know, he’s kind of my best rival for a couple of years now. So we kind of have a small history together. And Ken, he’s an amazing athlete. When I was young, I was watching him and dreaming of just racing with him. So today, to beat him, is amazing. And it was good because also the track allowed us to fight correctly. So that was also a good point. For me, I didn’t think really about everything I said, but I was more focused on the red plate. Like at this point, I just want to fight for this championship, and every point is going to count at the end of the year. It looks like my main rival is Ken for the championship, so beating him today is a really good point for the championship. I think I just didn’t want to let him by and he was riding amazingly. His speed was crazy. I was feeling really good, like physically and stuff, I was tired. I could have pushed for more, but I kind of hit my top speed at some point, so I couldn’t go faster. And some places on the track, he was faster, some places I was faster, but the place where he was faster, I couldn’t match his speed. I think we both were great today.

You connected with that lapper while you were in the middle of that battle. I looked over and just saw your legs flying in the air. What happened?

This part of the track was a little tricky. When you were in the rut, you had to follow the rut for the full section. And yeah, the lapper, I don’t know who it was, but I just expected him to let me go and he didn’t. We get together and I didn’t know what happened because I hit my visor hit the handlebar. I lose the vision for like a millisecond, but just enough to do a tsunami or something. And then, when I saw I was on the bike, I cracked the throttle. You forget and just focus on the next turn. But yeah, that was really, really sketchy [Laughs].

Yeah, that shows how into it you were in the second Moto, how you were focused on it.

I’ve race enough in my life to be in that zone, in that moment where nothing matters, like you just want to pass the guy in front of you until you’re in first and then reach the checkered flag.

JUSTIN COOPER
250 CLASS | 5-1 | 3RD OVERALL

How was your weekend?

It was good. P1 in practice, and I think I was running second or third in the first Moto early, had a tip over, and the bike stalled when I was picking it up. I just ate roost from there and kind of just didn’t ride my best. I wasn’t in a good flow and really couldn’t see where I was going with all the roost I was eating. I was able to make quick work out front in the second one and really had a good flow going. I enjoyed the track and enjoyed the bike, I felt like I was one with the bike, and that’s always a good feeling. I’m not the best at this track, so we’ll take it. It was definitely a nice run.

MAX VOHLAND
250 CLASS | 18-9 | 13TH OVERALL

How was it today? Seemed eventful.

It was pretty good. First Moto, I ended up going down in the second turn, kind of got stuck under the bike, and had it took me a while to get up. I was way back, but I got up to 18th. So, it was okay, and I scored some points. For the next Moto, we did a little bit of a bike change and it helped a lot. I was running up to about sixth, I think, and then I just made some mistakes, got pushed back, and ended up at ninth.

In that first Moto, I was standing right there when you got up. Your clutch lever was pointed straight at the ground, and you kicked it for a minute to try to get it straight. How was it to ride a track like that, as technical as it was, with pretty much no clutch?

Yeah, it was down, and I was trying to kick it back up, but I was like, “I’m wasting my time. I need to go”. Those guys were just starting to leave. That thing was almost straight down. I was able to get in a few times in the corner, but it really made it awkward. And then, of course, it started raining a little bit, so the track got slick, sticky, and heavy. I had to really manage that, and I came through in 18th.

STILEZ ROBERTSON
250 CLASS | 12-16 | 14TH OVERALL

How was it?

Rough. Moto One didn’t ride very well. And then in Moto Two, I actually got a good start. I think I came out like fifth and sixth and then got into fourth. On the downhill, I had a little tip over and got stuck on the berm, and it took me a bit to get up. I made it back to, I don’t even know, 15th or something, but definitely not where I want to be. RedBud is next, and I need some revenge.

JALEK SWOLL
250 CLASS | 1-3 | 1ST OVERALL

How was that?

I still am not registering it. Like I’m still trying to, I don’t know. I’m just fucking smiling ear to ear and that’s it. I don’t even really know what to think right now.

That’s probably one of the more gnarly and technical Nationals that you’ve ever raced. How was it out there? Did you just get into a zone? Did it just kind of start off easy? Yeah, some things kind of broke your way, but then you held everybody off there when you needed to.

Yeah. I think I got a gift with RJ’s bike messing up, which sucks for the team. Going 1-2 would have been sick, but yeah, so that sucks. From his bike problem, I was able to get into the lead, and honestly, it was just like I didn’t even feel like I was trying, really. I was just in such a flow and everything. I was just focused. I didn’t even see the halfway flag; I didn’t see anything. I literally just saw the two-lap card come out. And yeah, man, it’s crazy. I’m still trying to process it. Because I just was getting whatever, like scraping top-10s, you know what I mean? And then, right to the top step of the podium, it’s crazy.

That last Moto, especially those last three, four laps, you were under some real serious heat from Marchbanks.

I felt like I didn’t have the stamina from the first one. I was still kind of tired a little bit. So I don’t know. I just felt like I got into a flow and then I just had some left in the tank for when he caught me. He caught me at a time after I was just by myself and cruising and stuff like that, to where when he caught me, I was like, “Oh, okay. I can pick it up a little bit”. And I felt like I really nailed one of the laps, one of the last two, and then I had a gap again. It was just kind of just being smart and trying to get to the finish line. It’s one of those tracks where there are so many ruts, and it’s kind of hard to pass. I knew that it was going to be hard for him to pass me as long as I just kept my head right, you know what I mean? Just kept it on the right track.