The second half of the 2024 Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, officially got underway on Saturday with the series’ annual visit to the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” and the dynamic layout of legendary Spring Creek MX Park. The FXR Spring Creek National Presented by Frescados Tortillas signified Round 7 of the summer campaign, where high humidity and temperatures in the mid-80’s gave way to late thunderstorms to present arguably the most challenging race conditions of the season. In the 450 Class, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Chase Sexton further asserted his ascension to the top of the division with a second straight sweep of the motos, one week after he moved atop the championship standings. In the 250 Class, a season already filled with memorable performances added another as Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen broke through for his first career Pro Motocross victory following a 1-1 effort.
450 Class
Moto 1
The opening moto of the afternoon saw the field emerge from the longest start straight on the schedule with the Team Honda HRC of Hunter Lawrence at the head of the pack ahead of the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing duo of Aaron Plessinger and Sexton, with the Monster Energy Kawasaki of Jason Anderson in fourth. From there the top four settled into their respective positions through the opening 10 minutes.
After biding his time for the opening period of the moto, Sexton started to pick up his intensity and was able to make a pass on Plessinger for second, which put the points leader just a few bike lengths behind Lawrence. The championship rivals traded momentum, showing strength at different points on the track, which allowed Lawrence to manage a lead hovering around one second. Their battle heated up at the halfway point, but Lawrence kept Sexton at bay. However, the KTM rider persisted and was able to get a run going up the 500-foot Mount Martin that allowed him to make the pass. Lawrence battled back, but Sexton completed the pass on the downside of the hill.
Once out front, Sexton was able to build a comfortable gap over Lawrence and the rest of the field, eventually surpassing 10 seconds. He brought home his sixth moto win of the season, and his fourth in a row, by 10.1 seconds over Lawrence. Plessinger finished solidly in third, while Anderson and Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Justin Cooper rounded out the top five.
Moto 2
The second and deciding moto got underway with the Yamaha of Cooper out front ahead of Lawrence and Anderson, while Sexton narrowly avoided going down and found himself outside the top five. Cooper withstood early pressure from Lawrence to establish his hold of the lead and led to the top three settling in. Meanwhile, Sexton bided his time in fifth after Plessinger went down in front of his teammate. Sexton then took fourth from Phoenix Racing Honda’s Dylan Ferrandis.
As the first 10 minutes of the moto wound down, Lawrence began to push the pace and apply pressure on the lead. Behind them, Sexton made the pass on Anderson for third and was the fastest rider on the track. Soon enough the battle for the lead became a three-rider affair as Sexton joined Lawrence and Cooper. Lawrence sensed the moment and muscled his way by Cooper to take the lead right at the halfway point of the moto. Sexton then went to work for second and made the pass on Cooper to set the stage for another head-to-head battle with Lawrence.
The pace of the leaders increased dramatically, which allowed them to sprint away from the field. Sexton was patient and made his move count, seizing control of the moto with 10 minutes to go. Once in the lead, Sexton sprinted out to a three-second advantage that he continued to build on. As Sexton distanced himself from the field Lawrence found himself in a battle for second with Cooper.
Heavy rains came on the final lap, but the championship leader put the finishing touches on a sweep of the motos by 12.9 seconds over Lawrence, who withstood Cooper’s late charge.
Overall
Sexton’s second straight 1-1 outing secured his third win of the season and the ninth victory of his career. Lawrence’s 2-2 performance placed him in the runner-up spot and continued the unblemished podium streak to open his 450 Class career, which now stands at seven. Cooper’s strong second moto landed him on the overall podium for the second time in the premier division in third (5-3), earning a tiebreaker over Plessinger.
Sexton’s back-to-back sweeps have now placed him 13 points ahead of Lawrence in the championship standings with four rounds remaining. Cooper remains third, 61 points behind Sexton.
1st: Chase Sexton, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (1-1)
“These last two races I’ve been wanting to capitalize on. I’ve been sluggish in the middle of the season [previously] so I’ve been focusing on turning that around. I got a decent start [in Moto 2] and the track was in better shape, and that allowed me to get a really good flow. It’s been fun and I want to keep this going.”
2nd: Hunter Lawrence, Team Honda HRC (2-2)
“I was [tired] and Chase [Sexton] has been riding unreal all day today. I tried to make it tough on him, but he was like a freight train. It’s been a tough day today and we’re working through it. It’s my job to give 100% and that’s what I did today.”
3rd: Justin Cooper, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (5-3)
“We put on a paddle tire for Moto 2 and that made the difference [on the start]. I sprinted as hard as I could through halfway, but those guys got me. I settled down a bit and made another run at the end and was able to get close to Hunter [Lawrence]. We’ll take the podium and move forward.”
250 Class
Moto 1
The first moto saw point leader and Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider Haiden Deegan edge out Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rookie Casey Cochran for the MotoSport.com Holeshot. The prime track position allowed Deegan to assert his hold on the early lead while Cochran lost multiple positions to Kitchen, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tom Vialle and the Team Honda HRC duo of Jo Shimoda and Chance Hymas.
Deegan enjoyed a firm grasp of the lead through the opening minutes of the moto but lost traction in a rut and tipped over, which allowed both Kitchen and Vialle to move into first and second, respectively, while Deegan remounted in third. Out front, the clear track allowed Kitchen to establish a multi-second advantage over Vialle, but as the moto surpassed the halfway mark Kitchen had a quick tip over, which allowed Vialle to close onto the rear fender of the Kawasaki. Meanwhile, Shimoda was able to pass Deegan for third.
Shimoda soon became the fastest rider on the track and it allowed him to make an easy pass on Vialle through the sand whoops and set his sights on Kitchen, who had reestablished his advantage. The Honda rider inched closer and closer to Kitchen inside the final 10 minutes and soon a battle unfolded for the moto win, which also allowed Vialle to close in from third. As the lead duo encountered heavy lapped traffic it allowed Kitchen to gain some breathing room.
With two minutes to go the top four all increased their pace, as a push from Deegan in fourth saw the lead group tighten up once again. Vialle surged with two laps to go and made the pass on Shimoda for second, which brought the top three within two seconds of one another. Deegan then caught Shimoda off guard with a pass for third, but Shimoda battled back to reclaim the position. Deegan moved into third once more as they took the white flag.
Back out front, Kitchen captured his first moto win of the season, and the fourth of his career, by 1.5 seconds over Vialle, with Deegan a close third. Shimoda settled for fourth, with Hymas a distant fifth.
Moto 2
The final moto was delayed briefly for weather, but once the gate dropped it was Deegan who led the field into the first turn. Unfortunately, contact with Hymas took the point leader down along with several other riders, including Shimoda. Out front, Cochran grabbed the MotoSport.com Holeshot, followed by Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Daxton Bennick and Vialle. Kitchen also positioned himself in the lead group, but misfortune early caused him to drop outside the top five. Further back, Deegan resumed deep in the field with exhaust damage to his Yamaha, but was able to move forward and break into the top 20 within the first handful of minutes. As a result of the incident, Hymas was forced to retire from the moto, while Shimoda needed his motorcycle tended to in the mechanics area and was ultimately unable to finish..
Out front, Cochran took full advantage of the clear track and opened a lead of more than five seconds on the field. Vialle looked to move forward and attempt a pass on Bennick, but lost control of his motorcycle and went down, ultimately remounting in eighth. He was later forced to come into the mechanics area for new goggles and made another stop deeper in the moto in need of attention for his KTM. Kitchen, meanwhile, continued to rebound from his early trouble and found himself third, closing in on Bennick for second. The Kawasaki rider made the pass a little more than 10 minutes into the moto.
Bennick continued to lose positions, as Toyota Redlands/BarX Suzuki’s Dilan Schwartz moved into third briefly before giving way to Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Max Anstie. Back up front, Kitchen erased the deficit to Cochran and started to apply pressure with a little more than 10 minutes to go. The rookie fended off several pass attempts by Kitchen, but the Moto 1 winner moved into the top spot with a little more than 5 minutes remaining.
As Kitchen appeared to have the moto in hand, the attention shifted to Deegan and an impressive come-from-behind effort riding a compromised Yamaha. The point leader kept his head down and continued to gain positions, breaking into the top five as time ran out on the moto. He then made a pass on Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing’s Ryder DiFrancesco for fourth.
Back up front, Kitchen finished strong to wrap up his first-ever sweep of the motos, taking the checkered flag 21.7 seconds ahead of Cochran, who completed the single best moto of his young career in second. Anstie finished third, just ahead of a hard-charging Deegan in fourth.
Overall
Kitchen’s first career Pro Motocross victory came in emphatic fashion with a 1-1 performance and makes him the 94th different rider in history to capture a 250 Class victory. He’s also the third different rider to achieve that feat this season alone. Deegan’s resiliency paid off with a runner-up finish (3-4), while Cochran became the newest face on the overall podium in third (9-2).
Deegan’s ability to fend off what could have been a difficult afternoon in the points chase allowed him to see his championship advantage grow further, now 51 points clear of Kitchen, who made a huge move from fifth to second in the standings with the win. Vialle, who finished seventh (2-17), remains third, 54 points out of the lead.
1st: Levi Kitchen, Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki (1-1)
“It’s been a bit of a struggle [to start the season] and people quickly forget when you’re not up there [battling for wins]. I’ve been working really hard and trying to get back to where I belong. The last moto was fun because you could really ride around on the track and just had to be patient. It feels great to get this done.”
2nd: Haiden Deegan, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (3-4)
“Chance [Hymas] came down and tried to get the edge off the start, next thing I know I flipped over and had to kick my exhaust back into place. This was the time to show I got that dog in me. I sent that all the way to the end. P2 and I’m pretty stoked about that.”
3rd: Casey Cochran, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing (9-2)
“I can’t explain the feelings right now. I got a great holeshot [in Moto 2] and got a good lead. I’m just shocked. I crossed the finish in second and I’m stoked that I got third overall. It’s just an unreal feeling.”
