Parity reigned supreme for specialty awards at the second round of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, at the GoPro Hangtown Motocross Classic. However, it was both Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen and Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin who took advantage of their achievements in the 450 Class and 250 Class, respectively, to earn the overall victories in each division.
Through partnerships with series sponsors, the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship will recognize the riders who are able to lay claim to the Oakley Bomb Fastest Lap Program, the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award in each moto, and the Ricky Carmichael Hard Charger Award throughout the 2014 season.
The Oakley Bomb Fastest Lap Program is designed to present a unique challenge for the 2014 season, providing a different twist by recognizing the rider who sets the fastest lap of practice in both the 250 and 450 Classes. Each rider will receive special Oakley Bomb trophy, specially designed by the brand. As the season wears on, the total number of Oakley Bomb awards a rider receives will be tallied into a final season total. The competitor with the most awards at season’s end will be presented with an Elite Oakley Time Bomb II Swiss Automatic Watch.
At Hangtown, Roczen paced the 450 Class field with a lap of 1:59.134 and ultimately used it to his advantage in the motos. The German rookie in the premier division started at the front of the field in each moto and proceeded to eventually take over the lead en route to a dominant 1-1 sweep and capture the first win of his 450 Class career, taking over the points lead from his Red Bull KTM teammate Ryan Dungey in the process. He and Dungey now share one Oakley Bomb Award apiece through the first two rounds.
Frenchmen Christophe Pourcel once again showed his prowess for setting a fast lap in the 250 Class, putting his Valli Motorsports Yamaha atop the charts for the second consecutive week with a lap of 2:02.048. He now has two Oakley Bomb Awards to his credit to start the season.
The MotoSport.com Holeshot Award is brand new to Lucas Oil Pro Motocross this season and it awards $500 to the rider who gets the holeshot of each moto – in both the 450 Class and 250 Class – at every round of the 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. A total of $2,000 will be up for grabs at each event between the two classes, thanks to MotoSport.com.
Four different riders claimed the $500 prize in each of the afternoon’s four motos at Hangtown, showcasing the competitiveness of the entire Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship field. In the 450 Class, Dungey edged out Roczen to the holeshot in the opening moto and carried that into a second-place finish. In Moto 2, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer put himself out front early with his first holeshot of the season and carried that to a seventh-place result.
In the 250 Class, GEICO Honda’s Zach Bell flashed his impressive speed to earn the MotoSport.com Holeshot in Moto 1 and proceeded to post a solid fifth-place result. It was Martin who made the most of his holeshot in the second moto, taking the lead out of the gate and never relinquishing it, ultimately winning by nearly 20 seconds to cap off another dominant day by the sophomore rider who is undefeated through the first four motos of the 2014 season.
The RC Hard Charger Award is entering its sixth season in 2014. Named after Ricky Carmichael, the most winning motocross rider of all time, the award recognizes the one competitor at each of the 12 rounds of the championship who overtakes the highest number of his fellow racers in any of the four championship motos between the 250 and 450 Classes.The award is a testament to “The Greatest of All Time” or “The GOAT” and his never-give-up attitude over the span of a career that warranted 10 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross titles and 102 wins – two feats that will likely never be duplicated. All recipients of the RC Hard Charger Award are given a custom-designed trophy.
Following a solid start to the afternoon in which he posted the seventh-fastest lap of practice, BTOSports.com KTM’s Andrew Short was faced with adversity on the opening lap of the first moto. The Colorado native was involved in an incident with Toyota/Yamaha/JGRMX’s Phil Nicoletti and crossed the line in 38th at the conclusion of the opening lap. True to his resilient nature, Short put his head down and began to work his way through the field like the true veteran he is. At the conclusion of the 30-minute-plus-two-lap moto Short had climbed all the way to 14th, passing a total of 24 riders along the way. His achievement was unmatched by any other rider last Saturday at Hangtown and as a result, Short earned this week’s Ricky Carmichael Hard Charger Award. The momentum from Short’s inspiring ride led to a 10th-place finish in Moto 2, landing him 11th overall for the afternoon.
Round 3 of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship heads to Lakewood, Colorado, for the Toyota Thunder Valley National on Saturday, June 7.
MotoSport.com Holeshot Awards
450 Moto 1: Ryan Dungey
450 Moto 2: Jake Weimer
250 Moto 1: Zach Bell (2nd of the season)
250 Moto 2: Jeremy Martin
RC Hard Charger Award
Winner: Andrew Short (+24 positions; went from 38th to 14th in 450 Moto 1)
Oakley Bomb Awards
450 Class: Ken Roczen, 1:59.134
250 Class: Christophe Pourcel, 2:02.048 (2nd of the season)
