The Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing Team has been playing a bit of catch-up through the latter part of the Pro Motocross season since both Pierce Brown and Justin Barcia were injured and couldn’t put in a lot of work on bike setup before the team headed outdoors. But with a press day to experiment, and two solid motos for Justin, the weekend proved productive.
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The Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing used this round as a test session to get caught up on their setup for the remaining races in the outdoor season, as well as preparation for the upcoming SuperMotocross playoffs
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Justin Barcia finished fifth overall with a 4-5 score
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Pierce Brown had a tough day with crashes and finished with a 15-24 tally
450 MX
Considering that Justin Barcia was in only his second race back aboard his MC 450F Factory Edition since returning from injury, he put in an impressive ride in moto one. Justin was among the leaders heading into the first turn but slipped into third spot by the end of the first lap. Battling with other competitors throughout the moto, he dropped to as low as sixth place but worked back to finish fifth at the finish, hot on the rear wheel of the fourth-place finisher. In moto two, Justin was third off the line and made a great move into the second corner to nail down the second position. He stayed there for a couple of laps before slipping to third, where he remained for much of the moto as he battled other riders. With six laps to go, he was passed and moved to fourth, where he finished.
Justin Barcia: “It was definitely a more productive day here at Budds Creek. I qualified sixth after two good practices, and we kind of used this weekend as a testing session. It’s hard coming back after being unable to test and do everything you need to do to prepare for the Nationals. Everyone has a lot of races under their belts, so we used press day as a test session, and then we changed the suspension going into the first moto. It worked out well for us today. We had two good starts, and battled up front in both motos. All in all I was extremely happy with where I’m at for not being able to train or anything. This is like only my fourth 30-minute moto since I started riding again, so considering that, I’m quite happy. We’ll keep plugging along and working hard. I’m looking forward to Indiana and we’ll keep building for SuperMotocross.”
250 MX
With a deep and talented field, Pierce Brown was just outside of the top ten in the first moto aboard his MC 250F Factory Edition. But a bobble on lap two dropped him into the mid-20s for position, so the rest of the moto was spent working forwards to 15th. A tangle off the line in moto two put Pierce deep into the pack, and from there it was a battle to climb back to 24th.
Pierce Brown: “It was a tough day for sure. I qualified decent in Q1, and in Q2 I struggled. After that I just couldn’t find my flow. In moto one I got a bad start and fell a couple laps in. When I restarted, I was in a pack of guys that weren’t moving forward, and I couldn’t move through them so it was tough. In moto two I tangled with a rider right out of the gate and I got the worst end of the stick on that one. It’s racing. We’ll bounce back next week at Ironman.»
Next Event (Round 11): August 26, 2023 – Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Ind.
Results – 2023 AMA Pro Motocross Championship, Round Ten
250 MX
1. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) 2-1; 2. Justin Cooper (Yamaha) 1-2; 3. Jo Shimoda (Kawasaki) 7-3 … 18. Pierce Brown (GASGAS) 15-24; 24. Mark Fineis (GASGAS) 20-38;42. Mitchell Harrison (GASGAS) 40-DNS
450 MX
1. Jett Lawrence (Honda) 1-1; 2. Aaron Plessinger (KTM) 4-3; 3. Jason Anderson (Kawasaki) 2-5… 5. Justin Barcia (GASGAS) 5-4; 18. Jose Butron (GASGAS) 22-17; 19. Romain Pape (GASGAS) 20-19; 22. Jakub Teresak (GASGAS) 25-20; 34. Cody Groves (GASGAS) 36-30; 39. Raimundo Trasolini (GASGAS) 38-35
Championship Standings – After Ten Rounds
250 MX
1. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) 391 points; 2. Justin Cooper (Yamaha) 369 points; 3. Jo Shimoda (Yamaha) 343 points… 20. Pierce Brown (GASGAS) 61 points;29. Michael Mosiman (GASGAS) 20 points; 36. Tyson Johnson (GASGAS) 13 points; 45. Joel Rizzi (GASGAS) 3 points; 51. Mark Fineis (GASGAS) 1 point
450 MX
1. Jett Lawrence (Honda) 500 points; 2. Dylan Ferrandis (Yamaha) 379 points; 3. Aaron Plessinger (KTM) 350 points … 12. Jose Butron (GASGAS) 142 points; 14. Lorenzo Locurcio (GASGAS) 110 points; 17. Romain Pape (GASGAS) 84 points; 22. Justin Barcia (GASGAS) 41 points; 29. Chris Canning (GASGAS) 27 points; 50. Jacob Runkles (GASGAS) 4 points; 58. Cody Groves (GASGAS) 3 points; 66. Jakub Teresak (GASGAS) 1 point