BMW Motorrad has filed a patent for a supercharger with a drawing of an S 1000 RR (above) which could challenge the supercharged Kawasaki H2R as the fastest and most powerful motorcycle in the world.
Bimota and Hesketh have also launched supercharged models in recent years and Honda is rumoured to be working on a similar project.
This industry move toward forced induction is not just about setting power records, but also meeting the coming tougher emissions laws.
Now BMW has joined the charge toward cleaner and more efficient forced induction with a supercharger with an electric compressor to free air into the combustion chamber via an intercooler.
Turbo or supercharged?
1980s Honda CX 650TC Turbo
In the 1980s, several manufacturers played with temperamental turbo technology, but it was a difficult to control the light-switch power delivery so they had a short life.
However, modern turbos are more efficient, lighter, smaller and more reliable.
While a turbo takes its power from the exhaust gases, superchargers that power from the crankshaft.
Supercharged Kawasaki H2R
There are advantages and disadvantages in these two technologies.
Turbochargers are quieter, smaller, more efficient, but also more complex.
Superchargers can deliver their boost at lower revs than a turbocharger and are more reliable and easier to maintain. However, they are harder on the engine.
It will be interesting to see which way the industry goes in coming years on forced induction.
The issue of police being directed to meet traffic offence targets or quotas are back in the news in Queensland and South Australia.
The matter generally raises the ire of motorists who say it is proof that police are revenue raisers rather than performing road safety duties.
Critics also say it leads to motorists being fined for minor speeds and diverts police patrols from catching high-range speeders.
Controversial quotas
The quota controversy has been raised after two recent events:
In Queensland, emails that set quotas for traffic tickets have been revealed in court by a Gold Coast cop in evidence of bullying by senior officers. Queensland police have always denied the existence of quotas but have again admitted there are “benchmark” expectations or “targets” for officers on various offences.
In South Australia, a senior police officer sent an email to staff offering a gift card as an incentive to issue more speeding and traffic fines. SA Police were forced to retract the email and advise that the incentive went against official policy.
Offence quotas (or “benchmarks”, or “targets”) for police are not new.
In the 1970s and ‘80s, the Queensland Bjelke-Petersen government blatantly referred to them as “kill sheets” for traffic and criminal offences.
Officers were required to reach certain targets to gain promotion or face punitive measures such asa long run of “graveyard shifts”.
Rather than promoting road safety and a crackdown on crime, it led to massive police corruption, culminating in the Fitzgerald Inquiry and subsequent jailing of senior cops and politicians.
Quotas exist in various countries at varying levels of legality around the world.
For example, the UK Government ran a two-year pilot project with the Thames Valley force allowing police to claim back a proportion of speeding fines to pay for road safety projects.
Quotas are largely outlawed in democratic countries as unconstitutional.
Yet the practice often continues in a non-official capacity to evaluate the productivity of “slack and lazy officers”, as one former senior cop told us.
Are “targets, benchmarks, incentives, kill sheets, or productivity evaluations” just quotas by another name? Leave your comments below.
Reverting to proven setting assists Brookes in Cadwell Park win
Section: Competition
Australian claims British Superbike Championship lead at the eighth round.
Image: Supplied.
Reverting to a proven setting has led Australian Josh Brookes to claim King of the Mountain honours after a victory in race two at Cadwell Park’s eighth round of the 2019 Bennetts British Superbike Championship Championship (BSB).
The Be Wiser Ducati ace stormed to second in the opening race before clinching a thrilling win in Sunday’s second encounter, the victory promoting Brookes into the championship lead as the series heads into the Showdown.
“I’ve had two great races this weekend and whilst at Thruxton I didn’t feel like I was riding on top form, here I did and properly showed what I can do,” Brookes explained. “We’ve been quick from the off and having the test on Thursday gave us a bit of luxury ahead of race weekend, so we’ve only had to make really small changes all weekend.
“The first race was really enjoyable, and I tried to lead from the front and make a bit of a break but although I managed to get a bit of a gap it wasn’t enough as Danny came with me. When he came past, he was riding superb and I couldn’t fault him at all. We’d made a change after morning warm up which didn’t quite work and although I tried to match him, I couldn’t do any more than what I was doing and settled for the second place.
“For race two, we went back to the setting that had worked previously and this time it was Tommy who was riding really well but I could see he was using every bit of what he had and when I managed to get by him, I had that little bit more grip. It was another great race and it’s great to come away with the King of the Mountain title and the championship lead for the first time this year.”
Fellow Australians Jason O’Halloran (McAms Yamaha) and Ben Currie (Quattro Plant JG Speedlift Kawasaki) recorded 7-14 and 21-19 scorecards respectively. The series now heads to Oulton Park on 6-9 September for round nine.
Gajser crowned MXGP champion as Coldenhoff wins at Imola
Section: Competition
Prado continues winning streak with dominant MX2 victory.
Images: Supplied.
Honda’s HRC’s Tim Gajser has been crowned the 2019 MXGP world champion at Imola’s 15th round of the series, while Glenn Coldenhoff (Standing Construct KTM) claimed his first overall victory of the season.
The Italian stop saw Coldenhoff put on a commanding display of riding, capturing a pair of dominant victories to score top honours ahead of Jeremy Seewer (Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing), as Gajser took out third to secure the title with three rounds to spare.
Monster Energy Wilvo Yamaha’s Gautier Paulin was fourth, followed by Pauls Jonass (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) in fifth.
The MX2 category saw points leader and reigning champion Jorge Prado (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) continue his undefeated winning streak, taking out the overall win in dominant fashion.
He was joined on the podium by Thomas Kjer Olsen (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) and Maxime Renaux (SM Action Yamaha), while the top five was completed by Jago Geerts (Monster Energy Kemea Yamaha Official MX2) and Calvin Vlaanderen (Team Honda HRC). Australian Mitch Evans (Team Honda 114 Motorsport) was 28th overall.
The WMX championship saw New Zealand’s Courtney Duncan (Bike It DRT Kawasaki) storm to victory with a 1-1 results sheet, defeating Larissa Papenmeier (Yamaha) and No Fear Yamaha’s Nancy Van De Ven.
The MXGP World Championship nows heads to Uddevalla in Sweden this weekend for round 16 of the series.
Josh Brookes could barely have asked for a better weekend at the Cadwell Park BSB, with the two Superbike races seeing him record a 2-1 result to claim the 2019 King of the Mountain title, alongside a 12-point lead in the championship standings heading into Oulton Park.
Josh Brookes – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Danny Buchan took the Race 1 win from Brookes and Tommy Bridewell, with Scott Redding a distant fourth. Race 2 saw the trio once again dominate, this time led by Brookes, with Bridewell runner up by 0.476s and Buchan a more distant third.
The results left Josh Brookes holding the Superbike championship lead on 271-points, with Scott Redding on 259, and Tommy Bridewell on 243, with the three riders confirmed as Title Fighters in the Showdown as a result.
Josh Brookes – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Josh Brookes
“That’s the racing that I know I can do! In race one I didn’t have anything more for Danny, he deservingly won that race. Race two we went out with a new setting, a couple of little changes, I saw where Danny was stronger and realised where I wasn’t strong enough. Fortunately we were able to make a change to the bike to bridge that gap and then I had Tommy to battle with! It was a great race and Tommy was riding really, really well. I felt like I could see the way he was riding was every bit of the tyre it had, and then with a couple of laps to go I thought surely there’s got to be a little bit of a weakness in the grip area so I pounced to try and see if I could lead, and fortunately I was able to hold him at bay.”
Josh Brookes tops the Race 2 podium from Buchan and Bridewell – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
British Superbike Race 1
In the opening race of the day Brookes launched off the pole position into the lead on the opening lap from Danny Buchan, Jason O’Halloran and Tommy Bridewell. However, Oxford Racing Ducati’s Bridewell was instantly trying to make a move and dived ahead of O’Halloran on lap three.
Race Start – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Buchan was all over Brookes, but it wasn’t until the eleventh lap that he could make a move, which he did at Mansfield to snatch the lead. The FS-3 Racing Kawasaki rider continued to try to break away from the chasing Ducatis of Brookes and Bridewell, and at the chequered flag he managed to edge a gap of 1.047s.
Brookes kept Bridewell at bay as Scott Redding missed out on a debut podium at Cadwell Park. The Be Wiser Ducati rider was able to carve his way up through the field in a hard-fought race, running tenth over the opening laps before scoring a strong fourth place.
Josh Brookes – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Peter Hickman had been chasing down Redding; the pair able to take advantage of a mistake from Christian Iddon who had been running fourth, but ran off track on the final lap and managed to salvage sixth place.
O’Halloran was seventh as he held off the second Tyco BMW of Glenn Irwin, who led his brother Andrew to the chequered flag.
Jason O’Halloran – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Ryan Vickers completed the top 10 for the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki team ahead of Luke Stapleford and Gino Rea, who impressed on his debut with Bike Devil Sweda MV Agusta.
Race 1 podium 1) Danny Buchan, 2) Josh Brookes, 3) Tommy Bridewell – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
British Superbike Race 2
In race two Bridewell got off to a flying start, firing the Oxford Racing Ducati to the front of the pack ahead of Brookes and Buchan, with the BMWs of Hickman and Iddon in close pursuit.
Josh Brookes – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
The drama started early in the race, with Andrew Irwin colliding with Redding on the second lap, sending them both crashing out of the race. The Honda Racing rider was penalised with two penalty points for contact causing a crash which means, having reached a cumulative five penalty points, he will start from the back of the grid for the next race at Oulton Park.
At the front Bridewell was holding the lead until Brookes made a decisive move at Park corner on lap 12 and then he kept his rival at bay until the chequered flag with Buchan claiming another podium finish. The results mean that Brookes, Bridewell and Redding are now confirmed Title Fighters in the Showdown.
Josh Brookes – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Iddon moved to within 21 points of the Showdown with a fourth place for Tyco BMW, holding off Hickman in the closing stages of the race with Glenn Irwin taking his best result of the season on the second Tyco BMW in sixth.
Ryan Vickers was seventh for the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki team to claim his best result of his rookie season ahead of Luke Stapleford and Xavi Forés with Billy McConnell completing the top 10 on his stand-in appearance for OMG Racing Suzuki.
Peter Hickman – Cadwell Park BSB 2019
Jason O’Halloran finished 14th on the McAMS Yamaha in Race 2 and currently sits 10th in the overall standings.
Tomac earns third consecutive Pro Motocross title at Budds Creek
Section: Competition
McElrath breaks through for 250MX overall victory at the penultimate round.
Image: Supplied.
Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac has earned his third consecutive Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship with a dominant victory at Budds Creek’s penultimate round of the series.
The newly-crowned champion rode to a commanding 1-1 scorecard at the 11th round, stretching his points lead out to a title-winning 50-point margin.
The podium was completed by Jason Anderson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) in second and Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) in third, while top five was locked out by Ken Roczen (Team Honda HRC) and Zach Osborne (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing).
In the 250MX category, Shane McElrath (TLD Red Bull KTM) broke through for victory with a commanding 1-1 performance, he was joined on the podium by points leader Adam Cianciarulo (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) and Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha Star Racing).
Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha Star Racing) and RJ Hampshire (Geico Honda) were fourth and fifth respectively, while Australians – and brothers – Hunter Lawrence (Geico Honda) and Jett Lawrence (Amsoil Factory Connection Honda) finished 12th and 26th overall – the latter pulling in prior to the chequered flag in order to maintain amateur status.
The Pro Motocross championship wraps up this weekend at Ironman, marking the conclusion of a thrilling 12-round season.
There are movies and TV shows, not to mention books and comic books, that define their heroes, villains, perhaps antiheroes by the wheels they use to move around. These wheels, two or four, depending on the necessities of the plot, are sometimes placed inside the story by the courtesy of the show’s sponsors, in a practice called “product placement”. This is why various brands are depicted as the most reliable cars in the world. When it comes to motorcycles, though, product placement is pretty rare. This doesn’t mean motorcycle brands are not present in popular culture – but their brands are there not as a means of raising some funding but due to their meaning, mythos, and image.
Peter Fonda on Captain America in Easy Rider
Harley-Davidson is the brand that shows up most often in movies and TV shows, especially since the success of the legendary “Easy Rider” with the late Peter Fonda in the main role. There’s no telling how much of its popularity is due to its legendary status or clever marketing, but the fact remains: it’s arguably the best-known motorcycle brand in the world, with frequent cameos in various movies, TV shows, books, even comic books. Unfortunately, nobody ever made a list of all the movies that feature Harleys but here are some of the most famous ones: Meat Loaf rides a WLA in the cult classic “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”, Sylvester Stallone rode an FLH 80 in “Rocky III” and “Rocky V”, James Marshall rode a 1978 FLH-80 in the iconic TV series “Twin Peaks” (and the follow-up film “Fire Walk With Me”), and to have a more recent example, too, Chris Evans rode a Softail Cross Bones (made to look like a WLA) in “Captain America: The First Avenger).
The World’s Fastest Indian
Back in the early 1900s, Indian was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. It had quite a few popular models, like the Chief (between the 1920s and the 1950s) and the Scout (manufactured until 1946) but this didn’t stop the manufacturer from going bankrupt in 1953. Since then, several companies tried to revive the Indian brand, with various (usually limited) success.
Indian motorcycles show up in quite a few movies, quite often those taking place in the inter-war period. A 1934 Indian Sport Scout is featured in the 2001 war drama “Pearl Harbor”, Mark Wahlberg rides a customized Indian Scout in Ted 2, Jason Lee rides a blue 1933 Indian Chief owned by enthusiast Dennis Brilla of Plantsville in his movie “Good Ol’ Boy”, and Jean-Claude van Damme rides a beautiful 1950 Indian Chief in the 1999 action flick “Inferno” (also known as “Desert Heat”). One of the “revived” Indian bikes also tried to break into show business: in the forgettable “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines”, Arnold Schwarzenegger rides a 2002 Indian “Police” Chief (the bike was later sold at an auction for under $10,000).
The Great Escape
Finally, let’s take a look at the biggest and perhaps best-known British motorcycle brand in history, Triumph, that had its share of Hollywood spotlight. Triumph Engineering, the company behind the brand, was founded in 1885 and started producing bicycles in 1889, and motorcycles in 1902. The original company went bankrupt in 1983 and the brand ended up with its successor Triumph Motorcycles Ltd, becoming the largest UK-based motorcycle manufacturer.
Triumph bikes have shown up in the movies for ages – one of the first to do so is a Triumph Thunderbird 6T that Marlon Brando rode in the 1953 movie “The Wild One” (it was his own bike). One of the most famous performances by a Triumph bike was Steve McQueen’s iconic escape in “The Great Escape” – he rode a modified Triumph TR6 Trophy in the movie, modified to resemble a German BMW. Clint Eastwoodrode a Triumph Bonneville in “Coogan’s Bluff”, Pamela Anderson rides a Triumph Thunderbird in 1996’s infamous “Barb Wire”, Norman Reedus rides a chopped Triumph Bonneville from the 1960s in the popular post-apocalyptic TV series “The Walking Dead”, and Chris Pratt’s character rides a Triumph Scrambler in 2015’s “Jurassic World”.
The test will also include two press conferences. On Monday at 13:00 representatives from the FIM, Dorna and local authorities will talk to the media, with FIM President Jorge Viegas, Timo Pohjola, KymiRing Circuit Director, Tapio Nevala, President of the Finnish Motorcycle Federation, Aki Ajo from KTM, and Carlos Ezpeleta from Dorna Sports all present.
MotoGP™ ’19 places greater emphasis on bike set-up than ever before. Use this expert advice to tinker with suspension settings and the gearing of Quartararo’s Yamaha M1 so you can post a competitive time in the Final Draft, which could guarantee you one of the best MotoGP™ seats in the Global Series, the third and final stage of this year’s MotoGP™ eSports Championship.
The Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, made its annual visit to Budds Creek Motocross Park in Southern Maryland on Saturday, for the 30th running of the GEICO Motorcycle Budds Creek National.
The penultimate round of the 2019 season saw Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac sweep both motos to clinch his third consecutive 450 Class title, becoming just the fourth rider in history to achieve that impressive feat. The triumph also gave Tomac his class-leading fifth overall victory of the season.
In the 250 Class, Red Bull KTM’s Shane McElrath proved to be unstoppable as he swept both motos for his first win of the season.
Hunter Lawrence made his return from injury to card 10-13 results for 12th overall and is now 10th in the overall championship standings. Younger brother Jett made his second senior Pro Motocross start after recently turning 16 and scored 24-30 results.
450
The first 450 Class moto got underway with Rocky Mountain ATV/MC-KTM-WPS rider Justin Bogle emerging with his second MotoSport.com Holeshot of the season over Tomac and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne. Tomac immediately pushed his way to the front as he blasted around Bogle to lead the opening lap. Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczen once again used incredible speed to start the moto and blitzed his way towards the front into second, followed by Bogle.
Tomac dropped the hammer early in an attempt to break away, however, Roczen refused to let his rival go by upping his pace to keep Tomac in sight. With the leaders well out front, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Marvin Musquin was on the move, latching onto the rear fender of Bogle and eventually taking control of third on Lap 5. Tomac’s pace proved to be too much for Roczen to maintain as the race wore on, and the German lost ground in the second half of the 30-minute-plus-two-lap moto.
There was no stopping Tomac as he disappeared to take a commanding win by 13.9 seconds over Roczen. It marked the ninth moto win of the season for the multi-time defending champion. Musquin completed the podium in a distant third.
As the 450 Class field exited the first turn to start Moto 2 it was Osborne who narrowly edged out Tomac for the MotoSport.com Holeshot, just ahead of Roczen and Musquin. The lead for Osborne was short lived as Tomac powered his way to the front before the second turn. When the 40-rider field completed the opening lap it was Tomac, Roczen and Osborne out front.
Similar to the opening moto, Tomac and Roczen set the pace early and moved out to a comfortable gap on the riders that followed them. On Lap 2, Osborne’s Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing teammate Jason Anderson found his way by for third, while Musquin dropped Osborne another spot to fifth just moments later. Anderson’s march to the front continued as he began slowly closing in on Roczen, eventually taking control of the runner-up position on Lap 9. Roczen continued his charge from third.
Based on the running order in the waning minutes of the moto, Tomac had yet to move into a position to clinch the title. Roczen’s hold on third was enough to keep him within 49 points of Tomac in the championship standings, as the reigning champ needed a lead of 50 points to secure the title a round early.
With the racing closing in on the 30-minute mark, Roczen began to drop off of the pace, which allowed Musquin and several other riders to close in. Roczen’s title hopes were in serious jeopardy when Musquin began a challenge for the position on Lap 12. The German didn’t put up much of a fight, and Musquin took over third. Roczen proceeded to lose two more positions on the same lap.
Tomac left his rivals well behind to easily take his 10th moto win of the season by 14.9 seconds. Anderson finished runner-up for his fifth moto podium of the season, followed by Musquin in third. Roczen ended the moto seventh.
Tomac’s fifth win of 2019 came via his third 1-1 sweep of the season. The 22nd victory of his career moves him into a tie with Rick Johnson for fourth on the all-time 450 Class wins list.
In terms of the championship, Tomac’s win, combined with Musquin’s third-place finish in Moto 2, left Tomac with an exact 50-point advantage over the Frenchman, who overtook Roczen for second in points in the final moto.
With a potential season-ending tiebreaker already locked up in his favor, Tomac captured the Edison Dye Cup for the third year in a row, and did so a round early for the first time in his career. He joins Gary Jones, Tony DiStefano and Ricky Carmichael as the only riders in history to achieve the championship three-peat.
Eli Tomac
“This is such a special way to end the weekend, and not something I really anticipated happening with one round to go,” said Tomac. “I honestly didn’t even know I had the championship until the last lap. I thought that I needed one more spot from the guys behind me, so that was a little bit of a surprise. It was good to get the job done today. It’s tough to beat the first championship, but they’re all special and unique in their own ways.”
Eli Tomac
Jason Anderson’s 4-2 scores were good enough to finish the day second overall, edging out Musquin in third (3-3).
Marvin Musquin
“I had good practices today and the motos got rougher, harder and drier, which made it more difficult on the body and on the bike. My starts were actually pretty good but things happened in both motos that cost me a couple of positions early on. Overall, I gave my best and we just need to work a little more for those types of conditions.”
Marvin Musquin
While Tomac has wrapped up the 2019 title, thanks to his 50-point lead in the standings, the battle for runner-up in the championship will head to the final round in Indiana next weekend, with Musquin and Roczen separated by only five-points.
Jason Anderson
Jason Anderson and Zach Osborne are fourth and fifth respectively ahead of Cooper Webb while Justin Barcia’s 6-5 results at Red Bud sees him seventh in the 450cc AMA Pro Motocross Championship standings.
Justin Barcia
“I was riding solid and the bike set up was working well for me. I ended up getting a good start in Moto 1, battled near the front and ended up 6th in Moto 1. In the second Moto, I got another solid start. I was battling with (Zach) Osborne and a lot of other guys. I rode my butt off. We made a change before the second Moto and it was the right change. My starts have been good, it was nice to have the speed too. I’m now wishing the season wasn’t about to be over. It would have been good to be on the podium today, but we’re taking steps in the right direction.”
Justin Barcia
450 Class Overall Results (Moto Finish)
Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (1-1)
Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna (4-2)
Marvin Musquin, France, KTM (3-3)
Ken Roczen, Germany, Honda (2-7)
Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna (5-4)
Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha (6-5)
Dean Wilson, Scotland, Husqvarna (8-6)
Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha (9-9)
Benny Bloss, Oak Grove, Mo., KTM (7-11)
Kyle Cunningham, Willow Park, Texas, Honda (11-8)
450 Class Championship Standings
Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 476
Marvin Musquin, France, KTM – 426
Ken Roczen, Germany, Honda – 421
Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna – 376
Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna – 365
Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM – 324
Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha – 283
Fredrik Noren, Sweden, Suzuki – 218
Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., KTM – 210
Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., KTM – 175
250
The opening 250 Class moto of the afternoon saw Ty Masterpool capture his second holeshot of the season ahead of McElrath and Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo. A quick move by Cianciarulo allowed him to take over second from McElrath, following Masterpool across the line to complete the opening lap. Cianciarulo’s championship rivals, and Yamaha Racing teammates, Justin Cooper and Dylan Ferrandis started the race outside of the top-10 and top-20, respectively.
With Masterool riding well at the front of the field, Cianciarulo applied pressure early until an off track excursion cost him several positions on Lap 2, from which he reentered the race in fifth. McElrath and Kawasaki’s Martin Davalos took advantage of Cianciarulo’s mistake to inherit the second and third spots. McElrath began closing in on the race leader and used an aggressive move on Lap 5 to take the lead from Masterpool.
McElrath quickly went to work out front and instantly began to open a gap over his fellow competitors, while Cianciarulo regrouped and started working his way back through the pack of riders ahead of him. Cianciarulo successfully battled back inside the top three on Lap 4, and then forced his way by Masterpool for second on Lap 9. Just moments later, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Michael Mosiman also found his way around Masterpool, taking over third.
As McElrath and Cianciarulo remained in control of the top two spots, the battle began to heat up for third as GEICO Honda’s RJ Hampshire started to bridge the gap on Mosiman. Hampshire, who won the Budds Creek National one year ago, was on a mission and pushed Mosiman out of the way for third on Lap 13.
When the checkered flag waved it was McElrath who put in a dominant performance to take his first moto win of the season by 8.7 seconds over Cianciarulo. Hampshire held on for an impressive third, giving him his third moto podium of 2019. Ferrandis’ hard charge from deep in the field carried him to fourth, narrowly missing out on the podium, while Cooper followed just a couple positions behind in sixth.
The deciding 250 Class moto saw McElrath lead the field through the first turn for the holeshot, with Yamaha Racing’s Mitchell Oldenburg and Suzuki Factory Racing’s Alex Martin in tow. McElrath and Oldenburg went back and forth on the opening lap, with McElrath eventually taking the upper hand. A wild start to the race saw Cianciarulo just inside of the top-10, while Ferrandis was outside of the top-20. Hampshire found himself down in a first-turn pileup.
McElrath continued his impressive riding out front, while Oldenburg and Martin continued giving chase. Martin grabbed a handful of throttle and charged to the inside of Oldenburg to steal second while coming down Henry Hill. Oldenburg continued to lose ground as Cooper, who started fourth, snuck around his teammate for third. Cooper’s pace allowed him to catch Martin late in the moto, where the Yamaha rider successfully made the pass for second.
In their quest to come through the pack, championship rivals Cianciarulo and Ferrandis soon found themselves next to one another on the track. As they fought their way forward through the halfway point of the moto, Ferrandis pulled the trigger on a pass and initiated slight contact with Cianciarulo, forcing the point leader to briefly halt his momentum as Ferrandis surged ahead. The duo would continue gaining positions, with both eventually making their way into the top five.
Shane McElrath
Just like the first moto, McElrath remained unchallenged out front and took the victory by 7.7 seconds over Cooper. Martin rebounded from a difficult first moto to take his fifth moto podium of the season in third. Ferrandis and Cianciarulo crossed the line fourth and fifth, respectively. Hampshire recovered from his first-turn incident to take eighth.
The 1-1 scores by McElrath marked just his second and third career moto victories, and capped off what was undoubtedly the best race of his career. The KTM rider did not win either moto en route to his first-career victory last season.
Shane McElrath
Shane McElrath
“It’s been a true test to my fate this season,” said McElrath. “The results haven’t been what we wanted, but we never gave up and just kept at it and giving it our best. The conditions were brutal today and this feeling is crazy. It feels really good to get it done and walk away with the overall win today.”
Shane McElrath
Despite a difficult second moto in which he failed to finish inside the top three for just the third time this season, Cianciarulo still managed to grab second overall on the day (2-5), while Cooper completed the podium in third (6-2).
Adam Cianciarulo
“My mentality is just to do the best I can every moto,” said Cianciarulo, who is the only rider in Pro Motocross to finish on the overall podium at every round this season. “It’s nice to have a little cushion heading into the final round, which definitely takes some pressure off. Ironman [Raceway] is a track that I feel like suits me well, and I just want to go in there and have the goal to go for another win.”
Adam Cianciarulo
Cianciarulo extended his lead in the championship by two points over Ferrandis and now holds a 30-point advantage heading into the final round in what will be a two-rider showdown for the Gary Jones Cup.
Cooper effectively clinched third in the championship with his podium result and sits 60 points behind Cianciarulo, eliminating the Yamaha rider from title contention.
Justin Cooper
And how about the Aussies…?
Hunter Lawrence made his return from injury to card 10-13 results for 12th overall and is now 10th in the overall championship standings.
Younger brother Jett made his second senior Pro Motocross start after recently turning 16 and scored 24-30 results.
The 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship will host its final round of the season next Saturday, August 24, from Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
250 Class Overall Results (Moto Finish)
Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM (1-1)
Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki (2-5)
Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha (6-2)
Dylan Ferrandis, France, Yamaha (4-4)
RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Honda (3-8)
Cameron McAdoo, Sioux City, Iowa, KTM (8-9)
Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Honda (12-6)
Ty Masterpool, Paradise, Texas, Yamaha (7-11)
Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Suzuki (18-3)
Michael Mosiman, Sebastopol, Calif., Husqvarna (5-14)
250 Class Championship Standings
Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki – 479
Dylan Ferrandis, France, Yamaha – 449
Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha – 419
RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Honda – 310
Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha – 292
Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Honda – 278
Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Suzuki – 277
Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM – 260
Michael Mosiman, Sebastopol, Calif., Husqvarna – 258
Hunter Lawrence, Australia, Honda – 252
Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship GEICO Motorcycle Budds Creek National Budds Creek Motocross Park – Mechanicsville, Maryland, August 17, 2019
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