VOLUME 56 ISSUE 25 JUNE 25, 2019 P45
vious three stops, Smage swept
both days of the Oregon round,
winning Saturday's event by 36
points and Sunday's round by 25.
"All my points were basically
single dabs here and there, just
either not knowing what traction
was there and almost being a little
bit on the safe side, or ending up
spinning, getting slightly off line,
finding myself in a bad spot and
having to take a one just to make
sure I got out of it without end-
ing up with a five," said Smage.
"Even with the title wrapped up
coming in here, for some reason
I still felt the same pressure. I was
hoping that wouldn't be the case,
so maybe that won't change until
I'm done riding the pro class. It's
just something I feel like I have to
do to ride my best."
FactoryONE/Scorpa's Karl
Davis Jr. and GasGas North
America teammates Alex Niederer
and Daniel Blanc-Gonnet came
into the weekend tied for second
place in the final series stand-
ings. Niederer left Oregon with
the runner-up spot thanks to an
impressive second-place finish
on Sunday; however, things were
looking grim for the Florida rider
after he finished fifth on Saturday.
"I was afraid I was out of the
running after my finish on Sat-
urday," said Niederer. "Luckily, I
had one of my best days of the
season on Sunday and managed
to pull it out. It's definitely a dream
come true. I worked my butt off
all year, and it paid off."
Davis was second behind
Smage on Saturday, but his sixth
on Sunday dropped him to third
overall in the final standings.
Blanc-Gonnet was consistent in
the slippery conditions, finishing
with a pair of fourths, leaving him
fourth overall in the standings.
Rookie Pro Josh Roper turned
in his best performances of the
season with a pair of third-place
finishes, putting him in fifth overall
in the final standings and top
rookie.
"These were definitely more
my style of sections even though
it was a little bit slippery," said
Roper. "I was able to find a
groove and find traction."
Having wrapped up the Expert
title on Saturday, FactoryONE/
Scorpa rider Will Myers (brother
of Alex Myers) moved to the Pro
class where he finished ninth.
British rider Oliver Smith, of
Oset fame, attended the event
and finished ninth on Saturday.
Shan Moore
Saturday
1. Pat Smage (Shr) 8
2. Karl Davis Jr. (Sco) 44
3. Josh Roper (Shr) 47
4. Daniel Blanc-Gonnet (GG) 62
5. Alex Niederer (GG) 64
Sunday
1. Pat Smage (Shr) 10
2. Alex Niederer (GG) 35
3. Josh Roper (Shr) 42
4. Daniel Blanc-Gonnet (Shr) 46
5. Alex Myers (Sco) 53
It came down to the final day for Alex Niederer
to clinch second in the championship.
Karl Davis Jr.
was second on
day one but saw
his chances of
finishing second
in the series
evaporate on
day two.
