VOLUME 57 ISSUE 7 FEBRUARY 19, 2020 P57
said. "But I just really picked a better
gate [in the races], got better traction,
and it was so nice to come around in
some clean air instead of banging el-
bows into that first turn. That was huge
for us to have that improvement."
By the time Tomac got into second,
though, Cianciarulo had already sprint-
ed out to a three-second-plus lead.
Tomac, however, started to slowly eat
into Cianciarulo's lead until he utilized
WHIPLASH
Although he qualified for the main
event, Blake Baggett (Rocky
Mountain ATV-MC KTM) did not
show up on the start line. Baggett
had a big get-off in his heat race
when he clipped another racer
in the air. He was up quickly and
seemed fine as he raced his way
forward to finish eighth in the heat
and qualify for the main event.
However, between his heat race
and the main event, the pain from
his wreck began to set in, and he
decided against lining up for the
Tampa 450SX main event. Indica-
tions are that he should be good
to go by this weekend's Triple
Crown race in Arlington, Texas,
though.
BROC'S BACK
After completing his two-year
suspension for testing positive
for a banned substance at the
San Diego Supercross, Broc
Tickle made his return at Tampa.
His original plan was to race a
Husqvarna in Florida but was
recruited by the JGR/Yoshimura
Suzuki Factory Racing Team as
a fill-in rider for the injured Joey
Savatgy and Fredrik Noren. Tick-
le stayed busy the last two years
training and testing and looked
like his old self at Tampa. Tickle
finished fourth in his heat race,
holding off round-one winner
Justin Barcia for the whole race,
and then finished a solid 12th in
the main event. "My first race
back in almost two years was
filled with emotions," Tickle said.
"I'm very happy with how smooth
and calm I stayed throughout the
day. I felt like I haven't missed a
beat after being away."
JIMMY D
Jimmy Decotis (JGR/Yoshimura
Suzuki Factory Racing) was
hoping to compete for the
250SX East title this year, but
he crashed in the middle of the
week before the Tampa series
opener and suffered a fractured
pelvis. Still, that didn't prevent
Decotis from racing. He sat out
the first untimed practice ses-
sion and the first timed practice
session, but came out for the
final qualifying session to get into
the night show, qualifying 23rd
despite having trouble gripping
the bike with his legs. He fin-
ished way back in his heat race,
but he won the 250SX LCQ.
Despite going down in the first
turn, Decotis finished ninth in the
main event.
UNWANTED RECORD
With his win in Tampa, Tomac
extended a record that he
doesn't actually want. Tampa
marked the 30th premier-class
win, which is by far the most
races ever won by a racer who
has never won the premier title.
The previous record-holder was
Damon Bradshaw, who won 19
main events and never won the
championship.
HILL HOUSE!
The Tampa Supercross marked
a big night for the Hill broth-
ers, Josh and Justin. Josh Hill
returned to racing at the Tampa
Supercross on a ClubMX/Mon-
ster Energy/Fox Racing-backed
Yamaha YZ250F. Josh Hill is
now 30 years old and has spent
the bulk of the past few years
doing occasional fun races and
Briefly...
