MOTOCROSS
49TH THOR MINI O'S, PRESENTED BY PRO CIRCUIT
NOVEMBER 23-29, 2020
GATORBACK CYCLE PARKE / GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA
P52
In the 250 Pro Sport MX
class, Kitchen came into the final
race with a win in his heat race,
while Rock River Yamaha's Nate
Thrasher came into the final with
a third. It was Thrasher, however,
with the holeshot to start the 10-
lap final moto, with Kitchen and
KTM's Scharer in tow.
Knowing he would still need
some help to win the overall
even if he finished first in the
final moto, Thrasher put his head
down and pushed as hard as
he could. On the other hand,
Kitchen knew a second in the
moto was all he needed to with
the title, so the Washington native
was content to maintain a safe
second to Thrasher. Midway into
the race, LeBlanc started a run
through the pack and on lap five
he passed Scharer for third.
With the order set for the moto,
Thrasher took the win in race
two with Kitchen in second and
LeBlanc third, giving Kitchen
the overall with a 1-2 moto finish.
Thrasher was second overall at
3-1 while LeBlanc was third over-
all at 3-3.
Luke Kalaitzian grabbed the
holeshot at the start of the 450
A final moto and led a talented
entry into the opening lap, with
Thrasher and LeBlanc running
second and third. LeBlanc went
down midway into the opening
lap, bumping Cullin Park up to
third, while up front Thrasher
made a move to take the lead
away from Kalaitzian.
Park moved to within striking dis-
tance of Kalaitzain then made the
pass. Meanwhile, Thrasher held a
seven-second lead out front.
Counting his heat race win,
Thrasher's moto win was good
enough for the overall, with Park
getting second overall with a 4-2
performance. Christian Fernan-
dez went 3-3 for third overall.
Thrasher and Kitchen locked
horns in the second moto of the
250 A motocross division, with
Thrasher taking the early lead
ahead of Kitchen with Park in
third. Slade Smith was fourth with
LeBlanc, hoping to redeem him-
self from his mishap in the 450 A
class, running fifth. Unfortunately
for LeBlanc, he went down again
on lap three and dropped out of
the top 20.
With one lap to go, Kitchen
moved to within striking distance
