race in Florida but dropped out
when he crashed in the sand and
was overcome by the heat. In
Georgia, however, Toth looked
strong the entire race and picked
up the pace at the end when Craig
DeLong started to close. Toth
claimed the runner-up slot, which
marked his best finish since round
eight of the 2020 season.
"It felt awesome to be back up
there riding with Ben," said Toth.
"I made a mistake on lap one
and Jordan [Ashburn] and Ben
got away. I started following their
lines and seeing where they were
going. It was mayhem with all the
ruts and mud holes out there on
lap one. I didn't know what to ex-
pect coming into this weekend. I
was exhausted, but just rode my
own race and gave it everything I
had. Stoked to be in second."
DeLong finished third, his
first-ever podium in the XC1
class. The Rockstar Energy
Husqvarna rider got off to a slow
start, but settled into a fast and
steady pace, letting the race
come to him. The Pennsylvania
rider passed teammate Trevor
Bollinger at the halfway mark to
move into third before gaining
ground on Toth.
"I screwed up the first couple
miles and was in the back and
playing catchup," said DeLong.
"I finally got riding good at the
end of the first lap and into the
second lap. Me and Trevor [Bol-
linger] hooked up and we were
going back and forth for a good
bit. Then I got around him and
I kind of rode by myself there
three-quarters of the way through
the race. I was getting pit boards
that I was kind of closing on Toth
a little bit, so I put my head down
and on the last lap and pushed. I
kind of wish I started my charge
a little sooner, but it happens.
You live and you learn."
AmPro Yamaha's Mike Wit-
kowski turned in another superb
race, winning the XC2 250 Pro
division for the third-straight round
and finishing fourth overall despite
crashing on the first lap and
knocking things out of whack.
"I got off to a bad start and
VOLUME 58 ISSUE 11 MARCH 15, 2022 P33
Mike Witkowski topped the XC2 class.
