VOLUME 59 ISSUE 35 AUGUST 30, 2022 P63
let my guard down too much and
he obviously took advantage of
that. And once he passed me he
ran away—I should've been more
focused when I got to the lead and
that was my fault, but I was able to
get to the front in the second moto
and conserve a bit of energy."
Despite taking second overall,
Tomac was on another level. His
ride in the first moto was unworld-
ly, as he dropped the hammer
and set the fastest lap of the race
with just two to go. In one lap, he
put four seconds on Sexton and
sealed the deal for the moto win.
He did it again in race two, setting
a faster lap time despite the track
being much worse off. Tomac was
on the hunt and cut down Sex-
ton's lead from eight seconds to
one on Sexton's teammate, Ken
Roczen, before taking over the
number-two slot.
Despite making a valiant ef-
fort and bobble late in the race,
Tomac had to give up the fight and
give back the points he gained on
Sexton a few hours earlier.
So, the championship will
be decided at the series final
at Pala, California, where Sex-
ton won both motos earlier in
the year. Tomac went 7-4, so it
appears Sexton might have the
advantage in the series decider.
Simply put, Sexton will need to
beat Tomac in both motos at Pala
to clinch the title.
"When I passed him [Tomac] I
knew it wasn't the last time I'd be
seeing him," said Sexton. "I maybe
MYOWNRACE
49 NATE THRASHER
5TH (4-6) 250MX
Nate Thrasher led at Ironman and eventu-
ally logged a season best with fi h overall.
"It was a be er day, for sure," Thrasher
said. "I was able to get good starts two
weekends in a row and got my first
holeshot today. Last weekend at Budds
Creek, I ended up going down, but this
week I was able to lead for a good part of
the race. I felt like I had the speed to be
up there today, but I ran into a li le bit
of arm pump and rode a li le ght. For
the second moto, I didn't have much le
in the tank for that one. We're making
strides in the right direc on. It's a stacked
field with a lot of people back from injury,
so we'll take it."
24 RJ HAMPSHIRE
4TH (2-4) 250MX
A er winning the overall last weekend,
many had their eyes on RJ Hampshire. "It
was a be er day, for sure," he said. "I was
able to get good starts two weekends in a
row and got my first holeshot today. Last
weekend at Budds Creek, I ended up going
down, but this week I was able to lead for
a good part of the race. I felt like I had the
speed to be up there today, but I ran into
a li le bit of arm pump and rode a li le
Aaron Plessinger
was stoked to
finish out the day
on the podium.
