VOLUME 59 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 18, 2022 P37
Both riders are former winners
of the event, Roczen winning the
last edition of the race back in
2019 while Musquin has won in
the three times he's raced.
The German rider, aboard a Bob
"Hurricane" Hannah-inspired Yama-
ha YZ250, set the fastest qualifying
time earlier in the day and looked
to be the one to beat. Roczen's
whoop speed and massive scrubs
over the big tabletop jump allowed
him to eliminate eventual third-
place finisher, Justin Barcia.
Musquin rode a KTM 250 SX
with graphics to match his 2010
MX2 World Championship bike.
The French rider kept his perfect
streak alive as he worked his way
through brackets with riders like
Josh Hansen and his KTM team-
mate Aaron Plessinger.
As rain began to fall on the
Huntington Beach course,
Musquin and Roczen squared off
for the final bracket. The drop-
off start proved to be key as the
slick takeoff could be a make-
or-break spot for the run. In both
runs, Musquin held off Roczen
in the left and right lanes to take
the win without having to race
a third and final matchup. This
marks Musquin's fourth Straight
Rhythm win in four appear-
ances.
"For some reason, to be
honest with you, I thought it was
going to be a lot harder than
that," Musquin said. "Obviously
the rain played a lot of factors.
Kenny was really, really fast all
day."
In the 125s it was Carson
Brown who held it down as the
fastest rider of the day. The in-
ternet sensation, who also won
the 125cc Straight Rhythm in
2018, was arguably the favorite
coming into the event. Brown
unlocked a key triple-triple line
to stay in the hunt and defeat
Josh Varize in the final bracket.
Varize's AEO Powersports KTM
teammate and KTM rider Derek
Kelley, rounded out the 125
podium.
Ryan Nitzen
250cc
1. Marvin Musquin (KTM)
2. Ken Roczen (Yam)
3. Justin Barcia (GG)
125cc
1. Carson Brown (KTM)
2. Josh Varize (KTM)
3. Derek Kelley (KTM)
Winner Carson Brown (center),
runner-up Josh Varize (left) and
Derek Kelly made up the 125cc
podium.
PHOTO: BROWNDOG WILSON
