VOLUME ISSUE JANUARY , P51
down the road. "Good start in the
heat and some good opening
laps, stayed consistent and got my
first-ever heat race win [in just two
tries]!" Prado said. "I was super
happy about that because I'm not
a big mud specialist. Then, in the
main event, the gate dropped very
quickly, and I got a bad start."
Prado might be used to mud races
but said he's never ridden in any-
thing like this.
PODIUM SHUT OUT
Team Honda suffered a podium
shutout at San Francisco. "This is
the first time that we haven't been
on the podium with any of our rid-
ers since Anaheim 3, 2022, which
is an incredible record, I think,"
said Honda HRC Team Manager
Lars Lindstrom. "As everyone
knows, mud races can really
shake things up, which can be the
exciting part of them. They're also
a great teacher, and we'll take
this opportunity to learn instead of
sulking about our results."
HARD WORKERS
A mud race like the one in San
Francisco is a nightmare for the
mechanics. Hunter Lawrence
gave kudos to his Honda crew.
"The main takeaway from tonight
is that the heroes of our sport are
the mechanics," Lawrence said.
"They had to work incredibly hard
Briefly...
improvement for Tomac, who proved he's
fully healed from last year's season-ending
injury. He's tied for third in the series
standings.
"This is where I want to be," Tomac
said. "Anaheim one was tough for me. I
was just totally off, rode tight, and there
was nothing good about it. But here, I put
myself in a great position from the start.
It was so key to be at least top three and
not get sprayed with mud through that first
turn. That was my plan, and I was able to
execute that and stay on two wheels. The
conditions were so treacherous; honestly,
it was one of the toughest mud races I've
(Left) Ken Roczen fought from the back to
take the final podium spot. (Below) Last
week's winner Jett Lawrence struggled all
night in the mud. (Bottom) Shane McElrath
used the mud to his advantage to score fourth,
one of his best finishes in a long time.
