Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1526730
lap, Russell, just returning from a shoulder injury, pulled to the side of the trail when his knee popped out of place, forcing him to pull out of the race. Later in the lap, Girroir hit a tree and was forced to pit early to repair the damage. Girroir dropped outside of the top 30 after the repairs and things were looking dire for his bid for an early championship. "I put myself in a good spot near the front at the start, but in the first mile everything came undone when I tagged a tree and broke the clutch line," said Girroir. "I had no clutch the whole first lap. I don't know how I made it up some of those hills and through the tight rocky sections. I pulled in the pits to get it fixed, and I watched everyone go by me. I was melting down, and I just went out there and just put my head down and that's all I can say. I was in the dust crashing off the rocks getting up getting mad - der and madder and madder, and I guess that's what it took. I never gave up and I rode my heart out. That last lap I had no idea if I got the job done, so I came off the track a little upset." For Ashburn, the 2022 series champ, and a rider who looks for- ward to difficult conditions, the win was his first of the season. "I got a good start and kind of got bumped by Mike Witkowski a little bit, and I was dropped back to fourth," said Ashburn. "I made a quick pass on Craig DeLong [Rockstar Energy Husqvarna] go - ing down the hill, and then I was behind Johnny G and Witkowski. I was probably already 15 sec- onds back, and you couldn't see anything, but I wanted to get out front and just charge and lead the day and that's what we did. I was comfortable with the conditions, and it ended up being a good day." After entering the woods in last place, Baylor started the dif - ficult task of working his way to the front. When he got the news that Girroir was in the pits, Bay - lor knew he had a good chance to make up ground on the points leader. But lady luck was not on his side, and he suffered a DNF. "I got off on the wrong foot by getting a last-place start, and it went downhill from there," said Baylor. "We had our bikes dialed in all week, but I guess I blew it. I was last place into the woods, and I could just see a pileup of XC1 guys. I couldn't stop and I joined them on the ground. You couldn't see what was going on the track; it was deadly out there. Finally, I was, like 'You know what, change your mind - set.' I was thinking about my kid, like, I didn't want to send it, but at the end of the day, this is my job; this will pay the bills; turn that brain off, and it was time to go to work. The last couple of laps, and I gave it everything I had and made three or four passes on the last lap. I just got into a bad situation trying to pass a slower rider, and I ended up catching a rock, and it pushed my clutch cover into the basket." Draper, who claimed his second-in-a-row runner-up finish in the XC1 class, is looking like a legitimate contender for the 2025 season. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna's Trevor Bollinger claimed his best finish of the season, with a third overall. "I've had a lot of injuries the past couple of years," Bol - linger said. "It seems like every- one's kind of giving up on me, but it feels good to finally prove everybody wrong and land on the podium." FMF KTM Factory Racing Team Landers' Grant Davis, the overall winner of the previous round from the XC2 class, was fourth overall and first in the XC2 Pro 250 class. VOLUME ISSUE SEPTEMBER , P33 Jordan Ashburn ran off with the overall win.