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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1540547
the lead. Walker followed suit moments later, and the 2022 champion set his sights on the defending titleist. The two went wheel-to-wheel in an intense battle, with Walker showing Hart his front wheel on multiple occa - sions before finally making the pass stick. The power advantage of Walker's 450cc Triumph—up- graded from the 250cc four- stroke he campaigned in limited appearances last year—proved decisive as he pulled away to a commanding victory. "The second race was a good confidence boost coming from last to first," Walker said. Hart held on for second, while Webb claimed third. Max Ger - ston continued his strong ride with fourth, and LeBlond fell back to fifth after his second- place moto-one finish. Haaker recovered from early struggles to finish sixth. LeBlond grabbed the Acerbis Holeshot to start moto three, with Walker and Hart in close pursuit. Walker wasted little time, quickly dispatching LeB - lond to take the lead, with Hart following into second. But drama struck on lap two. Hart encountered trouble, first making contact with LeBlond and going over the bars, which knocked his breakaway visor off of his helmet. Then, in a scene Hart described as coming "out of the Matrix," Nick Thompson and Hart collided mid-air, with Hart T-boning Thompson. The impact sent Hart tumbling back to ninth place. "Jonny and Ryder both got the jump on me," Hart said. "I came into Ryder, went over the bars, broke my visor off. Then Thompson comes out of the Matrix while I'm in the air, and I just T-boned the crap out of him. I went way back, almost last, I'm sure." Up front, Walker extended his lead to 13 seconds, setting a blistering pace that no one could match. LeBlond held second through the middle portions of the race, while Haaker charged hard into third, hunting down his former Husqvarna teammate. Behind them, Hart mounted an incredible comeback charge. Despite the broken visor and significant deficit, the defending champion clawed his way back through the field, picking off riders one by one in the closing laps. "I went like a bat out of hell those last five laps and went from like 14th up to 5th," Hart said. "Some of the guys didn't know if I was lapping them or rac - ing them, so some of them were WIND IN THE P46 Colton Haaker is back. The former champ has come out of retirement on a private Kawasaki.