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/547248
VOL. 52 ISSUE 30 JULY 28, 2015 P89 Briefly... the points lead. Cooper Webb was not happy with Marvin Musquin after the first 250 moto and let everyone know it. In the wet conditions, Webb and Musquin got into a heated battle for the lead toward the end of the race. Webb had been leading the previous eight laps when Musquin came calling, and the KTM rider slipped and slid his way around Webb for the even- tually moto win. Webb, who is never known to hold back his feelings, called out Musquin from the podium and even on live TV. "He [Musquin] was cross jumping; in my opinion, that's bullcrap," Webb said. "He about clipped my front wheel three or four times, so if I get a chance, I'm going to put him on the ground and teach him a lesson." Luckily, that never happened. Musquin said, "He was really mad at me, but we were racing; I slid and cut in front of him. I know it was kind of dangerous but we were racing for the champion- ship." After the second moto and clinching the overall, Webb cooled off and made amends with Musquin. "I was a little angry after the first moto," Webb said. "I apologized; I was being an idiot. I was just mad and frustrated. He beat me fair and square—little aggressive or not that's racing." "It's all good," Musquin said. Despite seeing Jeremy Martin's points lead get cut two/thirds, it was a pretty good day for the Yamalube/ Star Racing Team. Not only did Coo- per Webb get the 250-class win but Aaron Plessinger finished out the day on the podium for the first time of his young career. Plessinger went Martin by 19 points going into the Washougal race but left just four back. A bad 13-place first-moto start and one very untimely fall—another mud-induced tip-over—while leading late in the second moto ruined Mar- tin's day and compromised his title hopes significantly. Martin's uncharacteristic 9-3 tally came at a very bad time in the season—with just three rounds left. Things are get- ting interesting. CN 450 NATIONAL 1. Ryan Dungey (KTM) 2-1 2. Justin Barcia (Yam) 1-2 3. Christophe Pourcel (Hus) 3-5 4. Ken Roczen (Suz) 7-3 5. Phil Nicoletti (Yam) 4-6 6. Weston Peick (Yam) 12-4 7. Fredrik Noren (Hon) 9-7 8. Trey Canard (Hon) 8-9 9. Blake Baggett (Suz) 5-12 10. Josh Grant (Kaw) 11-8 250 NATIONAL 1. Cooper Webb (Yam) 2-1 2. Marvin Musquin (KTM) 1-2 3. Aaron Plessinger (Yam) 3-4 4. Christian Craig (Hon) 4-5 5. Jeremy Martin (Yam) 9-3 6. Jessy Nelson (KTM) 6-8 7. Shane McElrath (KTM) 11-6 8. Mitchell Oldenburg (KTM) 8-9 9. Zach Osborne (Hus) 7-11 10. Arnaud Tonus (Kaw) 3-20 and finish in the top 10. I definitely want more." 28 JESSY NELSON 6 TH OA (6-8) 250 Jessy Nelson had a good first moto, finishing right behind Aaron Plessinger in fifth. A bad start in the second moto ended any chance he had of finishing out the day on the podium. "Today was a tough day with the rain," said Nelson. "Vision was definitely a key factor to running a good race in moto one. Thankfully I got a good enough start to stay up near the front group. I'm looking for- ward to the final off-weekend before heading back east to Unadilla." 1 KEN ROCZEN 4 TH OA (7-4) 450 Defending champ Ken Roczen lost more ground on points lead Ryan Dungey, and he saw Justin Barcia catch him from behind in points; they're now tied. Roczen says he's still struggling a bit with bike setup and couldn't come to terms with the mud, though he gave Barcia and Dungey a run early in the second moto before slipping back. "I strug- gled in moto one, really bad," said Roczen. "I got off to a bad start and just got blasted. My helmet ended up being so heavy that I could barely see. I had to throw my goggles off and ride without them. It's really tough in those types of weather con- ditions to make something happen. I think I ended up seventh. Going into the second moto, I got a better start. I raced with Dungey and Barcia for quite awhile. We were all running pretty close. In the end, I ended up in third place. Obviously, not where we want to be but it is what it is." The Rockstar Energy/Star Racing Yamaha Team was well represented on the 250-class podium. Aaron Plessinger (left), a former off-roader who is an accomplished mud rider, got on the podium for the first time of his career, and Cooper Webb pulled off another win. continued on next page