VOL. 54 ISSUE 35 SEPTEMBER 6, 2017 P55
MX2
RJ Hampshire didn't know much
of what to expect from the GP
regulars in Florida, but he's from
the Sunshine State, so he at
least had to know he was going
to be prepared to brave the ele-
ments. Hampshire started well
in moto one, just behind fellow
American Thomas Covington
and chased the fastest quali-
fier around for the first few laps
before he found his way by.
Then Hampshire withstood the
pressure to hang on for the moto
win, just about three seconds in
front of Covington and Suzuki's
Australian up-and-comer Hunter
Lawrence.
But to do it once is one thing.
To back it up in the second
moto is something else. Again,
Covington nailed the holeshot in
moto two, but this time Hamp-
shire wasted no time in taking
the lead. Eventually, Covington
began to fade a bit, and Hamp-
shire barely managed to hold
off Lawrence and his teammate
Jeremy Seewer at the finish, but
he did.
"I kind of sprinted early, and
then he got me in the sand
there, and then, you know, it's
hot out here," Hampshire said.
"The boys aren't used to the
Florida heat. It was good. I got
that lead, and kind of held it.
Man, it felt good.
Florida's own RJ Hampshire
surprised everyone by winning both
MX2 motos. Here, he leads third
overall Thomas Covington.
