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SUPERCROSS M O N S T E R E N E R G Y A M A S U P E R C R O S S , A N F I M W O R L D C H A M P I O N S H I P ROUND 3 / JANUARY 20, 2018 ANGEL STADIUM OF ANAHEIM / ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA P64 formatted, it was kind of tough to work your way back from a bad start. So, I'm definitely going to work on starts this week—that's the main focus at this point. It's not like I'm riding bad, you just have to put yourself in a good position. It will come, I work hard to be the best I can be and I'm confident that we'll get there. We'll build each and every week and get back on our feet. After this weekend it was a tough one to swallow." 10 JUSTIN BRAYTON 4TH 450SX (2-6-3) At 33 years of age, Justin Brayton is the second-oldest rider in the field (only Chad Reed is older), but he's riding as though he is in his early 20s. He rode well all night— as he had during the off-season—and just missed out on making the podium. The reason for his recent success? "I think the main thing is just starts," he said. "This whole year I've felt really, really comfortable and that's the main thing is coming in with confidence. I've run with all these guys before. I've beat them all before, so there's no reason why I can't now. I just feel great. Got to give it up to my whole team SmarTop Moto Concepts, Bullfrog Spas, Honda. It's just been fun. I can't wait to keep it rolling, keep getting good starts and get a podium overall here soon." 14 COLE SEELY 2ND 450SX (1-2-7) Cole Seely seemed to take his aggression out at Anaheim II after a so-so start to the season, which included getting passed by Justin Barcia late in the race last week at Houston which cost him a podium finish. "Yeah, I [have been] frustrated, it's just, we have a lot of competition this year," he said. Seely was looking good for the overall go- ing into the final race but a bad start cost him the victory. "That last little bit to close the deal—these guys are riding really good, which really ups the pressure," he said. "But I knew I was riding really well in the first two mains, the start just got me [in the third race]. I think I came around in 14th after the first lap; it was hectic coming up through the crowd. Those guys were not giving me an inch. I was kind of scared there a little bit; I felt like I had the win in my grasps and these guys were trying to take it from me. I just ran out of steam there at the end. I was more happy with my second-moto per- formance. Eli was going fast and to able to stick with him and kind of catch up before I made a mistake…it was definitely a confidence booster [going into the last race]." 32 CHRISTIAN CRAIG 3RD 250SX WEST (2-3-5) Christian Craig rebounded nicely after suffering an ankle injury just before the Houston round. He had a consistent night keeping him in the championship hunt. "Man, espe- cially after last week, it was kind of like a downfall for me, with the ankle," Craig said. "I still salvaged out some points [in Houston], but I was so motivated this week. I don't know what it was, but something just hit me and I'm like, 'I've got to start making some stuff happen.' I'm getting up there in the age and there's not much time left for me with this racing thing. I need to make the best of it. So whenever these opportunities come, like, I've just got to get those starts, like I did in all three of those races. I started out front and ran with those guys, putting consistent laps in. And I'm finally showing myself. During the week I'm riding so good and so confident, so to bring it to the race finally, I'm happy." 1 JUSTIN HILL 10TH 250SX WEST (11-9-9) Despite another subpar (for him) outing, defending 250SX West Champion Justin Hill felt Anaheim II had some positives. "Truth be told, I actually felt really good in com- parison to Houston last weekend," he said. "I think I could have put in a really fast lap if I would have gotten a lap in qualifying where the track wasn't so hectic. The Triple Crown format made starts all the more crucial, but I was awful off the gate. This week I'm going to work on bringing more intensity, so that when I'm racing I feel better out of my comfort zone. I'm the type of rider who likes to feel dialed, which can be good or bad. The tracks haven't been very tricky so far this series, so I need to bring some raw heat to the races. I was better this weekend and things are beginning to click. I don't feel like I belong where I have been finishing, so I'm going to work on raw speed to get up in the mix. We'll get it figured out." CN

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