Thunderstorms Curtail Round 4 of the AMA Pro Motocross Season
Unpredictable weather factored heavily at the High Point Motocross National, Round 4 of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship. Dark clouds threatened during the first 450-class moto but didn’t deliver their deluge until moments after the gate dropped on the second 450-class moto. Shortly past the race’s midpoint, lightning in the area necessitated red-flag conclusion to the race. With more than 20 minutes of racing completed, the riders were scored and earned points equal to a full-duration race.
Race Highlights:
Twisted Tea Suzuki presented by Progressive Insurance
450 Class
Benoit Paturel turned a strong start into another top-ten moto result in the final moto.
Colt Nichols sliced through the pack and earned his season-best overall result.
Benoit Paturel (102) matched his best overall qualifying position in his first season on the US circuit.
Benoit Paturel (102) continues to impress, and the flowing track seemed to suit the Frenchman. Paturel put his Twisted Tea Suzuki RM-Z450 inside the top-fifteen on the opening lap of the first moto then went to work. As the Peacock streaming coverage played a pre-taped interview of him, Paturel moved steadily up the leader board. Paturel reached a top-ten spot as the white flag came out. Unfortunately, Paturel dropped one position on the final lap. In the second moto, Paturel grabbed a top-ten start and held with the front runners as the skies opened up and turned the moto into a mud race. Paturel earned his second top-ten moto result as well as championship points that broke him free of a tie in the season standings.
“It was a decent day, and we were very close to finishing in the top 10 overall,” said Paturel. “It’s just a bummer that I gave up a 10th place position on last lap of the first moto. In the second moto I got a good start and rode safe to finish 10th. It could have been better, but we’ll take it; it was good to put in a solid race day after having such a rough one last weekend. So, we need to keep going, keep working hard, and try to be better each weekend. Thank you to the team for sticking behind me and giving 200%.”
Colt Nichols (45) was the only storm to hit the track in moto 1 with a strong charge through the pack.
Colt Nichols (45), fresh off a top-ten moto result at the previous round, kept his momentum rolling at High Point. In the morning, Nichols matched his season-best overall qualifying position. Early in the first moto Nichols was back as far as 25th. Nichols put his head down and charged; when the checkered flag flew, he’d made it up to 13th. In the final moto, Nichols put his RM-Z450’s horsepower to good use and earned a better start just as rain started to flood the track. Nichols held steady and brought home a top-15 moto finish.
“High Point is one of my favorite tracks of the year, so I was very excited to come here this weekend,” Nichols stated. “I got a terrible start in moto 1 but fought really hard to get up to 13th. In moto 2 I got a much better start, but the rain hit and then it was kind of survival mode. I ended up P12 overall, so I’ll take it.”
“It was a good day for the team. They rode well,” said Larry Brooks, Twisted Tea/H.E.P. Motorsports/Suzuki presented by Progressive Insurance Team Manager. “The second moto was crazy. We had a downpour that flooded the track and a thunderstorm. They had to call the race early. They only raced a little bit past the 20-minute mark. But it ended up being good for the team and we did fairly well overall. It was a rough day, but we got it done and now we move on. We’ll get back to work and we’ll see what happens at Southwick.”
The High Point event marked strong progression for the Twisted Tea Suzuki team. High Point was the team’s best total points take of the year, and both riders matched their season-best overall qualifying spot and first moto result. The series takes one weekend off, then returns for round 5 at The Wick 338 in Southwick, Massachusetts on June 28th. After withstanding a heat wave, high altitude, and now a thunderstorm, the Suzuki riders and team members are ready for the next challenge that outdoor motocross racing will present.
Please visit SuzukiCycles.com/Racing/Motocross and HEPMotorsports.com for more team news.
