2021 Southwick Motocross Photo Gallery

2021 Southwick Motocross Recap

The sandbox of Southwick proved a bit too much for some riders for Round 5 of the 2021 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship series on Saturday in Southwick, MA.

In the 450 class, Dylan Ferrandis (1-3) managed through some late clutch problems in Moto 2 to finish third, well behind first and second place, but it was more than enough for the overall thanks to a resounding Moto 1 win as the rookie continues to dominate the field.

Ferrandis checked out in Moto 1 then battled Ken Roczen for second in Moto 2 when his clutch flared up and his pit crew resigned him to third instead of pushing his Yamaha for second. Roczen (4-2) secured second overall but Ferrandis added five points to his Championship points lead over Roczen and now leads him by 19. Ferrandis said he thought his bike could take Roczen for second but the safe route urged on by his mechanic guaranteed the overall victory.

Eli Tomac (8-1) won his third straight Moto 2 but without that stellar first ride he has yet to figure out, an overall continues to allude the three-time Champion. Tomac fully checked out in Moto 2 after getting by Roczen and won by more than 16 seconds but finished fourth overall. Tomac has worked his way to third in the Championship standings after starting the year in ninth, but remains well behind Roczen and Ferrandis.

Elsewhere, Aaron Plessinger (3-DNF) finished third in Moto 1 but his bike gave up the ghost on the first lap in Moto 2 and his day was done. Justin Barcia (2-4) took second in Moto 1, his best showing of the season, and his fourth-place in Moto 2 placed him third overall on the tie-breaker to Roczen. His day moved him to within two points of Plessinger for fourth in the standings. Cooper Webb (6-5), the reigning 2021 Supercross champ, took fifth for his best outing of the year.

In the 250 class, Hunter Lawrence got his first Moto win in two years and first career overall win in grand style with a sweep, staying on two wheels and charging to the front to take both races. The rest of the field all seemed to have their own troubles keeping up whether to Lawrence or just on their dirt bike.

Last week’s overall winner RJ Hampshire crashed multiple times in Moto 2 but managed to secure second, just as he did the week earlier. In Moto 2 though, he grabbed the holeshot but crashed and crashed again. This time however he finished sixth and off the podium in fourth.

Championship points leader Jett Lawrence (9-3) crashed multiple times in Moto 1 the worst came during a battle with Jalek Swoll as the two came off a jump and hit a sandier section of the sand track. Cooper squirreled a bit on his landing but stayed upright while Lawrence hit the dirt after making contact with Swoll's bike then slammed his goggles off in frustration. He finished ninth in that Moto, rebounded for third in Moto 2 but took sixth overall.

Michael Mosiman (7-7) led for five laps in Moto 1 but a crash which dropped him to seventh, and a seventh in Moto 2 placed him seventh overall. Joe Shimoda (3-4) grabbed his highest career finish in third for Moto 1 and finished second overall on the day for a career first podium. Cooper (6-2), second in the standings, took sixth in Moto 1 but a second in Moto 2 landed him third on the day and inched him five points closer to Lawrence for the lead as three points separate the two.

Motocross resumes with Round 6 on Saturday at Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, MN. Gates drop first for the 450 class at 10 a.m. (PST) followed an hour later for the 250 class. MAVTV airs the first races for both classes live, NBC broadcasts 450 Moto 2 but you'll have to watch 250 Moto 2 on Peacock streaming or on NBC Sports Network at 6 p.m. (PST). Until then live Round 5 all again.