2022 Spring Creek Motocross Recap
Beast mode is alive and very well.
Eli Tomac received a little help but mostly his inner race craft allowed him to dismantle the field for his third straight sweep, fourth straight victory and now seventh straight Moto win on Saturday for Round 7 of the 2022 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship series at Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, MN.
Tomac took over the Championship points lead for the first time this season besting Chase Sexton, who despite finishing runner-up to Tomac in all those Moto wins proves a worthy foe on the track. Sexton has not won a round since the opener at Fox Raceway but has so far held his own against the rampaging Tomac. While mere seconds generally separate the two at the finish line both often finish far ahead of the field.
In Moto 1, Sexton not only got around Tomac for the lead but was well on his way for the win until he washed the front end of his bike out with about five minutes remaining. His Honda dirt bike had the final word too as it flipped, and the rear tire punched Sexton in the back knocking him into the ground adding insult to the extra time out of the race. Unfazed, Sexton remounted but Tomac was past and long gone.
In Moto 2, Sexton held his own but Tomac was something else. Charging from around 4th, Tomac quickly got by Joey Savatgy and Ken Roczen before reeling in Sexton by (seemingly) effortlessly gliding around the track. Sexton kept pace this time though as less than two seconds kept him from claiming the checkers while Christian Craig rolled up in third 44 seconds behind Tomac.
Elsewhere, Jason Anderson took the final podium spot on a (3-4) day, Craig (5-3) finished fourth and Ryan Dungey (4-6) rounded out the Top 5.
2022 Motocross 450 Class Standings after Round 7
- Eli Tomac - 317
- Chase Sexton - 312
- Jason Anderson - 245
- Ken Roczen - 241
- Christian Craig - 220
A similar story unfolded in the 250 class as Jett Lawrence continued his domination with his sixth win of the season and second straight sweep. He now leads brother Hunter Lawrence by 27 points in his effort to repeat as 250 class Champion.
In Moto 1, Jett faced stiff competition from Hunter as the two have routinely put on a racing clinic when getting out front. Both quickly got around Justin Cooper after he went down on the opening lap and battled for 30 minutes. Hunter won in total laps but lost the lead after getting caught up in a handful of lappers. Just a half second separated the two from the checkers and Joe Shimoda rolled up in third 35 seconds later.
Moto 2 was red-flagged ending Hunter's run out front and his bad luck continued in the restart as he was just inside the Top 10 after the first turn and by then Jett was hassling Cooper for the lead which he got and led the rest of the way. Shimoda kept it somewhat close finishing second and Cooper claimed third.
Overall, Shimoda took second for Round 7 on a (3-2) day and Hunter's fifth-place finish in Moto 2 was good enough for third overall. Cooper (6-3) took fourth overall and RJ Hampshire (5-4) rounded out the Top 5.
2022 Supercross 250 Class Standings after Round 7
- Jett Lawrence - 311
- Hunter Lawrence - 284
- Jo Shimoda - 266
- Justin Cooper - 232
- Levi Kitchen - 180
The MotoSport Sponsored Muc-Off / FXR / ClubMX Team
Alex Martin (12-14) finished a season best 12th in the final home race of his career. Martin announced a week earlier this year will be his last. Garrett Marchbanks (18-9) finished 13th.
It's Superbowl week for us at MotoSport as the MotoSport.com Washougal National comes next on Saturday. We'll all be there. Will you? Join us for Round 8 July 23 at Washougal MX Park in Washougal, WA.