Washougal, WA – Jagermeister/MDK/KTM rider Justin Brayton topped his season best finish with a 4th place overall result in the 450 Motocross class at the eighth round of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship at Washougal MX Park.
Although Brayton had been working toward a top five overall finish – the 4th place result at Washougal was quite unexpected. “I didn’t believe that my combined moto scores would place me in the top five – so you can only imagine how happy I was when I heard the news. I have been working toward this goal all season and finally my consistency paid off,” commented Brayton.
In the first 450 Motocross moto Brayton got a decent 10th place start. On the second lap he made a slight mistake which allowed the #338 bike of Jason Lawrence to get around. He and Lawrence remained close throughout the moto. On lap 6th they both moved up a position when Cody Copper crashed. On lap 9, Brayton passed by Lawrence for 9th position where he finished for the moto.
Brayton started 13th in moto two and moved into 10th by lap 8. On the next lap, Antonio Balbi crashed and Brayton blitzed by Ben LaMay which moved him up two positions into 8th. Brayton rode a steady race to finish 8th overall.
In the 250 Motocross class, Muscle Milk/MDK/KTM Factory rider Tommy Searle got a 5th place start in moto one while J-Law Racing/KTM rider Max Anstie was two positions ahead in 3rd. On lap 6, Searle managed to move around Anstie and the two KTM riders continued their battle within the top five. A mistake on lap 7, allowed Darryn Durham to pass Searle which dropped Searle to 5th place. On lap 9, Searle was passed by Brett Metcalfe and fell to 6th position. Searle held on to 6th place finishing just bike lengths away from Durham as they crossed the finish. Anstie, in his rookie year, held on for a top ten finish with 9th overall.
Anstie and Searle were right beside each other once more as the gate dropped for the second moto. Anstie came around in 7th on the first lap while Searle was 8th. Searle passed Anstie on the second lap to move forward one position and then gained another position a lap later when Vince Friese crashed. On the fourth lap, Searle passed Ryan Dungey for 5th. Searle’s pass on Dungey began a 10 lap passing battle between the two riders where they swapped positions 4 times before the moto end. Dungey edged out Searle at the moto end and Searle finished 6th. Anstie put in another consistent ride to finish 9th.
KTM rider Sarah Whitmore had a good race at Washougal finishing 4th in moto one aboard her KTM 250 SX-F. In moto two she finished 8th overall. Her combined moto scores earned her 5th overall for the event.
Next Event: Unadilla Motocross Event – August 15, 2009
Overall Results 450 Motocross Class –
1) Chad Reed (1,1)
2) Josh Grant (5,2)
3) Jason Lawrence (10,3)
4) Justin Brayton (9,8)
5) Michael Byrne (15,4)
6) James Albertson (8,10)
7) Nick Wey (13,6)
8) Thomas Hahn (2,38)
9) Ivan Tedesco (11,11)
10) Clement Desalle (3,25)
11) Matt Goerke (4,32)
12) Andrew Short (7,18)
13) Jarred Browne (23,5)
14) Ben LaMay (17,9)
15) Jake Moss (6,28)
Overall Results 250 Motocross Class –
1) Ryan Dungey (1,5)
2) Blake Wharton (3,3)
3) Christophe Pourcel (8,1)
4) Brett Metcalfe (4,4)
5) Jake Weimer (10,2)
6) Tommy Searle (6,6)
7) Broc Tickle (7,8)
8) Darryn Durham (5,10)
9) Max Anstie (9,9)
10) Kyle Cunningham (2,34)
11) Justin Barcia (16,7)
12) Steven Clarke (13,11)
13) PJ Larsen (15,14)
14) Ben Evans (12,17)
15) Michael Hall (18,12)
Overall Points 450 Motocross Class –
1) Chad Reed – 337
2) Josh Grant – 272
3) Andrew Short – 267
4) Ivan Tedesco – 258
5) Michael Byrne – 207
6) Thomas Hahn – 171
7) Cody Cooper – 157
8) Justin Brayton – 152
9) Nick Wey – 149
10) Mike Alessi – 142
Overall Points 250 Motocross Class –
1) Christophe Pourcel – 337
2) Ryan Dungey – 337
3) Brett Metcalfe – 251
4) Tommy Searle – 243
5) Jake Weimer – 215
6) Justin Barcia – 210
7) Broc Tickle – 199
8) Blake Wharton – 198
9) Tyla Rattray – 175
10) Trey Canard – 139