Pirelli Claims Half of the Top-10 Spots in the 450 Class at Millville

MILLVILLE, Min. (July 16, 2016) – The eighth round of the 2016 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship kicked off under near perfect conditions in Millville, Minnesota, for the Spring Creek National. Fans lined the hillside of the iconic facility and were treated to some exciting racing throughout the day. Pirelli racers donned SCOPRION™ MX32™ front, while the rear selections were split between the MX 410 Soft and MX32 en route to collecting five of the top-10 positions in the highly contested 450 Class.

Autotrader/Monster Energy/Yamaha’s Justin Barcia got Moto 1 started off right collecting the holeshot and running at the front end of the pack the entire moto before crossing the line in fourth. Another strong start in Moto 2 helped “Bam Bam” put together another solid ride in fifth, good enough for fifth overall (4-5).

BTO Sports/WPS/KTM’s Andrew Short took advantage of his final race at Spring Creek MX by putting in two of his best races of season, nearly grabbing the holeshot in Moto 2. The likeable veteran was the model of consistency finishing eighth in both motos, which resulted in a seventh overall (8-8) on the day and gave him his second consecutive top-10 overall finish.

Sticking close to his BTO Sports teammate was rookie racer Benny Bloss. Bloss would leverage his lanky frame to navigate the infamous Millville sand whoops with ease, while taking advantage of two top-10 starts to tie his season-best overall finish of seventh via 7-10 moto scores.

The BTO Sports team did their best to stick together both on and off the track and Justin Brayton did his part by finishing just behind Short and Bloss in ninth overall following 9-9 moto finishes.

Up-front starts put JGRMX’s Phil Nicoletti in a good position in both motos where he was able to earn his best moto finish of the year with a seventh place in Moto 2. Combined with his 14^th place finish in Moto 1 and Nicoletti collected his third top-10 overall of the season in tenth (14-7). Fellow JGRMX rider Weston Peick suffered a hard crash during the early stages of Moto 1, however, the Californian is expected to be back on the track next weekend.

The Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship heads to Washougal Motocross Park in Washougal, Washington next Saturday, July 23 for round nine.

450 Class Overall Results (Moto Finish)

1. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki (1-1)
   
   
2. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM (2-3)
   
   
3. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (3-2)
   
   
4. Christophe Pourcel, France, Husqvarna (5-4)
   
   
5. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha (4-5)

6. Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda (6-6)
   
   
7. 
   Andrew Short, Colorado Springs, Colo., KTM (8-8)
   
   
8. Benny Bloss, Oak Grove, Mo., KTM (7-10)

9. Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, IA., KTM (9-9)

10. Phil Nicoletti, Cohocton, N.Y., Yamaha (14-7)

450 Class Championship Standings

1. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki – 387
   
   
2. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 332
   
   
3. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM – 243
   
   
4. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha – 215

5. Christophe Pourcel, France, Husqvarna – 202
   
   
6. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki – 171
   
   
7. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda – 151
   
   
8. 
   Justin Brayton Fort Dodge, IA., - 144
   
   
9. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda – 136
   
   
10. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM – 131