In Quotebook, a selection of riders detail how their races played out at the sixth round of the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship at Southwick.

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Image: Octopi Media.

Jett Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – First: 
It was a pretty brutal day–it was all about survival. I was just looking to get out of the roost and toward the front as soon as possible; I wanted to put in some fast laps early and gain some distance. I knew everyone would be gassed toward the end of the moto, so late charges wouldn’t be in the cards. I’m just looking forward to getting out of this place and heading to Spring Creek; that’s one of my favorite places on the schedule.

Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC) – Second: 
It’s a lot harder when you haven’t been racing like these guys. I felt good all day, but it’s tough to be in the best shape for Southwick without gate drops. I feel like my riding and my speed were good all day, I just didn’t have it in the second moto. I need to be more smooth and consistent. Eli [Tomac] and I had a great battle at Spring Creek last year, so hopefully I can bring that experience over and get back to where I was.

Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Third: 
The day was okay. In the first moto, I got a bad start, and I had to fight my way up to third, which wasn’t too bad. In the second moto, I got the holeshot, and I just tried to stay up front but got third again. I’m pretty tired. The heat got me a little bit, but I gave everything today. I pushed really hard earlier this week in training, so I think I need to rest up a bit during the week and show up a little more fresh at Millville.

Adam Cianciarulo (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – Eighth: 
Unfortunately, I came into this race a little sick and I was digging deep, but ended up getting heat stroke. It was a tough day, but it’ll make the good ones ahead all that much sweeter.

Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – 10th: 
The entire day was a challenge for me with the conditions. Not stoked on the finish, but we are healthy and excited to battle again next weekend.

Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM) – Fourth: 
Yeah, man! 4-4 on the day for Southwick – it’s alright, can’t be mad at it. I felt solid all day, the first moto I struggled with comfort a little bit, and then for the second moto we made really good changes, but I just struggled a little bit with my body in that one. Super-rough track today – it was a hot one out here – but my back is slowly improving, so the aim is to land on the podium again at Spring Creek next weekend.

Freddie Noren (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – 12th: 
I went 15-11. I have higher expectations of myself. I feel like I should be between fifth and seventh, so twelfth overall is not ideal. The highlight of the day is that I got to go out as part of the top five on the sighting lap. That’s a career-first, and it was pretty neat to be out there first on the track. As far as the motos went, I had rough starts. I started mid-pack then went down early in the first moto. I moved from 38th to 15th, so I guess that was a decent ride. In the second moto, I started at around 17th on the first lap and got up to 11th. The team’s doing well. We made some changes this week that I’m happy with on the bike, so it’s really more on me this weekend with the lack of results. I’m just going to go home, get some riding in, and be better next weekend.

Kyle Chisolm (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – 17th: 
Man, it was tough out there. In the first moto, I ran in the top ten for most of the race. From eighth to where I was we were all somewhat close, I could see that pack and that was good. In the second moto, I tried to anticipate the gate dropping and I ended up being late on the gate; then, honestly, just ate roost the whole moto. It was tough trying to work my way up through the pack. On a track like this, with the sand, you really need to get to a good rhythm and a good flow, otherwise, it just beats you up and wears you out. Racing the World Supercross round in England last weekend went really well, I was happy with that, but I was a little jet-lagged this week and man, everyone’s talking about the heat today here in Southwick, but Florida this week was really, really hot. I tried to put a couple of good days in this week and I think I wore myself out a little. I’m going to focus on recovery this week and get my energy back up. Millville’s one of my favorite tracks, I’m looking forward to that one next week, and we’ll try to put it up there in the top ten.

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Image: Octopi Media.

Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – 13th:
It was a rough day at Southwick. A malfunction in the first moto hurts, and the second moto was all about salvaging points. Obviously, I didn’t want to be coming out of this race five points behind, but we’re going to enjoy the chase.

Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Second:
I feel I should have had that one. I crashed leading moto one and then was making a run for the win in moto two, and kind of made the same mistake. Overall lots of positives to take away, though. We made up a lot of points with a 2-2 on the day and are kind of back in the thick of things. So really, we just have to look at it that way and go for a win next weekend.

Daxton Bennick (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 14th: 
It was a good weekend of learning at Southwick. I had some problems in moto one but rode much better in moto two. I’m ready to go back to work and get ready for Millville!

Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Sixth: 
The day started off well. In the first moto, we went from 10th to fourth, which I was happy with. I got a little pinched off at the start, so I was happy to be able to ride the sand and dig through that. The second moto was a bit of a struggle for me. I was just fatigued a bit, so we’ve got to work on that. It’s always good to find some weaknesses that we can work on during the week. We’re leaving with the points lead, so we’re going to keep working and keep pushing forward.

Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Eighth: 
It was a decent day for me. My speed was pretty good. I just didn’t execute the starts, and falling in the second Moto really set me back. We’ll keep working and move on to the next one.

Jo Shimoda (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Third: 
I am stoked on the moto two win. We made good improvements and we were able to finish third overall. I think it is good for confidence in upcoming rounds, but we have to keep moving forward.

Ryder DiFrancesco (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – 12th: 
Tough day fighting some fast guys on a challenging track. I know my speed is there, but I have to execute on race day. Looking forward to more racing.

Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Fifth: 
Overall a solid day for me. Fifth overall is my best overall for outdoors and after a long time off from my broken wrist I was happy with my riding. Southwick is the most physically demanding track, but I pushed all day and left it all out there. Time to recover and get ready for Millville next weekend.

Max Vohland (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – Seventh: 
To finish inside the top 10 in qualifying and both motos showed we were consistent and the final moto result was an improvement. Myself and the team will keep putting in the work together in these middle stages of the season and I’m looking forward to getting to Millville now!

Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – First: 
It means a lot to get my first national win! I’ve had a few tough races, so to get on the podium with an overall win is nice, as it’s been challenging to get a good feeling at all of these new circuits. I feel like we are making great progress and we’re in a good position for the rest of the season. The track here was nice, way different to Lommel and places like that, but it felt good to be back in sandy conditions, and I’m looking forward now to next weekend in Millville.

RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Fourth: 
Overall, it was just a really solid weekend. Nothing special, but I made up a lot of points. I had two decent starts and salvaged what I could. It was 3-4 on the day and I’ll just keep plugging away. We’re at the halfway mark and I’m still in the championship hunt. I’ll go back, recover, and Millville is another fun one for me. I’m just looking to get these starts figured out to give me a little bit more of a shot at these wins.

Talon Hawkins (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – 11th: 
We got a top ten, and that’s been a goal of mine ever since coming into this. I have a lot to improve and a lot to work on, but it’s definitely something good to take away from today. I came into today without the highest level of confidence, but I turned it around and put a smile on my face. I’m glad I was able to almost break the top ten overall…I got 11th, my best finish so far. We’re looking to keep on improving every race.

Jalek Swoll (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Ninth: 
Qualifying was good for me, and it was nice to finally find some speed in practice and carry it into the motos. In the first moto I had a good start and was riding okay but I went down early and that was kind of tough. I had two falls in that one and it put me pretty deep and I only got back to 11th. In moto two I had a good start, in the middle of the top ten, and it was okay…nothing crazy. I started to feel better at the end but just a little too late. I had sixth right in front of me but I ran out of time. I’m looking forward to next weekend and building off the momentum that I got today, despite the crashes.

Caden Braswell (TLD Red Bull GasGas) – 10th: 
Out here at Southwick, it was a fun one. I got to do some sand surfing and had a blast with the team. We got our best result of the season so far. I’m happy to be putting the Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GasGas machine in the top ten, but I’m hungry for more and super grateful for the opportunity.

Dilan Schwartz (BarX Suzuki) – 18th: 
Southwick was a struggle. I’m not used to riding sand, and the results show that. The crashes I had didn’t help the result either. So I’m going to get back to work this week to be ready for Millville next weekend.