Round eight of AMA Pro Motocross at Washougal saw the last opportunity for riders to build some momentum heading into the three-week break. Quotebook features compiled comments from riders over the weekend.

450MX

Image: Octopi Media.

Chase Sexton (Red Bull KTM) – First:
It feels nice, because I wanted to get this win before the break, and to go into that with some momentum. We’ve got two weekends off, so I plan to go back and rest, because I haven’t been feeling the greatest these last few days. I felt really good on the bike, was able to push through and find a flow, which got me to the end. This crowd’s awesome and I love coming to this track every year. We’ll keep the hammer down from here and go for it!

Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM) – Second:
These fans at Washougal are unreal! It’s cool to see this same support country-wide and that these people have the same passion for dirt bikes that I do. I’m still achieving the goals that I set for myself, even if unfortunately last week I had a crash that kept me off the podium in fourth, but we’re back here now and I’m happy. We’ll take some weeks off for now and do some things I don’t usually get to do with the family!

Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – Third:
I feel really good about today. I had a good qualifying session and good starts all day. In Moto one, I was in contention for a podium spot until small mistakes on my end where I lost time, and we also made changes to my KX450SR before moto two which was huge. It felt really great to establish a gap and lead a majority of the second moto, and I feel really good about where we are at as a team. I’m finally heading back home to California instead of continuing to test in South Carolina, and I’m excited to be back with the team and to have a little break before getting back to it.”

Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – Fourth:
I’m looking forward to reevaluating after this weekend. I’ve kind of been struggling since RedBud—it just seems like I haven’t been the same since that crash. So we’ll go back to the drawing board and figure a few things out about myself. It’s been two weekends in a row that I haven’t even had one good moto in me, which is extremely uncharacteristic. We’ll take this break to make sure we’re 100% healthy, so we can come out swinging for the last three rounds.

Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fifth:
The day started out well. I was third in qualifying and had a really good first moto. I started second and eventually finished third but rode pretty strong in that whole first moto. In the second moto, I got off to another good start and then crashed on the second or third lap, and just kind of rode it on home from there. It was definitely a hard day, and I ran out of steam once I got going again. So yeah, it was a tough day overall, but we’ll build and learn from it.

Malcolm Stewart (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Seventh:
Washougal was good, and practice was actually really strong for me. I actually got off to an okay start in moto one but came together with another rider and both went down, so I had to get up and charge from the back of the pack. In the next moto, my start was way better, and I rode really hard all the way towards the end. I’m happy with everything, we rode good all day, and we’ll enjoy this two-week break – maybe do some fishing and hang out with the family before we get into the last three!

Christian Craig (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Ninth:
Qualifying was good, I was comfortable straight away, and always enjoy coming here. Moto one, I made my way up to seventh and was able to stay there, so was pretty stoked with that. In the second moto I damaged my shifter on a rut or something about midway through and was stuck in second gear following that. I salvaged what I could, so look forward to getting my arm a little stronger in the break, and we’ll come out swinging for the last three.

Kyle Chisholm (Twisted Tea Progressive Suzuki) – 13^th:
In Moto one, I didn’t have a good start, but I fought through and made some good passes at the beginning of the moto; I ran up to 15^th. Then in the second moto, same thing: we were up in the battle in the top 15 and ended up with 13^th overall. My Suzuki RM-Z worked really well. I think we’re in a really good place with my bike, and the team did a great job. We have a couple weeks off. I’m looking forward to that, getting my body rested up, and then finishing these last three races strong and hopefully heading right in the playoffs.

Max Miller (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – 21^st:
It was a great weekend racing in the Pacific Northwest! I had a solid first moto, finishing 17th. I was running 16th in moto two but ended up crashing and finishing 30th. I came in 21st overall on the day.

Shane McElrath (Twisted Tea Progressive Suzuki) – 25^th:
It was a pretty tough weekend. I struggled with the track, and as the conditions got rougher, I didn’t seem to be working with the bike very well. I’m excited for a couple weeks off to refresh my mind and my body. It will be a good three weeks, and I’ll get back to work, and see you all at Unadilla.

250MX

Image: Octopi Media.

Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – First:
It was a hectic couple of days. We were at the airport Friday from 6 am until 6 pm trying to find flights. We were looking everywhere, and I was going to drive anywhere to get a flight, but they all got canceled. There wasn’t anything left, so we had to get a private jet. We went 2-1 on the day, so it was a good day. The first moto was solid, and then in the second moto, I put the hammer down and built a big gap. That was awesome. I’m happy to keep the Washougal streak going and to get back up on top of the board. We have a 54-point lead heading into a nice two-week break.

Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM) – Second:
Today was a good day! We were able to go fastest in qualifying and won the first moto, and then Haiden [Deegan] beat me in the second moto. The track was tough, and I did my best – it’s nice to finish on the podium before the break. We’ll keep training and hopefully we can come back and win these last three races.

Jo Shimoda (Team Honda HRC) – Third:
Third overall on the day is pretty good. I think I need to find a little more pace to keep up. I’m stoked on getting better starts though. Hopefully I can put it all together at Unadilla.

Ryder DiFrancesco (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GasGas) – Fourth:
That was my best finish that I’ve had and we’re happy with that achievement. I had two good starts today, so I was able to learn the speed up front more, and I keep getting better in terms of overall finishes. I’m excited to keep improving and the goal is to get on the podium by the end of the year. I’m looking forward to these couple of off weekends now.

Pierce Brown (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GasGas) – Fifth:
Washougal was a much better day for me after the last two weeks didn’t go to plan. It was refreshing to get a solid overall result today, which is tied with my best result of the season, and I’m looking forward to putting in the work over the break before Unadilla!

Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Sixth:
I had an okay weekend. I always love coming back to my hometown and home track at Washougal, and the fans are always supportive and great. I felt great after qualifying close to the top of the board, and then in Moto one did not get a good jump off of the start. I struggled to find my groove and make up time on a fast-paced track, so I did everything I could to make up as many positions as I could. Moto two I had a much better start and began to find good lines and carry a consistent pace which ended up paying off to finish fourth. I’m bummed on my results at home, but I’m ready for the break to regroup and refresh for Unadilla.

Joey Savatgy (Triumph Racing) – Seventh:
It was a tough day! My starts are making life harder than it needs to be. The first moto was chaotic, and I was on the bad end of things. I was stuck behind a downed rider on lap one, but I put on a decent charge. I had a better start in the second moto – I just felt a little bit flat. We need to assess the situation, see where we are at, and then make small gains.

Jalek Swoll (Triumph Racing) – Eighth:
It was a decent day! The first moto was okay. I rode decently to finish in seventh – I just didn’t have the best start. The second moto was the opposite. I had a pretty good start and made some good passes. I had a weird moment towards the end and could not maintain the pace. We will make good use of this break and try to be up front at Unadilla.

Chance Hymas (Team Honda HRC) – Ninth:
Washougal was a rough one. I came in not even knowing if I was going to race. Shoutout to Doc G [Rey Gubernick]; he got me all taped up and worked on me all day, so big thanks to him for getting me out there. Unfortunately, that crash on the start of the second moto got me. I tweaked my knee and flared up my ankle, so that moto was a bit of a grind. I rode with my heart, left it all out there and was able to salvage some points.

Julien Beaumer (Red Bull KTM) – 11^th:
It was a decent day at Washougal. I was good in practice, and then struggled in that first moto – I don’t really know what happened there. In moto two, I was able to come back with better riding, so in this break we will look to make further improvements and come out swinging in Unadilla.

Ty Masterpool (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – 12^th:
This was a rough weekend for me. I came into the weekend pretty sick, and still beat up from the start crash last week. I knew I was going to have to be as conservative as I could be to make sure I didn’t injure myself further, but I struggled with fatigue all day. I’m not satisfied with my results, but I’m happy to be heading into the break to let my body heal up and get back to the podium at Round 9.

Max Anstie (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 13^th:
It’s my first time back here at Washougal for a little while. Qualifying went well, and I ended up sixth. In the first moto, the start wasn’t great, but I moved forward. I felt that the way I rode and the strength that I had in that moto was very good. I came through to fifth and was happy with that. In the second moto, I was in about 10th and not feeling too bad, and then I just went off the track in the wrong spot. It wasn’t even that bad. I thought I could get back on track, but I got completely stuck in the fence for two laps, and that was the end of that moto. It was a shame because I felt like, speed-wise, I was on track for a good couple of motos because I was really strong the first moto, but we live and learn. I’m here for this and to get all these things ironed out. I’m excited for the little break to get some work done and come back swinging in Unadilla.

Dilan Schwartz (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – 14^th:
It was a bummer weekend for me. I had a first lap crash in the first moto, so I had to come from last. In the second moto I had a decent start and ended up 11th on a brutal track.

Casey Cochran (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – 15^th:
It was a tough day for me today. I struggled to get comfortable with the track, which showed in my results. I didn’t make great starts today either, but we know what we need to work on, and we will come out stronger following the break.

Jordon Smith (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 16^th:
Qualifying went well. I finished eighth in both sessions and wasn’t too far off the pace. I finally got a good start in the first moto and moved up to third. Then around halfway through the moto, I ended up going down. From there, it was just a terrible day. I went down another three times, two times in that moto, and then got caught up in a pile-up in the second moto and pretty much came back from last to 17th. It was a tough day at the office, but we’ll go get rejuvenated over these next two weekends off and come back swinging at Unadilla.

Nick Romano (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 17^th:
It was an okay race day. I struggled a little bit in practice, but we made a lot of bike changes, and it seemed to be better. In the first moto, I got a terrible start and went from around 30th to 18th. In the second moto, I finally got a top-10 start. Then I had a battle with one of the Pro Circuit guys, and I ended up 14th. It’s going to be nice to get a few weeks off, to take a break, reset, and come back stronger at Unadilla.

Daxton Bennick (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 25^th:
It was my first time racing at Washougal. It was definitely a tough one and not the results we were looking for. We’re looking forward to the break and will regroup and come back swinging at Unadilla.

Preston Boespflug (Toyota Redlands BarX Suzuki) – 34^th:
It felt good to be back at the races. I’m excited to race the last few rounds!