Image: Octopi Media.

250SX East points leader Colt Nichols had mixed-emotions following his second-place finish at round seven of the Supercross season in Orlando.

After a crash and subsequent third-place finish at round six of the season in Indianapolis, Nichols came into the day looking to rebound in the final race before a 10-week break in the 250SX East championship.

While his day wasn’t the dominant performance we’ve seen previously, he was in the mix at the top of the leader boards in qualifying. When it was all said and done, a rough start in the main event held the Oklahoman back on a tricky racing surface that made it difficult to pass.

“I was just a touch off of Christian all day in practice,” Nichols said. “I was able to get the heat race win, which was nice. I got to line up where I wanted on the gate. I just didn’t quite execute the start as well as I wanted to. Jett (Lawrence) got ahead of me and was able to control the inside.”

“So that was kind of the race right there. The track was a little difficult to pass on and it was so slick. The moisture started to come up, and it got slicker and slicker as the night went on. So that made it tough.”

While the 26-year-old’s night in Orlando was solid on paper, with a second-place finish and an increased lead in the championship standings, Nichols wasn’t fully satisfied at the end of the night.

“Overall, I can’t complain. I got some points in second place, and that’s always a good thing. I just was a little bummed about my riding. I felt really flat at the beginning of the race. I didn’t have much intensity there, so that’s why I was a little frustrated. We’ve got a long break now, so I’m going to try to enjoy things and get some outdoor riding and come back swinging in a few months.”

The 250SX West series kicks off this weekend in Orlando, so the next time we see Nichols and the rest of the East class in action will be in Salt Lake City, April 24th.