WE ARE AMONGST THE GREATS – ROUND 1 AMA PRO MOTOCROSS!

Pala Raceway, one of the most iconic circuits in American motocross, hosted Round 1 of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship this weekend.

The opening round of any championship is filled with unknowns.

Who has done enough work?

Who prepared better physically, mentally and mechanically?

Who can sustain intensity when heart rates climb beyond 80–90 percent of maximum for two brutal 35-minute motos in dry conditions approaching 85 degrees?

The Quad Lock Honda Team arrived with purpose.

Lining up against nine other factory teams and nineteen factory riders, the challenge was significant. The field is stacked with the best riders and teams in the world.

Yet once again, Quad Lock Honda, the privateer team that regularly challenged and beat factory programs throughout Supercross, proved they belong amongst them.

Christian Craig and Kyle Webster finished 10th and 13th overall respectively, outperforming multiple factory riders and programs.

Qualifying told an important story.

The speed was there.

The competitiveness was there.

But to race with the world’s best, we needed more.

Seconds are difficult to find overnight.

Tenths are achievable.

The team broke the track down, evaluated data, adjusted settings and went into Race 1 believing improvements had already been made.

Both Craig and Webster launched well from the gate.

Unfortunately for Webster, while running inside the top seven, a crash forced him to remount and fight through one of the deepest fields in world motocross on a circuit he had never raced before.

“That’s probably the hardest part about racing overseas. I don’t know many of these tracks and getting comfortable quickly is important. Half my day is spent learning the track, understanding the surface and working out where I can push. Crashing definitely doesn’t help.”

Despite the setback, Webster charged forward to finish 16th.

Craig battled some of the fastest 450 riders in the world throughout Race 1 before finishing 11th.

“I wasn’t overly happy with Race 1. I wasn’t putting the track together cleanly and the flow wasn’t there, although there were sections where I felt really strong. The team and I debriefed, made some small changes and looked at the sections we needed to connect better.”

Race 2 delivered progress.

Both riders moved forward.

Both battled established stars.

Both demonstrated the potential within the program.

Craig finished inside the top ten to secure 10th overall, while Webster stayed attached to the group ahead and improved to 12th in the moto, securing 13th overall.

“Race 2 was definitely better and now we have something to build from. We know where we can improve and that’s what we will focus on over the next two to four weeks. It won’t happen overnight, but the positives are that we are in a good place.” said Craig.

Webster admitted the challenge was eye-opening.

“We have a plan with these races. I’m not going to lie, that was tough. At home we race twenty-minute races and I have raced those tracks many times over. Coming here has shown me areas I need to improve and if I didn’t come, I probably wouldn’t have realised that. The team has been great and we will work together to keep improving.”

Round 1 proved something important.

Quad Lock Honda may not carry factory status.

But the team continues to prove it belongs racing amongst the giants of the sport.

Christian Craig and Kyle Webster now turn their attention toward Round 2 of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship, where they will be joined by Charli Cannon for the opening round of the Women’s Championship.

More on Charli and the Women’s Championship later this week.

For more information visit: www.promotocross.com