Carrying great momentum into the final stretch of the 2021 AMA Pro Motocross Championship, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Cooper Webb scored a third-place podium finish at Saturday’s Fox Raceway II National in Southern California, making it two-in-a-row at the penultimate round.
Igniting his charge with third overall at the last round, Webb powered his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION into second-place off the line in Moto 1. He was challenged from behind early on, eventually slipping into third. He engaged in a fierce battle with Eli Tomac for podium contention before entering into lapped traffic around the midway point. Despite his best efforts to hold Tomac off, Webb was unable to make it back to a podium position – ending fourth in the first moto.
In Moto 2, Webb once again seized the holeshot but he quickly settled into third on the first lap. Shuffling back to fourth briefly, Webb charged his way back into a podium position and finished the moto strong in third.
Webb: “The track was super gnarly and just baked but I was super happy with today. Same as last weekend, we were a little bit further off the [leader’s] pace but I got a great start that second one and tried to run up there as long as I could. It was a tough day, just super warm and super rough but I’m happy to be on the podium. I usually struggle here, so I’m stoked with that.”
After a tough second moto at the previous round, Max Vohland had his sights set on redemption in the 250MX class. In Moto 1, Vohland captured the holeshot aboard his KTM 250 SX-F and he settled into second early on. He held onto that position for two laps before shuffling around in the top-four for the next few laps. Battling the scorching conditions late in the race, Vohland did his best to hold strong in the closing laps to ultimately finish seventh. Still feeling the effects of the heat going into Moto 2, Vohland lined up feeling less than 100% but he dug deep and powered his way to a 15th place finish. With 7-15 moto scores, Vohland was able to salvage 13th overall on the day.
Vohland: “Moto 1 was really good, I ended up holeshotting the moto and running up front for a while in the top three. I ended up slipping back to the top-five for a little bit and started getting really hot towards the end of the moto. The heat really took it out of me today, I was really struggling going to the line for the second moto, I didn’t think I was going to ride, but I did the best I could and ended up 15th. We’ve got one more round to go at Hangtown, my hometown track, so I’m looking forward to it and trying to end the season on a high note.”
The AMA Pro Motocross Championship will head to its final round of racing next Saturday, September 11 with the Hangtown National in Rancho Cordova, California.
Results 450MX Class – Fox Raceway II National
1. Eli Tomac (USA), Kawasaki, 2-1
2. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA), Yamaha, 1-2
3. Cooper Webb (USA), KTM, 4-3
OTHER KTM
9. Joey Savatgy (USA), KTM
10. Fredrik Noren (SWE), KTM
12. Ben LaMay (USA), KTM
14. Justin Bogle (USA), KTM
16. Kevin Moranz (USA), KTM
31. Ezra Lewis (USA), KTM
36. Connor Olson (USA), KTM
37. Dennis Stapleton (USA), KTM
Results 250MX Class – Fox Raceway II National
1. Jett Lawrence (AUS), Honda, 1-1
2. Michael Mosiman (USA), GASGAS, 2-4
3. Justin Cooper (USA), Yamaha, 5-2
OTHER KTM
8. Joshua Varize (USA), KTM
13. Maximus Vohland (USA), KTM, 7-15
16. Christopher Prebula (USA), KTM
23. Xylian Ramella (SWI), KTM
29. Chad Saultz (USA), KTM
37. Jeffrey Walker (USA), KTM
Standings 450MX Class 2021 after 11 of 12 rounds
1. Dylan Ferrandis, 486 points
2. Ken Roczen, 424
3. Eli Tomac, 415
OTHER KTM
5. Cooper Webb, 316
7. Marvin Musquin, 240
8. Joey Savatgy, 240
14. Justin Bogle, 156
18. Fredrik Noren, 79
Standings 250MX Class 2021 after 11 of 12 rounds
1. Jett Lawrence, 464
2. Justin Cooper, 441
3. Hunter Lawrence, 349
OTHER KTM
9. Max Vohland, 202