2019 Fox Raceway Motocross | Race Preview

2019 FOX RACEWAY MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

Southern California and motocross go hand in hand. You can probably find something motocross-related at nearly every exit of the 15 freeway from Escondido to Corona, plus many other motocross-minded people closer to the coast, so it makes sense that a stop of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship takes place in the region. Three tracks have had the honor of hosting a National over the last ten years and for 2019, Fox Raceway will be the site for round two of the series. This weekend will be the first time in seven years that pro racing has taken place on the San Diego County circuit and all are eager to see what will happen.

Despite not being on the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship calendar for nearly a decade, riders are quite familiar with Fox Raceway, as it’s one of the preferred tracks for training and test days during the outdoor season. Hundreds flock to open practice days at Pala and it’s common to see at least a dozen pro riders on the Main Track putting in their laps next to the everyday enthusiasts a few times a week. No other track of the schedule can say the same and it’ll be interesting to see how quickly riders are able to figure out the fast lines during Saturday’s qualifying sessions.

During the two past events that took place at Pala/Fox Raceway, riders were openly vocal of the fast lanes and big obstacles that were built on the mostly flat ground but praised the soil composition (a soft, almost sandy dirt that holds moisture well). In an attempt to slow the pace, lengthen lap times, add elevation, and provide spectators with better viewing, the track crew have overhauled the facility with a new layout that connected the Main Track and Hillside/Amateur Track. This seems to have alleviated some of the issues riders had with the high speeds. The Hillside Track has hosted its share of UTV races over the last few years and that has taken a toll on this area; very large rocks litter the hardpacked dirt, while the Main Track’s soft loam is only a few hundred feet away. Fox Raceway has addressed this with some fresh dirt in this section, but some stones and slick spots will undoubtedly come up as the day goes on.

Before the start of the season, series organizer MX Sports hosted a pro-only Spring Training session at Fox Raceway and that gave us a glimpse of what to expect in real race conditions. The overall pace of the practice day was very fast and deep ruts and chop developed in the softer sections of the track; it was especially brutal in the long lanes that run down the front and back of the Main Track. Luckily, these areas are very wide and crafty riders will be able to find a smooth-ish line.

When people think of San Diego County, they picture countless days of sunny skies and warm weather. That’s true for most of the year, except in the months of May and June, when cold fronts bring “May Gray” and “June Gloom.” That’ll be the case this weekend, as a recent weather system in the region will put temperatures in the low 70s and with sunshine, a welcome forecast for racers and fans. With no sweltering heat or rain, riders will be able to push to their limits without worry of exhaustion. If you’re attending this race, we highly recommend a light jacket during the early hours of the day.

One last bit of local knowledge: plan to spend a lot of time in traffic on your trip to-from the track. There are two main ways into the small town of Pala, one being the 76 Highway that leads out to the 15 and the other being Pala-Temecula Road that connects, you guessed it, Pala and Temecula. Both are mountainous roads with plenty of twists and elevation changes, so please be careful and do not drive if you had a few Track Pepsis. If a dual-sport motorcycle is in your possession, though, you’ll have a nice mixed terrain ride if you can chart out some of the fire roads.

What did we see of the field at the first round? Well, what we expected actually. Even with very different track conditions over the course of the motos, the usual names found their way to the front of the field while some of the ailing competitors struggled with the rough ruts and mud. Ken Roczen and Adam Cianciarulo claimed the day’s overall win with 1-2 and 2-1 scores, respectively, and this was a much-needed boost of momentum for both. Roczen struggled through the end of the Supercross-season with an energy-draining health issue while Cianciarulo’s championship hopes crashed in Las Vegas. Many wondered how they would recover from these setbacks in the summer, and in Hangtown, the fast friends shed the concerns.

There’s a lot going for Roczen at this race. First, the weather will be mellow and should tax his body as much as a humid East Coast round could. Second, it’s a track that he’s put in plenty of practice on recently and since 4 PM motos seem to be his preferred time, he should be prepared for the tough second moto. Finally, and maybe most importantly, he’s free of the “when will he win again” questions that have followed him since 2017. Roczen has proved once and for all, to himself and to the masses, that he can put everything together and take the checkered flag. That confidence will be key.

For Cianciarulo, this weekend will be about backing up what he did at Hangtown. Despite his status as one of the top riders in the 250 class, Cianciarulo missed all of last summer with a knee injury and has limited success outdoors. Many, us included, believe that the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider will graduate to the 450 class in 2020, so this will be his last chance at a 250 MX title. Cianciarulo is like many riders in that once they see that a feat is possible once, they’ll replicate it with ease immediately after.

Of all the racers on the line this Saturday, few will be as familiar with the Fox Raceway track as the guys on Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha. We think that the roster of Dylan Ferrandis, Colt Nichols, Justin Cooper, and even Ty Masterpool have logged more practice laps at this track than anyone, due in part to the team’s mandate of staying in SoCal year-round. Cooper proved that he is a contender with his 250 Moto Two win at Hangtown, while Ferrandis still has the status as a title favorite even after mechanical issues slowed his pace in the mud last week.

Simply put, you could put Cianciarulo/Ferranids/Cooper in any order on the podium this weekend and it would make sense.

As for rookies like Thomas Covington and Hunter Lawrence, this weekend will be a better idea of what to expect from both. Covington struggled badly at Hangtown, something he accredited to a lack of comfort, but said that he has a new game plan for Fox Raceway. Lawrence, meanwhile, was going well until a crash and contact with teammate RJ Hampshire put a gash in his backside. Both now know what to expect of the competition, one-day race format, and themselves, so there should be no first-race sort of issues to obstruct them.

Eli Tomac didn’t continue his history of dominance at Hangtown last week, but his push to win 450 Moto Two was enough to offset an otherwise average performance in 450 Moto One. During the aforementioned Spring Training day, Tomac turned very few laps on the track in comparison to the others, but that’s not a bad thing. With clear skies and a challenging track, this weekend should be our first glimpse at the true pace Tomac can put down.

Jason Anderson and Zach Osborne both logged top-five rides at Hangtown, which is a big bonus for the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team following a rather difficult SX season. Anderson is determined to establish himself as an all-around badass and his push past Webb and Tomac indicated what he’s capable of. More importantly, that ride comes after an arm injury and lengthy layoff that kept Anderson sidelined up to a month before the Hangtown round, so he’s now certain he has the speed and stamina for the summer. Osborne, meanwhile, was well outside of points paying positions early in 450 Moto Two and fought through the muck to reach third place at the checkered flag. Although he’s a rookie, Osborne has forced his way onto the short list of early title contenders for the year.

Marvin Musquin and Cooper Webb faced small obstacles at Hangtown (a hard morning crash kept Musquin from full speed, Webb had the weight of everyone’s talk of the 450 SX title on his shoulders and went 3-6 for fifth overall), but expect both to be past that this weekend. Musquin likely spent some time at Doc G’s recovery spot in Orange County and that should have helped his body heal up from the crash, while Webb is out of the spotlight and able to focus on the task at hand.

The 2019 Fox Raceway Motocross will be broadcast on MAVTV and NBC Sports, but we recommend just getting the Gold Pass (no, they aren’t paying us to say that). It’s the only way you’re going to see every qualifying practice and moto live and without interruption, and at sixty dollars for the whole summer, it’s money well spent. If not, here are the standard TV broadcast details (the times are Pacific Standard, so 1 PM West Coast is 4 PM East Coast).

Since there’s no recent footage from races at Fox Raceway we can show you, we dug through the American Motocross archives and pulled some clips from the old races. No, the track isn’t even close to the same design, but you want to watch dirt bikes go fast, so here you go…

2019 FOX RACEWAY MOTOCROSS | 250 CLASS ENTRY LIST

12. Shane McElrath
23. Chase Sexton
26. Alex Martin
28. Jordon Smith
31. RJ Hampshire
32. Justin Cooper
34. Dylan Ferrandis
36. Michael Mosiman
38. Christian Craig
39. Colt Nichols
45. Brandon Hartranft
52. Jordan Bailey
55. Kyle Peters
61. Garrett Marchbanks
72. Martin Castelo
73. Martin Davalos | A crash in 250 Moto Two at Hangtown left the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider with cartilage damage in his rib cage; he will line up at Fox Raceway.
77. Challen Tennant
83. Killian Auberson
92. Adam Cianciarulo | With his overall win at Hangtown, the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider leads the championship standings.
110. Yusuke Watanabe
112. Thomas Covington
122. Chris Howell
153. Carson Carr
154. Chase Felong
156. Jacob Hayes
162. Maxwell Sanford
168. Cale Kuchnicki
186. Tyler Monks
194. Jerry Robin
196. Hunter Lawrence
205. Wilson Todd | After a privateer program at Hangtown, the Australian will fill-in for the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM team at Fox Raceway.
212. Tyler McCoy
216. Devin Harriman
232. Dylan Bolinger
233. Derek Drake
240. Andrew Barros
259. Corbin Hayes
286. Brandon Sussman
291. Zane Merrett
310. Kai Aiello
321. Bradley Lionnet
340. Blake Taylor
345. Joshua Prior
356. Daniel Lippman
357. Kameron Barboa
407. Benjamin Nelko
554. Wade Brommel
583. Corey Ridel
614. Christopher Shenoy
726. Gared Steinke
842. Joseph Gerrior
898. Jack Fowler
906. Adrian Galamba
916. Jorge Rubalcava
923. Chris Moore
936. Ty Masterpool
964. Mitchell Goheen

MISSING FROM THE LIST

6. Jeremy Martin | GEICO Honda rider is still recovering from the vertebra burst fractures he suffered in the 2018 season; he is expected to return to competition in 2020.
24. Austin Forkner | Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider will miss the entire summer with torn ligaments in his knee.
40. Sean Cantrell | Lingering wrist injuries will keep the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM rider from the opening rounds of the season.
44. Cameron McAdoo | With his Supercross fill-in deal at GEICO Honda complete and no confirmed spot on another team, McAdoo will miss the opening rounds. He is still riding a bike from GEICO Honda as a way to stay sharp should the team need him later in the summer.
64. Jimmy Decotis | Due to a recent restructure at the JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing team, Decotis will not be a part of the two-rider 250 team this summer.
66. Mitchell Oldenburg | Third-degree burns from a crash at the 2019 Las Vegas Supercross will keep the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha rider from the opening round of the season.
67. Enzo Lopes | Due to a recent restructure at the JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing team, Lopes will not be a part of the two-rider 250 team this summer.
123. Mitchell Falk | A crash during practice at Hangtown left the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM rider with a broken collarbone that required surgery; he is out for an undetermined amount of time.

2019 FOX RACEWAY MOTOCROSS | 450 CLASS ENTRY LIST

1. Eli Tomac
2. Cooper Webb
4. Blake Baggett
14. Cole Seely
16. Zach Osborne
19. Justin Bogle
21. Jason Anderson
25. Marvin Musquin | A hard crash in practice at Hangtown kept the Red Bull KTM rider from full strength at round one, but he raced through the issue and will be on the track at round two.
41. Ben LaMay
43. Tyler Bowers
46. Justin Hill
48. Cody Cooper
49. Henry Miller
51. Justin Barcia
54. Dylan Merriam
56. Lorenzo Locurcio
69. Jake Masterpool
74. Cade Autenrieth
82. Justin Hoeft
85. Dare DeMartile
91. Alex Ray
94. Ken Roczen | With his overall win at Hangtown, the Team Honda HRC rider leads the championship standings.
101. Fredrik Noren
103. Dean Ferris
165. Kris Keefer
169. Dylan Kappeler
182. Mason Olson
195. Keaton Ward
198. Edgar Foedish
218. Erki Kahro
225. Brett Stralo
227. Derek Kelley
229. Francisco Martini
231. Robert Wilson
246. Chance Blackburn
254. Cody Briner
292. Kolton Dean
309. Jeremy Smith
314. Tyler Stepek
329. Chad Gores
332. Dustin Winter
335. Jeremy McCool
354. Matthew Toth
383. Casey Brennan
402. Samuel Greenawalt
403. Keylan Meston
447. Deven Raper
477. Todd Waters
553. Brent Rouse
555. Jeremy Byrne
565. Dominic DeSimone
577. Felix Lopez
579. Alex O’Dell
588. Kurt Thomas
621. RJ Wageman
637. Bobby Piazza
647. Matthew Hubert
661. Noah Chambers
700. Justin Weeks
718. Toshiki Tomita
767. Mason Wharton
841. Jeff Walker
876. Chris Alldredge
892. Garret Ioppolo
909. Jacob Smith
917. Drew Thomas
929. Taiki Koga
934. Brian Medeiros

MISSING FROM THE LIST

7. Aaron Plessinger | A broken heel will sideline the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing rider through the opening part of the summer.
15. Dean Wilson | A shoulder injury from a crash at the Nashville Supercross will keep the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider sidelined through the opening part of the summer.
17. Joey Savatgy | A leg injury and shoulder injury from crashes in the Supercross season will sideline the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider through the first rounds of the season.
29. Benny Bloss | A torn ACL in December kept Bloss from racing any of the Supercross season; although he is back on the bike, he is not yet ready to race. The Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM rider is expected to return at High Point.
33. Josh Grant | A practice crash and injured leg at the end of the Supercross season has sidelined Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s original fill-in rider; there is no timetable for Grant’s return to action.