Cianciarulo Kick Starts Pro Motocross Season With Back-To-Back Wins
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CIANCIARULO KICK STARTS PRO MOTOCROSS SEASON WITH BACK-TO-BACK WINS
CYPRESS, Calif. (May 28, 2019) – After losing the championship in a heartbreaker at the final round of
his 2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross campaign, Adam Cianciarulo, rider of the JE Pistons powered
No. 92 Kawasaki KX 250 for Pro Circuit Racing, kicked off the summer season in grand fashion by
earning back-to-back wins in the first two Lucas Oil Pro Motocross races of the year.
Cianciarulo picked up his second overall 250 Class win of the year by recording a 3-1 effort in Saturday’s
Lucas Oil Fox Raceway National in Pala, Calif.
The decisive win was the third of the 22-year-old rider’s Pro Motocross career. He now holds a six-point
championship lead as he carries the highly-coveted red number plate, signifying the series point leader,
into the next round.
Cianciarulo started the opening moto for the 250 Class at the newly-minted Fox Raceway outside the top
10, but he battled throughout the 30-minute-plus-two lap race, snaring spots one at a time, to claw his
way inside the top three before the end of the first moto.
He rounded the first corner in the second moto third in the running order, determined not to be denied.
By the third lap, he was on top of the leader board and held down the point through Lap 10 when he
yielded the top spot to Hunter Lawrence. Despite having surrendered the lead, Cianciarulo stalked
Lawrence for the next two circuits and seized the opportunity to take over the lead for good when the
leader lost the handle on his machine with only four laps to go. From there, Cianciarulo stretched his lead
to nearly three seconds to pick up his second win in a row.
“It definitely wasn’t an easy win, but man does it feel good to come out on top,” said Cianciarulo. “That
first moto, we gambled a bit with that outside gate pick that didn’t really pay off, but we dug deep and put
it on the podium to set us up to be in a good position for the overall. The second moto, I had some good
battles, but no one was stopping me from what was mine. We’ve got a long summer ahead of us and a lot
of motos left, but I am pumped to be leaving here with the points lead. We will continue to do our work
this week and be ready to go in Colorado next weekend.”
While Cianciarulo came away with the checkered flag, his Pro Circuit Racing teammate Garrett
Marchbanks had an impressive day of his own. The second-year pro combined for a solid 9-8 effort
aboard his No. 61 Kawasaki to notch a career-best seventh-place finish.
Fellow Pro Circuit rider Martin Davalos, who was coming off an injury resulting from a crash at the
Hangtown opener, raced his way through adversity to put together an 18-9 effort to come home 14th,
overall.
“I am proud of how today went overall, for my team and I,” explained Marchbanks who holds down ninth
in the standings. “It was my highest career finish in outdoors and something to build on. I need to work on
my intensity early in the moto but otherwise I could not be more pumped to finish inside the top-10 with a
ninth in Moto 1 and an eighth in Moto 2. In Moto 1, I really had to work for it like Adam because we both
started way outside. Moto 2 I got a better start and was able to ride consistently from start to finish. We
will take what we learned with this seventh overall and work to break into that top-five in the coming
weeks.”
In the premiere 450 Class, Justin Hill flew the JE Pistons colors for JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory
Racing, parlaying an 8-7 effort into a respectable seventh-place overall finish.
The 24-year-old Yoncalla, Ore., native is currently 13th in 450 Class points with 10 races left to determine
a champion.
“I was super bummed after Hangtown and didn’t want to feel that way again,” explained Hill. “The
experience really motivated me. I’m starting to put my best foot forward. This is a new mindset, so it will
take some time to get where I really need to be, but I’m excited to build on this weekend and see where
we can go.”
The first moto from Round 3 of the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship from the True Value
Thunder Valley National in Lakewood, Colo., will be televised live on MAVTV Sat., June 1 beginning at 3
p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, noon Pacific. Television coverage for the second moto will be televised on
NBCSN on a tape-delayed basis Sun., June 2 at 4 p.m. EDT, 1 p.m. Pacific. Fans can also purchase the
Pro Motocross Pass on NBC Sports Gold to view all the races live and commercial free from all 12
rounds.
About JE Pistons …
JE Pistons is the leader in high-performance forged pistons with a reputation that the competition can
only follow. JE manufacturers the highest quality pistons and components that professional engine
builders, race teams, and high-performance enthusiasts trust and rely on.
JE Pistons combines technical excellence with responsiveness to meet and exceed customer needs. JE
Pistons, Inc. is a growing and dynamic business, which prides itself on the spirit and professionalism of its
employees.