Riding at what was essentially his home race, Chance Hymas shrugged off a nasty, multi-rider crash at the start of moto 1, and then turned in the best performance of his young professional career, notching his first podium moto finish and his first top-five overall finish.
Jett nailed the holeshot in the first 450 moto and immediately set sail on his CRF450RWE. Riding smoothly and calmly, he steadily grew the gap on second place, eventually winning by over half a minute. The second moto saw more of the same, although his margin of victory this time around was “only” 12 seconds.
The first 250 moto started with a start-straight pile-up that slowed Hunter and put Hymas on the ground, leaving them 10th and last, respectively. Hunter was up to sixth after one lap, and he proceeded to pass some of the class’s top riders, arriving to third by lap 6. Getting around Haiden Deegan took some time, but Hunter was able to do so without falling. By then, the leader was too far ahead to catch. Meanwhile, Hymas put on an inspiring charge through the pack, eventually finishing just outside the top 10 on a track where passing was difficult. The second outing saw both Red Riders start much better, with Hunter’s CRF250R third across the holeshot line and that of Hymas sixth. Lawrence was into the lead by the end of lap 1, and he rode expertly to win by nearly five seconds. Fourth after lap 1, Hymas passed Jordon Smith four laps later and held strong to the end for third, the best result of his young career.
Jett Lawrence #18“It’s always nervous coming into the first one because you don’t know where everyone’s at. The big thing was how the track was going to form up for the main, and after practice, the joke was, ‘I just want to see Sunday!’ [laughs] I had a bit of a rough one in the heat race, so I just focused on the main and making sure I did what I needed to do. I’m thankful I came out of here in one piece.”
Jett Lawrence #18
“My bike continues to get better and better each week, as I get more and more comfortable on the 450. It’s nice to know that if I need to push hard, the bike will be a huge help. I was pumped on my starts all day; making sure to stay out of the roost is a must at this track. The track was super-slippery all day too, so getting out front early let me look around for different lines without worrying about losing too much time to people in front of me. I’m happy to get out of here with another win, and I just want to keep building on what we have here.”
Hunter Lawrence #96
“It was a really tricky track compared to last year, with all that moisture underneath. All the bumps and ruts had a bunch of super-spongy areas, which made it tough to keep the bike upright. I’m happy I was able to keep the bike upright and grab another win. Obviously, I would love a 1-1, but as long as I keep putting myself in good positions, good things will continue to happen. I’m really excited to go to High Point. It’s one of my favorite tracks in the series, and it’s the first East Coast round.”
Chance Hymas #832
“This weekend was really good for me, even with the first-turn pileup in moto 1. Coming back from dead last to 11th gave me confidence going into the second moto. I got a fifth-place start, worked my way up to third, and got to battle for second place. I wish I had made the pass, but I’m pumped on getting my first professional podium.”
Lars Lindstrom - Team Manager
“Wow, another perfect weekend for us! The start of the outdoors has been incredible so far, and it’s honestly starting to feel normal to win—which I don’t like, because to win these races is such a special thing to do and so difficult. After every win, I try and stress to the team that we need to appreciate these days, because we spent many years winless, which was rough with all the work we were putting in. It was really great having Chance under the podium tent after his third-place second-moto finish; I think it will be a huge confidence booster for him.”