It was the Australian’s first time racing in the Emerald City, as the series returned after a two-year absence. Lawrence was back a bit off the main-event start, ending the first lap in fourth place. Lap 3 saw him get by Jo Shimoda for third and, when points-leader Christian Craig went down at the end of the same lap, Lawrence moved up to second. He then began stalking the leading Michael Mosiman, and he took over the lead in a corner on lap 8. Through the race’s latter half, Lawrence settled in and rode fast but controlled, navigating lapped traffic well and holding off his challengers to earn his second win of the season.
Unfortunately, Chase Sexton suffered a hard crash during the final 450SX qualifying session and was banged-up enough that he and the team felt it prudent for him to heal up and come back strong for the St. Louis round in two weeks.
Hunter Lawrence #96
“We were grafting all day, to be honest – every session, we were chasing the track, chasing the bike, making changes. It’s kind of nervous, not knowing the outcome. We had to have a lot of faith in the team, and we all worked really well – it felt really good for the night show. My line in the whoops may not have been the fastest, but I knew it would be okay if it was my most consistent line. I’ve still only done 17 main events, so I’m still learning. Honestly, I’m just trying to better myself every night and during the week, build and be a better rider in the future.”
Chase Sexton #23
“Seattle wasn’t very good for me. I had a big get-off in the second qualifying session; I mis-shifted on a three-on and ended up in neutral, and went over the bars, which didn’t feel great. I hit my back pretty hard and was overall shaken up, so we decided to sit out the night. Overall, I feel pretty good [on Monday]. My body’s a little sore, but I’m excited to get back to work, address any issues and get back at it in St. Louis.”
Lars Lindstrom - Team Manager
“It was a rough day for us as a team with Chase having a huge crash in practice. Luckily, he seems to be relatively okay, but he wasn’t able to race tonight because of being beat up and not feeling 100%. That stings a little bit, but luckily we were able to have Hunter pull through and have an incredible race to take the win, which definitely saved the night for us. We’re going to regroup, do what we can to get Chase in the shape that he needs to be in for the next race, and come out swinging at the next one.”