2017 Arlington 250SX Results
Round six of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX Western Regional Championship at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, served as a dramatic turning point in the championship standings as Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Justin Hill scored his fourth-consecutive win while Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM’s Shane McElrath finished in 22nd place after a mechanical failure.
Hill started the race in second place behind McElrath, who grabbed the SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award. McElrath pulled away from Hill and led the race until lap sixteen when he suffered a mechanical failure on his KTM 250 SX-F. Hill took the lead and laid down fast laps to take his seventh 250SX career victory. Hill’s leads the championship standings by 21 points over second place leading into the break while the 250SX East Region Championship races take place.
“It was a tough break for Shane [McElrath] tonight. I hate to win like that but we never gave up all night,” said Hill. “This is the first time I’ve been in the championship fight this late in the season and I’m going to do all I can to bring it home. It’s great for the entire team to extend our lead heading into the break.”
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rookie Austin Forkner earned a career best finish in second place. He began the race in third place behind Hill and McElrath and inherited second place position when McElrath’s bike quit. He put in consistent laps in the remainder of the race to take second place and give the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki team its first 1-2 sweep since the season-ending East/West Regional Shootout in Las Vegas during the 2014 season, which was won by Hill.
Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha’s Aaron Plessinger suffered from a 12th place start and put on a charge to work his way back up into third place and round out the podium for the night. Plessinger’s third place performance moved him up in the championship standings to second place after McElrath’s misfortune.
GEICO Honda’s Jimmy Decotis came around the first turn in fourth place and began applying pressure on Forkner for third. Decotis was unable to pass Forkner and got passed by Plessinger, which put him in fourth for the night. Decotis’ consistency puts him in fifth place in the championship standings leading into the break in the 250 West Region Series.
Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha’s Dan Reardon scored his best finish of the season in fifth. The Australian rider came around the first corner in eighth and made a few calculated passes to round out the top five in Arlington on his Yamaha YZ250F.
GEICO Honda’s Jeremy Martin finished in sixth after a week off due to failing a concussion test from a practice crash he suffered in at round four in Glendale, Arizona.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Martin Davalos, IB Corp/Rock River/Yamaha’s Cole Martinez, 51Fifty Yamaha’s Hayden Mellross, and SmarTop/Motoconcepts/Honda’s Kyle Chisholm rounded out the top ten, respectively.
The 250 Western Regional Supercross Championship now takes a hiatus until April 8 when the series returns to Century Link Field in Seattle, Wash. The 250 Eastern Region will begin racing next weekend at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.
2017 Arlington 250SX Results, Round 6:
- Justin Hill – Kawasaki KX250F
- Austin Forkner – Kawasaki KX250F
- Aaron Plessinger – Yamaha YZ250F
- Jimmy Decotis – Honda CRF250R
- Dan Reardon – Yamaha YZ250F
- Jeremy Martin – Honda CRF250R
- Martin Davalos – Husqvarna FC250
- Cole Martinez – Yamaha YZ250F
- Hayden Mellross – Yamaha YZ250F
- Kyle Chisholm – Honda CRF250R
- Noah McConahy – Yamaha YZ250F
- Ryan Surratt – Kawasaki KX250F
- Justin Hoeft – Yamaha YZ250F
- AJ Catanzaro – Yamaha YZ250F
- Justin Starling – Husqvarna FC250
- Killian Auberson – KTM 250SX-F
- Scott Champion – Yamaha YZ250F
- Chris Alldredge – Yamaha YZ250F
- Chase Marquier – Honda CRF250R
- Broc Shoemaker– Yamaha YZ250F
- Chris Howell – Husqvarna FC250
- Shane McElrath – KTM 250SX-F
2017 250SX Supercross Point Standings:
- Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Kawasaki – 138
- Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha – 117
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM – 113
- Martin Davalos, Clermont, Fla., Husqvarna – 106
- Jimmy Decotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda – 91
- Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki – 90
- Dan Reardon, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha – 72
- Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Honda – 60
- Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Honda – 55
- Phil Nicoletti, Cohocton, N.Y., Suzuki – 54
