2019 Washougal Motocross National Results: Tomac Dominates
In breathtaking fashion, Eli Tomac went 1-1 to dominate the proceedings at the Motosport.com Washougal National. Ken Roczen went 2-3 to take P2 overall, and Marvin Musquin’s 5-2 day put him on the overall podium. Tomac, who came from behind in both motos, now leads the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross National Championship Series by 50 points with three rounds remaining.Tomac leads Musquin
The AMA 450MX National Championship is Eli Tomac’s to lose. Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki) looked unbeatable at Washougal MX Park. He took a bland P7 start in the opening moto and methodically worked his way to the front. By the halfway point, Tomac was on the podium. Tomac eventually put a hard pass on Roczen after time expired to take the lead and moto 1 win. Tomac made it much harder on himself in moto 2, as he started in P17. Two laps in, Tomac had already advanced to P8 and, again, he was in a podium position before the midway point in the moto. This time, Tomac easily blew by Roczen for P2 on lap 10 (of 16) before engaging Musquin. Musquin put up a decent fight, but after Tomac passed Musquin in a chicane, he was gone, winning by 12 seconds.
To get an idea of Eli Tomac’s dominance of the second moto, the lap times tell the tale. Other than Tomac, Jason Anderson put in the best fastest-lap at 2:20.015 on lap 3. Tomac was faster than that in 8 of the 16 laps in the moto—a stunning statistic. At his peak on lap 7, Tomac ran through the course in 2:18.337.
Ken Roczen podiumed both motos for the first time since round 3 at Thunder Valley. With his undiagnosed health issues reducing his stamina, it has been difficult for Roczen (Team Honda HRC) to put together a consistent pair of motos. He pulled it off in Washougal, nearly winning the first moto and finishing comfortably on the podium in moto 2. Roczen did it by starting well. He was in P2 on the first lap of moto 1, quickly passing Joey Savatgy for the lead, which Roczen held for 13 of 16 laps. In moto 2, Roczen was in the top four early and slotted himself behind leader Musquin on lap 2. From there, Roczen sat comfortably ahead of the rest of the pack until Tomac came charging past on lap 10. Roczen gains four points in the standings on Musquin, and is just seven points out of P2.Musquin leads Roczen
Marvin Musquin never quite got on track in moto 1, but looked good in the second moto. Musquin (Red Bull KTM) battled in a group chasing the leaders early in moto 1, but slipped to P6 on lap 6. From there, all Musquin could do was pass a fading Savatgy and take P5, 25 seconds behind Tomac. Musquin had a great start and had a 10-second gap on Tomac early in moto 2. However, it wasn’t enough, though Musquin did make Tomac work for his pass for the lead on lap 12—Musquin relinquished the lead just after putting in his fastest lap of the moto. Rather than catching Tomac in the championship battle, Musquin has to watch for a closing Roczen in the series standings.Savatgy (#17) duels with Musquin
Cooper Webb was unspectacular, but steady at Washougal. Webb (Red Bull KTM) was in a podium position for most of moto 1, though never a threat for the lead. He was quickly passed by Tomac on lap 7, though he got P3 back two laps later when he passed Savatgy. Webb had to hold off Anderson for P3 late in the moto, with both of them going down in separate incidents on the final lap. Webb was never in the moto 2 mix for the lead. He was in P6 early, before getting passed by Tomac on lap 3. Webb returned to P6 by passing Savatgy on lap 11 and a struggling Anderson on the final lap to take P5 and miss the overall podium.
Joey Savatgy had two great starts, but could not convert them into top-five finishes. Savatgy (Monster Energy Kawasaki) had a pair of sixes, though he must be thinking he should have done better. Savatgy grabbed a holeshot and led the first lap of moto 1, with the real fade starting at the midway point. In the second moto, Savatgy held onto a podium position for five laps before Anderson and Tomac blew by him in quick succession. Still, given that Savatgy DNFed three of his previous four motos, going 6-6 had to feel pretty good.Savatgy moto 2 holeshot
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing had three riders in the top 10. None of the three could put together consistent motos, and it cost them. Anderson went 4-7, having problems late in moto 2. Zach Osborne was 9-4, despite running as high as P7 in the first moto. Dean Wilson’s 7-10 was good for P9 overall. Wilson was in P5 after the first lap of moto 2, but simply did not have the pace.
Ken Roczen has now led 100 laps in the 2019 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series, despite never grabbing a holeshot. That’s far more than the next rider, Tomac, who has lead 64 laps. Musquin is in P3 in laps lead with 53. Roczen has the speed—he needs to solve the riddle of his stamina issue.Roczen leads Tomac
Fredrik Norén continues his run of strong finishes with an 8-8 day. As a fill-in rider and the sole member of the JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing team, Norén has done quite well. His 8-8 is his best performance since going 5-7 in Southwick, and his first pair of top 10 finishes since then.
It was a tough day for the Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM team. Blake Baggett sat out due to fatigue dating back to the brutal Florida National. Benny Bloss crashed out in moto 1 and was holding his knee—he didn’t line up for the second moto. Justin Bogle missed the top 10 in both motos, going 12-11.
Monster Energy/Yamaha Factory Racing continues to struggle. Technical problems at the gate prevented Aaron Plessinger from competing in moto 1, and he finished a lackluster P13 in the second moto. Justin Barcia’s 10-9 day allowed him to barely sneak into the top 10 overall.
The series takes a week off before meeting up on August 9 in New Berlin in upstate New York for the Circle K Unadilla National. Racing resumes at the famed Unadilla MX course as the series starts a three-round sprint to the finish. The 250MX class races will be live on MavTV and NBC, but the second 450MX moto will be shown two hours after the fact on NBCSN. As always, refer to our 2019 Pro Motocross TV Schedule for the latest broadcast and streaming times.
2019 Washougal Motocross National Results, Washougal MX Park, Washougal, WA
Eli Tomac, Kawasaki, 1-1; 50 points
Ken Roczen, Honda, 2-3; 42 points
Marvin Musquin, KTM, 5-2; 38 points
Cooper Webb, KTM, 3-5; 36 points
Jason Anderson, Husqvarna, 4-7; 32 points
Zach Osborne, Husqvarna, 9-4; 30 points
Joey Savatgy, Kawasaki, 6-6; 30 points
Fredrik Norén, Suzuki, 8-8, 26 points
Dean Wilson, Husqvarna, 7-10; 25 points
Justin Barcia, Yamaha, 10-9; 23 points
Justin Bogle, KTM, 12-11; 19 points
John Short, Honda, 11-12; 19 points
Ben Lamay, Honda, 13-14; 15 points
Tyler Bowers, Kawasaki, 15-16; 11 points
Henry Miller, KTM, 14-18; 10 points
Lorenzo Locurcio, Kawasaki, 18-15; 9 points
Aaron Plessinger, Yamaha, 40-13; 8 points
James Weeks, Yamaha, 19-17; 6 points
Isaac Teasdale, Suzuki, 17-19; 6 points
Taiki Koga, Kawasaki, 16-32; 5 points
Noah McConahy, Yamaha, 22-20; 1 point
Cade Autenrieth, KTM, 20-23; 1 point
2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross AMA National Championship Standings (after 9 of 12 rounds)