HURRICANE MILLS, Tenn. — The fourth day of competition at the Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship could also be deemed Championship Friday as 19 of the 36 classes crowned champions following their respective third and final motos.
When all was said and done, 19 different athletes were handed coveted No. 1 plates as AMA National Champions.
250 Pro Sport
A winner-take-all scenario headlined the final 250 Pro Sport moto as Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Drew Adams (4-1 moto scores) and NSA Factory Yamaha Team’s Avery Long (3-2 moto scores) each came into Friday’s deciding race with five points apiece.
Adams had been the hottest rider at the Ranch, while Long had been one of the most consistent. The edge would likely come down to which rider got the better start.
As the gate dropped to begin Moto 3 it was neither Adams not Long out front, but instead NSA Factory Yamaha Team rider Leum Oehlhof leading the field out of the first turn for the STACYC Holeshot and early lead. SLR Honda’s Parker Ross started second, while Adams and Long followed in third and fourth, respectively.
Oehlhof maintained a hold of the lead for the opening laps, but Adams soon found his flow and dramatically increased his pace. He got around Ross for second and set his sights on the lead. He gained major ground on Oehlhof over the next couple laps and while the Yamaha rider was able to keep him at bay briefly, Adams made the pass.
From there, the Tennessee native pulled away. Meanwhile, Long stalled out in fourth despite the strong start and eventually dropped to fifth.
Adams continued to lay down exceptional times and soon sat more than five seconds clear of the field. That lead eventually grew to more than 10 seconds before Adams’ pace slowed slightly.
He cruised to his second straight moto win in 250 Pro Sport and put an exclamation point on a championship-winning performance that began with Adams on the ground in the first turn of Moto 1, starting in 34th-place.
It was a memorable effort deserving of the Nicky Hayden AMA Motocross Horizon Award, which Adams became the newest recipient of with his championship.
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider and Moto 1 winner Cole Davies finished in second, 8.3 seconds behind Adams, while Ross followed in third.
250 B
Another tight battle in the overall standings highlighted the storylines of the final moto in 250 B, as Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green teammates Landen Gordon and Caden Dudney entered Moto 3 separated by a single point.
The pair had split moto wins heading into Friday’s finale, which amplified the intensity on the starting gate.
Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX Yamaha’s Ryder Malinoski opened the final moto with the STACYC Holeshot, but he was quickly overcome by Dudney, who seized the moment and put himself out front with a clear track.
Gordon sat just a few positions back and made several passes on the opening lap to officially start second. However, the effort to move into the position meant Gordon faced a deficit of nearly two seconds to his teammate from the outset of the moto.
Gordon settled in and gave pursuit to Dudney, as the lead stabilized to a similar margin through the middle of the moto. Gordon made a push to briefly get within a few bike lengths of Dudney, but then got slowed by a lapped rider, which became the turning point of the moto.
Once he lost the ground, Gordon was unable to regain the momentum he carried earlier.
Dudney’s charge continued out front and he pulled away at the end to take the moto win and the class championship along with it. He crossed the finish line 10.5 seconds ahead of Gordon, with Malinoski right behind in third.
Dudney (3-1-1) and Gordon (1-2-2) finished the week with equal scores in the overall standings, but the third moto tiebreaker went to Dudney and vaulted him to the 250 B title.
Senior (40+)
One couldn’t ask for a closer battle for the championship than the one former Pro Motocross legends Mike Brown and Andrew Short were locked into in the Senior class.
The race began as onlookers hoped, with Brown and Short side-by-side, the edge going to Brown and his Munn Racing KTM for the STACYC Holeshot. As the duo settled into the top two positions, Brown edged out to a multi-second lead. Short kept him honest aboard his KTM, but continued to lose ground as the moto approached its halfway point.
It appeared as though Brown had built a large enough lead to bring home the win, but as he started to navigate slower riders his pace dropped.
Meanwhile, Short let it all hang out and mounted an impressive push to take huge chunks out of Brown’s lead and close to within striking distance. As they took the white flag, Short was easily the fastest rider on the track and dug deep to get everything out of himself and the motorcycle on the final circuit.
Brown, meanwhile, didn’t appear to have the pace to fend off Short’s momentum and as they entered the final turn a lapped rider split the lead duo, Brown on the inside and Short on the outside. Brown navigated the turn slower and didn’t have as much momentum as Short on exit.
They crossed lines coming to the checkered flag, with Brown going outside and Short moving inside. Short grabbed a handful of throttle and launched his KTM to the line as both riders crossed the finish line in a dead heat.
The photo finish needed verification to determine who won, with Short prevailing by the slimmest of margins. The separation of .016 was one of the closest finishes in Loretta Lynn’s history.
Jeff Emig finished more than a minute behind in third.
Short captured just his second ever Loretta Lynn’s title with 1-2-1 finishes.
Masters (50+)
Several hours after he had a bittersweet end to his title hopes in the Senior division, Mike Brown returned to the track aboard his Munn KTM looking to put the finishing touches on what had been a dominant journey in the Masters class.
Brown had yet to be challenged through two motos and entered as the odds-on favorite to continue that trend.
When the gate dropped, Brown jumped out front almost immediately to easily secure the STACYC Holeshot and the early lead. He then proceeded to do what he’s done all week, sprint on the opening laps and establish what becomes an insurmountable lead.
On Friday, that lead started at five seconds over Jeff Emig and then approached nearly 20 seconds on the following lap. Brown was in a class of his own once more and easily completed the 1-1-1 sweep of the motos by a final margin of 29.3 seconds over Emig’s Husqvarna.
Gregory Pamart followed in third aboard his Kawasaki.
Brown’s 1-1-1 effort brought him his 12th Loretta Lynn’s title.
Of the remaining 15 athletes who emerged triumphant as newly crowned AMA National Champions, special recognition goes out to Brandon Haas (Vet 30+), Diesel Thomas (450 B), and Tate Brush (Micro 3) for the incredible feat of sweeping all three of the motos in their respective classes en route to capturing their division titles.
Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Champions
Vet (30+): Brandon Haas, Chesterfield, S.C., Yamaha
450 B: Diesel Thomas, Raymond, Neb., Yamaha
125 C: Carson Asay, Vancouver, Wash., KTM
85cc (10-12): Braxtyn Mes, Temecula, Calif., Husqvarna
65cc (7-9) Limited: Kannon Zabojnik, Rowlett, Texas, Cobra
Mini Sr. 2 (13-15): Dane Pappas, Livermore, Calif., GASGAS
450 C: Jamieson MacDonald, Grafton, Ont., Canada, KTM
250 B Limited: Grayson Townsend, St. George, Utah, Kawasaki
65cc (10-11) Limited: Carter Gray, St. Clairsville, Ohio, Cobra
Mini Sr. 1 (12-14): Ries Seeba, Wrightwood, Calif., KTM
125 Jr. (12-17) B/C: Owen Covell, Plymouth, Mass., Yamaha
Micro 2 (4-6) Limited: Trey Geary, Imperial, Neb., Cobra
Micro 3 (7-8) Limited: Tate Brush, Atwood, Tenn., Cobra
Micro 1 (4-6) Shaft Dr. Ltd.: Wyatt Tedesco, Checotah, Okla., Yamaha
Micro-E (4-7) Limited: Mickey Fluhart, Brandywine, Md., Cobra