HURRICANE MILLS, Tenn. — Racing at the 2024 Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship began on Tuesday with opening motos for 23 classes.
250 Pro Sport
Less than a month removed from signing with the successful Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing stable, the opening moto proved to be a statement outing for New Zealander Cole Davies.
The reigning Supercross Futures titleholder made life easy for himself with a wire-to-wire effort that saw him seize control of the lead exiting the first turn for the STACYC Holeshot and dominate the rest of the way. Davies’ advantage over the field was never less than four seconds as he continued to build on his lead and eventually took the checkered flag 18 seconds ahead of second place.
Finishing in second was NSA Factory Yamaha Team rider Avery Long, who was impressive in his ability to come through the field following an 11th-place start.
The Minnesota native was consistently one of the fastest riders over the course of the moto, which allowed him to pass multiple riders in the opening laps before he settled into fourth behind teammate Leum Oehlhof.
The pair took advantage of a miscue by Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX Yamaha’s Trevin Nelson at the halfway point, before Long made the pass on Oehlhof for second just a couple laps later.
The Factory Yamaha duo charged through the end to complete a Yamaha sweep of the moto podium.
The top five was rounded out by the Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green duo of Drew Adams in fourth and Enzo Temmerman in fifth.
250 B
Another class chock full of prospects is 250 B, featuring a talented contingent of racers refining their skills aboard a 250cc machine.
After coming up one turn short of a milestone win at the RedBud Scouting Moto Combine earlier in the month, Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Landen Gordon was determined to establish himself as the rider to beat in the class and fulfilled that goal with a wire-to-wire performance of his own.
The California native took control from the outset of the moto with the STACYC Holeshot but showed tremendous poise in fending off pressure all moto long before ultimately crossing the finish line with a winning margin of 5.5 seconds.
Finishing in the runner-up spot was Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Amateur Elite racer Landon Gibson, who positioned himself well with a fifth-place start and made early moves to slot into second.
Once in second, the Georgia native was able to close to within less than a second of the lead, but some late miscues in the closing laps forced him to settle for a runner-up result.
The moto podium was rounded out by Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Caden Dudney, who impressed with a come-from-behind effort that saw the Texan pass 19 riders to climb from 22nd on the opening lap to third at the end.
Senior (40+)
On the other end of the spectrum from the new generation of talent at the Ranch are the decorated racers that occupy the championship’s oldest divisions.
The Senior class features more than a dozen racers with past Pro Motocross experiences, headlined by a pair of former National Champions in Mike Brown and Jeff Emig along with a former national winner in Andrew Short, making his debut in the division.
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For many years Brown has been the standard bearer for the elder division, however, hard luck one year ago left him winless and in search of redemption for the 2024 event.
On Tuesday, Brown learned he’ll have a new threat to deal with in Short. As the gate dropped for the opening moto, it was the Yamaha of Kris Keefer out front with the STACYC Holeshot, but soon enough Brown put himself in a familiar position at the front of the field aboard his Munn Racing KTM, while Short slotted in behind in second aboard his KTM.
Brown put the hammer down to build a gap, posting his fastest time of the moto on lap two, which established a lead of nearly three seconds.
However, as he looked to build on that advantage Brown went down and gave up the top spot to Short, who assumed first and rode out to a margin of more than six seconds.
Brown remounted in second and spent the middle of the moto chipping away at Short’s lead. Brown’s consistency, in addition to Short’s two worst laps in back-to-back sequence, saw the duo come back to less than a second from one another as the moto entered its final stages.
Brown appeared to have the upper hand as the slightly faster rider, but a lapped rider slowed his momentum significantly. That put another handful of seconds between them and effectively ended any threat, which allowed Short to cruise to the win, while Brown slowed dramatically on the final lap to secure second.
Third went to Honda rider Shane Kelleher, who enjoyed an excited moto-long battle with Yamaha-mounted Kris Keefer. The top five was rounded out by Emig, who had to dig deep aboard his Husqvarna after a 20th-place start.
Masters (50+)
Brown and Emig had a second shot at tackling the track in the Masters division, where they were expected to renew their rivalry from last year. Emig entered as the defending class champion, but Brown was determined to right the wrongs from the previous summer.
Brown grabbed the STACYC Holeshot and the early lead. The clear track was all Brown needed as he laid down an incredible opening lap that moved him nearly 10 seconds ahead of the field.
The KTM rider didn’t relent and continued to run an unmatched pace that soon saw him put more than a half minute on his competitors. He was in a class of his own and easily wrapped up a wire-to-wire outing by a margin of 51.5 seconds.
Emig’s title defense started well as he finished in second, but he found himself in a battle for the position on the opening lap, which allowed Brown to get away.
Suzuki-mounted Barry Carsten rounded out the podium in third.
Junior (25+)
Perhaps one of the most competitive divisions at the Ranch this year is the Junior class, led by defending titleholder Cole Martinez.
One year ago, Martinez became one of the event’s best stories as he not only captured the Junior crown, but took an unexpected victory in Open Pro Sport as well.
It was evident from the opening moto that he’ll be forced to contend with Phoenix Racing Honda’s Heath Harrison, his rival from last year, and fellow Honda rider Jacob Hayes.
The moto started with the Kawasaki of Steven Mages earning the STACYC Holeshot, but Hayes made quick moves to secure hold of the lead over Harrison, while Martinez initially started fourth but quickly slotted behind his rivals in third.
Hayes and Harrison traded momentum throughout the first half of the moto, swapping fast laps, to keep the margin between one to two seconds.
Martinez’s battle to move into third caused him to lose significant ground to the leaders, but once he was clear he became the fastest rider on the track and started to inch closer and closer.
Harrison’s persistence paid off just before halfway and he made the move around Hayes to take the lead. Hayes then encountered misfortune on the following lap and lost second to a hard-charging Martinez. While Hayes remounted in third, he lost touch of the battle for the win.
Martinez continued to close in on Harrison. The Honda rider’s consistent, strong pace from the early portion of the moto started to dip, which saw him lose considerable ground to Martinez and ignite a late-race battle for the win. Harrison did all he could to keep Martinez at bay, but the Yamaha rider made the winning pass with just two laps to go. Harrison followed that with his slowest laps of the moto.
Martinez stormed to an impressive moto win that saw him overcome his two biggest rivals, finishing 3.3 seconds ahead of Harrison, while Hayes followed in a distant third.
Other Winners
Vet (30+):Â Brandon Haas, Chesterfield, S.C., Yamaha
450 B: Diesel Thomas, Raymond, Neb., Husqvarna
125 C: Gianni Love, Austin, Texas, GASGAS
85cc (10-12): Nolan Ford, Fairfield, Calif., KTM
65cc (7-9) Limited: Beckham Smith, Canton, Texas, KTM
Mini Sr. 2 (13-15): Tanner Dorman, Kerhonkson, N.Y., KTM
450 C: Jamieson Macdonald, Grafton, Ont., Canada
250 B Limited: Grayson Townsend, St. George, Utah, Kawasaki
65cc (10-11) Limited: Carter Gray, St. Clairsville, Ohio, Cobra
Mini Sr. 1Â (12-14): Ries Seeba, Wrightwood, Calif., KTM
125 Jr. (12-17) B/C: Brennon Harrison, Jacksonville, Fla, GASGAS
250 C: Ryan Sampson, Cairo, Ga., Yamaha
Girls (11-16): Lachlan Turner, Gardnerville, Nev., GASGAS
College (18-24): Noah Stevens, Danbury, C.N.,
Micro 1 (4-6) Shaft Dr. Ltd.: Wyatt Tedesco, Checotah, Okla., Yamaha
Micro-E (4-7) Limited: Boone Lloyd, Beford, Pa., Cobra
Micro 2 (4-6) Limited: Ezra Armbruster, Garden Grove, Calif., Cobra
Micro 3 (7-8) Limited: Tate Brush, Atwood, Tenn., Cobra
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