Lawrence brothers continue their dominance
The High Point National Motocross round in Mount Morris, Pennsylvania, saw Team Honda HRC rider Jett Lawrence notch his third overall win of the season, and his second in a row, although this one was hard-fought on a treacherous track. Riding with a painful shoulder from his round 2 crash, the 20-year-old Australian had to fend off strong challenges in both motos—the first from brother Hunter Lawrence and the second from Chase Sexton. Nonetheless, he dug deep and found a way to post a perfect 1-1 moto tally, halving his deficit in the title-fight to just eight. Hunter Lawrence retained the red plate and his perfect podium-overall-finish record, his 2-3 moto scores netting him third overall. In the 250 class, Chance Hymas went 4-3 for third overall, while Jo Shimoda was fourth overall with 3-5 scores. Words: Honda HRC
The CRF450RWE race machines of Hunter and Jett Lawrence were first and second across the holeshot line in the first premier-class moto, and the brothers proceeded to slug it out at the front in a performance that was reminiscent of their days battling for the 2022 250 title. A lap-3 bobble by Hunter allowed Jett to assume the lead, but the duo continued to run together, expanding the gap on third place to over 35 seconds by the time they crossed the finish line.
The second moto saw Jett and Hunter start second and fifth, respectively. Hunter moved up a position on lap 1, and another one on lap 2, but Chase Sexton got by him the next time around. Jett passed Jason Anderson on lap 5 and Hunter did likewise four laps later. Jett defended the lead for four laps before Chase Sexton got by. The two battled for three laps before Sexton went down, and Jett went on to take the win, with Hunter third.
The first 250 moto saw Hymas start well and move into the lead on the first lap, while Shimoda was quickly into fourth. Shimoda got by Tom Vialle, and the top three commenced a battle that lasted until Hymas made an error that allowed both Ty Masterpool and Shimoda to move by. With the laps winding down, Shimoda and Hymas both succumbed to Haiden Deegan, leaving them to finish third and fourth, respectively.
Shimoda and Hymas completed the first lap in sixth and seventh, in what would be a wild second moto. Hymas mounted a charge that carried him all the way to the lead before the midway point, and he held it for five laps before losing a couple of spots late, to finish third (still good enough for an overall podium). Shimoda had a steady moto to finish in the top five, his 3-5 giving him fourth overall.
Jett Lawrence: “Chase [Sexton] had some good lines, and it was a bummer to see him go down–that was his race for sure. I didn’t feel as good, and my shoulder was fatiguing a bit more today. We were struggling a bit there, but I had a little Lady Luck. It was good to get the overall, and on to the break–it’s much needed.”
Hunter Lawrence: “I would’ve liked to capitalise a little better in the second moto, but I just didn’t have the flow from the first one. I’m not really stoked on that second moto, but we’ll take that one on the chin. Now, we can enjoy the weekend off, hang out at home and come out swinging at Southwick in a couple of weeks.”
Image: HRC Honda
