Kailub Russell was unable to keep his win streak alive, but landed a podium finish and maintains his points lead.
The XC2 Pro Lites class also had its share number of crashes as the muddy and rocky course proved to be one of the most challenging courses so far this season.
Rookie FMF/KTM rider Steward Baylor nailed the holeshot on his 250 XC two-stroke, followed by Jason Thomas and fellow FMF/KTM rider and current points leader Kailub Russell. Shortly into the race, Russell had his first crash of the day.
“I think I fell three times on the first lap. I was just having an off day and making rookie mistakes,” remarked Russell. Despite his early race crashes, Russell was able to pass the entire field before the end of the first lap and came across in the lead at the completion of lap one.
A crash on the second lap allowed Thomas back by and the remainder of the race Russell had to play catch up to make up for time lost during his crashes. “Unfortunately I didn’t perform the best today and the win went to Jason. I am happy to still be in the points lead but will definitely shoot for being back on top of the podium at the next round,” stated Russell.
Baylor, who dropped to 3rd after his early holeshot, had a pretty good lead on the 4th place runner nearing the final lap. Unfortunately, he got stuck in a mud hole which allowed the 4th place bike of KTM rider Jesse Robinson to get around him and take the 3rd place position. Baylor finished 4th overall putting three KTM riders in the top five.
Overall Results XC2 Pro Lites
1. Jason Thomas
2. Kailub Russell – KTM
3. Jesse Robinson – KTM
4. Steward Baylor – KTM
5. Scott Watkins
6. Dustin Gibson – KTM
Overall Points XC2 Pro Lites
1. Kailub Russell – 196
2. Jason Thomas – 169
3. Jesse Robinson – 150
4. Scott Watkins – 122
5. Steward Baylor – 118
