MX Sports Pro Racing

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Makes 2016 Season Premiere on NBC with 40th Annual Red Bull High Point National

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Monday, June 13, 2016 | 1:40 PM

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Makes 2016 Season Premiere on NBC with 40th Annual Red Bull High Point National
Roczen and Savatgy Carry Red Plates as Points Leaders into Keystone State 

Fresh off its first off weekend of the 2016 season, the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, is ready to embark into the heart of the 12-round schedule with its east coast debut. Legendary High Point Raceway in Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania, will celebrate its 40th year in the championship by kicking off the first of three races on network television this Saturday, June 18th. The Red Bull High Point National will serve as the season premiere on NBC with a showcase of the second 450 Class moto, beginning at 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET. MAVTV (450 Moto 1 & 250 Moto 1) and NBC Sports Network (250 Moto 2) will bookend the broadcast coverage. 

Broadcast Coverage of the Red Bull High Point National:
First Motos (450 & 250 Class) – LIVE on MAVTV at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET
Second 450 Class Moto – LIVE on NBC at 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET
Second 250 Class Moto – LIVE on NBC Sports Network at 1 p.m. PT / 4 p.m. ET
LIVE Coverage can also be streamed via ProMotocross.com and NBC Sports Live Extra App.
High Point Highlight Show – June 24 at 2 a.m. ET on NBC Sports Network 

Through the first three rounds of the 2016 season RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Ken Roczen has opened his bid for a second 450 Class title by amassing a career-best start. The German rider has won five of six motos and has two overall wins, vaulting him to a double-digit lead in the championship standings. This weekend he returns to High Point as the defending race winner, looking to keep the momentum of his hot start rolling.

Roczen has won five of six motos and brings a double-digit lead into High Point.Photo: Simon Cudby 
Roczen has won five of six motos and brings a double-digit lead into High Point.Photo: Simon Cudby 

While Roczen enjoyed the spoils of another win at the most recent round from Colorado’s Thunder Valley MX Park, defending 450 Class Champion Ryan Dungey felt a sense of relief to secure a runner-up effort by fighting back from a crash early in the final moto. The intrigue surrounding the rivalry between two past champions intensified, but an announcement last week from Red Bull KTM revealed that Dungey would miss 6-8 weeks with a cracked vertebrae in his neck, suffered in the Thunder Valley crash. 

As a result, the championship picture faces a dramatic shift and an opportunity for a new champion to emerge at season’s end. Roczen’s next closest competitor in the standings, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac, faces a 29-point deficit to the leader and is coming off his best effort of the season. Tomac has finished third overall in each round this season, and grabbed a season-best second-place finish in the final moto at Thunder Valley in an impressive effort.

With Dungey sidelined, Tomac is poised to assume the role of Roczen’s primary title threat, potentially reigniting the captivating rivalry that highlighted the battle for the 2013 title in the 250 Class.

Dungey will miss 6-8 weeks with a cracked vertebrae, effectively ending his title defense.Photo: Simon Cudby
Dungey will miss 6-8 weeks with a cracked vertebrae, effectively ending his title defense.Photo: Simon Cudby

The 250 Class has enjoyed one of the most competitive battles to open a season in recent memory, with four riders within 13 points of one another. Thanks to his second overall win of the season at Thunder Valley, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Joey Savatgy has returned to the top of the championship standings and carries a three-point lead entering High Point. Even with Savatgy’s pair of victories, Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha trio of Alex Martin, Jeremy Martin, and Cooper Webb have asserted themselves at the forefront of the title fight as well.

Of these four riders, three have at least one moto win – Savatgy, Jeremy Martin, and Webb. Although he’s still chasing his first moto win of the season Alex Martin is the only rider other than Savatgy to have an overall victory to his credit. Martin also holds the distinction of being the only rider to finish on the overall podium at every round this season.

Savatgy’s two overall wins have given him a slight edge in the hotly contested 250 Class title fight.Photo: Simon Cudby
Savatgy’s two overall wins have given him a slight edge in the hotly contested 250 Class title fight.Photo: Simon Cudby

Following his best outing of the season thus far, defending back-to-back champion Jeremy Martin is starting to generate momentum after enduring through an illness in the opening rounds. He sits just three points behind Savatgy and posted a season-best runner-up finish at Thunder Valley. Alex Martin sits nine points back in third, while Webb, who continues to fight through a wrist injury, is 13 points back. 

Starting with High Point, the Pro Motocross schedule will race for six consecutive weekends. This will be the most challenging stretch of the championship with 12 motos, ultimately setting the stage for the stretch run that will begin at Unadilla on August 13th. 

Jeremy Martin is knocking on the door of his first win of the 2016 season.Photo: Simon Cudby
Jeremy Martin is knocking on the door of his first win of the 2016 season.Photo: Simon Cudby

Event Schedule

Red Bull High Point National
Round 4: Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
June 18, 2016 – Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania 

Race Day Schedule: 

5:30 a.m. PT / 8:30 a.m. ET    Practice & Qualifying
9:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m. ET  Opening Ceremonies
10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET  First Motos (450 Class & 250 Class)
12:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. ET  Second Motos (450 Class & 250 Class) 

Broadcast Schedule: 

June 18 - 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET (LIVE) - MAVTV - First Motos (450 Class & 250 Class)
June 18 - 12:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. ET (LIVE) - NBC - Second 450 Class Moto
June 18 - 1:00 p.m. PT / 4:00 p.m. ET (LIVE) - NBCSN - Second 250 Class Moto
June 24 - 11:00 p.m. PT (June 23) / 2:00 a.m. ET - NBCSN - Highlight Show

**BOLD indicates live broadcast.
***All times subject to change.

Tomac will look to start erasing the 29-point deficit he faces to Roczen in the 450 Class standings.Photo: Simon Cudby 
Tomac will look to start erasing the 29-point deficit he faces to Roczen in the 450 Class standings.Photo: Simon Cudby 

Previous Round Results 

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship
True Value Thunder Valley National
Thunder Valley MX Park – Lakewood, Colorado
June 4, 2016
Round 3 of 12

450 Class (Moto Finish) 

  1. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki (1-1)
  2. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM (2-4)
  3. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (5-2)
  4. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda (6-3)
  5. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda (3-6)
  6. Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Kawasaki (4-7)
  7. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha (11-8)
  8. Matt Bisceglia, Tualatin, Ore., Suzuki (10-10)
  9. Christophe Pourcel, France, Husqvarna (8-12)
  10. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda (7-13) 

450 Class Championship Standings

  1. Ken Roczen, Germany, Suzuki – 143
  2. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM – 131
  3. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 114
  4. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda – 97
  5. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda – 89
  6. Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Kawasaki – 88
  7. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna – 73
  8. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM – 64
  9. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Yamaha – 62
  10. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki – 50 

250 Class (Moto Finish) 

  1. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki (2-1)
  2. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (1-3)
  3. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (8-2)
  4. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna (4-6)
  5. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha (3-8)
  6. Martin Davalos, Ecuador, Husqvarna (7-5)
  7. Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Honda (5-12)
  8. Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM (12-7)
  9. Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki (17-4)
  10. Mitchell Harrison, Brighton, Mich., Yamaha (11-11) 

250 Class Championship Standings

  1. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki – 123
  2. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha – 120
  3. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha – 114
  4. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha – 110
  5. Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha – 81
  6. Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki – 80
  7. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna – 78
  8. Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM – 65
  9. RJ Hampshire, Hudson Fla., Honda – 59
  10. Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Honda – 52

For information about the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, please visit ProMotocross.com and LIKE the Pro Motocross Facebook page and follow @ProMotocross on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content and additional information on the latest Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship news. 

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship

The Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, features the world’s fastest outdoor motocross racers, racing aboard the best bikes each factory offers, on the roughest, toughest tracks in the world. The 12-rounds series begins at Hangtown in May and ends at Indiana's Ironman Raceway in August. It includes stops at the premier motocross racing facilities in America, with events in California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Washington, New York and Indiana. The pro riders race on Saturday afternoon, with competition divided into two classes: one for 250cc machines, and one for 450cc machines. The Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship is managed by MX Sports Pro Racing, the industry leader in off-road power sports event production. The series is televised on NBC, NBCSN and MAVTV and streamed live on NBC Sports Live Extra.  Series partners include Lucas Oil (series title sponsor), Red Bull, GoPro, WPS, Fly Racing, GEICO Motorcycle, Kawasaki, Motorcycle Superstore, FRAM, KTM, Oakley, FMF, Deltran Battery Tender, Pirelli, Suzuki, Husqvarna, Pivot Works, Vertex, ProGrip, EBC Brakes, KMC Wheels, MotionPro, VP Racing Fuels, Acerbis and Racer X.  More information can be found at www.ProMotocross.com.