Hunter Lawrence takes career-first 450SX Triple Crown overall win in Indianapolis

• Australian extends advantage back to four points in championship chase
• Jo Shimoda improves 250SX East title chances with second overall

Following a challenging Daytona round that saw Hunter Lawrence and Jo Shimoda lose a bit of ground in their respective fights for the 450SX and 250SX East AMA Supercross Championships, both Honda HRC Progressive riders performed well under pressure at the exciting second Triple Crown event of the season, which eclipsed the midway point of the season in Indianapolis. Lawrence scored the second premier-class win of his career (his first overall victory with the unique three-race format), while Shimoda was second overall in his third race back from a neck injury. More importantly, each rider improved his chances at a title.

Lawrence was fourth out of turn 1 for the first 450SX race, and he dropped to sixth in the opening laps. Forced to push hard to come out on top of a tight battle with Jorge Prado, Eli Tomac and Justin Cooper, he crossed the finish line in second, positioning him well for the overall podium. The Australian was in third for the majority of the second race, before getting caught up with lappers and narrowly avoiding a crash with five laps to go. He managed to stay on his bike and only lost one position, to Cooper Webb, eventually finishing fourth. Lawrence put everything together in the third and final premier-class race, grabbing the holeshot and leading from start to finish aboard his CRF450RWE. His 2-4-1 finishes netted him his first 450SX Triple Crown win. Quad Lock Honda's Joey Savatgy was in the fight for another great result before he crashed in the third race and left the track before the checkered flag came out. His teammates Shane McElrath and Christian Craig finished eighth and 10th overall, respectively, while Savatgy was credited with ninth.

The three 250SX East races saw Jo Shimoda consistently get his CRF250RWE out of the gate in the top three, making him a Triple Crown overall podium contender. In race 1, he battled with Daxton Bennick and Seth Hammaker over second place until the late stages. At that point, Shimoda was closing in on the leading Cole Davies, but he ran out of time and ultimately finished second. The scenario repeated itself in the second race, as the Japanese racer found himself fighting for another second-place finish behind Davies. In the last 250SX race of the evening, the Honda HRC Progressive rider was stuck behind Devin Simonson for a few too many laps, causing him to lose touch with the leaders. Undeterred, Shimoda charged forward and climbed into second late in the race. He held the position until the final corner of the last lap, when he was narrowly passed and finished third-his consistent good starts and late-race pushes earning him second place overall. Also delivering consistent performances was Phoenix Racing Honda's Cullin Park, who finished inside the top 10 in all three races, earning ninth overall.

NOTES

• Honda HRC Progressive riders Hunter Lawrence and Jo Shimoda were featured in the media day interviews and riding sessions on Friday. Justin Brayton also did a lap on a CRF450RWE while chatting with fellow commentator Adam Cianciarulo, for a track preview that was broadcast during Saturday's evening program.
• Anderson, Indiana, dealership Tom Wood Honda enhanced the fan experience in Honda HRC Progressive's pit area with an interactive pop-up activation, showcasing a CRF450R and featuring a special offer that included a free Honda jersey.
• Lawrence and Shimoda engaged with fans throughout the weekend and participated in a fan autograph session.
• Asked before the race for his thoughts on the Triple Crown format, Lawrence replied, "The smallest mistake can bring the night off the rails. Looking back at Houston, the one little mistake I made in the first race ultimately cost me the overall, so you have to be perfect. You've got to push just enough, but not too much." Lawrence found the right balance on race day, earning his first premier-class Triple Crown overall win.
• The event broadcast included a feature on Quad Lock Honda's Joey Savatgy, who has been enjoying a career renaissance during his 13th professional season.
• The broadcast also included an interview with Addison Clouse, a female Red Rider from Indianapolis who is planning to participate in two of the six races in the WMX championship this year.
• Shimoda placed third in 250SX combined qualifying, his best showing of the season. Phoenix Racing Honda riders Cullin Park, Gavin Towers and Evan Ferry qualified seventh, 10th and 14th, respectively. Storm Lake Honda riders Izaih Clark and Luke Neese were 15th and 23rd, respectively, Jeremy Hand (Valley Motorsports) qualified in 19th, with Ryder Floyd (Ti Lube Honda) in 32nd and John Short IV (Short Racing) in 33rd. Neese went on to win the 250SX LCQ, securing a coveted spot in the Triple Crown program.
• In 450SX combined qualifying, Lawrence also placed third. Quad Lock Honda riders Joey Savatgy, Shane McElrath and Christian Craig qualified in seventh, ninth and 11th, respectively. Privateer Red Rider Zack Williams (McGinley Clinic) qualified 23rd.
• Shimoda made a point to thank HRC test rider Takeshi Katsuya for his contributions on the development of his CRF250RWE race bike: "Having 'Taka' on the team helps us a lot," he said. "For me, with the language barrier, it's easier to have someone that can understand me, and he's a test rider too, so he can ride. It's a big help for me."
• Lawrence's success this weekend extended Honda's Indianapolis Supercross premier-class win record to 13-five more than the closest manufacturer. Lawrence joins a list of venerable Red Riders to win in the city, including Jeff Stanton, Jeremy McGrath (four times), Ezra Lusk, Ricky Carmichael, Mike LaRocco, Ken Roczen (three times) and Jett Lawrence.
• Hunter Lawrence's win consolidated his points lead in the 450SX title chase, growing his advantage over Eli Tomac from one point to four. Shimoda is now tied for third in the 250SX East standings, but he actually reduced the gap to the leader, from five points to just two.
• Honda HRC Progressive will enjoy its first off weekend of the season before heading to Birmingham, Alabama, for round 10 of AMA Supercross on March 21.

Hunter Lawrence
"We keep the red plate-that's what I wanted to do this weekend! Last weekend, I was frustrated with my result and what I felt could've been. The team knuckled down this week and got a lot of work in, so it's cool to see that pay off. Any win is difficult, but this was a Triple Crown-there's three times the risk. I had my own scenario in the second race, where Cole Thompson and Vince Friese were racing each other and I was in the middle-I ended up sending Cole off the back of the berm; I don't know how I stayed on my bike, honestly, I just got lucky because there was some carnage out there! Me and the team, we work hard! I'm blessed to have amazing people around me, and I can't ask for much more."

Jo Shimoda
"My goal was to get a good start and run up front in each of the three races. I made my personal mistakes, moments where I needed to be better. My passing strategy was not that good, so halfway through the motos, I needed to find a way to pass people. My fitness is improving, the bike is a lot better from the first round, and now I think I can push more. I'm getting faster and faster, so sometimes I want the bike stiffer and stiffer, which is what we're working on. We'll try to win a race first and go from there. With Cole Davies, he was fast in the beginning and I was kind of planning to get him at the end when he got tired, but in 250 you only get 10 minutes-it's not that long, so for tonight, it was just too late. The communication with the team is really good, and I feel like the relationship is growing, so that's what's been helping me the most this year."

Lars Lindstrom - Team Manager
"Triple Crowns are really jam-packed-especially once the night show starts, the racing never ends! I don't think we did too many adjustments through the night; luckily we didn't even have real damage with Hunter's incident with the lapper, so we didn't have to use a spare bike. We had a test plan for after Daytona, while the team was already in Florida. For Jo, every time he gets a little faster, he needs a little stiffer motorcycle, which is pretty normal. With Hunter, we still had things we wanted to check. He wants a certain feeling that has been tough to find, but we're willing to do whatever it takes; they're always pushing for something better, and we do our best to make our riders happy. We still have the red plate with Hunter, and with Jo, getting through these first few rounds and heading into a break, he obviously did better than we expected him to; now we're just two points out of the championship, and the next goal is to try to win a race and stay in it."

Media contact:Zoe Vargas // Jonnum Media // [email protected] // 619-971-6440

450SX Overall Results

1. Hunter Lawrence (Hon)
2. Eli Tomac (KTM)
3. Cooper Webb (Yam)
4. Justin Cooper (Yam)
5. Ken Roczen (Suz)
6. Jorge Prado (KTM)
7. Malcolm Stewart (Hus)
8. Christian Craig (Hon)
9. Joey Savatgy (Hon)
10. Shane McElrath (Hon)

450SX Championship Points (after 9 of 17 rounds)

1. Hunter Lawrence: 196
2. Eli Tomac: 192
3. Cooper Webb: 171
4. Ken Roczen: 168
5. Justin Cooper: 140
6. Joey Savatgy: 125
7. Chase Sexton: 122
8. Aaron Plessinger: 98
9. Malcom Stewart: 90
10. Jorge Prado: 89

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14. Christian Craig: 81
15. Shane McElrath: 67
33. Ryan Breece: 1

250SX Overall Results

1. Cole Davies (Yam)
2. Jo Shimoda (Hon)
3. Seth Hammaker (Kaw)
4. Daxton Bennick (Hus)
5. Pierce Brown (Yam)
6. Devin Simonson (Yam)
7. Coty Schock (Yam)
8. Jalek Swoll (Tri)
9. Cullin Park (Hon)
10. Nate Trasher (Yam)

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13. Izaih Clark (Hon)
14. Luke Neese (Hon)
19. Gavin Towers (Hon)
20. Evan Ferry (Hon)

250SX East Championship Points (after 3 of 10 rounds)

1. Cole Davies: 64
2. Seth Hammaker: 63
3. Pierce Brown: 62
4. Jo Shimoda: 62
5. Daxton Bennick: 55
6. Coty Schock: 46
7. Devin Simonson: 43
8. Cullin Park: 40
9. Nate Trasher: 38
10. Jalek Swoll: 27

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14. Izaih Clark: 19
17. Luke Neese: 13
18. Jeremy Hand: 12
23. John Short IV: 7
25. Gavin Towers: 5
27. Evan Ferry: 3

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