DAYTONA SX RECAP: SMITH EXECUTES A FLAWLESS NIGHT IN THE 250SX EAST CLASS

Courtesy of KTM

Round 10 - AMA Supercross Championship - March 10, 2018 DAYTONA, Fla. – It was a big night in Daytona for the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team as Jordon Smith executed a flawless performance to capture the 250SX East Main Event victory at Round 10 of the AMA Supercross Championship at Daytona International Speedway. Smith kicked off the evening’s racing program with a commanding win in 250SX Heat 2 as he led from start to finish, seeding himself at the top heading into the evening’s Main Event. Smith carried the momentum through to the 250SX East Main Event as he grabbed the holeshot and early lead. From there, Smith never looked back as he led all 14 laps of the Main Event on the way to his third career victory in the 250SX class – his first of the 2018 season. Smith: “The track was extremely tough tonight – mentally and physically. But it’s a great feeling to be back on top. I didn’t have the start I wanted to the season but we’re getting it going now.” Additionally, Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Sean Cantrell earned his best finish of the season with a 7th place in Daytona. In the 450SX class, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Marvin Musquin qualified 2nd overall on a tough Daytona race track. Musquin got the holeshot in 450SX Heat 1 but a run-in with the tuff block in the first turn quickly set him back to the 2nd place position. While attempting to make the pass on Justin Brayton for the lead, Musquin went down and ultimately finished 2nd. In the 450SX Main Event, Musquin got off to a great start aboard his KTM 450 SX- FACTORY EDITION as he began in the 3rd place position. By lap four, Musquin had made his way into the lead where he began to pull away from the pack. However, a big mistake on lap five cost him the lead when he went down in the mechanic’s area. Musquin quickly remounted only to go down once again, this time taking more time to get back going. The Frenchman fought hard to make his way back up to 5th, where he ultimately finished for the night. Musquin: “It's really disappointing to finish 5th tonight. I felt really good all day on my bike and I feel like we threw away a win. I had a good start and was there in 3rd but this time I tried to be smarter with my passes and it worked as I got into the lead. I was able to pull away a little until I made a big mistake, almost looped out and landed on the ground in the mechanic’s area. I then had another crash in a turn quickly after getting back on the bike, which took me a little bit of time to reset and refocus so I fought hard to come back to 5th. We are looking to get back on the podium in St. Louis.” Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Broc Tickle didn’t get the best of starts in Daytona but he worked hard to climb his way through the pack. In 450SX Heat 1, Tickle began just outside the top ten and worked his way into 7th with two laps to go in the race. From there, Tickle maintained his position to earn a solid transfer spot into the Main Event. In the 450SX Main Event, Tickle put his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION into 15th on the opening lap. From there, Tickle immediately started picking off riders to put himself inside the top-ten just after the halfway point. Tickle continued to power through the final laps of the race to ultimately finish 10th for the night. Tickle: “Tonight was tough. I struggled in the first practice with some issues but by the third practice, I felt like I was riding well. I ended up getting an okay start in the Main Event and pretty much stayed where I was at. I didn’t make much progress but I was running a decent pace for the majority of the race. The track was tough mentally and physically but we’re going to regroup this week and get ready for St. Louis.” Next Race: St. Louis, Missouri – March 17, 2018   450SX Main Event Results - Daytona 2018 1. Justin Brayton, Honda 2. Eli Tomac, Kawasaki 3. Cooper Webb, Yamaha 4. Christian Craig, Honda 5. Marvin Musquin, KTM Other KTM 9. Blake Baggett, KTM 10. Broc Tickle, KTM 11. Benny Bloss, KTM 19. Dakota Tedder, KTM 450SX Standings after 10 of 17 rounds 1. Anderson, 223 points 2. Musquin, 183 3. Brayton, 170 4. Baggett, 164 5. Tomac, 160 Other KTM 8. Tickle, 131 19. Bloss, 51   250SX East Main Event Results - Daytona 2018 1. Jordon Smith, KTM  2. Jeremy Martin, Honda 3. Austin Forkner, Kawasaki 4. Zach Osborne, Husqvarna 5. Martin Davalos, Kawasaki Other KTM 7. Sean Cantrell, KTM 12. Cody Vanbuskirk, KTM   250SX East Standings after 4 of 9 rounds 1. Forkner, 89 points 2. Osborne, 89 3. Smith, 81 4. Martin, 70 5. Hampshire, 57  Other KTM 11. Cantrell, 42 17. Rodriguez, 21

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