Roczen Wins Again at RedBud National Motocross

The halfway point for the 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship came this past weekend at the Red Bull RedBud National. Independence Day featured agreat racing in both classes, with 450 Class rookie Ken Roczen was dominating the premier division to sweep both motos aboard his Red Bull KTM. The victory marks the fourth win in six starts for the German-born racer that extends his championship lead. Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha's Jeremy Martin earned the win in the 250 Class to further extend his points lead and secure his third victory of the season.

In the opening 450 moto, Red Bull KTM's Ryan Dungey grabbed the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award but had to fend off Team Honda Muscle Milk's Trey Canard right off the bat, with Canard passing Dungey shortly after the start on the opening lap. Meanwhile, point leader Roczen was fighting into the top 10 after a bad start in the first moto. Canard and Dungey settled into a comfortable pace out front with GEICO Honda's Eli Tomac settling into third. Roczen continued his charge to the front, coming from eighth to break into the top three by the fourth lap and then passing his teammate Dungey and Canard to move into the lead on the fifth lap. Once out front, Roczen pulled away from the pack and left Canard and Dungey in a battle for second. The two racers fought until the end, with Canard able to hold off Dungey to earn second place. Roczen took the win with a 4.5-second lead over Canard. Dungey rounded out the podium, Tomac finished in fourth, while BTO Sports KTM's Andrew Short finished fifth.

Roczen had a much better start to the second moto, earning the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award just ahead of Canard. Yet Canard again found a way to get past the lead KTM rider on the opening lap. From there on, Canard and Roczen battled for the win the entire lap. Early on, Roczen maDe multiple attempts to pass Canard but was unable to make it stick for longer than a few turns. Finally on Lap 5, Roczen made another pass on Canard and was able to pull away with the lead.

Canard then had to do battle with both Tomac and Dungey, with Canard going down and handing over the second spot to both Tomac and Dungey before remounting. Dungey tried to pass Tomac for second but was unable to do so. Roczen secured his sweep for the day, earning the victory by a margin of 10.3 seconds over Tomac, while Dungey finished third. The 1-1 for Roczen was the second such result this season.

"I really like the track out here, it's gnarly and it makes it really difficult," Roczen said. "I had my work cut out for me in the first moto, but I just never let up. Then I let Trey [Canard] by me off the start [in the second moto] and made it tougher on myself, but this was one of those days where my fitness played a factor and I wasn't going to let it slip away."

A three-way tie for second in points landed Tomac with second place in just his second 450 Class start (4-2). Dungey finished in third (3-3) at RedBu, with Canard missing out on the overall podium in fourth (2-4). Short rounded out the top five (5-5).

Roczen has now extended his point lead over teammate Dungey to more than a single moto, as it’s now at a 26-point lead. Canard moved into third in the standings, 54 points behind the leader.

250 Class
The tight competition in the 250 Class made the RedBud race and exciting one, as the Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha tandem of Jeremy Martin and Cooper Webb, along with Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki's Blake Baggett, were separated by a total of 17 points. Martin and Baggett each had two wins apiece, while Webb broke through for his first career win last weekend.

At the start of the first moto, GEICO Honda's Matt Bisceglia raced to the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award. Just behind Bisceglia was Valli Motosports Yamaha's Christophe Pourcel and Martin. Pourcel took over the top spot on the second lap and Martin stayed right behind him. The pair then battled for the lead until Pourcel made a mistake and crashed on Lap 4. This allowed Martin to take the lead, while GEICO Honda's Justin Bogle stayed on his tail and moved into second. Looming in third was Baggett, who moved into the runner-up spot on Lap 7 and set his sights on Martin.

Although Baggett kept the pressure on Martin throughout the remainder of the moto, the point leader never faltered and Martin crossed the line just over a second ahead of Baggett. Rockstar Energy Racing's Jason Anderson finished in third, with Red Bull KTM's Marvin Musquin in fourth. Bogle fell to fifth.

For the second moto it was Rockstar Energy Racing's Joey Savatgy who grabbed the MotoSport.com Holeshot Award. Bogle started the moto in second and made an early move on Savatgy to take over the lead by the second lap. Martin followed the Honda rider into second after a third-place start, bringing his teammate Webb along in third. Then the three riders battled for the lead, swapping positions briefly and using every inch of the track. Bogle made a mistake and crashing on the fourth lap, while Webb slipped by his teammate just before the crash to assume control of the moto. The sophomore teammates went all out for the rest of the moto, separated by mere bike lengths throughout.

As the battle for the win continued, Musquin and Anderson once again made their presence felt in a fight for third. Baggett made an impressive climb from a 13th-place start to also factor into the mix in fifth, but crashed on Lap 10, dropping out of podium contention. Out front, Webb fended off his teammate to take the second moto win of his career and bounce back from a crash in the opening moto that relegated him to a 14th-place result. Martin followed in second, with Musquin third and Anderson fourth.

Martin's 1-2 moto scores secured the overall win while Musquin earned his best result of the season in second (4-3). Anderson completed the overall podium in third (3-4). Baggett finished fourth (2-7) with Webb rounding out the top five (14-1).

 
"It was a great battle with my teammate there," Martin said. "I thought I had a chance to get the lead early against [Justin] Bogle, but he was riding defensive and eventually went down. Once I got in behind Cooper [Webb] I just paced myself and put in a push on the final laps to try and pass him, but I didn't want to do anything to put either of us in a bad spot, especially since I knew I had the overall."
 
Martin extended his lead in the 250 Class standings back into the double digits over Webb, with 23 points now separating the two. Baggett sits third, 28 points back.

The 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues next weekend with the seventh round of the 2014 season at the GEICO Motorcycles Budds Creek National. Budds Creek MX Park in Mechanicsville, Maryland, will host the world's best riders on Saturday, July 12. Action begins at 1 p.m. ET.

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Results
Red Bull RedBud National
RedBud MX - Buchanan, Michigan
July 5, 2014 (Round 6 of 12)

450 Class (Moto Finish)
1. Ken Roczen, Germany, KTM (1-1)
2. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda (4-2)
3. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM (3-3)
4. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda (2-4)
5. Andrew Short, Colorado Springs, Colo., KTM (5-5)
6. Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha (6-6)
7. Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki (8-7)
8. Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Kawasaki (7-8)
9. Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Yamaha (10-9)
10. Kyle Chisholm, Clearwater, Fla., Yamaha (13-13)

450 Class Championship Standings
1. Ken Roczen, Germany, KTM, 280
2. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 254
3. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda, 226
4. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki, 196
5. Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Kawasaki, 168
6. Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha, 159
7. Andrew Short, Colorado Springs, Colo., KTM, 134
8. Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki, 132
9. Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki, 131
10. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki, 120

250 Class (Moto Finish)
1. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (1-2)
2. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM (4-3)
3. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., KTM (3-4)
4. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki (2-7)
5. Cooper Webb, Morehead City, N.C., Yamaha (14-1)
6. Dean Wilson, Scotland, Kawasaki (9-5)
7. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda (8-6)
8. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha (6-9)
9. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda (5-12)
10. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Kawasaki (10-8)

250 Class Championship Standings
1. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 250
2. Cooper Webb, Morehead City, N.C., Yamaha, 227
3. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki, 222
4. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda, 191
5. Marvin Musquin, France, KTM, 181
6. Christophe Pourcel, France, Yamaha, 176
7. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., KTM, 167
8. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda, 143
9. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Kawasaki, 127
10. Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda, 125