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Monster Energy® Kawasaki Riders Earn Podium Finishes at Spring Creek
Foothill Ranch, Calif. (July 16, 2023) - Round 7 of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship was held at the famous Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, Minnesota. Monster Energy®/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider Jo Shimoda brought home two moto podiums and finished third overall (2-3), tying him for third in the 250 class points standings. Austin Forkner made his 2023 motocross debut finishing a solid ninth overall (11-9), while Seth Hammaker and Ryder DiFrancesco overcame adversity and finished 14th (12-15) and 16th (19-11)., respectively. Jett Reynolds unfortunately was forced to miss Round 7 due to illness. In the 450 class, Monster Energy® Kawasaki rider Jason Anderson claimed his first AMA Pro Motocross podium of the season and finished 10th overall (3-38) and Adam Cianciarulo collected another top-5 overall in fifth place (7-5).
Located in the Mississippi River Valley on the edge of its namesake stream, Spring Creek MX Park houses some of the richest soil on the Pro Motocross circuit, as well as legendary hill climbs and elevation changes throughout the track. The track’s incredibly soft dirt and infamous sand whoop section mixed with summer heat and midwest humidity makes Spring Creek MX one of the toughest races of the year. During the humid, foggy early morning qualifying sessions, the Monster Energy®/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki riders prepared for the brutal motos ahead. Hammaker would come out swinging qualifying third overall, followed by Shimoda in sixth, DiFrancesco in 10th and Forkner in 12th.
In Moto 1 of the 250 Class, Shimoda launched out of the gate grabbing the holeshot aboard his KX™250. DiFrancesco started strongly in seventh and Forkner in 14th. Unfortunately, Hammaker was caught in a first turn pile up that resulted in him coming into the mechanics area. The Monster Energy®/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki team quickly assessed his race machine and Hammaker returned to the field in 40th. Shimoda found his flow and began creating a gap over the current points leader. DiFrancesco held his pace and remained consistent in the eighth position, Forkner holding steady in 14th and Hammaker aggressively trying to make up time. Shimoda continued to lengthen his gap over second place by the halfway point, while Forkner and Hammaker made their way up the field, Hammaker putting on a charge climbing 13 positions by Lap 9. With three laps to go, Shimoda battled with Hunter Lawrence for the lead ultimately sending Shimoda back to second place. As the track formed deep, aggressive ruts, DiFrancesco began making small mistakes costing him positions that Forkner capitalized on the last lap. Hammaker however continued to persevere through the moto, eventually working his way into the top 20. The No. 30 did not give up and continued in an intense battle until the finish, just two seconds behind Lawrence taking his second Pro Motocross moto podium of the season. Forkner crossed the finish line in 11th just 0.7 seconds ahead of teammate DiFrancesco. Hammaker made an impressive comeback from 40th position to 19th.
At the start of Moto 2 in the 250 class, Monster Energy®/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki riders Hammaker, DiFrancesco and Shimoda started strong with a third, fourth and fifth place start and Forkner found his groove in the 10th position. Unfortunately early on, the No. 35 made a critical mistake, once again finding himself at the back of the field. However in two laps, Hammaker impressively gained 10 positions swiftly moving him into the top 20. The No. 75 and No. 30 battled throughout the beginning laps until Shimoda overtook fourth on Lap 5. DiFrancesco latched on to Shimoda as they continued to chase the top three. With the third place of Levi Kitchen in sight, the No. 30 pushed and gained valuable time eventually finding himself on the rear fender of third place. The next lap, Shimoda overtook the final podium spot and steadily built a gap. DiFrancesco would make a few mistakes resulting in him falling back to 14th. Forkner continued improving throughout the moto, moving him up into the top 10 and Hammaker continued to set his sights forward, seeing himself into the top 15 with less than five laps remaining. Shimoda impressively closed his gap on the second place rider of Justin Cooper and crossed the finish line only four seconds off of second place. Forkner never gave up and remarkably finished ninth after almost a year off of racing, Hammaker would finish 11th after being buried in the pack and DiFrancesco would cross the line in 15th.
In 450 Class qualifying, Cianciarulo and Anderson would quickly adapt to the unique track in Minnesota, placing their KX™450SR race machines into the top 5. Cianciarulo would start off strong securing the third place position in qualifying with a 2:03.010 while his Monster Energy® Kawasaki teammate qualified fourth, just 0.02 seconds behind with a 2:03.034.
In the first 450 Class moto, Cianciarulo charged into Turn 1 executing a perfect holeshot aboard his KX™450SR. Anderson crossed the holeshot line in seventh and began to quickly click off riders. The No. 9 held onto the lead for a few corners until he was overtaken by the current points leader, Jett Lawrence. The No. 9 continued to hold onto the second position for a few more laps until the 2023 450 Supercross champion, Chase Sexton, passed him on Lap 4. Anderson continued to make his way up through the pack, eventually catching the leaders. On Lap 7, the third place contender of Aaron Plessinger tipped over, allowing Cianciarulo and Anderson to capitalize on a position. The two teammates battled for the third and final podium spot with Anderson prevailing and beginning to gap his teammate. Throughout the remainder of the moto, both riders worked hard to maneuver through lapped traffic. Anderson continued to ride consistently and smoothly, crossing the finish line in third place, his first moto podium of the Pro Motocross season just two races after his return from injury. Cianciarulo would finish seventh.
At the start of Moto 2, cloud coverage returned and a breeze picked up, resulting in remarkable riding conditions. Cianciarulo was ready for redemption from Moto 1, and Anderson, determined to land on the overall podium. When the gate dropped, the No. 9 quickly advanced to the first turn, successfully crossing the holeshot line in third place. Anderson found himself pinched off at the start, commencing the race from the seventh position. Unfortunately, in one of the fastest sections of the track through the infamous sand rollers, two riders collided in front of Anderson, resulting in their bikes laying in the middle of the track. While Anderson tried to avoid the quickly approaching downed bikes, he clipped one of them, resulting in him falling. Anderson completed the lap and pulled into the mechanic’s area and for precautionary reasons following the hard crash decided not to return to the race. The No. 9 continued to charge and keep second place in sight, but soon Dylan Ferrandis would creep up on Cianciarulo. He held onto third place until Lap 7 when an intense battle commenced between Cianciarulo and the No.14, where he lost a position and fell back to fourth. The No. 9 finished strong and collected another top 5 finish in fifth place in the moto and fifth overall.