Husqvarna Motorcycles-supported rider Dalton Shirey raced his way to an important victory on Sunday at the AMA National Hare and Hound Championship finale in Lucerne Valley, California, where he clinched his first-career Overall Championship by virtue of a tie-breaker.
Coming into the weekend, Shirey sat five points down in the overall championship following an unfortunate DNF result at the fourth round, and it all came down to the final laps on Sunday to determine who would come out on top. Shirey got off to a great start on Sunday as he claimed the holeshot and took advantage of a clear track ahead. With his closest competitor back in fifth on lap one, Shirey pushed hard for the first hour to create a 2.5-minute lead by the end of lap one. With a comfortable gap heading into the second lap, Shirey continued to hit his marks as he rode conservatively to come through the checkers 14 seconds ahead of his championship competitor, who claimed second overall for the day. With 1-2 finishes, both riders ended the season tied at 155 points in the overall standings and the tie-breaker was awarded to Shirey as he holds the most overall wins of the season with four.
Dalton Shirey: “This is the most important championship, the one I’ve been looking forward to. It means a lot to me and the whole team. The last 15 miles of that race felt like the longest 15 miles I have ever done but it was greatest feeling when I saw the checkered flag! Overall, the season was pretty good but I had a DNF at Round 4 and that kind of put me in a hole for the rest of the season. I knew it was going to come down to the end so I did my homework and made sure I was on my game every weekend and it paid off with three wins at the last three rounds.”
Husqvarna Motorcycles-mounted rider Brittney Gallegos wrapped up the 2020 Pro Women’s Class Championship on Sunday with a solid podium finish at the season finale. Gallegos came away from the season with one victory in the class and five podiums where she proved to be the most consistently fast rider all season long.
Pro Class Results – Round 7
1. Dalton Shirey (HQV)
2. David Kamo (KTM)
3. Jacob Argubright (KAW)
Pro Class Championship Standings
1. Dalton Shirey, 155 points
2. David Kamo, 155 points
3. Joseph Wasson, 127 points
