Team Suzuki Press Office – July 9.
Alex Martin – 250 Class – 19-3 for 11th Place.
Kyle Peters – 250 Class – 7-20 for 13th Place.
Fredrik Noren – 450 Class – 8-13 for 10th Place.
JGRMX/ Yoshimura/ Suzuki Factory Racing’s Alex Martin scored a podium finish in the second race of the weekend’s RedBud AMA Motocross Championship after taking the holeshot in both races aboard his RM-Z250.
Round 7 of the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro MX series at Buchanan, Michigan, USA, also saw 250cc teammate Kyle Peters equal a career-best moto finish, while Suzuki RM-Z450 rider Fredrik Noren added another top-10 overall finish during his fill-in effort for injured Justin Hill.
Martin had been looking for his breakout ride all season and owned it at the RedBud track. A-Mart was first off the gate and led the pack in a podium position for most of the first moto until a broken radiator clamp caused a hose to come loose on his RM-Z250, resulting in coolant loss, with just two laps to go. Despite the freak incident, Martin rebounded in the second moto with another stellar start and carded a podium finish. Martin currently sits in the top-10 for overall standings.
“It felt awesome to grab both holeshots on my Suzuki RM-Z250 and run up front for quite a while,” said Martin. “Obviously, the radiator issue took me out of contention for the overall win, but it was still nice to lead laps and grab a moto podium. There are lots of positives to take away from the weekend.”
“Alex has been working on his starts, and it showed at RedBud,” added Team Manager Jeremy Albrecht. “He and the team have been working hard, so it’s nice to see things paying off. In the first moto we had a hose clamp break on Martin’s bike, which caused the bike to stop on the last lap after losing coolant for half of the race. It was a bummer for the whole team that something like that would happen during a podium ride. Martin came out swinging in the second moto and led a lot of laps. We’re making great progress.”
Peters tied a career-best moto finish by earning seventh place in moto one. Although he ran up front in the opening laps of the final moto, Peters collided with another rider which spoiled his finish. The North Carolina native is looking to regain strength during the one-week break and build off his top-10 finish for a breakout ride in Millville.
The JGRMX/ Yoshimura/ Suzuki Factory Racing Team’s flagship 450 rider, Fredrik Noren, continues to get comfortable on his Suzuki RM-Z450 in only his second event on the bike. While a few small crashes held him to 10th overall, Noren is climbing the points ladder and displaying strong results while filling in for Hill during the remaining rounds.
Albrecht continued: “During 450 qualifying, Freddie had a few crashes on his fast laps. As a result, he didn’t qualify as well as he could have. He finished eighth in the first moto and a small crash in the second moto put him just outside the top-10. Better starts would have made it easier for him, but I’m excited to see how he does at Millville after getting more time on the bike.”
The JGRMX/ Yoshimura/ Suzuki Factory Racing Team will take a weekend off before venturing to Millville, Minnesota on July 20th for the Spring Creek National, which will serve as the eighth round of the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship.
Alex Martin [250 Class, 19-3 for 11th Place]:
“I love racing at RedBud every year. It’s definitely one of my favourite stops on the circuit. Qualifying went well, as I logged the eighth-quickest time. It felt awesome to grab both holeshots on my Suzuki RM-Z250 and run up front for quite a while. Obviously, the bike issue took me out of contention for the overall win, but it was still nice to lead laps and grab a moto podium. There are lots of positives to take away from the weekend.”
Kyle Peters [250 Class, 7-20 for 13th Place]:
“It was a good day. A seventh in the first moto was a big step in the right direction. I started around 10th and worked my way forward. The bike was performing great and my fitness was there. I was just in a little bit of pain from my broken ribs. Even the second moto, coming off the ground in the second turn and landing on my ribs, I was happy to make my way up to the top 20.”
Fredrik Noren [450 Class, 8-13 for 10th Place]:
“It was awesome to be back racing at RedBud! It was kind of an off day for me. I struggled to ride to my potential. Still, I’m happy to salvage a 10th overall. It’s so nice to have the support of the team around me, and to race such a great bike. I’m looking forward to Millville.”
Jeremy Albrecht [Team Manager]:
“Alex Martin had great speed all day long and led laps. He has been working on his starts, and the work showed at RedBud when he holeshot both motos. Alex and the team have been working hard, so it’s nice to see things paying off. In the first moto we had a hose clamp break on Martin’s bike, which caused the bike to stop on the last lap after losing water for half of the race. It was such a bummer for the whole team that a freak thing like that happened during a podium ride. Martin came out swinging in the second moto and led a lot of laps. We’re making great progress.
“Kyle Peters had great starts and impressed me in both motos. Kyle was riding with two broken ribs and still finished seventh in the first moto. He was in the top three off the start of the second moto but fell in the second corner. He got back up and charged hard to get inside the top 20.
“During 450 qualifying, Freddie Noren had a few crashes on his fast laps. As a result, he didn’t qualify as well as he could have. He finished eighth in the first moto. A small crash in the second moto put him just outside the top 10. Better starts would have made it easier for Freddie, but I’m excited to see how he does at Millville after getting more time on the bike. The weekend off is going to be nice for everyone to regroup.”
