Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing’s Dylan Ferrandis kept his podium streak rolling on a challenging day in Millville, Minnesota, to finish third overall at yesterday’s Spring Creek National. He amassed 23 points to give him a 32-point cushion at the top of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross 450MX standings. His teammates Christian Craig and Aaron Plessinger joined him in the top 10, ending the day fifth and sixth, respectively.
Ferrandis got off to a good start in the first moto in fourth but was shuffled to fifth after he and another rider nearly came together. He trailed Craig and found his flow again, and then resumed his forward charge, first passing the competition and then his teammate before the start of Lap 6. A couple of laps later, the rider in the runner-up spot crashed out of the race advancing him to second. He then chased down the leader and tried to make his move to the front. Things heated up with around five minutes left on the clock as another challenger joined the fray. Ferrandis kept his cool in the middle and kept trying to move into the lead whilst also holding off the advances of the competition, ultimately finishing second.
After that wild first moto, Ferrandis was looking to repeat his first start but unfortunately banged bars with another rider and found himself in the middle of the pack. He then had a tip-over after the downhill section and was 24th after that opening lap. The 2020 250MX champion quickly went to work and made his way to 13th a couple of laps later but then had another tip-over. Undeterred, Ferrandis kept pushing and broke into the top five with four laps remaining, ending the day third overall.
Craig also got a great start in the first moto inside the top 10. After passing his teammate on the second lap, he kept charging. He made the pass for third on Lap 5, but Ferrandis passed him back on the following lap. From there, the Californian put in solid laps to earn his best moto result so far this season in fourth. In Moto 2, he was 10th after the start and worked his way to sixth a couple of laps before the halfway mark. Craig made the pass for fifth with three laps to go, leaving Minnesota with a top-five overall finish.
It was a tough day for Plessinger at the Spring Creek MX Park. He didn’t get the start he was looking for in the first moto and was 12th after the first lap. The Ohio Native quickly worked his way to ninth by Lap 2 and then sixth a lap later, where he would ultimately finish. Unfortunately, in Moto 2, when Ferrandis went down in front of him on the opening lap, he had nowhere to go and also went down, rejoining the moto back in 33rd. Plessinger got back to work and put in a heroic ride to finish ninth by the end of the 30-minute-plus-two-lap moto to end the day sixth overall.
The Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing team heads west to Washington State for the Washougal National on July 24, Round 7 of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship at the Washougal MX Park.
Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing 450 Team Manager
“It was a very up and down day for the team. Practice went well, and our first moto was awesome for all three guys. In the second moto, we all struggled out of the gate and had our work cut out for us. Unfortunately, Dylan went down and collected Aaron with him. They were able to get up and rejoin the race, but then Dylan went down again. After that Dylan, put on an amazing performance to make up a ton of points and finish fifth. Aaron also had a good charge back to ninth, and Christian had another great day of racing. We will once again put our heads down and come back stronger next week.”
Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing
“It was not the best day for me at Millville. I didn’t have a good feeling in practice. Then in the first moto, I got a good start and was fighting for the win but couldn’t find a way to pass (Justin) Barcia and finished second. In Moto 2, I got a bad start and then crashed after the downhill on the first lap and had another crash on Lap 2. I had to dig deep to come back to fifth and managed to finish third overall. It was a good day for the points, but I’m not really happy with myself. We’re going to get back to training next week to be ready for Washougal.”
Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing
“I had a pretty good day at Millville and was able to ride more like myself and be towards the front. I had some good battles in both motos to come away with fifth overall. I’m excited to keep this momentum going for Washougal!”
Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing
“I struggled quite a bit today. My starts weren’t there, and I couldn’t push as long as I wanted to. I had a crash with Dylan in the second one and just did what I could to salvage ninth. The track was not the Millville that I’m used to; it wasn’t deep at all, and It was pretty slick. We’re going to go back to work and get back at it at Washougal.”
