Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team’s Justin Barcia ended the 2019 Pro Motocross season on a high note by scoring his best overall finish in fifth with a 7-4 tally at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on August 24. After fighting an illness this week, his teammate Aaron Plessinger made a heroic effort to score points at the series finale in front of his friends and family but, unfortunately, depleted energy levels resulted in a 23rd-place finish in the first moto and sidelined him for the second.
Barcia got off to a good start in the first moto in fifth. As the race wore on, the Florida resident was shuffled back a few positions but was able to hold onto seventh to score another top-10 finish. Although he did not get as great of a start in the second moto, Barcia quickly started moving his way forward from outside the top 15. He was locked in a battle for fifth and was able to finally make that pass stick in the first seven minutes of the moto. Before the halfway mark, he moved into fourth and started to close the gap on the final podium spot. At the end of the day, he took fourth to score fifth overall aboard the No. 51 Yamaha YZ450F. Barcia’s effort secured him seventh in the championship standings.
Plessinger also got a decent start to the first moto. In ninth, the rookie was able to move forward into eighth. Unfortunately the tough, rutted track proved taxing for the rookie’s energy levels after fighting an illness all week. He started moving back through the ranks as the race wore on, ultimately crossing the line 23rd. After the physical demands in the first race, the Ohio native sat out of Moto 2.
Justin Barcia
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing
“In the first moto, I got to a pretty good start but struggled a little bit. I just couldn’t get a good flow on the track, so I was a little bit frustrated with my ride. We made some bike changes before the second moto, and it definitely made a positive change. It showed because I charged the whole moto and nearly caught up to the podium position at the end of the race. All in all, it was a good ride. We had a good day. All that hard work started paying off at the end of the season. I’m sad that it’s over now, but we’ll just keep working on getting ready for the Monster Cup and the upcoming Supercross season.”
2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship 450 Class Ironman Results
1. Eli Tomac (3-1)
2. Ken Roczen (2-3)
3. Zach Osborne (5-2)
4. Joey Savatgy (4-6)
5. Justin Barcia (7-4)
6. Jason Anderson (6-5)
7. Dean Wilson (9-7)
8. Benny Bloss (8-8)
9. Marvin Musquin (1-40)
10. Fredrik Noren (10-10)
2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship 450 Class Standings
1. Eli Tomac 521
2. Ken Roczen 463
3. Marvin Musquin 451
4. Jason Anderson 407
5. Zach Osborne 403
6. Cooper Webb 324
7. Justin Barcia 315
8. Fredrik Noren 240
9. Justin Bogle 222
10. Blake Baggett 175
Jim Perry
Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager