Team Suzuki Press Office – April 8.
Kyle Peters [250 Class, 4th Place]
Alex Martin [250 Class, 10th Place]
Justin Hill [450 Class, 20th Place]
The JGRMX/ Yoshimura/ Suzuki Factory Racing Team was in Nashville, Tennessee this past weekend for round 14 of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA/ FIM World Supercross Championship and the seventh stop of the 250 Eastern Regional Supercross Series.
Suzuki RM-Z250 rider Kyle Peters earned his first top-five finish of the series and moved up in the points standings as teammate Alex Martin rode through adversity to score his sixth top-10 finish in seven rounds. But Suzuki RM-Z450 rider Justin Hill was hampered by an injury suffered in practice and had to end the night early.
“Peters had his best day of the season,” said Team Manager Jeremy Albrecht. “He rode really well through practice to the main and was solid in the whoops. Kyle had a little slide out in the heat race, but he came back strong. It looked like he was going to get on the podium, but he was holding his breath. It’s disappointing that he didn’t get a podium, but he’s getting better every week. With more experience, he’ll continue to gain confidence”
Aside from a fluke race in Atlanta earlier in the 250 East series, Peters has steadily improved his finishes at consecutive rounds. He looked instantly comfortable on the Suzuki RM-Z250 in Nashville, attacking the complicated track. In front of 54,703 fans, the North Carolina native started just outside the top-five in the main event and charged up to second place. He held that position for several laps, but settled for a hard-fought fourth for his best finish of the season.
Alex Martin was excited to race at the series’ inaugural visit to Nashville. He rode a strong heat race, finishing second. Before heading into the main, A-Mart made some big changes to his RM-Z250 in hopes to continue the momentum. Unfortunately, the deteriorating track didn’t mesh well with the changes, but Martin was able to push through the discomfort and earn a solid top-10 finish.
Said Martin: “The heat race was the highlight of my weekend. Nashville is a pretty cool city, but the racing was rough. We made some changes going into the night show and they didn’t work out like we had hoped. It was frustrating, but we’re going to rebound.”
Hill jammed his back in the opening practice session and missed the first qualifying session. He fought through pain and put in a fast lap. He followed that up with an impressive fourth place finish in his heat race, given his level of pain. Unfortunately, Hill only lasted half of the main event before pulling off the track. The team will provide more information on the extent of Hill’s injury when it becomes available.
“I was really vibing with the track this weekend, but I made a small miscalculation in a rhythm section,” said Hill. “I rode the remainder of the night as best as I could, but I was in a lot of pain. It’s very disappointing, because I liked the track a lot. The bike is working really well right now. I’m going to get my body checked out and take it from there.”
The JGRMX/ Yoshimura/ Suzuki Factory Racing Team will travel to Broncos Stadium at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, on Saturday, April 13th for the 15th round of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA/ FIM World Supercross Championship. This will also serve as the ninth round of the 250 West Regional Supercross series.
Kyle Peters [250 Class, 4th Place]:
“The whole day was a lot better than previous rounds. I felt good in practice and qualifying. I was loose and comfortable right away and looked forward to a good night. The heat race came around, and where they prepped the track it was hard pack underneath and marbles on top. I washed the front end out and came back up to seventh. Once I saw Sexton and Cooper down, I knew it was time to go. I rushed it a bit and made some mistakes. I didn’t ride the race like I should have. I wasn’t hitting my breathing spots and tried too hard. Overall, it was a good night. It was awesome to have my family there, and the team was on it all day. We’re making progress, and we’ll get up there in New Jersey.”
Alex Martin [250 Class, 10th Place]:
“It was one of those days. The heat race was the highlight of my weekend. Nashville is a pretty cool city, but the racing was rough. We made some changes going into the night show and they didn’t work out like we had hoped. It was frustrating, but we’re going to rebound.”
Justin Hill [450 Class, 20th Place]:
“I was really vibing with the track this weekend, but I made a small miscalculation in a rhythm section and damaged my L5 vertebra and a few other things I can’t pronounce. I rode the remainder of the night as best as I could, but I was in a lot of pain. Ultimately, I couldn’t finish the race, because my back was giving out on big jumps after 10 minutes of the main. It’s very disappointing, because I liked the track a lot. The bike is working really well right now. I’m going to get my body checked out and take it from there. I hope to make it to Denver.”
Jeremy Albrecht [Team Manager]:
“Kyle Peters had his best day of the season. He rode really well through practice to the main. He was solid in the whoops. Kyle had a little slide out in the heat race, but he came back strong. It looked like he was going to get on the podium, but he was holding his breath. It’s disappointing that he didn’t get a podium, but he’s getting better every week. Alex Martin crashed a few times in practice, but he didn’t get going in the main. He struggled with the track.
“Justin Hill came in with a different plan than weeks past. Unfortunately, he tweaked his back in the first free practice when he jammed it on a jump. He didn’t ride the first qualifying practice because he was in so much pain. Then he came back in the second session and qualified 12th. Justin was in too much pain for the main and couldn’t finish the race. We’ll need to get him checked out this week. It was cool to have Weston Peick and Chad Reed at the race, even though they weren’t competing. The fans love to see those guys. Chad was busy all day doing television and autographs. We were happy to have them there. One of our haulers stayed at the track for the Supercross Futures so the RM Army kids could pit out of there, which was cool.”
