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R.J. HAMPSHIRE
250 SX / MN.
IMAGE /MPG WORDS / KILPATRICK DESIGN / WILSON
>> R.J. Hampshire is approaching his third full season on the professional ranks after bursting onto the national scene in 2014 as scolding hot property. The Floridian swept both of his classes at Loretta Lynn’s in his final amateur year, therefore earning him the AMA Horizon Award. Hampshire garnered a lot of attention and manufactured loads of expectations with his stellar amateur results and occasional flashes of speed, but he has yet to put it together for an entire series in the pros. The Geico Honda rider is looking to put all the pieces of the puzzle together in the 2017 season as he’s undertaken
a new training regiment with the team -- focusing mainly on crossfit to take care of his off-the-bike fitness. Hampshire has had the fortune of riding and training with Ken Roczen, Adam Cianciarulo,
and Chase Sexton down at The Nest over the last couple of months which should put him in the right head space as the new season gets underway. He’s always had the speed to succeed at the highest level, but Hampshire is going to have to do more than go fast in order to best his competitors through- out the entire series. The Geico Honda rider showed a little bit of room for improvement in practice as he only clocked the ninth fastest lap time overall, but he was able to drastically improve from the first session which showed his ability to dial in the bike between sessions. Hampshire set out to a decent top ten start in the second heat race as he immediately put himself in position to grab a transfer posi- tion to the main. The Geico Honda rider came across the finish line in seventh position on the opening lap just behind Rockstar Husqvarna’s Zach Osborne. Hampshire attempted to stick with the rear white fender of the Husky as Osborne sped through the pack toward the front of the field, but he wasn’t able to match the pace of his rival. The Floridian was involved in a battle with the rookie, Cameron McA- doo, on the opening lap, but he eventually made the move stick and settled into seventh position. A couple of laps later, he soared past the KTM of Dakota Alix as he promoted himself into fifth position. Hampshire immediately set his sights on Jesse Wentland in fourth place and took a couple of laps to close in on the fellow Honda rider, securing the position with only a pair of laps to go where he would stay for the remainder of the heat race. Hampshire put the Geico Honda power down to the rock hard Minnesota dirt as he sped out to a solid start in the main event. He was fortunate enough to make his way through the carnage in the second rhythm section with relative ease, avoiding the downed riders of Dakota Alix and Colt Nichols. After the action settled down following the opening lap, Hampshire set his sights on the Yamaha of Anthony Rodriguez in third position, gunning for the final step on the podium. He was able to make the move stick early on, but he was forced to deal with pressure from the Rockstar Husqvarna of Zach Osborne who was on a charge to the front of the field yet again. Hampshire was only able to delay the inevitable as Osborne flew past on the fifth lap, relegating him back to fourth position. From that point forward, the Geico Honda rider rode a lonely and processional race which brought him home to the checkered flag in a comfortable fourth position. Hampshire didn’t seem to have that extra gear that the top three displayed which is something he’ll be working on heading into the next race in Atlanta.
38 GRITMOTO • FEBRUARY 19, 2017