Page 60 - MARCH_ISSUE

ADAM JOHNSON
OPEN C
IMAGE / MPG WORDS / KILPATRICK DESIGN / WILSON
>> The Open C class stacked the entire starting gate as they pre- pared to do battle into the first corner; the bellowing of engines filled the Georgia Dome and it turned out to be the Yamaha of Adam Johnson that secured the early lead ahead of the KTM of Kyle Smith. The leading duo set a pace at the front of the field that was not easily matched by the rest of the competition, but it was the Ya- maha of Johnson that was truly on another level. He really exempli- fied exceptional cornering technique as he blasted his way through the berms, steadily increasing his advantage over Smith with each passing lap. Johnson had accumulated an advantage of almost one entire section, but he made a costly mistake and stalled his bike before the catapult. Meanwhile, Smith came under pressure from the Yamaha of Tyler Floyd and was forced to concede second posi- tion. Instantaneously, the fight for the lead closed down to a matter of seconds and Johnson had to deal with the pressure of the fellow Yamaha rider. He didn’t panic and was able to maintain his compo- sure as he slowly, but steadily recreated the gap that he had held in the early stages of the race. Johnson’s speed and consistency paid off as he was able to stamp the victory with a look back whip over the finish line, making it two out of two main event victories on the day.
60 MPG • MARCH 2017