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theGRIT
IMAGE/WONDERGOAT
The casual observer would have watched this race and interpreted Savatgy as a regular winner, perhaps even the defending champion, but this was his first individual moto win of his career, making
the performance that much more impressive. He transitioned into the second moto with the same exact mindset and narrowly missed out on another holeshot due to the Troy Lee Design’s KTM rider of Jessy Nelson. The two rode a similar race to Savatgy and Smith in the first moto, although this time the roles were reversed and the track was beginning to dry out. They matched each other’s lap times until just past the halfway point when Savatgy received a pit board from his mechanic marked with the words ‘DON’T WASTE TIME’. The very next lap Savatgy found his way past Nelson at the top of the hill before the half pipe section by slipping his Kawasaki up the inside and taking the line away from the KTM. At this point, he probably thought the race was over and the second moto win was in the bag, but a pair of Gareth Swanopoel trainees by the names of Alex Martin and Aaron Plessinger were showing their fitness late in the moto as they charged to the front. Savatgy was able to withstand late pressure from Martin, managing the gap perfectly by taking smart lines and carrying his momentum through the bumps. Not only is Savatgy riding better than ever before, the Pro Circuit Kawasaki seems to be working perfectly as well; he seemed in complete control of the bike all day long and the suspension seemed to be soaking up the braking bumps with relative ease. The day really couldn’t have gone any better if he planned it, he set the fastest lap in practice; won his first ever moto; won the overall with another moto win; and leads the championship by 15 points due to the other rider’s inconsistency. Will he be able to step it up another level going into Glen Helen with the red plate?
18 GRITMOTO • MAY.23.16
words/LAKEKILPATRICK