Page 14 - Issue-48

JOSH GRANT
450 MX / 3RD
IMAGE / CAVAZOS WORDS / ROEWER DESIGN / WILSON
>> Josh Grant is no new face to the 450 class in Outdoor Nationals, making his pro debut back in 2004, the vet of the class has been working hard to show the young guys just what he is made of. Constantly being told he doesn’t deserve his ride, the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider works hard each week on and off the bike to prove he’s got the speed. Lined up on the gate for round one of the 2017 season, he was feeling good qualifying for the day up in 9th in front of some heavy hitters. Charging hard out of the gate of moto one Grant was 5th into the first turn. Sitting near the front early in the race, Grant was showing no signs of fading back. The number 33 moves up to 4th after Christian Craig makes a mistake that caused him to go down. About ten minutes into the race he began to close in on the rookie rider Cooper Webb, who keeps shutting him down on the pass. After battling Webb for a couple minutes, he holds onto the pass and moves into 3rd. With a little over half the race left Grant had a good gap between him and the riders behind him. Staying consistent through the tough track conditions it was smooth sailing to the finish for the veteran rider. Getting a 3rd in moto one, Grant was feeling it heading into the second moto. Lined up with
a better gate pick for moto two the Kawasaki rider flew out of the gate getting the holeshot and an early lead in the race. With Tomac outside of the top ten, Grant was holding onto the overall top position. Making smart line choices he was able to gain a small lead on Marvin Musquin who was running second. Working hard to get his first race win since 2009 in Red Budd, the Kawasaki rider was nothing but focus. With about half the moto left Musquin had begun to slowly reel in Grant. Switching his line up the KTM rider made the pass and Grant fell back to second. Not long after getting passed Tomac had begun catching him. Fighting with all he had in the tank to hold onto his position, there just wasn’t enough to keep Tomac at bay. Now in 3rd and with the end of the moto fast approaching, Grant just needed to keep it on two wheels and not let anyone else get by him. Riding through to the finish he grabbed himself a third overall at the season opener of Outdoor Motocross. Heading to one of Josh Grant’s favorite tracks next weekend and one he tends to excel at we might just see him sit- ting higher up on that podium before we know it.
14 GRITMOTO • MAY 21, 2017