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CHRISTIAN CRAIG
450 MX / 9TH
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / KUHLHOFF DESIGN / TILLS
>> After a solid seventh place finish at Southwick, Christian Craig arrived in Millville, Minnesota looking for another top ten finish. After a heavy rain fell upon the Land of 100,000 Lakes the day before race day, riders lined up for their first moto knowing that the track was guaranteed to be brutally rough and rutted. The sky was blue and the air was humid as the gates dropped. Drag racing through the perfect sand mixture that graces the grounds of Spring Creek and the com- petition was fierce in pursuit of the Holeshot. The Team Honda HRC machine was off to a powerful start as he found himself in the sixth place spot as he came careening out of the first corner and after an early pass on Bisceglia, Christian Craig was sitting in fifth place. The minutes were ticking away as the track was progressively roughening and by mid-moto Craig fell back to the eighth place spot after being passed by a determined Tomac and Webb. Christian Craig was able to dig a little deeper towards the end of the race and floated by the check- ered flag in the seventh place spot. Moving forward into the second moto only two spots outside of the top five was a good place to be for the number 48 and he could definitely capitalize on a finish like that. Unfortunately, with the tempera- tures rising and the Minnesota terrain constantly transforming, the second moto would not be easy for any of the riders. The thirty-second card was up and the riders were off. Would Craig be able to find the fire needed to land within the top five? Only time would tell. Finding himself in tenth place off the start would mean a little bit more work if Christian wanted results greater, or equal to, the previous moto. After only a lap, Craig was able to move into the eighth place spot after
a pass on Noren and a mistake by Tomac that put him on the ground. Christian Craig then moved into the seventh place position by the halfway point of the race, resulting in a mirror image of his first moto finish in the seventh place spot. With incredibly consistent 7-7 finishes for the day, Craig left Millville with a ninth place overall. Hopefully Christian Craig can show us another finish within the top ten, or maybe even within the top five, at round nine.
52 GRITMOTO • JULY 23, 2017