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CHRISTIAN CRAIG
450 SX / 9TH
IMAGE / REEVES WORDS / HARNISHFEGER DESIGN / MOTOPLAYGROUND
>> 2018 has already been an interesting year for the once-retired Geico Honda rider. Christian Craig began the year with Geico Honda in the 250SX West Championship and performed very well. He did not notch a win, but he did secure a podium and a handful of podium finishes. He entered the long midseason break sixth in points but only eleven points back from third. He began the break by relax- ing and retooling for the final stretch of the series when the phone rang. It was Honda HRC asking
if he’d like to fill-in for his good buddy, Cole Seely, in the 450 class. Craig happily agreed, and many fans liked the move as well because he is viewed as much better on a 450 than a 250. He immedi- ately translated well to the bigger machine. He finished fifth in his debut in Atlanta and one-upped last weekend in Daytona with a fourth-place finish. His performances were so good that Honda HRC has decided to keep him on a 450 the rest of the year. He will not be returning to the 250. With that stability in mind, Craig aimed to keep the good times rolling in St. Louis.
Craig looked like his usual smooth, flowing self in qualifying practice. He navigated through the Mid- west soil pretty well and secured himself the tenth fastest lap time on the day. He was ready to line them up and do battle during the night show.
Craig got a good start in his heat race and it set him up nicely. He took the green flag in fourth and he would stay there virtually all race. He did get passed by Daytona winner, Justin Brayton, at one point but immediately recovered the spot thanks to a Tyler Bowers crash. He’d hold the fourth place down all the way to the finish line. He was ready for the main event.
Craig got the main going with a decent start. He rounded lap one in sixth but failed to gain a foothold there. Throughout the first few laps, he slowly trickled backwards, and he found himself in eighth place on lap five. He just didn’t seem to have that extra burst of retaliation when he’d get passed, it was like he was riding on the safe side instead of attacking. But from there, he locked in and threw down nice, consistent laps. The track was certainly getting tougher and tougher as the race went
on and he did a great job of adjusting to that. It appeared like Craig would have eighth place on lockdown, but Dean Wilson had other things to say. The Scottish rider caught and passed Craig in the final laps of the race sending him back to ninth. Craig would finish there marking his third top ten in as many tries this year in the 450 class. A little disappointing after back to back top fives so he will look to rebound and get back there next weekend in Indianapolis.
56 GRITMOTO • MARCH 18, 2018