Page 22 - Issue43

JOSHUA GRANT
450 SX / 5TH
IMAGE / LANGSTON WORDS / ECKERT DESIGN / WILSON
>> Kawasaki vet Josh Grant has had quite the impressive comeback so far this season, finishing in all but two main events and holding down 11th place in the point standings. Now, coming into St. Louis with four rounds in the year left to go, Grant simply looks to keep the momentum swinging in the right direction in hopes of earn- ing a top ten spot before the season comes to an end.
As racing got underway, Josh was lined up in heat two where a strong start saw the #33 just outside of a qualifying position in 6th. Sliding into 5th early on and settling in behind the #51 of Justin Barcia in 4th, the race for the main was on. A few laps in, Grant began feeling a bit of pressure from teammate Eli Tomac. Fighting to avoid a semi and able to hold off the lightening of Tomac for the next few minutes, it wasn’t until late in the race that Eli made a move to get around Josh, pushing him out of qualifying contention. Now in 6th, Grant continued to battle and was able to follow his teammate around Barcia before the finish to take 5th into a semi. Once there, the veteran was able to slide around the inside of the start straight taking the rest
of the field wide and escaping turn two in 3rd. Following the opening lap, Grant was able to get by the #12 of Jake Weimer and, sitting a second a half behind the leader, began his hunt on Justin Bogle, At first, it seemed the leader, Bogle, was going to inch away from Josh but Grant saw a resurgence and looked hungry to overtake the #19. Pulling within a bike length, Grant nearly slid out in front of the mechanics area with the back tire not grabbing on the smooth and flat surface of the start straight. Despite the mistake costing him the victory, the 2nd place finish earned Josh a spot in the main where his consistent starts would again give Grant in early advantage.
A strong jump off the line earned JG a top five position around the first turn but a bobble later on the opening lap pushed Grant back to 8th. Battling with Cooper Webb, Grant dropped to 9th and began to dance with multiple riders just inside the top ten. The battle proved fruitful for Grant as he would get by Bogle and Webb for 7th before some late race luck handed Josh 5th by the time the checkered flag flew. The result earned Josh his best finish of the season.
22 GRITMOTO • APRIL 2, 2017