Page 34 - JULY-MPG-2018

HUNTER YODER
Hunter Yoder has fought the injury bug since joining the AMSOIL Factory Con- nection backed Honda Racing team, but he has still found the time to prove his undeniable speed when he’s on
the track. The Team Dunlop Elite rider put himself towards the front of the pack throughout all of the races that he entered during the spring and he aimed to carry that same rhythm into the 2018 FMF California Classic at Pala Race- way. Yoder contested both Supermini classes and encountered a mixed bag of results throughout the weekend, but his promising talent still rose to the top. The Californian’s best results came
in the Supermini 1 division where he was able to earn third overall in an incredibly competitive class and a bad first moto in the Supermini 2 division dropped his overall score to eighth. Nonetheless, flashes of speed have been prevalent throughout the year so far and it won’t be long until Yoder puts it all together and ends up on the top step of the podium.
MATTHEW LEBLANC
Matthew LeBlanc was one of the few riders missing from action during the various spring events that took place during the month of March due to an injury suffered while training, but he’s one of those riders that has earned himself a spot due to his unwavering reputation to win. It wasn’t even half
a year ago that the Louisiana native was standing on the top step of the podium at the Ranch, capturing the third Loretta Lynn’s Amateur National title. LeBlanc made a big move towards the end of 2017 as he decided to step away from KTM for the first time in his racing career, switching to bLU cRU
as a member of the Monster Energy Yamalube Star Racing Yamaha team. The Team Dunlop Elite rider wasted
no time getting up to speed, winning
a title at The Motoplayground Race at Ponca City and finishing on the podium in all eight of his classes at Mini O’s. If LeBlanc had been healthy and ac-
tive during the beginning of the 2018 season, it’s easy to decipher where he would have finished.
34 MPG • JULY • 2018