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JOEY SAVATGY
250 MX / 1ST
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / HARNISHFEGER DESIGN / MPG
>> The past month has not been so kind to Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider Joey Savatgy. He had the 250 East Coast title stolen from him in the waning moments of the Las Vegas finale which left a dark cloud to hang over him leading into the outdoor season. Hangtown was very mediocre for Savatgy as he rode to a quiet 7-7 for seventh overall. A much different performance than his dominating 1-1 there a year ago. Clearly the bad vibes were still hurting him but he man- aged to shake free of them just a bit the following weekend in Glen Helen. A solid second place in the first moto set him up well for the second but unfortunately his bad vibes came back in full force in the form of a DNF due to a mechanical error late in the moto. The frustration continued and he was determined to get his season on track at Thunder Valley.
Savatgy looked confident and strong in qualifying practice securing the third fastest lap time but setting the fastest time in the final practice session. He clearly had a little more spunk to his riding this weekend making him eager for that first gate drop of the day. When moto one finally came around, Savatgy was able to nail a solid start and round the opening lap in fifth position. He quickly got by teammate Adam Cianciarulo for fourth and then passed Mitchell Harrison just a few laps later for third. There he settled into a nice pace and tried to run down two-time champion Jeremy Martin. The Kawasaki rider applied the pressure during the heart of the race and eventually forced Martin into a mistake in the latter stages. Savatgy really seemed to have found a new gear as he then immediately went after race leader Alex Martin. He pulled up right behind him on a few occa- sions but either bobbled or had the door shut by Martin and the lead would stretch back out just
a bit. Then with two laps left, seemingly out of nowhere, his teammate Austin Forkner came flying by to steal second away. Savatgy seemed caught off guard and would squander away third back to Jeremy Martin on the final lap and finish fourth. A good result but a disappointing one as well because he came so close to a win but ended up just outside the podium.
Savatgy did not want that to happen again in moto two so he launched out to a better start com- ing out of the opening lap right behind Aaron Plessinger. He hung with the Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha rider keeping him in sight for the first several laps when he struck the lottery. Plessinger threw it away crashing on the blindside of a hill surrendering the lead right to Savatgy. He did not take the opportunity for granted and he would hold onto the number one spot all the way to the finish despite a fierce battle with Jeremy Martin for the last fifteen minutes of the race. Not only was Savatgy elated to win the moto and get the monkey of his back, his 4-1 scores were also good enough to win the overall on the day. It was just what he needed to jumpstart his season and hop right back into the title conversation.
30 GRITMOTO • JUNE 4, 2017