Page 14 - ISSUE-47

JOSH GRANT
450 SX / 3RD
IMAGE /MPG WORDS / ECKERT DESIGN / WILSON
>> Often overlooked and absolutely underrated, the #33 of Josh Grant has seen his career be revived through his 2017 results. That’s not to say the year hasn’t had it’s bumps for the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider who was forced to miss both the fifth and sixth rounds, but Josh has kept the throttle-hand strong and posted some of his best finishes in recent weeks. Taking those, with everything added up together after sixteen races, Josh sits 11th in points. Unfortunately for the rest of the field, heading into Vegas for the final round, Grant wasn’t happy with that. The veteran being no stranger to the tables of Sam Boyd Stadium and testing the odds of his colleagues, he felt it only right to bet against the house and go all-in for 10th. To do so, Grant started strong in heat two behind Ryan Dungey. Keeping Dungey within reach for the entire race, Grant dropped a mere two seconds back, finishing 2nd with confidence and avoiding the dreaded Semi’s.
Taking the momentum with him to the starting line once more, Grant started the last main event of the year by squeezing into the top ten. Making quick work on the opening laps, Grant pushed through Wilson, Reed and Musquin to reach 5th. Once there, Josh latched on to Blake Baggett and held strong through the middle portion of the race; knowing he needed to get to Dungey to make an impact on his fellow teammates title hopes. You could see the aggression coming from the rubber of Grants rear tire. Pushing and stretching his 450 atop the fast paced track, Grant held the rear of the lead group as the top five were separated by a few seconds. With them all grouped up together, Grant got by Baggett after the finish line. Shortly following the move, Grant came up way short on the quad that led the field out of the stadium and dropped two spots. Re- covering quickly while running out of time and room, Grant got back to 3rd after mistakes from the riders in front of him. The mayhem wasn’t over, either, as the battle of Tomac and Dungey up front got pushy with a move by Eli causing Dungey to fumble. The mistake cost Ryan 2nd and 3rd, earning Josh the last step of the podium with only a few turns left. Ending the season with his best finish of the year, Josh smiled knowing that he used his chips wisely to gain the 10th
he had set his sights on. With the lights now turned off, look for Josh to take the finish into the outdoor season where the big boys can finally start to shift gears.
14 GRITMOTO • MAY 7, 2017