Page 48 - ISSUE51

JOEY SAVATGY
250 MX / 7TH
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / MPG
>> Although motocrosser’s can litter themselves with protective gear and mechanisms, such as neck braces and hand guards, there truly is a price you pay when you slam the ground. It takes so much for one to block out the dangers of this game, and choose to go faster, as the risks continue to climb. Admirable? That, and then some. A man that can push all fear on two wheels aside is that of Joey Savatgy. He’s willing to launch any section, feat, or obstacle, at any given time, in order to secure victory (or wow fans as well.) High Point was no different, he was jumping everything in sight, no matter how slick and washed out the faces appeared; if he could better his time, he would get it done. It translated into the first moto, as he was caught amongst battles in the early going, yet still clicking up a gear and force-feeding his suspension into mother earth. Pushing his way through the shin-deep bal- ance beams, he showed no signs of slowing down, as he fought tooth and nail with the likes of Sean Cantrell, and Dylan Ferrandis for the fifth position. He would begin to slightly fade, the 17 Kawasaki yearning for the optimum lines through the tricky chicanes, piecing the track together like a puzzle. He would slowly begin to fade however, eventually falling to eighth by moto’s end. Consistency is key, and he would put in yet another solid start, with a seventh place registering across timing and scoring. Battling with the likes of RJ Hampshire, and Colt Nichols, the former Loretta Lynn’s champ would be furious in efforts to move forward, but it just wasn’t enough to decapitate the head of the filed. Dragging his rear brake through the roughest of portions, he would continue to carry on, but only outdoing his previous moto finish by one, just ahead of Florida native RJ Hampshire, He would go on to finish seventh, and seventh overall, nestled between Forkner and Hampshire.
48 GRITMOTO • JUNE 18, 2017