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MIKELSAVARD Loretta Lynn Amateur National Motocross Champion
Mikel Savard was one of the many competitors to make the journey southward from the Great White North all the way to the Loretta Lynn Dude Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, contesting both the 250 C Jr. (12-17) Limited class as well as the 450 C class. The Canadian rider demonstrated strong results throughout the various Loretta Lynn Qualifiers that he attended, setting him
up for a championship fight in both C classes. It’s never easy to overcome the nerves of lining up on the gate at the Loretta Lynn Amateur National Motocross Championship for the first time, but Savard had no problem suppressing the tension as he performed exceptionally well in the first 450 C moto. The KTM rider blasted out of the gate to a third place start and rode calmly inside the top three over the course of the opening lap, but it wasn’t long until he catapulted into the lead. Savard held down the number one spot for the remainder of the race, clocking the fastest lap of the moto by more than a second ahead of his nearest competitor, as he crossed the finish line with almost twenty seconds
in hand. In the second moto, Savard proved yet again that he was the fastest rider in the class, but he wasn’t able to execute the same jump out of the gate that he did in moto one. The Canadian found himself outside of the top ten on the opening lap and was forced to fight his way towards the front of the field, advancing from tenth to third within just four laps of racing. He clocked the fastest lap of the moto yet again as he attempted to chase down the rider in second place, but a small mistake on the final lap forced him back to an even- tual fifth place finish. Although he gave up the podium result, the fight for the title wasn’t over heading into third moto -- Savard put himself in the right posi- tion at the beginning of the moto, methodically working his way up to the lead by the midway point of the race, but he decided to drop back to third position as he was focused on the overall result. Savard’s moto scores of 1-5-3 were enough to seal the deal on the overall victory in a chaotic 450 C class, earning the first Loretta Lynn Amateur National Championship of his career with a solid performance at the Ranch.
2018
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