BITTERSWEET WEEKEND FOR TEAM YAMAHA AS KLATT SWEEPS MX-1 AND MEDAGLIA TAKES HIS SECOND MX-2 OVERALL
It was a bittersweet weekend for Team Yamaha Red Bull Fox Racing for round 3 of the CMRC Canadian MX Nationals. Dusty Klatt swept both MX-1 motos to take the overall and Tyler Medaglia maintained his point lead on the MX-2 Championship hunt with a 2-1 finish to take the overall.
Unique to any city in North America, the Wild Rose Motocross Park is located across the street from the team’s mothership dealership, Blackfoot Motosports; as well as it is very close to the downtown core of Calgary. Sunday morning greeted the teams and the fans with a favorable sunny day after the area had been pelted with thunderstorms and rain the previous few days.
In the first MX-1 moto, Dusty Klatt grabbed the holeshot on the new fuel injected YZ450 with Colton Facciotti a few positions back. In a matter of a few corners Colt swapped back and forth with Kiniry to move into second and start his attack on Klatt. At the 9 minute mark Facciotti moved past Klatt to take the lead. Halfway through the moto Colt had a 4 second lead over Klatt who enjoyed a 23 second lead over Suzuki mounted Kiniry. Diaster struck at the 21 minute mark when Facciotti cross rutted in a section and went down violently which caused a red flag. The officials called it a race, while medical staff stabilized Colt and transported him to the hospital.
Klatt did not disappoint in the second moto, as he again grabbed the holeshot and lead wire to wire in a dominant performance to take the checkers with an over 20 second gap to Kiniry in second. Dusty is now 34 points behind Kiniry after scoring no points last weekend with 6 rounds left before the Championship is decided.
“My thoughts are with my team-mate Colton that is for sure,” said an obviously shaken Klatt after the second moto. “I was right behind him and saw the whole thing and it was scary for sure. I feel much better now knowing he is going to be ok and I would rather have won fair and square by beating him in each moto however racing is racing and we never know what the future holds. I know what I have to do to win this championship, have made some positive changes in my life the past few weeks, and feel I am riding much better each weekend. Thanks to my team, our sponsors and all my fans for sticking with me all these years!”
“We are also very pleased to report that Colt is doing very well and was released on Monday afternoon from the hospital,” said Team Owner Jason Mitchell. “We would like to thank everyone for their concerns, prayers and support. We look forward to having Colt back under our tent as soon as he is released by his doctors.”
The MX-2 title chase is offering some of the best racing the series has experienced, and this weekend was no exception. In the morning qualifier, Tyler Medaglia was on top of the leader board, closely followed by Teddy Maier and Jeremy Medaglia. Everyone knew that the ensuing races would be competitive and close.
In the first MX-2 moto in Calgary, Tyler Medaglia reached his goal of a clean start in the top five. By the 5 minute mark, he was running third behind Rife and Teddy. The trio freight trained around the track until Maier moved past Rife for the lead. Medaglia made a pass stick on Rife as time moved forward, to cross the finish line in second place only 11 seconds off the leader.
The start of the second moto was almost a carbon copy of the first with the same trio of riders, Rife, Maier and Medaglia running close to each other by the 5-minute mark. Only 11 minutes into the race, Rife went down handing the lead over to Maier with Medaglia in tow. Both riders put on a great battle for the fans, running a torrid pace until Medaglia stuck a pass on Maier to take the lead. This was short lived as Tyler found himself on the ground in a corner, handing the lead back to Maier. Running 5 seconds behind the leader Tyler put his head down to try and make up the time and re-gain the lead, however, this time it was Maier’s turn to find himself on the ground allowing Medaglia to take over the lead, take the win and the overall for the day.
“I don’t think anyone could ask for any tighter racing than this class this weekend,” smiled Tyler Medaglia. “Maier and Rife are really riding well and so is my brother which really makes for some competitive racing. I had found a great line on the big uphill in the back during my warm up lap in the 2nd moto and I knew it would be a good spot to try and stick a pass during the moto, and that is exactly what happened. Then after making the pass to take the lead I made a mistake and gave him back the lead, which really was frustrating. When I saw him go down late in the moto and give me back the lead I was finally able to relax and finish the race. I am so happy with the team, the bike and everyone this year. I am working so hard to bring home this championship for the team and for Canada!”
Riders Jared and Parker Allison again had a great weekend of racing as they continue to gain the experience and speed necessary to get on the podium. Jared had a great ride finishing 6th overall while Parker was 11th keeping them in the top ten in the series at 6th and 9th.
Stay in touch with the team on our website: www.blackfootracing.com and link to all the teams premiere sponsors who have partnered with Blackfoot Racing’s Championship effort.
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