RALPH SHEHEEN: Hi everybody. I’m Ralph Sheheen. Welcome to Seattle, alongside Jeff Emig. It was a rainy day here in the Emerald City and Jeff, that meant conditions would be treacherous at best.
JEFF EMIG: Sloppy, muddy, slippery, rutty, all of these adjectives out there. I mean, the track was so unpredictable and it was a major challenge for these Supercross riders here tonight.
RALPH SHEHEEN: We kick off our highlights with a 250 west main event. That was a good part of the racetrack right there.
JEFF EMIG: Yeah, rain pretty much started in the afternoon, after raining off and on for the last few days. And you can see, the conditions all day long were bad. And the dirt works track crew did their best to provide a great racing service, but when the gate dropped, it was still bad.
RALPH SHEHEEN: This start would be a huge part of the race here tonight. Aaron Plessinger, the points leader on the number 23 Yamaha, got the whole shot.
JEFF EMIG: Well, and Plessinger is one of the best when it comes to this conditions, if not the best. He gets out front. Meanwhile, there was great battles all the way through the track but– or all the way through the field, but the track condition is what was the most challenging.
RALPH SHEHEEN: It was a challenge to fight between risk and reward. How hard could you go after it here tonight without making a mistake like Joey Savatgy did here.
JEFF EMIG: Savatgy was second in points, trying to chase down Plessinger and take advantage of these conditions. He goes down, loses a massive amount of points in the process. Deeper in the field, Phil Nicoletti here gets off the track, and watch right here, goes through this massive mud hole. Keeps the throttle on this Suzuki wide open, pushes it, and manages to actually get through there and finish the main event.
RALPH SHEHEEN: Behind him, more problems. This time Shane McElrath who gets off track.
JEFF EMIG: McElrath was second at this point in the race. Sexton would go by on his way to his career best finish.
RALPH SHEHEEN: Checkered flag would await. Aaron Plessinger around to the final corner through the rut, up and over the finish line jump, into the top step of the podium he would go. But then, he really got the crowd on their feet with this epic belly flop.
JEFF EMIG: One of the funnest guys out there. He always does a dance after he wins the race, and just big smiles for Aaron Plessinger and Monster Energy, Yamalube, Yamaha.
RALPH SHEHEEN: I’m not sure anybody has more fun racing Monster Energy Supercross than Aaron Plessinger, but when the 250s were done, that meant it was time for the 450s, and those bikes even more powerful, can do even more damage to the racetrack.
JEFF EMIG: And more rain and more mud. Let’s check it out.
RALPH SHEHEEN: Once again, the start would be critical. Three riders would get a jump out of the gate. Musquin on the KTM, Tomac on the Kawasaki, and Anderson on the inside on the Husqvarna.
JEFF EMIG: Musquin would be credited with the holeshot. He jumps out front. Anderson, on that White Husqvarna was going for it. This is the second straightaway. They’re already paddling through with Anderson. So aggressive. Watch this right here. Just stays on the throttle, doubles past, and goes the outside to take the lead.
RALPH SHEHEEN: Here’s Tomac and Musquin. The two of them would swap second place more than one as both riders would struggle with different sections.
JEFF EMIG: And that save by Tomac would be critical. Here he gets to the inside of Musquin and makes the path stick. That’s for second. Now he sets his sights on Jason Anderson. But Anderson, small mistake right here. Goes down into the tough block. A bad position. Manages to not go all the way down, but right there, Tomac goes past for the lead.
RALPH SHEHEEN: Tomac would have his moments as well. Avoiding disaster here. But he would pick his way through to take the victory in Seattle. Anderson would come home in second, but a great battle to the finish. Just inside the top ten, fighting for a spot for his best finish to the year was Chad Reed. Just trying to push his smoking heap to the finish, he would just get over the timing and scoring line for seventh, his best of the year. Next race will be indoors. Should be a lot drier in Minneapolis next Saturday night, 10:00 PM Eastern on FS1.
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