250 Class
Cianciarulo started the day off with a solid qualifying, where he ended up second on the time sheets, just a tenth off the top. Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing’s Dylan Ferrandis followed in third, while his teammates Colt Nichols, Mitchell Oldenburg and Justin Cooper were sixth, seventh and ninth. Cianciarulo’s Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki teammates Martin Davalos and Garrett Marchbanks also slotted inside the top 10, in eighth and tenth.
When the field stormed out the gate for Moto 1, Cooper did exactly what he’s done all season and put his Yamaha into the lead. Nichol’s was right behind in second, with Ferrandis close in fourth. Cianciarulo found himself mired behind a slew of riders, fighting just to hang on to the top 10. Despite that, he surged up into fifth by the completion of the opening lap.
Cooper and Nichols held onto the top two spots for nearly half the race, but Australian rookie Hunter Lawrence started to pick up the pace, likely due to pressure he started to receive from a hard-charging Cianciarulo and Ferrandis. Lawrence got around Nichols just prior to the halfway point, and made the pass on Cooper for the lead on the ensuing lap.
The intensity up front continued as Ferrandis and Cianciarulo came to battle Cooper. The Frenchman and his teammate made contact, which forced Cooper off the track briefly and allowed Cianciarulo to move into third. Cianciarulo then went on the attack to wrestle second from Ferrandis. Lawrence went on to take his first moto win, with Cianciarulo second, Ferrandis third and Nichols fifth. Cooper dropped to sixth.
Moto 2 got underway with Nichols surging out to the early lead. Cianciarulo got a considerably better start and tucked in behind in second. Oldenburg started sixth, with Ferrandisin 10th. Cooper started outside the top 10 in 13th.
Nichols did well to hold off the early pressure from Cianciarulo, but it was only a matter of time before the Kawasaki rider found his way to the front. Once in the lead, Cianciarulo was able to comfortably manage his advantage, leaving his rivals to battle for the remaining spots on the podium.
As the moto wore on Nichols came under fire from several riders, including Ferrandis, and eventually dropped out of podium contention. Out front, Cianciarulo cruised to an easy win to remain undefeated in second motos this season, finishing more than six seconds ahead of the Honda tandem of Chase Sexton and Lawrence. Ferrandis just missed out on the top three in fourth, with Nichols fifth. Cooper fought to salvage ninth.
Cianciarulo’s 2-1 results were more than enough to put him on top of the overall classification yet again, and he remains the only rider in the 250 Class to finish inside the top three in every moto this season.
“I got really lucky in the first moto because I spun out of the gate and had to seriously thread the needle in the first turn to try and stay at the front,” said Cianciarulo. “The track was very tough and I tried to be patient. Coming to the races now compared to the past feels so different. It’s just a whole new vibe. For the first time I really believe in myself. When you hit rock bottom it’s tough but I have so many great people around me. I just would never have thought that I would go four in a row.”
Ferrandis was the next Monster Energy rider in fourth, narrowly missing out on a podium result, while Nichols put a trio of Monster athletes in the top five. An up and down day for Cooper ended in ninth overall, with Davalos a couple spots behind in 12th and Oldenburg in 15th. An injury in the first moto left Marchbanks sidelined for the remainder of the afternoon.
The win for Cianciarulo, combined with Cooper’s worst outing of the summer thus far, vaulted the Kawasaki rider to a 26-point lead in the 250 Class standings. Ferrandismaintains a firm hold on third, 42 points behind Cianciarulo, while Nichols is fifth.
250 Class Results
1. Adam Cianciarulo, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki (2-1)
2. Hunter Lawrence, Honda (1-3)
3. Chase Sexton, Honda (4-2)
4. Dylan Ferrandis, Monster Energy/Star/YamahaRacing (3-4)
5. Colt Nichols, Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing(5-5)
9. Justin Cooper, Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing (6-9)
12.Martin Davalos, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki (15-12)
15.Mitchell Oldenburg, Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing (10-19)
41.Garrett Marchbanks, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki (40-DNS)
250 Class Standings
1. Adam Cianciarulo, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki – 186
2. Justin Cooper, Monster Energy/Star/YamahaRacing – 160
3. Dylan Ferrandis, Monster Energy/Star/YamahaRacing – 144
4. Chase Sexton, Honda – 134
5. Colt Nichols, Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing – 126
10.Garrett Marchbanks, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki – 63
16.Martin Davalos, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki – 47
23.Mitchell Oldenburg, Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing – 13