PLESSINGER CLAIMS FOURTH OVERALL AT UNADILLA NATIONAL



NEW BERLIN, N.Y. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Aaron Plessinger came close to securing his second 450MX podium of the season, finishing fourth overall at Round 9 of the 2022 AMA Pro Motocross Championship in New Berlin, New York. Returning to racing after the series’ two-week break, Plessinger fought through the Unadilla National’s rough track conditions with 7-4 results, finishing two spots ahead of teammate Ryan Dungey, who posted 6-6 moto scores for sixth overall in the class. 
 
The difference for Plessinger boiled down to good starts, as he consistently placed his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION up front in both motos. Securing a third-place start in Moto 1, he battled inside the top-five early on. He found himself at odds with a bout of arm pump later in the race, which caused him to drop back to a seventh-place finish. He came back swinging in Moto 2 with another great jump off the line and he charged his way up to second on the opening lap. Battling in podium contention early on, Plessinger settled into a solid fourth midway through the race before putting in one last charge to finish only a few seconds off the podium in the second moto.
 
Aaron Plessinger: “It was a pretty good day! I got a pretty good start in the first moto and kind of pumped up in the middle, and went from fifth to seventh. We didn’t really make too many changes in the second moto and I got a really good start – I was right there with Eli [Tomac], and then Chase [Sexton] got by me and I was trying to follow his lines but he was on another level today. I kind of dropped back a bit in the middle and with about five laps to go, I really, really picked it up and tried to get Jason [Anderson] back. I made up good time but still finished up fourth. It was really good, better than my last few motos, and we’re making really good progress with the bike, so I’m really pumped and looking forward to Budds Creek.”
 
Ryan Dungey got off to a seventh-place start and he battled behind Plessinger for the first half of the race. Overtaking his teammate for sixth midway through the race, Dungey continued his charge into the final stretch as he applied pressure on Ken Roczen in fifth. He put himself into striking distance late in the race, making the pass for fifth with two laps to go, and he finished strong in fifth. With another seventh-place start in the second moto, Dungey once again had his work cut out as he set his sights on the front-runners ahead. He maintained seventh for most of the race before making another big charge to overtake sixth with a few laps to go. Claiming 6-6 moto scores, due to a small infraction in the first moto, Dungey finished sixth overall for the day.
 
Ryan Dungey: “Unadilla was pretty nasty today – the track was pretty gnarly and more unique than it has been in the past. I feel like we had two good starts but my first laps didn’t execute as good as I should have. I had little mistakes and got passed by a couple guys, which made it harder for me to work in the moto and passes were tough for me today. All things considered, I was really happy with my riding and the bike setup was good for such a nasty track. I’m honestly just really excited to finish out these last three and just keep building.”
 
It was another solid day for team rider Max Vohland, who finished just outside the top-five overall in the 250MX class. In the first moto, he got off to a seventh-place start on the opening lap and he quickly powered his KTM 250 SX-F FACTORY EDITION into sixth in the first couple of laps. He had an issue midway through that dropped him back to eighth but he was able to rally back late in the race to make his way up to a sixth-place finish. In Moto 2, Vohland started just inside the top-10 and he fought through the pack early on to bring himself up to sixth. Moving into fifth around the halfway point, Vohland continued to battle with championship-contender Hunter Lawrence into the final laps, capturing sixth in the moto and sixth overall for the day.
 
Max Vohland: “Another solid weekend for me, I went 6-6 for sixth overall. I feel like I rode really good today and feel like the bike is in a really good spot and my endurance is in a good spot. The only thing I'm missing is getting some good starts, so we're going to go back to Florida this week, really hone in and try to figure something out. I'm looking forward to going to Budds Creek next weekend.”
 
The 2022 AMA Pro Motocross Championship heads to Mechanicsville, Maryland next Saturday, August 20 for the Budds Creek National, Round 10 of the 12-race series.
 
Results 450MX Class – Unadilla National
1. Eli Tomac (USA), Yamaha, 1-1
2. Chase Sexton (USA), Honda, 2-2
3. Jason Anderson (USA), Kawasaki, 3-3
4. Aaron Plessinger (USA), KTM, 7-4 
OTHER KTM
6. Ryan Dungey (USA), KTM, 6-6
13. Fredrik Noren (SWE), KTM
20. Henry Miller (USA), KTM
28. Tristan Lane (USA), KTM
40. Benny Bloss (USA), KTM
 
Results 250MX Class – Unadilla National
1. Jo Shimoda (JAP), Kawasaki, 1-3
2. Justin Cooper (USA), Yamaha, 5-1
3. Hunter Lawrence (AUS), Honda, 2-5
OTHER KTM
6. Max Vohland (USA), KTM, 6-6
12. Derek Kelley (USA), KTM
13. Joshua Varize (USA), KTM
22. Kaeden Amerine (USA), KTM
27. Trevor Schmidt (USA), KTM
28. Marcus Phelps (ZAF), KTM
29. Max Miller (USA), KTM
31. Cole Harkins (USA), KTM
35. Tyson Johnson (USA), KTM
36. Jake Pinhancos (USA), KTM
40. Lawrence Fortin III (USA), KTM
 
Standings 450MX Class 2022 after 9 of 12 rounds
1. Chase Sexton, 409 points
2. Eli Tomac, 408
3. Jason Anderson, 325
OTHER KTM
6. Ryan Dungey, 264
8. Aaron Plessinger, 230
13. Benny Bloss, 127
15. Antonio Cairoli, 89
17. Fredrik Noren, 82
23. Henry Miller, 27
27. Tyler Stepek, 15
28. Tristan Lane, 14
38. Jeffrey Walker, 3
 
Standings 250MX Class 2022 after 9 of 12 rounds
1. Jett Lawrence, 391 points
2. Hunter Lawrence, 365
3. Jo Shimoda, 351
OTHER KTM
6. Max Vohland, 222
14. Derek Kelley, 113
15. Joshua Varize, 106