04.10.2020
Round 7 - AMA National Enduro Championship - October 4, 2020
MATTHEWS, Ind. – FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Ben Kelley claimed a top-five overall finish amidst the cold and rainy conditions at Sunday’s Muddobbers National Enduro, Round 7 of the 2020 AMA National Enduro Championship. Less than one week after undergoing surgery on his finger, team rider Josh Toth battled through adversity to claim valuable points with sixth overall as he continues to fight for the NE Pro1 Championship this season.
Additionally, KTM-supported rider, Mackenzie Tricker, earned her fifth victory of the season on Sunday to wrap up the Women’s Elite Championship with two rounds to go in the series.
Rainfall throughout the morning made for slick conditions on the course but the skies eventually dried up for the final two tests making it an overall battle of visibility and traction all day long. Kelley fought through the wet conditions early on to finish sixth in the opening test. He settled into a groove in test two, where he was able to power his way to a third-place finish before putting in a consistent pair of top-five finishes in the next two sections. Although the rain came to a stop for the final two tests, that’s when Kelley experienced his biggest challenges as he went down three times between tests five and six, giving him sixth and seventh-place test-finishes to round out the day. In total, Kelley’s performance was good enough to secure a top-five overall finish for the second-straight round.
Ben Kelley: “It was a pretty good race. It was rainy and cold for the first three tests but I felt pretty good. I felt good on the fourth test as well but then the fifth and sixth I had a few problems just trying to get the flow and then had three crashes between those two tests. Overall, I felt like I rode pretty good and ended up fifth for the day.”
Toth, who just underwent surgery to repair an injured ring finger last Tuesday, lined up with a fresh set of screws and a plate in his hand but that didn’t stop him from pursuing a top finish. He maintained a solid position just behind his teammate, Kelley, for most of the day as he claimed top-seven positions throughout the day’s tests. With his strongest finish of fifth in the opening test, Toth did his best to manage the remainder of the race and he came away with valuable points, where he now sits 14 points back in the NE Pro1 Championship after coming into this round tied for the lead.
Josh Toth: “The swelling on my finger just went down in the last couple of days and I was able to make a homemade splint to hold it together and that really helped out today. As expected, it was sore going into it and I was just really limited and kind of uncomfortable on the bike at first but halfway through the tests I started feeling a little better. I had some big get-offs in the third test but other than that I salvaged what I could and adapted the best I can. Having time off before the next round to let my body recover will be good.”
Next Round: November 1 – Gobbler Getter National in Stanton, Alabama
NE Pro1 Results
1. Grant Baylor, SHR, 2:05:44.137
2. Steward Baylor Jr., YAM, +41.834
3. Thad DuVall, HQV, +01:43.314
OTHER KTM
5. Josh Toth, KTM
6. Ben Kelley, KTM
Overall National Championship Standings
1. Grant Baylor, 163 points (2 wins)
2. Josh Toth, 149 (3 wins)
3. Steward Baylor Jr., 137
4. Ben Kelley, 133 (1 win)