Kacy Martinez Wins Women's Main Event at Denver EnduroCross

DENVER – FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Kacy Martinez rode to her second victory of the 2018 AMA EnduroCross Series on Saturday in Denver, Colorado, besting KTM-mounted rider Shelby Turner in the Women’s Main Event. In the Super EnduroCross class, FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Cody Webb battled hard in the Main Event to ultimately finish second for the night.

Held inside Denver’s National Western Events Center, Round 4 presented riders with an exceptionally long track, including many jumps and one of the most technical “no-joke” lanes so far this season. Webb took advantage of the technical terrain as he topped the competition by 1.7 seconds in hot laps as the only rider to conquer the firewood-to-balance beam-to-big tire combination through the “no-joke” lane. As a result, Webb earned first gate pick for Heat 1. In the heat, Webb got the holeshot and pulled away for the win as he also earned the first gate pick for bracket racing with the fastest lap of the heat races.

Webb battled through the brackets, which brought him once again head-to-head with his championship rival, Colton Haaker. Webb and Haaker went side-by-side into the second turn, and with Webb on the outside, Haaker positioned himself to the inside and ultimately ran Webb off the track. Consequently, Webb finished second in the brackets, giving Haaker an extra point in the championship chase.

In the Super EnduroCross Main Event, Webb got a fourth-place start and quickly powered his KTM 350 EXC into second early on. On the opening lap, race leader Colton Haaker made a mistake in the rock section and Webb was able to get around him for the lead. Webb led for the first eight-minutes of the 12-minute Main Event, until he approached a lapped rider jumping into the rock garden. Webb got stopped up and lost valuable time, while Haaker jumped his way into the lead. From there, Webb rode tight and wasn’t able to challenge for the win again, ultimately finishing second for the night.

Webb: “That last bobble in the rocks definitely did me over but I had a lot of pressure from Colton [Haaker] all race long. It’s a pretty fast track tonight and we’re all doing the same thing, so it’s just really high intensity the whole time. I started getting a little tight and I was the first guy to approach the lappers, so it was really tricky for me tonight and I just made a bad call. After that, I was just too tight and I didn’t have the intensity, and he [Haaker] got by me. We’ll regroup and we’ll be ready for Everett next weekend.”

In the Women’s class, Martinez injected herself back into the championship fight as she tied up the points with rival Shelby Turner. Martinez headed into the Main Event with a second-place gate pick and she powered her KTM 250 EXC-F to third off the start. She quickly moved into second on lap two and from there she challenged Turner for the lead spot. 

With two laps to go, Turner made a mistake and got stuck, which allowed Martinez to capitalize and get around her for the lead. Martinez held strong in the final laps to ultimately finish 7.5 seconds ahead of Turner for her second win of the season.

Martinez: “Right off the bat, I was having a lot of fun on the track during practice! It was a very raceable track and Shelby and I were having a good battle. I was on her rear wheel and able to capitalize on a mistake she had and take the lead. I rode strong and consistent the rest of the race not making any mistakes to take the win! I’m super happy and confident going into the next race!”

The 2018 AMA EnduroCross Series heads to Everett, Washington next Saturday, Oct. 27 for Round 5 of the six-round series. For more information, please visit www.endurocross.com.

Super EnduroCross Main Event Results

1. Colton Haaker, HQV

2. Cody Webb, KTM

3. Ty Tremaine, BET

Women’s Main Event Results

1. Kacy Martinez, KTM

2. Shelby Turner, KTM

3. Nicole Bradford, KTM

4. Sharon Mowell, KTM

Super EnduroCross Championship Standings (After Round 4 of 6)

1. Colton Haaker, 100

2. Cody Webb, 96 points

3. Ty Tremaine, 73

Women’s Championship Standings (After Round 4 of 6)

1. Shelby Turner, 94 points

2. Kacy Martinez, 94

3. Allie Dorsey, 65

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