Lucas Oil Ironman 2022 National Motocross

Directly behind Redbud the annual race at Ironman is one of my favorites of the year. The look and feel of Ironman and the covered bridge make a beautiful setting for racing and photos. This year is the 50th anniversary of racing at Ironman and everyone would be glued to the action to see whether Tomac or Sexton would step up and take firm control over the season points lead.

250 Class

In moto 1 we saw Thrasher, Hampshire, and Vohland got great starts and build a slight lead. Only to see Jett catch them and make the pass for the lead by the midpoint of the moto. Jett built a lead and cruised to a victory by almost 7 seconds over Hampshire. In moto 2 we saw Cooper get the holeshot with Shimoda close behind and he was able to take the lead in the second lap. Jett was back in the pack in twelfth place while Hunter was in third. Jett broke into the top 10 within a few minutes and by halfway point was in fifth place. Shimoda remained in full control of first place and won the moto with Hunter finishing in second and Jett in third. Haiden Deegan made his pro debut today and had a hard crash in moto 1 while running in the top 10. He made it back for the second moto but never regained the pace he had in first moto with a 24th place finish.

The final results were:

1. Jett Lawrence

2. Jo Shimoda

3. Hunter Lawrence
   

450 Class

The premier class always draws the most attention but this year’s battle for the championship between Tomac and Sexton is taking it to a higher level. With just one week left after Ironman everyone was keen to see if one of them would take enough of a lead to put the trophy on cruise control and only worry about preventing disaster at the final race.

Moto 1 saw Tomac and Sexton with average starts but in the top 10, while Craig and Roczen were battling early for the lead. Around the 10 minute mark into the moto, we saw Tomac pass for the lead while Sexton moved into third. The battle between the two championship contenders would only heat up more later in the moto as we saw Sexton catch Tomac and pass him. Only to see Tomac battle back and take the moto 1 win.

In moto 2 we saw Sexton get the whole shot only to lose the lead quickly to Roczen and regain it soon after. Tomac would initially sit in fourth but throughout the first half of the moto would move to third and then into second place. By mid-moto, the battle for first saw Tomac closing the few-second gap to Sexton and he responded by trying to not lose the slight edge he’s had for most of the moto. We saw the gap close to around 2 seconds with just a few minutes left but would eventually grow and Sexton won moto 2 with an 11-second advantage.

The final results of the day were:

1. Chase Sexton

2. Eli Tomac

3. Aaron Pessinger

Ironman provided yet another exciting day of racing and ensured everyone must tune in next week for the final round as neither the 250 or 450 season title is locked up yet. Besides the intense championship points battles going on, we saw several new riders working their way into the podium contention.