Ox Motorsports Honda captain Colton Udall forfeited the win at round two of the AMA District 37/MSR Big 6 Grand Prix Series when he took a hard left turn out of pit row and rejoined the course in the middle of a high-banked turn right after the landing from a table-top, citing somewhat confusing course marking.
It belied what had been a good ride for the defending series champion who had a disappointing first round but got things in order for the 90-minute, $2000 AMA Big 6 West Coast Grand Prix (WCGP) Series feature race at the Taft Grand Prix hosted by the Dirt Diggers Motorcycle Club in the Central California oil town of Taft.
A good start put him in the lead pack right away and halfway into the race, Udall found himself getting a quick pit and the lead over round-one Blayne Thompson. At the finish, it appeared Udall had redeemed himself and put himself back in the points chase, but officials decided to levy the penalty, giving the Fasthouse Yamaha rider the win.
“I ended catching back up [to Udall after my slightly slower pit stop],” Thompson said, predicting, “If I [would’ve] had one more lap, I would’ve ended up getting him, but I didn’t have the time.
“I’m ecstatic with the way I rode. If I keep riding like this all year, I think I can win a championship, for sure.”
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC Kawasaki-mounted Robby Bell rode a smart, measured race to third followed by teammate Justin Seeds with Ox Motorsports Honda teammates Justin Jones and Mark Samuels the next in.
Early leaders Eric Yorba and Michael Del Fante, WCGP Pro II winner Trevor Stewart and Pro Jeff Loop rounded out the top 10 overall.
