Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Eli Tomac finished second in Arlington, scoring his fifth podium of the season. Charging from a ninth place start, Tomac spent most of the race in fourth before uncorking two passes within seconds of each other on Ken Roczen and Cooper Webb. In the post race media scrum, Tomac explained his main event and talked about the championship fight.
“There was some fortune in there for how bad the start was,” Tomac said. “This dirt is very hard to read. It looks awesome, but has a really slick base to it, so that was a challenge. It was kind of chaos, like there was so much going on with the crowd and I was sitting there watching. In my opinion, I kind of watched too much. I wish I would’ve got up a little bit quicker, but that’s how it goes.”
Hunter Lawrence On Lappers: "It's what we have to deal with as racers"Hunter Lawrence On Lappers: "It's what we have to deal with as racers"
Tomac lamented coming up short of a fourth win this season, frequently mentioning that he shouldn’t have waited to make a move. With Hunter Lawrence taking his first career 450SX main event win, Lawrence’s points lead grew to four. The seesaw battle for the 450 title has progressed throughout the first seven weeks of the season, flipping momentum each weekend.
“There’s so many of us now, you know, the four or five of us, that you can’t expect to have a huge points grab because we’re all really consistent. They say it’s the most packed year but at the same time, the same four or five of us are really showing ourselves. We’re making our way to the front so those big points grabs are getting harder and harder to happen.”
While Tomac’s night in Arlington didn’t end in a victory, Daytona sits on the calendar next weekend. With his previous domination at the track, Tomac could swing the points battle back in his favor at The World Center of Racing.