race recap
ADAM CIANCIARULO | GRIT-221 | 450MX
June 2, 2023 · Adam Cianciarulo
ADAM CIANCIARULO | GRIT-221 | 450MX
Returning to the battlefield once more, Florida's Adam Cianciarulo and his Kawasaki team believed that the number nine still possessed some of the strongest skills in all of the motocross racing realm; which would lead the former champion to Fox Raceway, for the opening round of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship. He would display his true talent and speed in qualification, where he claimed the third fastest time on the final leaderboard before moving into moto number one. Once here, the field that consisted of some of the most elite riders from around the globe would power through the switchback starting sequence; where "AC" was inside the top ten and ready to move forward. He would find a pace though, that was just behind that of former amateur rival Cooper Webb, and trailed the KTM rider for a good while as they neared the ten minute mark. Cianciarulo was methodical with his riding aptitude on this rugged Pala Raceway, and would swing from inside to inside while dodging and evading the largest braking bumps on the track; knowing that the memo of gaining experience still remained as the highest objective in this 2023 trek. He continued to double-triple his way through the largest rhythm section on the track (despite dragging his foot-pegs) and nearly casing the landing on more than one occasion! His weight distribution in the off-cambers was notable too, where it almost seemed as if he were cruising in an idling gear though still pulling from the likes of Derek Drake and Lorenzo Locurcio behind him. This pace would continuously accompany him to the finish line, where he eventually gathered a score of sixth prior to heading into round number two. His jump to the opening corner of the second moto was solid, however it would be in the next right-hander when an unfortunate miscalculation would have him losing a ton of positions...though he was able to reside twenty-third when completing the first full lap. He was relentless in his pursuit of a single digit outcome, never giving up while traveling at extremely high speeds thorough every sector of the raceway. He was on pace to contend for a top-five in the moto, and would work his way well into the top-ten around the halfway point. But it was the likes of Grant Harlan (who was sixth) that seemed to evade him, but Cianciarulo knew that an overreaching pass could subsequently leave him with injury and a loss of the momentum that had been gained throughout the 2023 season thus far...therefore he solidified his placement of seventh as he took the checkered flag, and would leave the first round of the series in sixth place overall.