race recap
CHASE SEXTON- GRIT 228 450MX
July 24, 2023 · Chase Sexton

CHASE SEXTON | GRIT-228 | 450MX
Proving that his speed was paralleled to that of Jett Lawrence in Millville last week, Honda's Chase Sexton returned to the racetrack once more while stationed in Washington; believing that he could contend with his fellow Honda comrade, as racing progressed throughout the afternoon on Saturday. Following a tremendous practicing effort, Sexton would fly into the first corner near the front of the pack; seeing Jett Lawrence and Dylan Ferrandis ahead, as he eventually obtained third position when jumping past the green flag. The process of overtaking the aforementioned competitors wasn't easy though, as Ferrandis was riding extremely well after being passed by Jett Lawrence for the lead. Sexton knew that overriding this course would lead to a mistake, therefore he was cognizant of how much application and pressure he was applying to the front-end when descending into certain corners (especially those that were rather blue-grooved). For six laps, Sexton would maintain a registry of third-place...until an opportunity to leap to the outside of the French rider would appear. Out-charging the Yamaha athlete as they dropped from the largest step-down on the racetrack, it was simply a battle of willpower when they approached the left-handed corner thereafter. Sexton would win that war, and move into the runner-up standing with decisive action while seeking to nullify the gap between he and Lawrence. However, throughout the rest of the sixteen-circuit contest, the Australian rider would demonstrate a process of race-craft that couldn't be overcome on Sexton's behalf...leading to him being finalized in second, by around eight-second(s) at the finish-line. For the second round of racing, Sexton occupied third with Jett Lawrence just ahead of him; hoping for a mistake to be made by the red-plate holder, as they both attempted to pass by Aaron Plessinger. But that never occurred, and instead, Lawrence would move around Plessinger following the completion of the third circuit; and Sexton was set to urgently do the same on the fifth lap of the moto. It was then a battle between the two teammates, with neither of them giving an inch per se, as they fought over the smallest sector(s) of milliseconds in regard to time gained! Sexton appeared to be faster when nearing the finish-line area, and would close the gap to well under two-seconds (on multiple occasions)...but Lawrence appeared to have that of "Horsepower Hill," figured out, each time the pair would crest the summit. Lap after lap, they continued in this manner, until the matter of moving forward became urgent for Sexton. This would precede a "final charge" per se in the last few minutes of action, where Sexton's desire to move past Lawrence would lead to a stalling of the motor (and slight tip-over" amongst the infield "S-curve"...as Chase fell to his left and was forced to remount the motorcycle. Luckily, the gap over third-place was quite lengthy; leaving Sexton to claim second at the checkered flag, and a runner-up overall, prior to heading into the two-weekend break.