JASON ANDERSON GRIT-226 450MX

JASON ANDERSON | GRIT-226 | 450MX

Overcoming injury in recent times, Kawasaki's Jason Anderson was eager in multiple interviews, to return to the racetrack; therefore it was to no one's surprise with his competitive mindset, that he would "race his way" into shape, at that of the Red Bud National last weekend. His base had been steadily building in the days thereafter, and as he then headed toward the national at Southwick, Anderson's fortitude was destined to shine - though the former professional champion knew that the quest to success in Massachusetts would be anything but easy. After qualifying eighth, Anderson would power from the starting gate(s) to acquire a position of seventh on the opening lap; believing that he could work his way forward with outright speed and determination. He would fly from berm to berm with his Kawasaki pinned, letting his shirttail fly in the wind after launching from various singles around the raceway. He would make his way into sixth, where he stood alone for quite sometime...but could see that of Ty Masterpool beginning to fade ever so slightly, as they bypassed the halfway point. This would lead to critical junctures, where the battle for fifth place would begin to "heat up" between he and the number eighty-one machine. He would eventually ride alongside the fellow Kawasaki machine (i.e. Masterpool), and with fearlessness, the number twenty-one would shift to another gear before launching the initial anthill after the start; with just under two minutes remaining on the clock! He seemed to have fifth place solidified, but Masterpool wasn't going away that easy; and would actually counter his (Anderson's) initial attack with a furious pass of his own, just before the Buckley Berm! This would extinguish the flame that was lit by the Factory Kawasaki rider, where Anderson would respectfully stand in sixth, by the time the checkered flag was thrown. His efforts for the second moto would begin around the eighth-place residency, where he did his best to maintain a flow behind Ty Masterpool while contending for single digit results. However, the brutal conditions of both race track and climate would begin to take their toll on Anderson, who was still trying to find a mid-season flow after being on the sideline(s) for several weeks. He slowly would drift, although with a fighting spirit, outside of the top-ten; where pot-holes seemed larger than ever before and the valleys filled with rollers seemingly zapped all energy from his forearms and accompanying muscles that controlled the motorcycle. This would lead to an eventual fourteenth-place score being obtained, which still allowed him to obtain a tenth overall finish in the final standings.

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