JO SHIMODA - GRIT 252 250SX

GRIT-252 | 250 SX

June 4th, 2024 11:00 pm

This class, the 250MX division, was filled with a multitude of narratives...as racers on the starting line possessed numerous varying backgrounds and experience levels. There were younger athletes in the division, like Haiden Deegan and Ryder DiFrancesco. But on the opposite end of the spectrum, were racers like Joey Savatgy and Jordon Smith - who were established veterans, aspiring to claim a prestigious number one plate. But Jo Shimoda couldn't be disregarded with his own experience level - and despite undergoing a bit of an injury in recent weeks, the tenacity of Shimoda prevailed as the green flag waved for moto one of competition in Southern California. Garnering a standing of tenth, he had quickly risen to as high as eighth after making passes on Daxton Bennick and Jordon Smith...but Nate Thrasher refuted Shimoda's speed and would actually overtake the Honda rider as roughly ten minutes of competition had transpired. Shimoda wasn't going to give up though, and fought forward while amid a battle with opponents like Pierce Brown and the aforementioned Jordon Smith. Shimoda appeared to be rather bold with some of his outside lines, scrubbing the anthill just before the mechanic's area with an aggressive flick to the right - landing on the throttle, and surging at the height of fourth gear when he passed crew chiefs and team members of dozens of teams within the paddock. He was notified that Pierce Brown was conducting quite the final surge per se, in the latter stages of the moto - as Brown occupied the position behind him. This, in turn, motivated Shimoda to advance with an even higher output of speed...resulting in the Honda athlete surpassing Ryder DiFrancesco just before the conclusion of the moto. In the end, Shimoda acquired a final result of eighth before advancing to round two. Once there, Jo's starting position of seventh was optimal to work from - and he had passed Ryder DiFrancesco on this occasion as well, in the early stages, to reside just behind Tom Vialle as lap five was completed. Seeing the KTM rider just ahead, would motivate Shimoda to escalate his pace...attacking corners with even more rolling speed, in comparison to the moments prior. Latching onto the SX champion was enough for him to keep an admirable pace...until a mistake on the seventh circuit caused him to descend within the running order an additional two positions...deterring him to eighth. But an advancement past Pierce Brown was enough for him to retain the offensive charge he once had, and resulted in Nate Thrasher being overtaken just before the checkered flag, too! As a result, his final standing of sixth, was enough for sixth overall as well!

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