race recap
JORDON SMITH | GRIT-211 | 250SX
March 7, 2023 · Jordon Smith
JORDON SMITH | GRIT-211 | SX 250
Possessing talent that equated to being at the top of the division, Yamaha's Jordon Smith would eye the Daytona platform as a stage to achieve greatness. He'd generated immense success here in the past, and felt as if he were riding at some of the highest level(s) of his career thus far as the 250cc East campaign arrived in Central Florida. And immediately as practice began, he threw caution to the wind; blitzing through the whoop section with no regard for missing a mogul with his front wheel, shifting up and leaning a bit back to promote as much traction on the rear of the chassis as possible. Every segment of this track would be decimated with outright speed from he and his 250F, which carried into heat two...where the initial leading of the pack was his to be claimed. With Hunter Lawrence just behind, Smith remained composed when under fire from the Australian. Speeding through the sand with his front wheel hovering just above the ground, Smith's momentum amongst the most rugged terrain would ripple into the tight-knit portions of the course as well. Flinging roost every which way as they barreled toward the halfway point, Jordon continued to reside in the pinnacle until Hunter had a set of swift lines (in the two-way(ed), s-curve section before the finish line) where he initiated matters on the inside before powering alongside the North Carolina native on the right. Jordon, at that point, could do nothing but obligé; funneling into a second-place occupancy as the timer neared conclusion. Defending the runner-up category from Hymas, he would hold here until leaping past the checkered flag, claiming the silver medal before entering into the main event. His starting position of eighth (for the finalé) would force him to get creative in his line selection as he swept through various berms on the Daytona infield. Beginning to run the inside line of the whoops (where a series of triples were conducted) his rhythm over all abrupt lips and landings would continuously pay-off as laps were logged. Passing Cullin Park, Hardy Munoz, Chris Blose, and Jeremy Martin, the fortitude of Smith while battling with some of the most talented in the division would be second-to-none. This led him to fourth where he trailed his teammate Haiden Deegan and the two training partners were matching one another's pace as ten minutes of racing action had passed. Eleven minutes, twelve, and so-on, would lead them into the white flag circuit; where Smith stabilized his pace with Jeremy Martin behind him, ultimately finishing here (in fourth) as action concluded in Daytona!