JUSTIN COOPER | GRIT-208 | 450SX

JUSTIN COOPER | GRIT-208 | SX450

With top of the field (i.e. Chase Sexton and Eli Tomac) beginning to distance themselves from the competition (in regard to the points race), riders like Justin Cooper knew that accruing a substantial sum of points while stationed in Tampa, Florida would be critical in their quest for success for this year's SX championship. Though weather conditions were set to hamper the course for the slate of action on Saturday, with thorough work and processing the DirtWurx crew would manage to choreograph quite the spectacle for these athletes to compete on. Once established into his heat race, Cooper would sprint toward turn number one as racing was underway. Leaping onto the tabletop prior to the dragon's back, his ability to step-on and step-off were crucial prior to blitzing up the prolonged technical obstacle that followed. Line choice was imminent at this stage of the moto, as conditions had worsened sense the beginning of the day; yet with his vision amongst the lightly tinted goggles, he was able to pinpoint ruts that arced perfectly and avoid those that were problematic with abrupt edges. Clutching his 450 atop the "table" before the finish-line, he would take a subtle look over his shoulder as he crested the double that followed. It was none other than Justin Hill who had approached the rear wheel of his machine, and seemed urgent in his desires to move past him. He refuted the notion again and again, shifting ever so slightly from outside to inside when escaping through the rhythms just after the finish-line. Arcing the ninety-degree(d) corners on the track, he knew that staying in front of him prior to diving into the sand section was crucial; especially as tear-off's were becoming rather limited. Luckily, he evaded the enemy to the checkered flag, and would conclude the sprint in seventh before departing to the main event. The fans at Raymond James Stadium were spectacular and rivaled the abundance of engines that powered from the starting grid for the finalé of the night show. Staying on the balls of his feet as he manual(ed) through the sand rollers, he dug into the left-hander thereafter while dragging both front and rear brake. The feeling of attrition and persistence would accompany laps five through nine, distancing himself from riders twelfth (and behind) while the top-ten continued to disperse into specific clusters of their own. He and Justin Barcia were a tandem, but he knew that he couldn't become fixated on retaining insides while hoping to accrue seventh position from that point forward. Luckily his calculation(s) were efficient enough to obtain the aforementioned spot on the leaderboard, crossing by the final flag with an admirable performance intact.

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