JUSTIN COOPER | GRIT-211 | 450SX

JUSTIN COOPER | GRIT-211 | SX 450

Moving forward to the 450 class, albeit for a brief run, Yamaha's Justin Cooper would prove that his speed and talent would transcend to different engine displacements; on arguably the hardest racetrack on the entire circuit, in Daytona, Florida. This would give quite the preview to the entire industry, and by all means, would the future look bright for the 250cc champion from New York. His flow throughout practice was steady and one that continued to climb as he accrued laps; showing that with time he was definitely set to become more comfortable. This led to a notable run within heat race action, where he began fourth while immediately attempting to differentiate his line selection from those who were ahead of him. Running a multitude of outsides with his engine pinned, his outside to outside line in the sand section was prominent and helped him stay ahead of Aaron Plessinger for a few laps. Though the elder, Plessinger, would work his way around, he latched onto the KTM adversary while pushing ahead past the halfway point. Attempting to now run an inside pathway in the whoops, his combination of tripling through would become more common throughout those at the top of the field. With persistence, he kept a significant flow of speed and momentum to the finish-line; accruing a fifth place before heading to the main event of the evening. Rumors had circulated that this would be his final stop on the tour, therefore many assumed that Cooper wanted to depart from the series with an admirable showing. He had risen to the occasion for countless opportunities thus far in his career and planned to do much the same for this go-around. Beginning the moto in ninth, he would follow Ken Roczen through the initial stages; latching onto the Suzuki rider at any (and all times) while hoping to advance up the leaderboard. Passing the likes of RJ Hampshire, Ken, and Aaron Plessinger in the process, the Yamaha standout seemed to be exceeding expectation by the time the halfway point arose. Continuing to ride mistake-free laps, he wasn't overriding the larger engine, letting the racetrack come to him as he sped with fluidity. Once around the German, the former 450cc outdoor champion was having a difficult time moving past; keeping him honest at the final few moments came to fruition. And with a steadfast mentality, Cooper's attrition was a notable characteristic that led him to sixth; which was a highly regarded result, at a race of this magnitude.

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