race recap
JUSTIN COOPER - GRIT 249 450SX
June 3, 2024
GRIT-249 | 450 SX
June 3rd, 2024 12:00 pm
Yamaha's Justin Cooper could never be counted out, when rolling to the racetrack for a specific venue. His array, of astounding performances were incredibly displayed amongst the 250cc class, and had been put forth on a number of occasions so far in his 450cc tenure. Once again, Cooper immediately acclimated to the course and soil composition of the Pennsylvania raceway. He was brilliant, in a number of facets...and appeared to be on the right track, as gates crashed for the second heat race of the afternoon show. However, he collided with Chase Sexton in the corner before the opening "SX" triple, and Cooper was forced to work his way through the field as quickly as possible in the moments thereafter. There was little time to waste, but Cooper put forth a valiant effort while racing his way atop countless berms before leaping into the sand section. He wasn't quite on the trajectory of Chase Sexton, which left him battling amongst a bit, slower traffic while nearing the sixth lap of the moto. Only two circuits remained and opponents like Kyle Chisholm and Jeremy Hand were rather close. He ultimately would pass the Floridian (Chisholm), while coming up just short of overtaking the athlete aboard the number fifty-six machine. Therefore, an eleventh-place position was obtained...sending the New York native to the Last Chance Qualifier. The memo there, was simple: obtaining the bid to the main event, at all costs. But, Cooper understood that getting out front (and away from traffic) was paramount. Through the seven lap contest, Cooper was solely focused on racing to the checkered flag, and remained unscathed en route to a notable moto victory. His gate choice for the main event was lackluster, but Cooper made the most of it by infiltrating the opening corner with an abundance of throttle. Scoring an opening residency of fifteenth, he would have to work his way around opponents like Anthony Bourdon, Ty Masterpool, and Adam Cianciarulo. Cooper's fight was persistent - and as he continuously made moves, his final run through the twenty-four lap contest entailed the opponent by the name of Benny Bloss. He and the Missouri native were rather competitive on the circuit, with Cooper rolling through the inside of the sand with a multitude of double combinations...excelling past Bloss with less than five minutes of total track time in the moto. Securing tenth as all was finalized, Cooper made the best of a troublesome early night run...eager to rebound in the weeks to come.