race recap
MALCOLM STEWART - GRIT 244 450SX
May 20, 2024
GRIT-244 |450 SX
May 20, 2024 9:45 am
Competing alongside Jett Lawrence, Eli Tomac, and Ken Roczen, as they battled at the top of the leaderboard in qualification, just near them was none other than Florida's Malcolm Stewart who seemed to establish a flow throughout every facet of the raceway. Making significant gains over the wall jump as he attacked the entrance of the whoop section, if he was able to sustain that sort of velocity as he entered into the rutted main event(s) to follow, there were certain to be extraordinary feats occurring in regard to an overall standing. For the first few laps of the opening contest, he was residing near the top-ten while seeking to latch-on, to the rear wheel of Yamaha's Justin Cooper who was ahead of him. This wasn't a racetrack where one could suddenly drift from inside to outside, and on this course, once a rut was selected it must be continued until the groove specifically ended. Landing from the finish line double with a commanding charge into the sand, he would hop from inside roller to the next while hearing a subtle engine rev from Honda's Hunter Lawrence (after battling back and forth with the Australian) who trailed him (as the opponent occupied (tenth) place). The intensity was at a high level, with little room for error as the checkered flag was coming closer to actuality...but in the end, it was Stewart who took a well-deserved finish of (ninth). In round two, his leap from the starting grate would equate to eighth on the overall leaderboard. The opportunity to gain time was there, and if he could leap from table to table, while tripling through the next rhythm section, the margin between he and Hunter Lawrence was only going to heighten. His expertise amongst the countless grooves on the track was incredible, and through the inside before the finish-line, his ability to stay centered while the Husqvarna chassis tracked into the eventual takeoff, arguably was second-to-none for the roster's entirety. He took the chance of obtaining eighth once and for all (from Justin Cooper) with only little time remaining...holding strong to be finalized in the aforementioned eighth-place residency. As only one main event separated him from completing the weekend in Indianapolis, his opening position of ninth was noted by his mechanic - but the team member encouraged him to continue charging, and capitalize on the deteriorating circuit as opponents were probable to undergo even more mistakes. He was fearless when leaping through the opening section of rhythm with Eli Tomac not far behind him, somehow managing to say precise and calculated while landing with a pocket of tire-width grooves...launching into the berm(ed) corner thereafter with a relentless will to sustain a single digit result. Ultimately doing so, as the tenth minute came to pass, Stewart's final score of (eighth) would equate to ninth overall amongst a roster of fierce opponents.