race recap
MAX ANSTIE - GRIT 260 250SX
August 23, 2024 · Max Anstie

GRIT-260 | 250 SX
August 23rd, 2024 2:00 pm
The British rider was beginning to find his flow while stationed in the Northeast, and Max Anstie's prowess on the Northeastern circuit flourished before practice concluded in the morning hours. His focus was then directed to the main event(s) thereafter, and a third-place position to begin the two-moto sequence was commendable for the veteran...where he and his Yamaha appeared to be in synchronization with the track beneath them. Anstie was constantly refuting the charge from teammate Haiden Deegan...and would simultaneously close the gap between he and Levi Kitchen (who was second). Though the unwavering charging maneuvers from Deegan were enough to eventually storm past the British veteran...around the twenty-two minute mark, which forced Anstie to descend to fourth in the running order. He resided here for a short amount of time, before inheriting a position due to Chance Hymas' crash. Once into third, there wasn't anything that could stand in his way as he charged to the finish line...accelerating to one of his strongest finishes in quite sometime. His starting position, just outside of the top-ten, was a bit less than desired to begin the following moto. However, as each lap progressed, Anstie seemed to make time on the pack that was in front of him...ascending to tenth, as the twenty-minute mark of the moto would come to fruition. He was just behind Pierce Brown and remained there while keeping opponents like Ryder DiFrancesco, Ty Masterpool, Daxton Bennick, and Joey Savatgy at bay. The ruts on this track had now hardened and were much less forgiving than in the first moto, but Anstie still remained on the throttle per se while sprinting to the final minutes of the contest. His relentless will to continue moving forward propelled him past Julien Beaumer, and kept him within range of surpassing Pierce Brown with the checkered flag closing-in. However, there wouldn't be enough time within the fifteen-lap contest in order for the British athlete to overtake the Utah native...leaving Anstie when he approached the finish line valley on the final lap. Accelerating through the checkered flag, he launched onto the straightaway thereafter before moving off of the raceway...and with an accumulation of three-eight scores, Anstie would obtain fifth-place in the record book - which was an admirable boost of momentum for the approaching rounds of competition that remained in the 2024 season.