Richmond Racing:

Getting Stronger in Calgary, Alberta:

Round three of the Canadian National series’ kicked off this past weekend in Calgary, Alberta at the Wild Rose Motorcycle Park and much to the delight of the Richmond team, we actually had a full team for the first time this season. Riding the 125 class were Colton Facciotti and Teddy Maier. 250 riders included Gavin Gracyk and Evan Laughridge.

125 Action:

125 action went great this weekend as both Richmond racers battled at the front of the pack all weekend. National number twelve Colt Facciotti ran a solid third in moto one setting himself up for an overall win and a great gate pick for moto two. After pulling the holeshot in moto two, Facciotti led the early stages of the moto before Blackfoot Honda’s Ryan Morais made a pass for the lead. Facciotti held strong the entire moto battling with Morais and in the end; Colt finished a very respectable second within three seconds of Morais. Facciotti ended the day second overall and now sits fourth in points, only ten points out of third.

This weekend marked the first time the Canadian fans would meet Teddy Maier. Teddy, who looked forward to racing and hopefully winning both moto’s, ran up front all weekend and after winning his Saturday qualifier over teammate Facciotti, was looking good for the win. In moto one, Maier was a close third behind the Blackfoot duo of Klatt and Morais. After closing the gap and pressuring, a rock nailed Maier’s motor punching a hole in it, which allowed all the oil to leak out of the motor, which ended up seizing the motorcycle.

Obviously disappointed after running up front, Maier set out for moto two in hopes of a podium if not a moto win. Due to a terrible first moto, Maier was forced to start way outside on the cement start pad. After a great jump, Maier had nowhere to go and exited turn one mid-pack. After charging the entire moto, Maier would pass Klatt for third where he would settle.

After a dismal thirty-third in moto one, a third place finish was enough to give Teddy tenth overall on the day but it also gave the fans a chance to hear Maier speak on the podium and get to meet the fans. Teddy Maier will also be joining the Richmond team for round four of the Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan next month.

250 action:

After having no 250 riders at round two in Mission, BC, Richmond brought up two super talented young riders from the US. Evan Laughridge and Gavin Gracyk both came up looking forward the meeting the Canadian fans on the west coast and putting in strong finishes.

250 moto one had Gracyk in the middle of the pack, which is not where he wanted to be. After finishing a close second to JSR in Saturday’s qualifiers, Gracyk was expecting great things come Sunday. Charging hard and never saying die, Gavin ended the moto a respectable fourth which is great for a rider that hadn’t thrown a leg over a 250 in over four months.

This weekend also marked the first time Evan Laughridge had ever ridden a Kawasaki. With Evan getting accustomed to the new ride, a top five was what the team and Evan were looking for. After starting in around eighth position, Evan charged the entire moto battling with Blair Morgan and crew to take fifth which met the goals for the first moto.

Moto two had Gavin Gracyk in the lead after turn one but Laughridge was nowhere to be found. After getting a foot peg in his front tire while spinning, Evan had to pull off and get a new front tire on lap one. Gracyk battled to stay up front which he did for the early stages of the moto. Gavin would ride hard the entire moto and finish a respectable seventh giving him fourth overall on the day.

After an early pit stop on lap one, Evan found himself a lap down but charged hard the entire moto. Showing speed that could have easily placed him in the top five in moto two, Evan would come from being one lap down to the entire field to finishing twenty-second which was an awesome ride considering the time lost. Laughridge ended the day thirteenth overall and is looking forward to going home and getting to practice on the green 250 so he can be more prepared for round four in Regina, Saskatchewan.