Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Red Bull/KTM’s Jessy Nelson held onto the coveted red plate as he retained the Western Regional 250SX Class points lead in front of a packed Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.
Nelson’s third-place finish stretched his points lead to six after a solid first two rounds of the season. Team-mate Shane McElrath had to work through the pack following a tough start, eventually breaking into the top-10 for eighth.
After qualifying third, Nelson’s night started on a high note with his first heat race win of the season. The power behind his Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Red Bull/KTM launched him to a fourth-place start in the Main Event, quickly moving into third on the third lap, ending the night on the podium for the second-straight week.
“The race tonight was pretty good,” said Nelson. “It wasn’t my best race, but I’ll take what I can because I felt like I rode a little tight there at the end. I’m definitely super happy to get on the box and still have the points lead.”
McElrath also started his night out showing speed, taking second behind Nelson in the heat race. In the Main Event, McElrath came into the first turn near the back of the pack, but used the entire race to charge to the front. He would make up an impressive 10 spots before finishing a hard-fought eighth.
Not appearing on the track in Phoenix was Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Red Bull/KTM rider Darryn Durham. He suffered a wrist injury in Anaheim during Round 1 and is sidelined for the time being.
As the series continues onto Round 3, the Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Red Bull/ KTM team will return to Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California looking to capture another victory in the Big A on Saturday, January 17.
The Team TLD riders wore the new 2015 SE Corse Black gear, along with the 2015 SE3 Helmet One Shot Rocket Red at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. See more of the 2015 gear sets and the 2015 Moto Helmets online and at your local TLD retailer.
