Motocross Performance Magazine Canadian Motocross news leader
As we saw prior to Round 4, the new three moto format has proved to be very interesting. At SDL last weekend, Moto 1 took place on Saturday morning when the track was still muddy and not in great shape after the overnight rain. Also, because of the conditions and the fact that at 8 am the rain was still falling, the decision was made to shorten both of the opening motos by five minutes. This was most certainly a head shaker as the track wasn’t that bad and the forecast called for the rain to stop by 10 am at the latest. Anyway, the opening motos were shortened and for Nicoletti, this ended up being a very costly decision.
When the gate dropped on the opening moto Nicoletti didn’t make it one corner before he found himself on the ground. Since Turn 1 was a sloppy mess, he was forced to clean off his gloves and by the time he got back into the race, the 450 pack was almost halfway done their opening lap. With points leader Dylan Wright up front, Nicoletti put on an incredible charge, one that brought him right to the rear tire of 5th place rider Tyler Medaglia at the checkered flag. It was a great moto for Nicoletti, but since Wright ended up taking the win, it sadly meant more lost points for the Yamaha rider. When asked about the opening moto Phil had this to say, “I have no idea why they cut the first moto short, there was no reason for it. Anyway, I ended up getting unlucky in the first turn and went down. From there, I charged as hard as I could, but in the end, I needed a couple more laps to put myself in a position for the overall.”
With just over 24 hours to regroup, Nicoletti came out swinging in Moto 2 and led from start to finish. It was a determined effort and one that just might end up saving this championship for him. With Wright struggling a little in third place, Nicoletti made up some much-needed points as they headed into the final moto of the weekend. Phil had this say on his second moto, “Lately I’ve been feeling really good on the bike and I think it’s beginning to show on the track. In Moto 2 I was able to get out front early and lead every lap. I had a really good flow and I was determined to make up for what happened in the first moto.”
Once again, when the gate dropped for Moto 3, Nicoletti rocketed to the lead and never looked back. Lap after lap he would stretch out his lead on the rough SDL track. As much as his two previous moto wins in the series were good, this final moto win at SDL was his best of 2020. For 35 minutes, he and his OTSFF Yamaha appeared to be in perfect unison. Unfortunately, with Wright finishing second in this moto, and with Nicoletti’s 6th place in the opening (shortened) moto, the overall win on the day ended up going to Dylan Wright. It was a bitter pill to swallow for Nicoletti who did almost everything he could to win the overall at Round 4. Nicoletti was definitely happy with his Moto 3 result, “Once again I got the lead early and just rode my own race. The track was rough and even though it’s on the short side, I do like the dirt and how it gets rough. As I said, I’m happy with my riding and how I’ve been feeling on the bike. Right now all I can do is try and win these final three motos and see what happens.”
After Monday’s Triple Crown Series schedule change, we’re now heading back to Sand Del Lee for the final round of this entertaining series. With three motos remaining Nicoletti is 24 points behind Wright for the lead in the 450MX class. It will certainly be an uphill battle for Nicoletti this weekend, but all he can do is worry about himself and take care of his own business. Since Round 3 at Walton Raceway we’ve seen a certain comfort and confidence in Nicoletti’s riding that wasn’t there in the opening two rounds. He has the ball rolling right now and he’s going to need a lot of things to go his way this week if he hopes to win this Championship. However, regardless of the outcome, we know that Nicoletti will give it everything he has until the final checkered flag of the series.
