Supercross

Colt Nichols Retains 250SX West Championship Lead With Second-Straight Podium

Posted:

Tuesday, January 15th, 2019

11:53 AM

Colt Nichols Retains 250SX West Championship Lead With Second-Straight Podium

A win and a second sees Colt Nichols retain his number one plate as the 250SX West championship heads back to Anaheim this weekend. Photo: Yamaha Racing

Following his stellar win at the Monster Energy AMA Supercross season opener Yamaha's Colt Nichols rode a smart race to hold onto his championship lead with a solid second-place finish at Glendale, AZ, on the weekend.

Nichols got the night off to a great start with a heat win aboard his Yamaha YZ250F. He was hoping to repeat that in the main, but the track conditions tested a rider‰Ûªs patience and the 24yr old made a few mistakes trying to push for the win. At the end of the day, Nichols was rewarded with an important points haul, giving him a five-point lead in the 250SX West title chase.

Colt Nichols has a five-point lead in the 250SX West title chase: Yamaha Racing

‰ÛÏThe bike was great. It felt really, really good all day," the Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing rider said.

"We made a few changes to the suspension before the night program and that helped a lot. The track was just so dry and you had to be really, really patient. I was trying not to rush everything, but sometimes I kind of rushed it and made a few little mistakes. That‰Ûªs all right though. I still salvaged a second, so I‰Ûªm really happy to leave with the points lead and will get ready for next weekend.‰Û

Colt Nichols celebrates old school. Photo: Yamaha Racing

Unfortunately for his teammate Dylan Ferrandis, the challenging conditions made for a disappointing round two. The Frenchman started the day looking like the man to beat, showing a lot of speed and topping the time charts in qualifying. Ferrandis got a decent start, but had a big crash that ended his hopes of a repeat podium finish. Still, he never gave up and fought his way back to sixth to score valuable championship points.

"The track was slippery but it was a good layout. The bike was awesome," Ferrandis said. "I felt I had the speed for a good result, but I crashed hard in the race. I worked hard to regain some points in the championship, but it was a disappointing night. I‰Ûªm not happy with sixth.‰Û

Dylan Ferrandis spun out in the opening lap of the main event while running top three and dropped to 16th, from there the Frenchman had a hard fight back to 6th. Photo: Yamaha Racing