Desalle and Roczen dominate Monster Energy Grand Prix of the U.S.

The second MX 1 moto started with a lot of high-revving engines and cheering fans. Strijbos took his Suzuki to the lead right off the gate, followed by Desalle and his Rockstar Energy Suzuki. Antonio Cairoli got off to a less than stellar start with some issues and wasn't in the top 20 on the first lap. Desalle moved to the front of the pack, leaving Strijbos to follow in second, Evgeny Bobryshev on his Honda in third, Rui Goncalves from Portugal in fourth and Max Nagl rounding out the top five. Nagl made some great passes and found himself in second position halfway through the race, just as Antonio Cairoli made his way toward the top 10. Desalle won the race, with Nagl finishing second, Bobryshev in third, followed by Goncalves and early leader Strijbos rounding out the top five. Christian Craig was the top-finishing American in the race with his 14th-place run.

Desalle took first overall with his 1-1 finish for the day at Glen Helen and became the points leader in the series. Max Nagl finished second with a 3-2 scorecard, and Evgeny Bobryshev followed in third with a 6-3 tally.

"It was a great weekend for me and I have never taken pole position and won both motos before," Desalle said. "I also stayed on two wheels and came away without any problems, which is important because the track was dangerous and you had to make quick decisions. I kept in my comfort zone and really enjoyed it.

For Evgeny Bobryshev, of the Honda World Motocross Team, this was the Russians first ever podium in the MX1 class.

"I feel great, more than great to be first time on the podium," Bobryshev said. "I have not done this on my own, it is a real team effort. We are a good group and feel more like a family and I think we are building something really special here. I was a bit disappointed with first moto but scored some good points. I needed to improve the way I was riding and in the second moto that happened! Finished 3rd and 3rd overall. I feel I have taken a big step now."

The first moto of the MX 2 class saw crowd favorite Ken Roczen, the German rider aboard his Red Bull Teka KTM, take the lead right out of the gate and hold onto it throughout the 35-minute-plus moto. Roczen extended his cushion to about 15 seconds with two laps to go, and took the checkered flag without feeling any heat from the racers behind him. Jeffrey Herlings took up the second-place spot at the start and didn't let go throughout the entire race, while Max Anstie of Great Britain worked his way up to third by the time the checkered flag waved. Harri Kullas from Finland finished fourth, and fifth place went to Tommy Searle after a brave display of racing, losing his goggles to the thick mud and continuing to race hard for position. On the U.S. front, Travis Baker was looking to become the top-finishing American, but Zach Osborne passed him with only a few minutes left in the race. Osborne finished the race in ninth, and Baker rounded out the top 10.

By the time the second MX 2 moto hit the starting gate, the track conditions were completely different than the first MX2 moto. While mud wouldn't be an issue, the ruts and the tough Glen Helen obstacles were. Again, Roczen and his KTM took the lead immediately followed by Herlings. Tommy Searle, of the Monster Energy Kawaski Pro Circuit team, took third early and stayed there for the entire race. American Scott Champion had a great start, challenging Roczen for the holeshot, but eventually faded to 12th by the end. Travis Baker of Troy Lee Designs rode all the way up to fifth place at the beginning, only to be displaced by fellow American Zach Osborne by the midway mark, and then Baker eventually fell back to 16th place. With two laps left, Osborne made yet another great pass, this time overtaking Max Anstie, for fourth place and pushed the Brit back to fifth at the checkered flag.