Eli Tomac reclaims points lead after fifth-place finish in Detroit

Though Eli Tomac placed outside the podium in Detroit, his fifth place finish was enough to allow him to reclaim the overall points lead by four points. (Photo Courtesy of Red Bull KTM)

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Though Eli Tomac placed outside the podium in Detroit, his fifth place finish was enough to allow him to reclaim the overall points lead by four points. (Photo Courtesy of Red Bull KTM)

At a rocky day of racing at Ford Field in Detroit, Cortez’s Eli Tomac’s fifth place finish in the 450SX main event was enough to put him back in the overall points lead. He now leads with four points ahead of second place rider Hunter Lawrence.

Heading into the weekend, Lawrence was ahead of Tomac by nine points. The “exceptionally challenging racetrack” with the “most treacherous and demanding whoop section of the season,” as described by Racer X, ended up changing the tide of the point standings.

In the main event, Tomac’s teammate Jorge Prado claimed the hole shot, followed by Ken Roczen and Chase Sexton. Lawrence didn’t have a good start, but moved quickly through the pack to pass Prado, who had been passed by Roczen and Sexton, for third.

Tomac finished the first lap in eighth place, later saying he felt like he was fighting a “midseason slump.”

Not long later, Prado and Cooper Webb crashed as they rode side by side around a corner, and Lawrence crashed in the whoops while chasing after Sexton.

He and Christian Craig also crashed before the race’s end.

Roczen won with an “unreal ride,” followed by Sexton in second and Malcolm Stewart in third. This win in Detroit marked Roczen’s 25th win in the 450 class. Tomac placed fifth and Lawrence finished in 18th.

With the dramatic change in points, four racers, Tomac, Lawrence, Roczen and Webb, find themselves in contention for the championship title.

“I knew I was going to take advantage of (Lawrence’s crash) once I saw that he was a lap down, but overall it was a bit of a frustrating day here,” Tomac told KTM following the race. “I have actually struggled here with my last couple of rides, so I don’t know what it is – I just haven't had the best success at Detroit lately and maybe I’ve been in a bit of a mid-season slump. So, we’ll do what we can to get better and improve, and try to get back to winning some races and getting closer to the front.”

In Heat 1, Craig took the hole shot, but place outside the top three. Sexton won, followed by Roczen and Tomac. The second heat saw a hole shot from Lawrence, who also won the race. Webb and Justin Cooper placed second and third, respectively.

Round 12 will take place on Saturday, April 4 in St. Louis.