A dismal qualification after trying some new settings on the bike left Swanepoel with 18th gate pick for moto 1. He made the most of his start position as the gate dropped and he rode a solid moto coming from 15th spot to ninth.
Taking advantage of a better starting position in Moto 2 saw Swanepoel quickly move into third spot chasing fellow South African Tyla Rattray and Justin Barcia. He came under pressure from Dean Wilson and lost his podium spot to the youngster. Setting some consistent lap times Swanepoel started to shut down a tiring Wilson with Eli Tomac charging to join a three-way fight to the chequered flag. Swanepoel recorder his second fourth place of the season and occupies eighth in the standings.
"I really like riding at Budds Creek but to be honest I didn't feel as good as I should have," said Swanepoel. "The result on paper is satisfactory but it was one of those weekends were I didn't feel comfortable. My start in the second moto certainly helped and once I got behind Wilson I could pretty much post fast consistent lap times every lap. I then started to catch Dean and saw Eli Tomac was closing me down. Some backmarkers brought us really close but I had enough left in the tank to finish the moto off strong. The last lap all three of us we were very close which must have been pretty exciting for the crowd to watch."
The AMA Pro National series will hit the halfway point next weekend at the Thunder Valley National in Lakewood Colorado.
Results
Budds Creek MX Park - Mechanicsville, Maryland
Round 5 of 12250 Class (Moto Finish)
1. Tyla Rattray, South Africa, Kawasaki (2-1)
2. Dean Wilson, Scotland, Kawasaki (1-3)
3. Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda (6-2)
4. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda (5-5)
5. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Kawasaki (3-9)
6. Gareth Swanepoel, South Africa, Yamaha (9-4)
7. Blake Baggett, Redlands, Calif., Kawasaki (7-7)
8. Kyle Cunningham, Irving, Texas, Yamaha (4-15)
9. Martin Davalos, Ecuador, Suzuki (10-10)
10. Nico Izzi, Rochester, N.Y., Honda (8-13)
250 Class Championship Standings
1. Tyla Rattray, South Africa, Kawasaki - 174
2. Dean Wilson, Scotland, Kawasaki - 170
3. Blake Baggett, Redlands, Calif., Kawasaki - 144
4. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda - 136
5. Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda - 116
6. Kyle Cunningham, Irving, Texas, Yamaha - 114
7. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Kawasaki - 99
8. Gareth Swanepoel, South Africa, Yamaha - 91
9. Martin Davalos, Ecuador, Suzuki - 75
10. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda - 72
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