Round six of the AMA Motocross series is a race that Team Honda HRC would like to put behind them, as the squad was dogged with misfortune for much of the day. After crashing earlier in the week, Cole Seely was only able to complete one complete lap of timed practice, ultimately not qualifying him to compete, so teammate Fredrik Noren was the lone rider representing the factory effort.

Rain throughout the day created extremely difficult conditions, but the Swedish native felt at home on the slick course and was running a solid 10th in moto one when he was sidelined by a mechanical issue. A downpour prior to the second moto turned the track into a quagmire that made even finishing difficult, but Noren overcame a poor start to mount an impressive come-from-behind performance that saw him navigate his CRF450R from 38th to 11th by the completion of the race.

NOTES

• Following a one-week hiatus, Team Honda HRC crewmembers and riders arrived at Budds Creek well rested and ready to take on the next few rounds of the series. "The weekend off was awesome, and much needed," Cole Seely said. "I went up to my hometown of Thousand Oaks [California] on Saturday and spent the day at my grandparents' to celebrate Father's Day. Sunday was even more relaxing; I slept in, hung around the house and went to the beach."
• Due to the rainy conditions, the day's morning qualifying schedule was delayed by an hour and adjusted to only include a single, 20-minute timed session. Fredrik Noren landed in eighth with a 2:17.171, while Seely did not qualify after only completing one full lap.
• Noren's lap times during both motos indicated that he was quicker than his results showed, as he laid down the eighth-quickest time in the first moto at 2:09.886 and was an impressive sixth-fastest in the second moto with 2:23.682.
• Honda Red Riders have a long and successful history at the Budds Creek National, dating back to 1989. Chad Reed's 2011 victory marked Honda's seventh win in the 450 class, more than any other manufacturer. Similarly, Honda riders have seven wins in the 250 division and four in the now-obsolete 500cc class. In addition, Honda-mounted Kevin Windham topped the 1999 MX GP round that was held at Budds Creek.
• Next up for Team Honda HRC is round seven of the AMA Motocross series, which takes place at iconic RedBud MX in Buchanan, Michigan, over Fourth of July weekend. "Red Bud is probably my favorite race of the year," Seely said. "They do a great job with the track, and the whole atmosphere is unreal. The fans are crazy and overall it's just an awesome event."

THE FOCUS: Team Honda Prepares for Mud

As rain poured over the Budds Creek track, Team Honda HRC mechanics spent the morning preparing their CRF450R race machines for the muddy conditions by outfitting them with mesh Twin Air radiator sleeves, Dunlop Geomax MX11 tires, and adding foam around the shifter and rear-brake pedal. These changes are imperative to ensuring that the race machines perform optimally in the conditions.

"There are a few key things we focus on when setting the bikes up for a mud race," explained mechanic Brent Presnell. "It's important to keep the air filter dry, so we seal off the air box with duct tape to help channel the water away, and we put another thin cover over the filter. The foam is used to help prevent mud from getting jammed in the controls so they keep functioning, and the mesh Twin Air sleeves are used to keep mud from clogging the radiators. Keeping the bike cool is very important. The tread pattern of the MX11 is specifically designed for mud riding." 

The rain also makes things difficult for most riders, but there are a select few who don't mind the extra challenge. "I actually think the mud is pretty fun," Fredrik Noren said. "I don't like when it actually rains while you're riding, partly because I don't like roll-offs so I wear regular tear-offs, but in general I think the mud makes it interesting. It's almost like you have to go slow to go fast, because it's about who can be the most consistent. Being from Sweden, I have some experience riding in the mud but it's a different kind of mud. At home it's not normally as sloppy, so that's a challenge."

QUOTES

Fredrik Noren "I felt like my riding was really solid all day, but I didn't get the results that I wanted. I got a decent start in the first moto and was about 13th on the first lap before making a few passes. As the race progressed I was getting more comfortable and felt like I could've made a pass on Wil [Hahn] and Weston [Peick], but I had a bike problem after the finish line and couldn't get going again. The second moto was delayed a while because of a crazy storm, but when we finally lined up, I had a bad gate, way to the outside. I got a horrible start and just spent the rest of the race trying to pass as many people as possible. I made it to 11th, which is okay but not what I wanted. My season so far has been pretty consistent but I want to get better and be in the top 10 every week."

Cole Seely "I'm really disappointed that I wasn't able to race today. After a relaxing weekend off, I felt rested and ready to take on the second half of the season, but I crashed on Thursday and strained my left leg. It was pretty sore when we went out for practice, then on the second lap I put it out in a turn and jammed it again. Since I only got a lap and a half in, I wasn't able to qualify. I went to Asterisk to get checked out and it seems like a pulled muscle so I'll get checked out again this week and hopefully be back at RedBud. I know this is my rookie season and I'm learning the 450 in the outdoors, but I expected more this far into the series."

Dan Betley: Team Manager "Today was our worst race of the year, but it's bad days like this that really make you appreciate the good days even more. Between Cole's injury, Freddie's bike issue in the first moto and the weather, it just seemed like it was one thing after another going wrong. I'm proud of how Freddie rode in the second moto and think if he had gotten a better start he definitely could've been battling for his best finish of the year. We're just going to put this race behind us and look forward to RedBud."

Brent Presnell (Fredrik Noren) "Today was frustrating to say the least. I think Freddie had an opportunity to do really well overall here because he's a strong rider in the mud, but bike trouble in the first moto and a bad start in the second race hindered him. We didn't even think there was going to be a second moto at one point, but the storm cleared and they did what they could to fix the track for the race. Freddie came around the first lap in almost dead last, but he put his head down and charged to 11th, which is impressive in those conditions. I'm proud of him but I now we all were hoping for more."

Rich Simmons: Mechanic (Cole Seely) "It was a rough day and definitely not what we wanted, but I guess that's how it goes sometimes. Cole crashed pretty hard during the week and hurt his leg, which affected him today. Since he's not in the top 10 in points, his lap and a half wasn't enough to give him a qualifying spot, but even if it did I'm not sure he would've been able to ride. All we can do is move forward and focus on the races ahead."

Press contact: Mandie Fonteyn // Dispatch Communications // mandie@dispatchco.com // +1 (951) 537-0454

450 Motocross Overall Results 1) Justin Barcia (3-1) 2) Christophe Pourcel (2-3) 3) Blake Baggett (4-2) 4) Ken Roczen (5-4) 5) Ryan Dungey  (1-12) 6) Jason Anderson (7-7) 7) Broc Tickle  (6-9)  8) Phil Nicoletti (11-5) 9) Tommy Hahn  (12-6) 10) Wil Hahn (8-14) 11) Justin Brayton (9-17) 12) Kyle Cunningham (17-10) 13) Tony Archer (40-8) 14) Weston Peick  (10-34) 15) Fredrik Noren  (38-11)   16) Cody Gragg   (22-13) 17) Gannon Audette  (14-20) 18) Kevin Rookstool (13-37) 19) Nick Ferrell   (33-15) 20) John Short  (15-32)

450 Motocross Championship Points Standings (after 6 of 12 rounds) 1) Ryan Dungey 256 2) Ken Roczen   219 3) Justin Barcia  193 4) Blake Baggett   185 5) Jason Anderson 178 6) Broc Tickle    158 7) Christophe Pourcel  157 8) Weston Peick  140 9) Phil Nicoletti 132 10) Eli Tomac 125 11) Justin Brayton  109 12) Fredrik Noren  105 13) Cole Seely 104 14) Wil Hahn    83 15) Kyle Chisholm  68 16) Chad Reed  61 17) Kyle Cunningham 53 18) Tommy Hahn  50 19) Brett Metcalfe   36 20) Ryan Sipes  36