On the start of the first 450 moto Haiden Deegan went a little wide and got into Jorge Prado, which forced Prado off the track. Was this a result of Jett Lawrence, who was on the inside of Deegan, also going wide, or was this all on Deegan?
Jett was definitely a factor here but he didn’t do anything wrong, per se. They were all fighting for position and the inside always has the leverage. This corner is notoriously high speed and with ripped, soft dirt in the first corner, it’s very easy to go down. This is not a place where Jett would intentionally make contact or try to knock Deegs down. The speeds are way too high for that type of nonsense. Jett’s inside leverage was important and he forced the issue which had consequences for both Deegs and Prado.
Justin Barcia put a block pass on Deegan late in the first 450 moto that sent Deegan off the track, but Barcia conceded the spot a few turns later without a fight. What was that about?
This is boys being boys. Barcia knows Deegs invites bar banging. Further, this is a bit of a welcoming party to the 450 rookie. Passing Barcia on the outside has always been and will always be a gamble. You just have to know that you’re likely to be introduced to the water truck lane. Once Barcia knew the pass was inevitable, though, you saw him relent and give the good line to the kid.
Hunter Lawrence dominated the first 450 moto, beating Jett by over 15 seconds. Was Hunter that good, or did Jett simply concede the win when he wasn’t closing on Hunter early?
It was both. Jett was trying early but Hunter just had rhythm and Jett didn’t. At some point in a moto, all riders realize what is likely to happen even if they hammer 100 percent to the checkers. Once Jett realized his best wasn’t good enough that moto, he saved energy for moto two. These guys are very adept at reading the situation and each other. They aren’t going to needlessly do things that won’t change the outcome. Hunter had the same realization in moto two and didn’t even know that Jett went down. He had basically given up the ghost once Jett took off. I think we will see this tit-for-tat back and forth winning all the way to Ironman.