Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Aaron Plessinger raced his way to fifth overall in the 450MX Class at Round 8 of the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship, with 250MX Class contender Maximus Vohland taking an eighth-place finish at Washougal.
Plessinger opened the weekend by powering his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION to the seventh-fastest time in qualifying, as riders navigated their way through the shadows of the notoriously slick track layout, which would become increasingly challenging as the day progressed.
A top-10 start in moto one resulted in a difficult outing of sorts for Plessinger, who claimed a seventh-place result by race’s end. For moto two, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing pilot launched out of the gates to grab the all-important holeshot, holding onto the lead for the opening laps and setting a strong pace at the front of the pack.
Battling hard throughout the race, Plessinger would charge all moto long, and ride to a hard-fought third-place moto finish, which resulted in him climbing to fifth overall for the round and sees him maintain third in the 450MX Class points chase.
Aaron Plessinger: “I was very mad at myself after the first moto – I’m not sure what I was doing! Then I came back, thought about what it was that I did wrong, and how I could fix it, which started with a holeshot in the second moto. It was a really, really good second moto, I led a few laps, then tried to latch on to Chase [Sexton] and Jett [Lawrence] there, but they’re riding fast at the moment. I was able to hold on for third, and my final few laps were strong, which was a really good end to my day.”
In 250MX, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Vohland continued his consistent streak in the class, setting the sixth-fastest lap-time in the morning’s qualifying session. A quick start in the opening moto saw him in the fight among the leaders, as he charged his way to an eventual fifth-place score. An eighth in moto two would secure Vohland P8 overall for the round.
Maximus Vohland: “Not a bad day here in Washougal. Good start in the first moto and ran up front with the leaders for a long while before crossing the line in fifth. Second moto, not as good of a start, but I was still in a good position, and then ended up having a fall. I lost what felt like around 10 positions, and then from there it was about charging through the field, which I did and managed to get up into eighth.”
For dual MX2 World Champion Vialle, Washougal marked a tough first appearance at the Washington circuit, as the Frenchman posted the 14th-fastest qualifying time before an early fall in the opening moto spelled an untimely end to his day.
Tom Vialle: “I was really disappointed not to be able to race in the second moto today after falling in the first one. I haven’t done any major damage, but I was banged up in what was a really big crash for me. I’m kind of lucky now that we have the break with two weekends off, so I will have time to heal up and look ahead to Unadilla.”
