Underdogs From The Sand of Southwick

The sand pit of Southwick saw a ton of action at the front of the field in both classes, but those riders aren’t the only ones who should be talked about and praised. So, here are those riders who caught our attention, some of whom are international.

450MX

Phil Nicoletti #36

The character of Filthy Phil, MUC-OFF/ClubMX/FXR, announced his retirement earlier this year for the end of the SuperMotocross Championship later this season. He has had a phenomenal start for his last strike in the Pro Motocross Championship. With great starts, a minor setback, a knee injury from Hangtown, and missing Thunder Valley National, Phil finished a season-best 9-9 moto scores for 8th OA at Southwick. Riding and training at ClubMx, which has sand tracks, was to be expected. However, being the best “non-factory”/privateer based rider in this 450 class with this tough of competition and international riders coming over, did you have that on your bingo card?

Harri Kullas #79

The Estonian racer Ponsse/Annkriss KTM of Kullas has proven to be a rider to watch. Last year, coming over and contending at the final three rounds was impressive, with Unadilla being the best for 6th OA on the day. This year, High Point was his first showing, finishing 14th OA, and he said to Jason Weigandt in their chat on the RacerX Weege Show from High Point asking about heading up to the Southwick National, “No, because it’s too much money.” Surprisingly, he found a way to scrounge up some cash and made it happen to put in a solid 10-10 moto scores for 9th OA on the day in the sand of The Wick 338 for his first-ever appearance.

Kyle Webster #762

The current points leader in the Australian ProMx Championship flew over to give his shot at the Southwick National. Helped by Firepower Honda and an excellent sand rider, he was poised to have a great day. He sure did, but not without a fight, finishing an impressive 7th OA. The first moto comes from a bad start in 32nd position up to 17th, and the second moto has a much better start and finishes 7th. “It was good, and I’m happy to come away with a 7th. I think it’s a nice starting point, and luckily, we have another weekend to stay for RedBud,” he stated on Monday night’s PulpMx Show.

Garrett Marchbanks #26

The Manchild, MUC-OFF/ClubMx/FXR, of Marchbanks, returns to the Pro Motocross Championship after a thumb injury from the season openers’ Press Day. Trying to get those points for the SuperMotocross Championship in September, the first moto for Garrett was going exceptionally well, running 7th till the final lap when the machine ran out of gas nearing the checkered flag. In moto 2, he was inside the top 10 off the start, but a tip-over left him in 35th, and he had to grind back through the field to a 12th-place finish. He ended the day 13th OA. At RedBud National 2023, Garrett grabbed 6th OA, and believe we may see that same result again this coming weekend.

Gert Krestinov #387

Krestinov, JT Construction Honda, is another rider from Estonia, an international racer, coming to America for the Southwick National. 2023 was the first sighting of Gert here in the States to race Southwick, where he placed a solid 11th OA on the day. This past weekend, he put in another great performance with good starts with 16-13 moto scores for 15th OA. He will also be in for RedBud this weekend.

Alvin Ostlund #290

Another international flavor of Ostlund came over to give his shot at AMA Pro Motocross for the first time. If you were watching the broadcast or even at the event this past Saturday, you saw the fight from the Sweden rider, 24Mx/Raven Sports Honda, battling to that top 10 in moto 1, finishing just outside with an 11th. The second moto, a bad start, had him 37th crossing the holeshot line, and he fought back for 24th, leaving him 16th OA on the day. Alvin will be heading to RedBud this weekend to improve that result.

James Harrington #777

Massachusetts' own Harrington, TSR Yamaha, put in a great effort to finish just outside the top 20 with a 21st OA on the day and 14-22 moto scores. That position gave him some bragging rights as the top “local” rider from the area in the 450 class, leaving Southwick and onto RedBud this weekend.

250MX

Talon Hawkins #35

Hawkins, AEO Powersports KTM Racings, has been steadily moving forward since switching to this team for 2024. This weekend in the sand of The Wick 338, he stapled his best Pro Motocross finish this season with a 14th OA. Good starts and finishing around the top 15 shows Talon has fought to keep progressing each round for the remainder of the summer—Moto scores of 15-16th on the day for the California rider.

Jorgen-Matthias Talviku #108

The Estonia rider, Rides Unlimited Rocky Mount ATV MC KTM rider of Talviku, has been rising this season. Overalls are looking like this: at Fox Raceway 40th, 28th at Hangtown, 26th in the high altitude of Thunder Valley, at High Point, finishing 22nd, and this weekend an impressive 16th! Finishing 13th in moto 2 with a good start, the international rider will be on to keep an eye on heading into RedBud this weekend.

Lux Turner #473

In his first full season, on paper, 19-year-old Turner of AEO Powersports KTM Racings finished 22nd OA with 38-18 moto scores, which may not look that “great,” but that’s not the whole story. In the first moto, he tangled up with another rider and then crashed again, hurting his wrist. In the second moto, Lux pushed through the pain to finish an impressive 18th. If the first moto incident hadn’t happened, he potentially was looking for the best OA finish of his career in Pro Motocross.

Crocket Myers #413

If you watched any AMA Areancross series this past winter, you know who we are talking about here. Switching from Husqvarna to the Gizmo Mods Rock River Yamaha Team for this entire Pro Motocross Championship season, Crocket matched his career-best for now, which is also the same result from the past three races, 23rd OA on the day in the sand. Hovering right around that top 20 results, with 19-21 moto scores, Crocket is poised to make that overall happen this weekend at RedBud.

Russell Buccheri #914

The first-year pro is Massachusetts's best “local” rider in the competitive field! The 3D Racing KTMs of Buccheri put in a 25th OA with 20-29 moto scores for his career-best overall result, solidifying his efforts as the best rider from the surrounding area in the 250 class. He will head to RedBud this weekend to see if he can improve that result.