Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Eli Tomac and Justin Cooper score top-10 finishes despite challenges at the Budds Creek National
MARIETTA, Ga. – August 18, 2024 – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Eli Tomac had a strong return to racing, finishing seventh overall with a 4-11 score at the Budds Creek Motocross Park in Mechanicsville, Maryland. His teammate Justin Cooper overcame adversity from a crash after the start of Moto 1 to secure 10th overall with his 20-4 score at the penultimate round of the Pro Motocross Championship.
Tomac had a strong first race back since being sidelined with a thumb injury earlier this May and qualified fourth. He got a good start in the first moto and was in sixth after the first lap. The Colorado rider battled for position, and although he was shuffled to eighth, he kept pushing and made his way to fourth on Lap 5, where he would finish. In the second moto, he didn’t get the start he was hoping for and was 17th on the opening lap. The multi-time champion did what he could to make his way forward on a track that was difficult to pass on, and he crossed the line 11th to finish seventh overall.
Cooper qualified third and was off to a great start in the first moto, but unfortunately came together with another rider and had to rejoin toward the back of the field. The New Yorker found himself 38th after the first lap but kept fighting and made his way to 20th. Despite the less-than-ideal gate pick for Moto 2, Cooper got a great start and was fifth on the opening lap. He was shuffled to sixth on the following lap but kept pushing and made his way up to fourth, ending the day 10th overall.
Next up for the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team is the Pro Motocross season finale and Round 28 of the SuperMotocross World Series at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on August 24.
Jeremy Coker – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 450 Team Manager
“It was an up-and-down day. Unfortunately in the first moto, Justin and another rider crossed lines, and he went down, but Justin was able to come back and salvage a point. He gutted it out for the second moto, rode great, and ended up with fourth, so it was a good day for him. It was also a really good first moto back for Eli, but a tough second moto. We’ll get back to work this week.”
Eli Tomac – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #3
“Moto 1 was good. I had a pretty good start, and although I got passed early, I was able to make those passes back. I got into fourth place and had some good lines and a good flow going, so I went into Moto 2 with a good mindset, but I was really buried off the start. I only made it up to 11th and just kind of struggled overall in that second moto. It is something to build on. Yeah, I wanted it to be better, but we’ll try to build on it and improve next weekend in Indiana.”
Justin Cooper – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #32
“It was a tough day for me. We had a good qualifying, but then I had a racing incident in the first moto right after the start. It definitely knocked the wind out of me and took the wind out of my sails, but I came home with one point in 20th. In the second moto, I got a pretty good start from the outside. I was in sixth or seventh and worked my way up to fourth and rode really well in that second moto. I nailed the start and was in a good position in the first moto, so it was a bummer of a day, but we’ll take the positives. We’re in one piece, so that’s the main goal.”
