McThoughts|Deschambault National|MX2 Class

By Jeff McConkey

Photos by Billy Rainford

Round 9 went off this past Sunday and we crowned our 2016 Rockstar Energy Drink MX Nationals MX2 champion a round early. Cole Thompson was the heavy favourite all season long, for good reason. He was simply the best guy and earned himself a championship. No disrespect to the others, it’s just that Cole was better this year. I don’t think Cole was ever in jeopardy of losing the red plate and he calmly cruised to the title. Let’s take a look at the results and see my thoughts:

MX2 Podium: Cole Thompson, Dylan Wright, Dakota Alix.

1st Cole Thompson (1-2): Congrats to Cole and his entire crew. They were the best each and every round and he is now our 2016 MX2 champion. Cole dominated the series and was in complete control from the start. I wish he would have smiled more on the podium. He looked a little bummed out and needed JSR to help with his smile. Now the big question is…will he be back with KTM to defend his title, or will he move up to the 450?

#4 Cole Thompson.

2nd Dylan Wright (4-1): Dylan had a rough 1st moto; he got parked a few times and that fired him up for moto 2. He was on the gas and took the win with a lot of emotion. He knows he can win straight up now, and that will help in the future.

#17 Dylan Wright.

3rd Dakota Alix (2-3): Dakota has been a great addition to our series. I’ve said it before, but I’d really like KTM to bring him up for the entire season for 2017. His speed his great, and I don’t think there are many starters better than him.

#164 Dakota Alix.

4th Shawn Maffenbeier (3-5): Shawn had an off day. No, he wasn’t bad, but he just wasn’t himself. He was still in that first group of riders, but was a tad off. He’s human and I’ll let it slide this week, but look for the regular ‘Maff’ we all know next weekend at RJ’s.

#15 Shawn Maffenbeier.

5th Jess Pettis (5-4): Jess looked really fast and aggressive in practice. I really thought he was going to be closer to the top 4. He’s riding great this season, but really wants to be in that next group of guys. He has the talent and the drive, and I wouldn’t be surprised for him to be the most improved rider again next season.

#20 Jess Pettis.

6th Eric Grondhal (8-7): I watched Eric a little bit on the East Coast in SX, so I had an idea who he was when he showed up at Ulverton. Well, he looked like a different guy in Deschambault. He got a good start and looked very good, and rode up near the front. I think he could be a top 5 guy if he were to do the entire series next year.

#351 Eric Grondahl.

7th Westen Wrozyna (7-10): Westen was looking really good all day, but he really ate it in the 2nd moto. I really think with 2 good starts at RJ’s, he will be very close to the top 5.

#34 Westen Wrozyna.

8th Davey Fraser (6-11): Davey ripped the moto 1 holeshot and threw out a super-sweet fist pump. Davey has been riding pretty good lately, it’s too bad that he hasn’t had the greatest of luck. I know he wants to finish out with a top 5, and RJ’s could be the place.

#36 Davey Fraser.

9th Jason Benny (9-9): Two very good moto finishes for Benny, but unfortunately I didn’t really see him out there.

#199 Jason Benny.

10th Brad Nauditt (14-6): Brad had a rough weekend. It started when he and mechanic, Trevor, were help up at customs and the rental car place closed after a late flight into Quebec. The pair were forced to try and sleep in the airport until the next morning when the rental car provider opened up. Two big crashes in moto 1 were added to the list, but it was good to see Brad rebound for a 6th in moto 2.

#18 Brad Nauditt.

Biggest Stud: Cole Thompson gets full stud status. He was honestly in a class of his own all season. Congrats, Cole!

Biggest Dud: No dud for me this week. I thought the racing was pretty good throughout the pack.

Biggest Surprise: I was shocked to hear about McCoy Brough racing Moncton on the Sunday, then flying to Loretta’s for his Monday practice. He then raced 2 classes all week, finishing his last moto on Saturday, then flying to Quebec to race Deschambault on Sunday. He must have been exhausted, but it sure didn’t show.