PIERCE BROWN

Subtle track changes were made throughout the weekend for the opening round of the Fox Raceway national, but it seemed as though whatever was altered, Utah’s Pierce Brown excelled. He flourished as the track became rougher throughout practice, leaping across rutted jump faces and flying from hard-packed areas into the array of powder berms that attracted racers to the outside of the landscape. This carried into the opening moto of the afternoon program, were many eyes were on opponents like Haiden Deegan and Levi Kitchen. However, Brown couldn’t be ignored with his excellent prowess on the GasGas 250F. Scrubbing his way over the tabletops in the finish line area, he landed with authority before ducking into the right-handed corner thereafter...sprinting into the realm of the first corner with Coty Schock nipping at his rear wheel. The pressure from the ClubMX rider was adamant and didn’t initially allow for Pierce to break free...but he wasn’t folding and proceeded to stay within the line of fire while maintaining an upward trajectory while eventually making passes on opponents like Julien Beaumer and Nate Thrasher! This carried well past the twenty-two-minute mark, and as the checkered flag approached the feud for the final standing just outside of single digit territory, Brown promoted roar(s) from the crow...and in the end, it was the Utah native who garnered the aforementioned standing of tenth. Into the second moto, he and (nearly) a full gate of competitors would fly, with Haiden Deegan making his way into the lead initially. The pace was replicable to what was sustained in the opening race of the afternoon, however his riding style would have to be adjusted to more of a hard-pack attack, with much of the top-soil being flung off the original layout! However, his throttle control was of the utmost importance, especially when leaping atop the subtle step-up furthest from the finish line. Upon landing, the track appeared crusted and shiny, which certainly equated to dangerous terrain that promoted a multitude of mistakes by nearly every athlete in the field. However, he seemed polished and omitted the idea of dabbing his foot or applying too much pressure to the front end. As time passed, he continuously gazed to the race lanes behind him...monitoring where KTM’s Julien Beaumer stood in regard to the race to the checkered flag. Though the athlete from Arizona attempted to make one final surge around the twenty-six minute mark, it was Brown whose constant aspirations of overtaking Jo Shimoda (who was just ahead), were a strong enough attribute for the Utah resident to actually keep the KTM rider at bay. In the end, Pierce would finish just behind that of Shimoda and Nate Thrasher — claiming the standing of eighth on this occasion, for eighth overall on the day as well. Which initiated an excellent foundation for the 2024 250MX Pro Motocross Championship.