Photos Courtesy of Brown Dog Wilson
H.E.P. Motorsports entered its final stretch of the 2021 Monster Energy A.M.A. Supercross series with its last stop at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the 16th & 17th rounds. This past Saturday's round 16 did not disappoint. Max Anstie was very fast in qualifying times and matched his career-best finish. Brandon Hartranft had an intense day of racing, finishing inside the top 20. Still banged up from the crash in Atlanta, Adam Enticknap came up short of the main event by a few positions.
Max Anstie (#34) has a strong showing at the final Atlanta round.
Max Anstie (#34) – Another career night for Max Anstie, matching his best result of the year in the 450-premiere class with 13th place. It didn't take long for Max to master the track; he was knocking on the door of the top ten times during qualifying. Getting a good jump off the gate from the outside position during the heat race, Anstie found himself getting pushed wide in the first corner from the inside. Falling back to 18th in the first corner, Max quickly got to work moving his way up the field, finishing in 9th place. Max carried that momentum into the main event pushing for his best result of the year; he finished in 13th place.
"Salt Lake went well," said Max Anstie. "I ended up 13th on the night. I felt that I was riding strong. We made progress all day. The team did a great job setting the bike up for the altitude. Well, keep making progress. I definitely feel like this last race we are going to have a showdown with the guys. I'm looking forward to being back here in seven days and doing it again."
Brandon Hartranft (#28) returns to the team after two weeks out.
Brandon Hartranft – The 450-class rookie, Hartranft continues to improve. This past Saturday was another impressive day of racing for him. Finishing inside the top 20 during qualifying, Brandon found himself in a good position heading into the heats. Hartranft got a decent start in his heat race and was 10th for a majority of the race. Brandon made a pass for the final qualifying position for 9th place during the final moments of his heat race. In the main event, Hartranft continued to show his ability in the 450cc premier class pushing his pace in 15th place. As the race ensued, a few mistakes dropped him back to 18th place, where he finished.
"Today went a lot better for me," said Brandon Hartranft. "The track was solid; I was able to get it down early. I qualified top 20, which was good. I got straight into the main from the heat race, and I finished 9th. The track started to get gnarly in the main event, especially the whoops, but it went alright. All in all, a solid day for me."
Adam Enticknap (#722) charges the whoops on his 450 RM-Z Suzuki.
Adam Enticknap (#722) – The fan favorite, "Seven-Deuce-Deuce" was very close to making it into the main event this past Saturday. In his heat race, Adam overcame a rough start and pushed his way through the pack but fell short in 11th place. In the last chance, Enticknap got a bad jump off the gate and could not overcome the positions needed to qualify into the main event, and he finished in 8th place.
"Today started off really good in practice," said Adam Enticknap. "The team did a good job getting the bike in the right place with the altitude here. In my heat race, I had a malfunction with my holeshot device that hindered my start a bit, I was still able to put a good race in, but I came up short in 10th. In the L.C.Q., I got another bad start which pretty much ended my night. I'm looking forward to finishing out this series strong Saturday."
"It was a good weekend in Salt Lake," said Team Manager Dustin Pipes. "Max had some of his best laps yet; we qualified as high as tenth, Max even at one time was in 4th in qualifying, which was a great sight to see. He tried to train around the top guys like Ken Roczen, and you saw him step up his pace. In the main event, Max was pushing toward a top 10, but we got a little bit tired out there, which happens when you are pushing the pace. I'm proud of Max for doing that. He ended up placing 13th. Brandon had a pretty good ride as well, finishing in 18th. He got straight through the heat to the main. I think he's going to really hit his stride in the outdoors. In terms of Adam, he needs to get off the gate better, and he'll be putting himself in a position to do good. So that's on him, and I'm looking forward to him ending out the series strong.
Only one round left to go. The 2021 Monster Energy A.M.A. Supercross series will end this coming Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the 17th round.
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About H.E.P. Motorsports: About H.E.P. Motorsports: Names using the initials of the founding members (George Holland, Billy Ezernack, and Dustin Pipes) H.E.P. Motorsports brings winning motocross experience, enthusiasm, and business savvy into the Supercross paddock. To learn more, visit www.HEPmotorsports.com.
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