The 450 Class will be missing two of this season’s moto winners on the starting gate Saturday at Unadilla, as James Stewart and Josh Grant will both sit out their second race in a row.
Stewart hasn’t raced since the first moto a few weeks ago at Spring Creek. After the second moto was red flagged, he went back to his rig and did not line up for the restart, later saying that he was dealing with a spell of dizziniess. He then opted not to race at Washougal.
After a promising start to the season, Stewart has had to deal with adversity over the past two months.
(Photo: Matt Rice)
“It’s been a tough road lately and James hasn’t felt well enough to put in the time on the bike that’s necessary to compete safely,” Yoshimura Suzuki team manager Mike Webb said in a statement released by the team. “He’s only now getting back into his normal training regimen.”
Josh Grant crashed during practice two weeks ago at Washougal and suffered a concussion. As a result, he was unable to race in the motos that day. According to a release from the JGR Yamaha team, “Grant went to his doctor to be evaluated for Unadilla and was advised to rest one more week. Grant is expected to be on the gate for the Crawfordsville, Ind. race on Aug. 16.”
Grant has 13 moto finishes inside the top ten this year. (Photo: Matt Rice)
Stewart and Grant are currently ranked fifth and sixth overall in 450 Class points, respectively, through the first nine rounds of the season but are both likely to lose three positions this weekend with Andrew Short, Weston Peick and Eli Tomac all very close behind. Grant won the very first moto of the season at Glen Helen, while Stewart has racked up three moto wins of his own, including a 1-1 sweep at High Point.