Eli Tomac talks about killing the competition at the Washougal National.
It seems as though GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac has been trailing Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen by just a few points all season. An pronounced step ahead of the competition, the two have taken turns winning motos at each round nearly all season, and Tomac has had a very difficult time making up ground on Roczen. However, that changed slightly at the recent Peterson CAT Washougal National in Washington State, where Tomac went on a tear in both motos, winning each by roughly twenty seconds and closing the points gap to a single point behind Roczen with just four rounds remaining in the season. We talked to Tomac after the race to get his feedback on his outstanding day.
Take us through your day.
Eli Tomac: I got off to a good start and tried to make some passes early. I got up front and at that point you just try to minimize mistakes and hit your marks, and I held on for the win. When the second moto came around I was pretty much in the same spot on the start. Actually I think all four of the GEICO guys were right there, I guess going around that first corner, so that was pretty cool. And then the sun came out also so there were some shadows out there. Later on in the moto, like two to go, I actually almost threw it away. It was about as close as you get without crashing. I rode a nose-wheelie up the hill, if that’s possible. Got some headshake, got wild, and somehow shook it off. Before that me and Ken [Roczen] were just laying down a really quick pace.
Talk about that near crash.
ET: I really think I’ll blame it on the shadows because it was up some rollers. It’s the first year I’ve ridden this track with those. So I was trying to keep the rear wheel on the ground. I must have set my wheel down a little bit early—it kind of let off. It was just like holding onto a bull through there.
In that first moto it was kind of overcast, but the sun came out and cast some shadows in the second moto. How different were the battles in that second moto?
ET: It does turn into quite a different track. The second moto I intended to just try to transition, I guess you could call it. There’s little spots where you can’t really see. You kind of lose your depth perception in some of those bumps when it does get that dark from sun to shadows. It’s a tricky one.
It seems like Roczen wins a moto; you get a bad start. You win a moto; he gets a bad start. Is that a little more important to beat him when you were both up front?
ET: It was good to win with him right behind me. I just had to dig really deep. We’re the fastest guys out there.
That’s the first 1-1 of the season for you. Does that add to the confidence?
ET: Yes and no. I feel like I’ve been one of the fastest guys all year, so it’s just about making it happen in both motos and staying focused. I think in that second moto I kind of did lose focus when I almost crashed. I was like, ‘Two to go, I think I got this thing in the bag,’ and usually that’s when those mistakes come around.