The long wait for Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen came to an end as he broke through for his first professional championship.
The first of two 20 Minute + 1 Lap 250SMX Class motos got underway with Kitchen leading the field to the holeshot ahead of Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Nate Thrasher. The other title contenders, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Julien Beaumer and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Ryder DiFrancesco started in sixth and seventh, respectively.
The clear track played heavily into Kitchen’s favor as he moved out to a lead of more than two seconds in the opening laps, while the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing trio of Thrasher, Landen Gordon, and Cole Davies were locked into a fight for a spot in the top three. Behind them, Beaumer and DiFrancesco looked to close in. As the moto reached its halfway point Thrasher crashed out of second, which moved Davies behind Kitchen and a hard-charging DiFrancesco up to third. Beaumer, meanwhile, moved up to fourth.
Davies started to close in on Kitchen and moved within striking distance in the late stages of the moto. He made a quick and decisive move to grab the lead with just over one minute left on the race clock and quickly pulled away. The New Zealander carried on to take the moto win by 2.1 seconds over Kitchen, well ahead of DiFrancesco in third, Beaumer in fourth, and Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Pierce Brown in fifth.
The championship deciding moto started as rain began to fall at Thunder Ridge with Davies at the head of the pack for the holeshot with Kitchen and Gordon in tow. DiFrancesco and Beaumer, meanwhile, both started deep in the field outside the top 10. Davies quickly opened a multi-second lead over Kitchen, who controlled his own destiny and settled into a consistent rhythm.
Davies continued to add to his lead and managed a margin of around 10 seconds over the second half of the moto to easily complete the 1-1 sweep by 6.4 seconds. Kitchen maintained his hold of second throughout to eliminate any threat to his title hopes, while Gordon ran third from start to finish.
While Davies enjoyed the spoils of victory, it was Kitchen who walked away with the night’s biggest prize. After coming up short in several championship battles, including this summer’s Pro Motocross Championship, the Washington native prevailed with his first professional title and the first for the decorated Pro Circuit race team since the 2019 Pro Motocross campaign. A solid night for Gordon landed him on the overall podium for the first time in the postseason, finishing third after 6-3 finishes.
Kitchen finished off his championship campaign with a 24-point margin over DiFrancesco, who battled his way into the top 10 in the final moto and finished seventh overall after 3-10 finishes. Davies’ triumphant effort moved him into the final spot on the championship podium, 25 points behind Kitchen.
