2024 NGPC Round 9 Results

Mark Kariya | November 12, 2024

It’s been a long time between wins for 3Bros/Hatch Racing Gas Gas-sponsored Giacomo Redondi in the Parts Unlimited AMA National Grand Prix Championship (NGPC) Series, Presented by FMF.

Giacomo Redondi leads at 2024 NGPC Gold Rush Grand Prix — **A tighter-than-usual Havasu course led to close racing, especially at the front. Giacomo Redondi leads Dare DeMartile and Mateo Oliveira. Redondi eventually made his way to the front to win.**

Photos by Mark Kariya

In fact, you have to go back to 2018 for his first win in the series—and it was called the AMA District 37 Big 6 Grand Prix Series back then. But Giacomo broke that dry spell with a hard-fought win in the Gold Rush Grand Prix, hosted by the Vikings Motorcycle Club, the ninth and final round of the 2024 season. Liqui Moly Beta’s Dare DeMartile clawed his way through the multi-rider lead pack all afternoon, completing the $8000, 90-minute feature race 14 seconds adrift of the winner, while GNCC regular Ruy Barbosa led much of the early going on his borrowed Johnny Campbell Racing (JCR) Honda, ultimately finishing a further six seconds back for third place.

With all three Pro-class Championships wrapped up at the previous round, one might expect those riders to give a little less than 100 percent at the finale—but one would be incorrect. In fact, of those three, only overall Pro champ (for the fifth-straight time) Dante Oliveira failed to register another victory. Having suffered a wrist injury during the week, he opted to sit this one out to focus on retaining his AMA West Hare Scrambles (WHS) Championship in two weeks.

But newly crowned Pro II champ Mason Semmens of the FMF RPM Racing KTM team and Slam Life Racing (SLR) Honda’s Mikayla Nielsen, who’d clinched her second-straight Pro Women’s championship, did show up and added triumphs at the finale to their résumés.

Mason Semmens at 2024 NGPC Gold Rush Grand Prix — Having locked up the Pro II championship at Blythe didn’t make Mason Semmens complacent. He battled hard with Parker Ross for much of the race before pulling away for his sixth victory of the season.

The Vikings laid out the tightest course ever at the Havasu Island MX Park, which has always been the tightest on the schedule. And that helps attract some East Coast racers who normally shy away from West Coast races, as they deem them dangerously fast. So, besides Barbosa this year, Lyndon Snodgrass also made the trip, as did a number of test riders from Motocross Action Magazine.

When Alex Rodriguez of the Vikings turned on the green light, FMF KTM Factory Off-Road Racing Team’s Mateo Oliveira got his Red Bull/Motorex/Alpinestars-backed 450 XC-F fired up and into the first turn in front.

He led the opening lap despite missing one turn, though he didn’t lose position, as those behind followed him. But he tucked the front end after the pits at the end of that lap, which let several others pass.

Among them was Snodgrass aboard his Monster Energy/Precision Concepts/Fly Racing Husky FC 250 (and entered in Open Pro), who led for about 25 minutes before Barbosa—fresh from the GNCCs for Phoenix Racing Honda and who decided to enter just two weeks ago—grabbed the front-running spot aboard that borrowed Copec/Pirelli/Moose Racing CRF450RX.

Having struggled with injury for half the year and going it on his own now motivated him tremendously. Trailing only Redondi with about 20 minutes to go, he said, “I had a huge crash with almost three laps to the finish, so that cost me any chance at first place. I can say I’m happy nonetheless, and we will see what we can do for a ride next year.”

DeMartile had second in points locked up but wanted to add a second triumph for the season aboard his Fiji Water/FMF/Sidi 480 RR but found the going hectic yet fun. He said, “It was me, Mateo, Austin Walton, Redondi, Jack Simpson—we were bunched up in a group of four or five pretty tight, so that was really fun racing! As chaotic as it was, it was fun.”

But no one could deny that Redondi had the most fun over the weekend. He kicked it off on Saturday by speeding to his eighth win of the season in 30+ Open AA (he skipped round seven), having locked up that crown previously.

“Saturday, I was feeling really good,” he said. “We did a good setup on the bike; now I’m working with JBI Suspension. After the Vet race, I was feeling great. I was feeling very confident.

“Today, I got—not a good start—but I made it through to the first corner okay. At the beginning, the pace was not crazy as usual, so I was staying there [running fourth most of the time]. When we reached halfway through, I pushed a little bit more because I know I’m strong in the last half. The last three laps after getting in front was pretty emotional, because I was realizing I was leading, so it was a nice feeling.”

Snodgrass stayed strong in fourth, just five seconds behind Barbosa at the finish and seven seconds ahead of Pro II winner Semmens. SLR Honda’s Parker Ross hounded him for most of the race and even poked his Monster Energy/Lava Propane/Fly Racing CRF250R in front at one point.

Their battle carried them through many of the Open Pros, which was just what Trail Jesters/Dunlop/Moose Racing 250 XC-F-mounted Semmens had planned. He said, “I was motivated to win today. I wanted to win and also see how far up I could get in the overall as well; that was my plan. Parker was riding well; he scrubbed past me, and we went back and forth once or twice. Once I got back by him, I put my head down, tried to catch more 450 riders, and came out on top. It was a good day!”

Ross dropped back about an hour and 15 minutes in and surrendered the runner-up spot to FMF RPM Racing KTM rider J.P. Alvarez on the final lap, those two finishing eighth and ninth overall. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing Off-Road Team’s Austin Walton and Oliveira were sixth and seventh overall, respectively. Jack Simpson rounded out the top 10 in the final appearance of the Purvines Racing/Simi Valley Cycles team.

Mikayla Nielsen at 2024 NGPC Gold Rush Grand Prix — **While she recorded one runner-up finish, Mikayla Nielsen proved unbeatable every other time to lock up her second-straight Pro Women Championship over Ava Silvestri.**

Pro Women belonged to Nielsen for the eighth time this season, as she put in a superlative effort aboard her Skechers/Dunlop/Scott Goggles CRF250RX, with GasGas-backed Ava Silvestri the runner-up, both on the day and in final points.

“It was definitely a wild year [especially in motocross], but it’s been fun,” she said. “I’m just happy to finish strong and say we did it! Everyone’s happy, and now we get to go down to Baja and help the SLR team race in the SCORE Baja 1000 in two weeks.”