Cole Davies Bounces Back with 1-1 Sweep, Cuts Levi Kitchen's Lead to Seven

“Go back to the drawing board this week, work on some things and I’ll be ready next weekend. Like I said, I was 24 points down before High Point. Just going to come back swinging for these next four and don’t back down.”

Those were the words of Monster Energy/Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies following disappointing DNF-13 at Spring Creek last weekend that left him 25 points back of Levi Kitchen entering the points leaders home race at Washougal on Saturday.

Well, it didn’t take Davies long to regroup crucial championship points as he went 1-1 on Saturday and coupled with an off-day from Kitchen, the New Zealand native finds himself just seven points back in the championship as the series heads into a two-week break.

Check out the full recap from Washougal below:

Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

The first moto of the day began with Davies out front with the holeshot over the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing duo of DiFrancesco and Daxton Bennick [#58]. Beaumer and Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen [#47], the hometown favorite and points leader, were two of many riders involved in a crash just after the holseshot line, which forced both to start deep in the 40-rider field.
The clear track allowed Davies to sprint out to a lead of more than three seconds just a couple laps in, as DiFrancesco settled into second and Honda HRC Progressive’s Chance Hymas [#29] moved up to third.
Further back, Beaumer and Kitchen worked their way through the field together, as both were able to break into the top 20 within the first 10 minutes of the moto. They continued their charge and moved within striking distance of the top 10 just past the halfway point of the moto.
As the moto entered its final 10 minutes Davies moved out more than 10 seconds clear of the field. Kitchen, meanwhile, continued his determined climb with a pass on Beaumer and a forward push that carried him into the top 10, with an eye on additional passes.
Davies cruised to his fifth moto win of the season with a wire-to-wire effort, crossing the finish line 17.1 seconds ahead of DiFrancesco, who secured the best moto result of his career. Hymas rounded out the top three, with Bennick in fourth and AEO Powersports KTM’s Carson Mumford [#71] in fifth. Kitchen clawed his way up to sixth, improving 22 positions.

Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

The second and deciding moto started with DiFrancesco out front with the holeshot ahead of ClubMX Yamaha’s Hunter Yoder [#60] and Hymas, with Davies chasing from fourth. Kitchen started outside the top 10. The battle up front intensified on the opening lap as both Hymas and Davies got around Yoder and looked to pressure DiFrancesco for the lead.
Davies pushed the pace and was able to get around Hymas. He then closed in on DiFrancesco’s rear fender. The Yamaha rider bided his time and pulled the trigger on the pass to take the lead with more than 26 minutes left on the race clock. Kitchen, meanwhile, remained mired in 12th place.
As the moto reached the halfway mark, Davies managed a lead of nearly five seconds over DiFrancesco, while Hymas settled into third. Further back, Kitchen fought his way into the top 10 and looked to move as far forward as possible.
DiFrancesco looked to chip away at Davies’ lead inside the final five minutes and after briefly closing in, Davies responded to establish his biggest lead of the moto and end the threat.
The New Zealander never put a wheel wrong and capped off perhaps his most dominant outing of the season by a margin of 7.3 seconds over DiFrancesco. Hymas followed in third. Kitchen finished a few positions back in sixth.

Overall

Davies’ second 1-1 effort of the summer netted him the third win of his career. It also brought him back into the thick of the title fight with the season’s stretch run looming.
DiFrancesco wrapped up the best performance of his career with a 2-2 performance to grab a runner-up finish.
After capturing his first podium result of the season last weekend, Hymas made back-to-back finishes in the top three following a 3-3 effort.
Mumford enjoyed a breakthrough afternoon of his own with 5-4 finishes that left him just off the podium in fourth, for the best finish of his career.
Kitchen weathered through a tough afternoon at his home track with a 6-6 effort that placed him fifth overall.
Davies’ dominant day helped him outscore Kitchen by 18 points and moved him within seven points of the Kawasaki rider in the championship standings with three races remaining. Beaumer, who finished sixth (8-5), is third, 25 points out of the lead.

1st Place – Cole Davies | #37 Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (1-1)
“After last weekend I knew I had to step up my game. I had a good day today and made up a lot of points. I’m stoked. I feel like we took a big step in the right direction today. Had a fun day. It was good.”

2nd Place – Ryder DiFrancesco | #34 Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing (2-2)
“It was a great weekend. I love coming up here. It’s close to home [in California] and has a place in my heart. Putting a good day together was my goal and I did that with a 2-2.”

3rd Place – Chance Hymas | #29 Honda HRC Progressive (3-3)
“I just need to continue doing what I’m doing. I’ve really been enjoying these past few weekends, just getting back to [riding well]. It’s been a d road to get back here and hopefully we can keep knocking off these races, one by one.”

5th Place – Levi Kitchen | #47 Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki (6-6)
“The positive takeaway is just to be here [healthy] after a crazy last weekend, and another first turn crash today. I just felt flat. A little bit of a struggle today. We’ve got a long break, so hopefully I can take that time to get dialed in for the final races.”