Round 3 Houston, Texas January 23, 2021:
88- Logan Karnow
Qualifying Position: 13
Logan had an eventful day to say the least. He began the day strong and once again set a fast pace in qualifying where he would end up 13th fastest. Karnow would get 7th gate pick in Heat #1. He chose an inside gate for the unique right handed first turn. He fired off the gate and hugged the inside to capture the hole shot. Karnow carried the lead through almost a complete lap but unfortunately right before the finish line a costly mistake coming out of the sand would send him over the berm. It was an exciting moment to have him leading the field but that mistake would send him to the LCQ with nearly a last place gate pick. When the gate would drop, Karnow would once again blast off and round the first turn in 2nd where he would finish. Ups and downs can be difficult to manage on race day, however, Karnow would find leverage the ups and ride an incredibly strong main event where he fought the entire time to place a career best 12th position.
282- Bubba Pauli
Qualifying Position: 38
Round 3 started off a bit rough for the 282 of Bubba Pauli as he made a costly mistake in the opening practice session that would leave him on the ground and with a bent up machine. With the help of his team, he was able to regroup and earn himself a qualifying spot for the evening program. With some extra press from staring in the Kawasaki “Science of Supercross” segment, Bubba was motivated to fight hard after a rough start to the day. After making several passes in his Heat race, Bubba found himself in a better position on the starting grid for the LCQ. Fighting his hardest to make passes in the LCQ, he had to get creative with his lines and unfortunately on lap 4 it cost him as he went down in a corner. Frustrated but motivated, Bubba will be ready to fight again at Round 4 in Indianapolis come Saturday night.
Joan Cros
Qualifying Position: 36
Round 3 would prove to be eventful for most, including Joan. It was a wild night of racing and the track was very technical. Cros mad some mistakes and had a very scary moments in practice. He struggled to feel comfortable most of the day but his speed was still good considering. Joan was strong in the whoops, which is usually not his strongest area. Cros battled through a tough heat race with a stacked field. In the LCQ, he rocketed out of the gate and rounded the first turn in the lead and with the hole shot. He would quickly fall back to 2nd but on lap two another rider would made contact and resulted in Cros hitting the ground. He would remount and fight hard to finish 8th position. He carried good speed all night and stayed healthy. He's ready for Indianapolis where the soil is always known for being soft and rutted.