When the gate dropped in the Main Event, McElrath came short of the holeshot but fired back quickly and took the lead from his title rival in the second corner. He started to build a gap on the competition but a downed rider brought out a red flag. Then Mother Nature decided to play her hand and rain really started coming down, making for a challenging track when racing resumed with a complete restart.
McElrath got the holeshot this time around and tried to build another lead up front, but the defending 250SX East Champion was right behind him. On lap six the North Carolinian came together with a lapped rider and went down. He was able to rejoin the race but was 16-seconds adrift of his rival. By the checkered flag, McElrath was able to close gap in half and hold onto second-place for an important points haul on a tough day. He heads into the break trailing the championship leader by three points with two rounds remaining.
For Nichols, a second chance at the start helped him as he got off the gate much better in fourth. By lap five he was able to move into third and maintain that all the way to the finish line for his second podium in a row.
Next week Dylan Ferrandis and Justin Cooper return to action for Round 7 of the Western Regional 250SX class (Round 14 of the series) on June 10 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
