Things started clicking for Ivan Ramirez last year at the Sage Riders Motorcycle Club’s National and he found himself leading much of the race before making a mistake heading out of the pits, with teammate Kurt Caselli zooming by for the win en route to his third hare & hound championship.
 
This year at the Sage Riders’ Shawn Gerber Memorial, round six in the AMA/SRT Hare & Hound National Championship Series, Ramirez made no mistakes and sailed to a clear-cut victory with Ricky Brabec and Nick Burson second and third, respectively, for the second straight round. It was Ramirez’s second career Hare & Hound triumph and the second one of the season, the FMF/KTM Factory Off-Road Racing Team desert star the victor of the opening round this year.

Previous Hare & Hound Rounds
Argubright Earns Hare & Hound Round 5 Victory

Brabec Earns First National Hare & Hound Win

Burson Wins Again at AMA Hare & Hound Round 3

“I dedicate this race to my buddy Kurt,” Ramirez said afterward. “This was actually one of the first races where I was running with him last year. It brings back a lot of good memories up here, for sure.”
 
The race belonged to Ramirez from the start, as he set out fastest through the Little Sahara Recreation Area aboard his Robbie Goolsby-prepared 450 XC-F and avoided troubles that seemed to plague everyone else.

 
For instance, THR Motorsports/Monster Energy/Precision Concepts Kawasaki’s Brabec collided with another rider who’d gotten out of shape off the start and fell, forcing him to work his way through the pack. The seemingly endless turns through the cedar trees on the second loop made him more tired than last weekend’s double-header (SCORE Imperial Valley 250 and round five of the Hare & Hounds), though running out of water after his drink system broke didn’t help.

 
That was still better than Purvines Racing Beta’s Burson. He took a huge tumble in the dune bomb run and considered calling it a day right there. But when he considered the points, he manned up and got back in the race. The current points leader surprised himself when told he was fourth at the end of the first loop and advanced one more spot on the second, more technical loop despite losing his rear brake and running into a few trees. His third place made him six-for-six in podium appearances this season.

 
Burson’s teammate TJ Hannifin—a regular on the Utah scene, having foregone the Nationals to stick closer to home—got a great start and settled into second, though he found it impossible to close on Ramirez. Like many, Hannifin’s undoing proved to be lack of water in what was the first warm race of the season for most. When he ran out, he started getting dehydrated and couldn’t avoid slowing, allowing both Brabec and Burson past, and settled for fourth.
 
Teenager Josh Knight made it two Utah natives in the top five after getting away quickly and holding fourth until later in the second loop when he decided to not hold up points leader Burson. Still, his fifth overall earned him first 250cc Expert and matched his results from last year.

 
KTM-mounted Brandon Prieto improved his career-best result to sixth followed by a quartet of 250s: Ryan Smith (his first loss in the class this season), Carson Giles, Jared Schlapia (who’s in the Pro class where he finished sixth) and Irving Powers.

 
Round seven is two short weeks away in Nevada, the final round before the traditional series summer break, and then it’s back to Nevada for two rounds followed by the finale in California.

Results
1. Ivan Ramirez (KTM 450 XC-F)
2. Ricky Brabec (Kawasaki KX450F)
3. Nick Burson (Beta 498 RR)
4. TJ Hannifin (Beta 498 RR)
5. Josh Knight (KTM 250 XC)
6. Brandon Prieto (KTM 450 XC-F)
7. Ryan Smith (Yamaha YZ250)
8. Carson Giles (Suzuki RM250)
9. Jared Schlapia (Yamaha YZ250)
10. Irving Powers (TM 250 EN)

Previous Hare & Hound Rounds
Argubright Earns Hare & Hound Round 5 Victory

Brabec Earns First National Hare & Hound Win

Burson Wins Again at AMA Hare & Hound Round 3