The Spring Creek National in Millville, Minnesota, has hosted plenty of exciting racing in the past few decades, and round eight of the 2015 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship was no different.

Ryan Dungey was by far the favorite to win at Spring Creek, given that it was his home-state race and that he had raced there plenty of times growing up. However, a confident Justin Barcia entered the round eager to continue his win streak after winning the previous two rounds. A battle brewed between the two riders in both motos, but Dungey was able to come out victorious by dominating both motos.

Dungey’s consistency remained on par throughout the day, qualifying the fastest, and then grabbing great starts to put him inside the top-three after the first few corners in the motos. He was able to make quick work of Barcia and open up a lead right away by setting the fastest lap times. Dungey’s experience on the track was evident, as he was able to finesse his way around the rough and rutted track. With his 1-1 race finishes, Dungey extend his point lead over Ken Roczen by 12 points; he now has a 56 point lead over Roczen in the series.

The RCH Suzuki rider and reigning 450 motocross champion Ken Roczen had another mediocre day finishing outside the podium with a fourth overall. Ken hasn’t quite seemed like himself all year long, possibly due to lingering back issues that he was dealing with at the start of the series. Regardless, the chances of defending his title appear to get slimmer with each passing round, and he now has serious competition from Justin Barcia as well in the championship point standings for second place in the series.

Having won the previous two rounds, Justin Barcia has really upped his game since the start of the series. He now is looking very comfortable aboard his JGR Yamaha, and despite losing the overall at Spring Creek to Dungey, his riding and effort continues to impress. It appears that Barcia has been able to get through his career slump suffered in the past year, and is now back on the podium where he belongs. Barcia’s home-state race at Unadilla is still coming up, so keep an eye on him to really excel there.

Just edging out Roczen for the last podium spot was Blake Baggett. Baggett has been capable of podium finishes all year long, but bad starts have spoiled a lot of his chances at previous rounds. However, he was able to turn things around at Spring Creek, starting inside the top-10 and charging forward all moto to get this finish; he was able to catch up to and pass Roczen in the second moto. Baggett has created a state-of-the-art motocross facility at his house in Florida, and the long days of training there are definitely starting to pay off.

With only four rounds left, it looks as though Dungey is going to win this championship. His 56 point lead is enough of a lead to possibly clinch the title one round early.

The last third of the series gets underway this weekend in Washougal, Washington, for round nine of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. Don't miss our coverage leading up to and during the race weekend by following @VAVELMotocross on Twitter.

Scott Yargeau is the lead motocross writer of the VAVEL USA Racing section. Follow him on Twitter at @ScottYargeau.