SUPERCROSS LITES
Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing's Ryan Dungey won the AMA Supercross LItes race and extended his points lead at Washington's QWest Stadium in Seattle on Saturday night.
After two months off from racing due to the season's hiatus, the young rider got a great start on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 and gapped the field to take the win in the 15-lap race.
Dungey leads the overall championship point's standings by nine points going into the final round of the Supercross LItes West Coast series next weekend.
In the Supercross class, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Mike Alessi celebrated an impressive evening: The Californian got the holeshot on his RM-Z450, led the first several laps and then battled for a podium spot for most of the night. Unfortunately, he had a minor get-off but remounted to finish in fourth place.
Team mate Chad Reed had a tough night: The defending and two-time AMA Supercross Champion fell at the start of the race and had trouble working his way through the field. In the end, Reed finished up in seventh place is now trails Yamaha's James Stewart by three points with two rounds remaining.
Ryan Dungey:
"I was fastest in both practices at Seattle and set-up for the Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 was really good right from the beginning. I had 100 per cent effort from my whole team; from the tyre guys; to the mechanics; to my family. The track was falling apart out there but everybody stayed focused and worked hard. I was able to get a good start in the Main and just took it from there... I'm just really happy with how the race went, the fans were great and now I have some momentum going into next weekend."
Mike Alessi:
"It was a good ride. Practice went good for me and we made some adjustments to the bike that helped with the track. In my heat race, I got a good start and was running up front but made a mistake and got passed and ended up fourth. So I had a good gate pick for the main and got a great start on the Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z450. I was feeling really confident and was leading for the first seven laps but I went into a turn a little hot and the front washed out and I lost the lead and went back to third. Then I got passed and ran in fourth for the rest of the race. I'm pretty happy with the night because I was able to make up some points on the guys in front of me."
Chad Reed:
"I have to admit that I'm pretty disappointed with how things went in Seattle. I've tried to be pretty consistent the whole year, and we've led the championship for most of the season. But there are still two races left and it isn't over until it's over. Now I'm just focusing on getting ready for Salt Lake City next weekend."
Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing will race next at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Saturday, April 25, 2009.
AMA Supercross Top 10 Finishers:
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki)2. James Stewart (Yamaha)3. Davi Millsaps (Honda)4. Mike Alessi (Rockstar Makita Suzuki) 5. Andrew Short (Honda)6. Josh Grant (Yamaha)7. Chad Reed (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)8. Paul Carpenter (Kawasaki)9. Ivan Tedesco (Honda)10. Kevin Windham (Honda)
Championship points: 1 Stewart 332, 2 Reed 329, 3 Short 241, 4 Grant 208, 5 Windham 204, 6 Alessi 203, 7 Tedesco 199, 8 Villopoto 190, 9 Millsaps 188, 10 Hill 146.
AMA Supercross Lites Top 10 Finishers:
1. Ryan Dungey (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)2. Ryan Morais (Kawasaki)3. Trey Canard (Honda)4. Jake Weimer (Kawasaki)5. Jake Moss (Honda)6. Jimmy Albertson (Honda)7. Kyle Cunningham (Kawasaki)8. Chris Blose (Honda)9. Michael Hall (Yamaha)10. Jeff Alessi (Honda)
