Chad Reed celebrated his first AMA Motocross win in seven years and took over the championship points lead on Saturday afternoon at High Point Raceway in Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania. The two-time AMA Supercross Champion won both 30-minute 450 class motos to take the overall victory. Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Michael Byrne also had cause to celebrate at High Point. The Australian returned to racing from injury this season and has been slowly but surely rebuilding his strength. On Saturday, he picked up his best finish of the year so far with a fourth-place overall result thanks to fourth- and fifth-place moto finishes. Finally, Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate and former championship points leader Mike Alessi did not race. Unfortunately, he crashed prior to the High Point event and broke his kneecap. Alessi underwent successful surgery and hopes to be back racing as soon as possible.
In the 250 class, Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey captured second place overall after carding third- and second-place moto finishes. In the first moto, Dungey overcame two get-offs to rally and secure a third-place finish. In the second 30-minute moto, the Minnesotan simply put his head down and rode a smooth, consistent race to finish second.
Chad Reed Speaks…
"It feels good to get my first overall Motocross win, but to be truthful, I feel like I should have been here a long time ago. And it’s fitting that my last win was a one-one here in 2002, and today we came back for my first 450-class win here. We made some changes to the Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 today, and I’ve been feeling pretty comfortable on the bike, though I’m still not 100 percent. I’m just doing the best I can to go out and put my best foot forward for the fans."
Michael Byrne Speaks…
"It was a good one this weekend and definitely an improvement over last weekend. I was good in practice and I qualified well and had a good gate pick. In both motos, I got good starts on the Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z450, the bike was great as usual. Basically, everything went well, I’m getting stronger and was able to hold my position from the start. The races themselves weren’t that eventful, but were really a step in the right direction."
Mike Alessi Speaks…
"We did surgery Tuesday morning and the surgery went great. My knee is strong, but it’s going to take some time to get the mobility back. It’s questionable as to when I’m going to be back but I will be back. Before the end of the season, you will see Mike Alessi back on the starting gate, racing to do his best and to be there for the fans."
Ryan Dungey Speaks…
"To be honest, it’s not the track that got the best of me in the first moto. I made a mistake and went down but my Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 was running great, so I was able to come from behind and work my way up to third. In the second moto, I was there right at the end. The track was tough and I had a lot of fun. It made the racing close and a good show for the fans. Second place is not too bad but now we need to go home and do our homework before the next race."
AMA Motocross will race next at Thunder Valley MX Park in Lakewood, Colorado, on Saturday, June 27, 2009.
AMA Motocross 450 Class Top 10 Overall Event Finishers
1. Chad Reed, Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing
2. Andrew Short, Honda
3. Ivan Tedesco, Honda
4. Michael Byrne, Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing
5. Cody Cooper, Yamaha
6. Ricky Dietrich, Kawasaki
7. Nick Wey, Yamaha
8. Josh Grant, Yamaha
9. Justin Brayton, KTM
10. Thomas Hahn, Kawasaki
AMA Motocross 250 Class Top 10 Overall Event Finishers
1. Christophe Pourcel, Kawasaki
2. Ryan Dungey, Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing
3. Tommy Searle, KTM
4. Tyla Rattray, Kawasaki
5. Blake Wharton, Honda
6. Justin Barcia, Honda
7. Broc Tickle, Yamaha
8. Matt Lemoine, Yamaha
9. Kyle Cunningham, Kawasaki
10. Trey Canard, Honda
