After a week of pounding rain, the third round of the 2010 AMA / FIM Supercross series went off as scheduled at Angel’s Stadium. Although Chad Reed, one of the anticipated players in this season’s burgeoning Supercross drama was absent with a broken hand, there were still enough emerging new talent to maintain the excitement.
A battered and bruised James Stewart (having been landed on at the last round) chose not to participate in the opening activities. Even so, Stewart went out and nabbed second in his heat race just behind team mate Josh Hill. Although Stewart looked confident and smooth, he seemed just slightly hesitant in the first turn, which is a long left-hander, making one wonder if that’s the side of his body that is giving him pain.
Ryan Dungey, the man of the moment, went out and handily won his heat race, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that his previous win and second place finishes are certainly not flukes.
The main event was a fantastic piece of racing. After playing some catch-up from a less than stellar start, Ryan Dungey quickly caught Stewart and Josh Hill, who was riding in top form. The three tightened up and freight-trained it for several laps before Dungey got past Stewart, who faded somewhat in a respectable third considering how banged up he was (he had to be helped back to the pits).
Ryan Dungey had a nice dice with Hill, the two riders winding up the crowd. Dungey managed to pass Hill and then put down the hammer with the laps remaining, opening up a somewhat comfortable lead (if there is such a thing in Supercross) and won his second Supercross event.
Dungey extending his points lead to 72, over Hill’s 57 and an on-again, off-again Ryan Villopoto who has 52. Meanwhile, after dropping to seventh after the 2nd round in Phoenix, James has already started to climb the points roster and now sits in 5th, with Andrew Short quietly maintaining a solid 4th in the standing.
The man of the hours, Ryan Dungey, is rapidly acquiring a new fan base as was reflected in the enormous cheers and the number of banners, as well as his pit area resembling that of Stewart with regard to the fans hanging around trying to get a glimpse of the rising star.
