AMA Motocross
The 2011 AMA Motocross Championship kicked off the Memorial Day Weekend Saturday with round 2 in Freestone Raceway, Wortham, Texas.
After taking a moto win at the Motocross season opener in Hangtown last week, Chad Reed continued his domination at Freestone, sweeping both races. Taking second overall in Freestone Motocross was Muscle Milk/Toyota/JGR Yamaha’s Davi Millsaps (4-2), and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto (3-5) took third.
During the first moto, Reed took the win with ease over Dungey and Villopoto, respectively. But the second moto at Freestone was much different; Reed had the early Motocross lead, but crashed. He remounted in second place behind his rival Dungey.
With two laps remaining, though, Dungey also had some issues, but not a crash. While in a comfortable lead, Dungey suddenly starting slowing, and eventually stopped due to mechanical problems. This caused a DNF, giving Reed the win.
Joining Reed on the podium during Moto2 was Millsaps and Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Brett Metcalfe.
Chad Reed (Two-Two Motorsports Honda CRF450R Motocross) says: “The first moto was awesome. You had to be patient. I thought Dungey and I would battle, but I got good lines and pulled away.
“The second moto was almost the same thing. He put down good laps. I was trying to find my lines and then crashed. I put in some strong laps and was on the ragged edge, so I backed it down because I didn’t think it was worth it. Then, unfortunately, he had his problems. It’s a bummer for him. You don’t want to win like that, but sometimes you’ve got to be in the right place at the right time. We had the pace to win today, but I almost threw it away with that crash.”
Ryan Dungey (Rockstar Makita Suzuki RMZ450F) says: “I got off to a good start and then got the lead. I was putting in some good laps and then Chad (Reed) made a mistake. I was able to capitalize on that and then pull away a little bit more. I was just trying to maintain my lead and get the overall, but I guess there were some other things that happened.
“It is what it is. We just had a little bit of a problem. We aren’t sure what it is, but we’ve got a great team here and we’ll get to the bottom of it. It’s a long season and we still have a lot of racing left and that’s something to be thankful for. We’ll just put our head down and keep going.”
The 2011 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship breaks next weekend before returning at High Point in Mt. Morris, Pa., June 11.
2011 Freestone AMA Motocross Results: 450 Class (Moto Finish)
- Chad Reed, Australia, Honda (1-1)
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha (4-2)
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki (3-5)
- Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Suzuki (9-3)
- Ricky Dietrich, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha (8-4)
- Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki (6-7)
- Christian Craig, Hemet, Calif., Honda (5-8)
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki (2-25)
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM (15-6)
- Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Yamaha (10-11)
2011 AMA Motocross: 450 Class Championship Standings (after 2 of 12 rounds)
- Chad Reed, Australia, Honda – 97
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki – 76
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha – 72
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki – 69
- Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Suzuki – 64
- Ricky Dietrich, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha – 53
- Christian Craig, Hemet, Calif., Honda – 47
- Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda – 45
- Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki – 44
- Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Yamaha – 40