Anaheim 1 SX Report
Brett Metcalfe, the newest member of the Rockstar Makita Suzuki Team, had a great first-ever 450 heat race aboard his Suzuki RM-Z450 motorcycle with a solid third-place finish at the 2011 AMA Supercross in Anaheim, Calf.
Dungey’s 2011 teammate, Brett Metcalfe, rode his own Suzuki RM-Z450 to an eighth-place finish in the first 450cc Supercross race of his career after stepping-up from the riding the Geico Honda CRF 250 R last year in the SX Lites class.
Metcalfe took the momentum of his qualifying heat race to the SX main, where he propelled his new fuel-injected Suzuki RM 450 to a third-place start, just ahead of Dungey.
After being passed by Dungey, Metcalfe made a mistake, suffering an off-track excursion (and headed straight at us), and lost several positions. Metcalfe was able to quickly re-entr the track and hold onto an eight-place finish in what was his career-first AMA 450 Supercross race.
Brett Metcalfe (Suzuki RM-Z 450) says: "I started out a little tight and uncomfortable in practice," explains the rookie Supercross 450 rider.
"My Rockstar Makita Suzuki team was able to make some adjustments and by the time we got to the heat race, I was feeling really good and I was happy with my setup on my Suzuki RM-Z450 – it was time to go racing.
"My heat race turned out really good. I got a good start and ran up to about second and ended up finishing third. I had another great start in the main, and was up front, and I felt comfortable and felt like I was in the groove, but then I made a big mistake and went off the track and that really upset my rhythm for a few laps.
"After that, I lost touch with the lead group and just wanted to finish out those twenty laps and not make any more mistakes. We had a pretty good first day and learned a lot and I’m looking forward to going to Phoenix."
2011 Anaheim 1 Supercross Results
- Ryan Villopoto – Kawasaki KX 450 F
- Ryan Dungey – Suzuki RM-Z 450
- James Stewart – Yamaha YZ 450 F
- Trey Canard – Honda CRF 450 R
- Chad Reed – Honda CRF 450 R
- Kevin Windham – Honda CRF 450 R
- Ivan Tedesco – Kawasaki KX 450 F
- Brett Metcalfe – Suzuki RM-Z 450
- Josh Grant – Honda CRF 450 R
- Andrew Short – KTM 350 SX-F
Brett Metcalfe will make his second 450 Supercross appearance at the next the SX event to be held on Saturday, Jan. 15, at Chase Field in Phoenix, AZ.
You can meet Brett Metcalfe and Ryan Dungey and the rest of the Rockstar Makita Suzuki Supercross Team at RideNow Powersports, 8546 West Ludlow Drive, in Peoria, AZ from 6 – 7 PM on Friday, Jan. 14, 2011.
Photos by Mike Hill from Ultimate MotorCycling
