2011 AMA Supercross
The 2011 AMA Supercross will make its debut at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum this Saturday for Round 4 of the FIM championship.
In the premier class, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto leads the point race after winning the opening round in Anaheim and last week’s Dodger Stadium LA race. He is five points ahead of San Manuel Yamaha’s James Stewart, who won at Phoenix (Round 2).
In the Supercross Lites class, Circuit/Kawasaki’s Josh Hansen is four points ahead of Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki teammate Broc Tickle.
And the excitement was endless in the Supercross main. Rockstar Makita Suzuki rider Brett Metcalfe took the holeshot, followed by Dungey and Windham. But Metcalfe went down on Lap 2, giving the lead to Dungey, who was trailed by Windham and Stewart.
Stewart quickly took second from the experienced Windham, and began an intense battle with Dungey for the lead. One place that Stewart completed dominated at the LA SX track was the whoops; Stewart capitalize on his speed in the whoops, and would take the lead from Dungey in the section during lap 4.
Meanwhile behind, Canard moved into third. Although Villopoto started in ninth, he moved quickly into fourth. But a mistake by Canard on Lap 6 would put Villopoto in third.
On Lap 9, Villopoto took Dungey, and immediately started closing in on Stewart. Both Supercross riders began a wheel-to-wheel race, but Stewart maintained the edge, staying ahead of Villopoto. On the following lap, Dungey regained some momentum, and him and Villopoto bumped each other a few times as Stewart remained out front.
But on lap 11, Stewart crashed after wrongly negotiating the right turn after the triple. He fell back to fourth, giving the lead to Villopoto. The Monster Energy Kawasaki rider would not be challenged again, and took the win.
Stewart would pass both Canard and Dungey for second with four laps to go, and maintain the position until the checkered flag. Dungey took the final spot on the podium; Canard and Brayton rounded out the top five.
Ryan Villopoto says: "It was really slippery out there tonight," said Villopoto. "The start of my race didn’t go as planned, but I was able to make up some time early on and things went my way."
Villopoto now has 72 points, He leads Stewart by five points in the 17-round Supercross Championship. Dungey maintains third with 58 points.
CBS will broadcast the Supercross class race at noon (EST) Saturday, Jan. 30, 20011, and SPEED will broadcast the Supercross Lites class race at 6 p.m. Saturday.
Supercross tickets are available at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Box Office, SupercrossOnline.com, all Ticketmaster retail locations, ticketmaster.com, or charge by phone at (800) 745-3000.
Practice and qualifying begins at 12:30 p.m., and the main event begins at 7 p.m. Club Level tickets are $75 Adult/Child; Trackside $45 Adult/Child; Lower View $35 Adult/Child; Upper View $25 Adult/Child; Extreme Value $10 Adult/Child. Fans can also get into the Pits for FREE from 12:30 – 6 p.m. race day when they recycle a MONSTER Energy Can at the stadium Pit Entrance (valid only with event ticket).
Supercross Class Season Standings
1. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki – 72
2. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Yamaha – 67
3. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki – 58
4. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda – 56
5. Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Honda – 48
6. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki – 39
7. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM – 37
8. Justin Brayton, Cornelius, N.C, Yamaha – 36
9. Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Yamaha – 33
10. Kevin Windham, Centerville, Miss., Honda – 32
Supercross Lites Class Western Regional Season Standings
1. Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki – 66
2. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Kawasaki – 62
3. Cole Seely, Corona, Calif., Honda – 59
4. Ryan Morais, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki – 55
5. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda – 49
6. Tyla Rattray, Wildomar, Calif., Kawasaki – 42
7. Martin Davalos, Cairo, Ga., Suzuki – 40
8. Travi Baker, Temecula, Calif., Honda – 35
9. Ken Roczen, Mattstedt, Germany, KTM – 31
10. Nick Pauluzzi, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha – 30
