SX Lites San Diego
Rookie Honda 250cc rider Eli Tomac earned the first victory of his very short Monster Energy AMA Supercross Lites West career at Qualcomm Stadium on Feb. 19, 2011 in San Diego.
The rookie was out of the gate strong and never looked back despite enduring sloppy track conditions.
By the end of the race, Tomac built a 13-second lead over runner-up finisher Tyla Rattray on the Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250F. After finishing on the podium in his three previous Lites West races, it was a matter of when, not if, Tomac would break through with a victory.
Tomac is still in third place in the Lites West standings, but has closed the margin he is out of first from 22 points to 12. Tomac knows that he wouldn’t be where he is without his Geico Honda crew behind him.
Eli Tomac (2011 Honda CRF250R) says: "I caught lapped traffic pretty fast and that made the race interesting quickly. I knew I was ahead, but I had no idea how far ahead I really was.
"This is the best feeling, I’ve been working so hard all season to get here and I’m just really happy I finally got my first Supercross win."
"This is No. 1 to me. Winning Supercross is every kid’s dream. I didn’t start off the season as great as I would have liked but I can’t make excuses, it’s just what happened. I’m definitely turning this season around.
"My whole Geico Honda Lites team is awesome. they’re the coolest guys out there."
Tomac earned his first professional victory during last year’s outdoor season in the 2010 AMA Pro Motocross series, but he quickly stated that winning Supercross is his greatest achievement yet.
Tomac’s teammate and fellow rookie, Jimmy DeCotis, also earned a career-best finish in the 250cc class.
Jimmy DeCotis (2011 Honda CRF250F) says: "It’s great to finish fifth. I’m grateful for my team and how we ran."
"I was running a really great race. I had the holeshot, I was running all the way up in second but I just wasn’t able to hold on in the end."
"I know I’ll get up on the podium soon. Every time I get out on that track I learn something and tonight was no different. I just have to keep at it, I’ll get there."
DeCotis got off to his strongest main event start of the West SX Lites season and was running right behind Tomac in second place before dropping to fifth place during the eighth lap.
The Supercross Lites West series now takes an extended break as the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series heads east for several weeks. Tomac and DeCotis won’t race again until April 16, 2011 in Seattle.
The next stop for the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series will be Feb. 26th at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.