Rick Johnson and David Bailey, the original heroes of the epic 1986 Anaheim, were on hand for autographs and adoration by the multitude of fans.
It was supposed to be a tribute to arguably the greatest race in Supercross history, a backwards nod to the epic battle between factory Honda riders David Bailey and Rick Johnson during the 1986 Anaheim race. The two former champs took a slow tour around the outside of the replica track during opening ceremonies, an act clearly appreciated by the fans packing Angel Stadium. Fans and riders alike got into the '80s act with plenty of retro outfits and bike graphics throughout the pits. Announcer Erv Braun was particularly heinous with his spiked black mullet and pink jacket. Luckily someone must have told him he looked like an exposed liver and he ditched the overcoat halfway through the evening program.
As for the racing, things looked great for Team Honda in practice and qualifying where factory rider Davi Millsaps and Torco Racing Fuels Honda's Kevin Windham took both heat race wins. Millsaps' teammate Ivan Tedesco looked extremely fast as well as he scrapped briefly with Chad Reed in their 8-lap opening race and was followed to the checkers by another Team Honda rider, Andrew Short. The trio of Red Bull riders and Windham were so speedy in fact that once James Stewart took a leave of absence with a reported tender knee, it looked as though a true repeat of the epic intra-squad battle might be a possibility.
With Stewart out, Chad Reed (shown) was able to walk away with his second win of the season and the championship lead.
It wasn't to be, however, and the front pair in the main event wouldn't be riding red, but were aboard blue. Reed took over the lead from a holeshotting Mike Alessi only three corners in. After that it was all 22 as he ran away to a clean victory on his San Manuel Yamaha. Josh Hill, the Yoncalla, Oregon rider snuck into second place in the early laps and actually closed the gap on Reedy. Apparently once that fact was made known on the pit board, Reed made sure to keep his pace out of reach for his fellow factory Yamaha rider and finished seven seconds ahead. Even though he isn't on the leader's time, Hill is looking extremely comfortable, confident and competent on his big YZ450F.
Windham wound up third after working his way forward from sixth at the beginning. It was Millsaps who was in great position for Honda at the start, but hitting the tuff blocks after the triple dropped him down to 12th on Lap 3. He seemed to find his rhythm again, but the effort expended allowed for a stronger-as-he-goes Tim Ferry to move by on his Monster Kawasaki followed by Reed's teammate, Nathan Ramsey, and a host of other riders before eventually DNFing on Lap 18.
Two other riders who found themselves going downhill fast were Short and Grant Langston, who collided in the sand and went down in a heap. The two would both rejoin the fray with Short returning to ninth while Langston finished the final few laps by rolling around the retro track for 18th.
Reed has a firm grasp on the championship, but as the series heads to inclement San Francisco, things could get really interesting. Depending on how Stewart's knee comes around, the reigning champ is only 25 points behind the Aussie, and if anyone can come back from that kind of deficit, it's #7.
Supercross Results:
1. Chad Reed, Yam
2. Josh Hill, Yam
3. Kevin Windham, Hon
4. Mike Alessi, Suz
5. Ivan Tedesco, Hon
6. Tim Ferry, Kaw
7. Nathan Ramsey, Yam
8. Josh Hansen, Yam
9. Andrew Short, Hon
10. Charles Summey, Yam
Supercross Overall Standings:
1. Reed, 72
2. Windham, 56
3. Alessi, 48
4. Stewart, 47
5. Ferry, 46
Supercross Lites
Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Austin Stroupe pulled a healthy holeshot over the rest of the Supercross Lites division at Round 3 of Monster Energy AMA Supercross in Anaheim. The KX250F rider held down the front position for a third of the 15-lap race, but Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Ryan Dungey was not to be denied his second victory of the season. After pulling close only to be gapped by Stroupe every lap in the sand section, Dungey pulled it together through the loose stuff and was able to get around and keep the lead on Lap 6. From there it was relatively boring out front with the RM-Z rider looking particularly strong as he scored another 25 championship points.
Ryan Dungey looks dominant in the Lites division. The Rockstar Makita Suzuki rider has the speed and confidence to run and hide up front or work his way through the pack.
Yamaha's factory 250F racer, Broc Hepler continued his early string of strong West Coast performances. Despite qualifying with a podium spot in Heat 1, Hepler didn't appear to be completely comfortable on the track during early practice and qualifying, but once the main event rolled around he was all business. After a funky start, Ice Man completed the opening lap in 10th, but he would pick off one opponent per lap for the next seven circuits before jostling with Stroupe for the runner-up spot. The rookie rider would eventually fade out and allow the YZ-F to pass with four laps remaining. Helper even made it seem like he might challenge for the lead after trimming a couple seconds off the leader, but he could never cut Dungey's gap enough to really pressure him and eventually finished 1.2-seconds behind.
Dan Reardon finished just off the podium on his Torco Racing Fuels Honda with Brett Metcalfe right behind. Justin Brayton was looking to match his sixth-place finish from a week ago, but a crash in the sand with one turn to go dropped him to a distant ninth and cost three valuable points.
Dungey now holds a commanding 22-point lead over Hepler in the title chase with Reardon taking advantage of Brayton's misfortune and leading 49-47 for the third-place position in the point standings.
Supercross Lites Results:
1. Ryan Dungey, Suz
2. Broc Hepler, Yam
3. Austin Stroupe, Kaw
4. Dan Reardon, Hon
5. Brett Metcalfe, Kaw
6. Bobby Kiniry, Hon
7. Billy Laninovich, KTM
8. Gavin Gracyk, Hon
9. Justin Brayton, KTM
10. Tommy Hahn, Kaw
Supercross Lites Overall Standings:
1. Dungey, 72
2. Hepler, 50
3. Reardon 49
4. Brayton, 47
5. Lawrence, 38
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