2003 Supercross Anaheim 1 Results

Factory Yamaha’s Chad Reed won a thrilling main event at the American THQ World Supercross GP opener at Anaheim, becoming the first Australian to win a championship supercross event in the US. The Anaheim round is the third for the world series, and the opener for the AMA’s US series, which remains the traditional 16 rounds.

Defending champion Ricky Carmichael was impressive with a charge from the back to second, and Tim Ferry was third. The event also marked the first time since 1992 that a 250 supercross was held without the sport’s greatest icon, Jeremy McGrath, on the track. McGrath had confirmed his retirement at a press conference the previous Thursday, and made a single slow lap around the track to a standing ovation.

The night was full of action and surprises, much of which took place during the heat races. Yamaha teammates Chad Reed and David Vuillemin had a great battle in heat one which Reed bested his teammate. In the next heat race Carmichael was holding off a persistent charge from Travis Pastrana, but the Golden Boy caught the champion after a long whoop section and Carmichael lost his momentum for a moment. Two turns later RC made a pass back on the inside and drifted into Pastrana’s line which sould have forced him to grab the brakes. Instead he gassed it and ran into the back of Carmichael’s Honda, knocking himself down and allowing Carmichael to get away clean.

The crowd interpreted Pastrana’s fall as a dirty move on Carmichael’s part, and they booed him loudly for the remainder of the heat race.

In the main it was Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Mike Brown who got the holeshot but Reed re-took the lead on the first lap, with Mike LaRocco and Pastrana in close pursuit. Carmichael had been shut out in the first turn. He fell a couple of times tryig to work his way through an obstinate pack of contenders after finding himself in last place.

Four laps into the main LaRocco fell, then Pastrana ran into him and went down. Ivan Tedesco and Michael Byrne were soon collected in the melee. Pastrana tried to continue but he eventually pulled off with a hurt knee and groin. This shuffled the pack by four spots so Sebastien Tortelli moved into third, and his Suzuki teammate Stephane Roncada was suddenly in fourth. Tim Ferry made his way to second but never really got close to Reed. Also having bad luck was Red Bull KTM’s, Grant Langston. The South African crashed in the whoops and banged up his shoulder bad enough to force him to call it a night.

Reed won the event easily, but Carmichael made his way into second, stealing some of the glory from the Factory Yamaha boys, Tim Ferry (3rd) and David Vuillemin (4th).

“I was off to a bad start and I was trying to make up as much ground as I could,” said Ferry, who saw the 4-bike crash on the 4th lap. “I was going over a triple and I looked over to my right and I think it was Pastrana and LaRocco wadded up,” he said. “I made a couple of spots right there. If you try and go inside on this track it is really slippery. It’s not like the east coast tracks, its Anaheim. It’s kind of its own breed. I have a hard time here. I am totally happy to come out of here with a podium and some good points going into the second race. I don’t know if racing in Europe last month hurt me or helped me. I made one podium over there and had a pretty decent ride at the US Open. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to stay racing. Overall I got a little tight. About three-quarters of the way through my arms got a little tight. When Ricky caught me I didn’t have much for him. I could have put up more of a fight be he was going a good bit faster a couple of seconds a lap faster. So I just rode my own race. When it’s not your day you have to realize that and take the points and move on to the next race.”

Ferry’s night didn’t start out that great since he wasn’t keeping up with Reed and Vuillemin in their heat race, but a tire change helped him regroup. “Chad and David schooled me on the heat race and I made some changes with the tires and I totally nailed it,” said Red Dog. “I changed front and rear tires and got the best combo I had all weekend. I wasn’t sure where David was. I don’t know if he went down in that crash or what. He was there for a while and David always rides good here so I was expecting him to come up a little bit more. I am not surprised than Chad was up there. I spent a lot of time riding with him. After the first practice I felt good. After the second practice I was like 8th fastest so at that point I wasn’t feeling that good. After the heat race I was questionable about finishing on the podium. The main event is the thing that counts and it is where I seem to pull through and I make something happen.”

Carmichael has had his share of ups and downs at Anaheim, mostly downs for season openers. “A lot of stuff always happens to me here,” said the Champ. “There is not much I can say about the heat race. Pastrana did the same thing to me but I waited for him to get in front of me until I went. When I passed him I felt that when I was in front of him that he just tried to go and he ran into me. I saw him last year feet off the pegs taking out Ramsey when he should have had a podium. Also, he landed on Mike LaRocco’s wrist and ended his supercross season last year. That is no way to look at it from a fans standpoint. Things were good. It just wasn’t my night. I have won a lot of supercross races. I know how to win them. I thought I was the best guy tonight I just couldn’t put it together. I am confident in my speed and in my fitness. It was amazing at the end of the race how many people I was passing other than the guys that fell. It seemed like I was putting a lot of time on them and I thought they would be a little better than they were. It was a good job for Chad it’s awesome to see someone do good like that.”

Carmichael spoke of the strong crowd reaction to the heat race incident with Pastrana, “(When they boo) it does get to me a little bit, but when they do that it just makes me want to win even more,” said a puzzled Ricky. “That’s the best retaliation you could ever have. I feel that I am pretty strong mentally, and it does bother me but I can block it out. I just try and look at every negative and turn it into a positive. Until tonight my best season start was third and that was in 2001. I think I got the holeshot that night and faded back to third. I feel good. I got a bad start and fell 2 times and went off the track one time so there is not much to say. I think LaRocco actually got a better start than I did. I don’t use that starting device so I think at some tracks its good, some tracks it isn’t. I think maybe next weekend I better think about using it. I have gotten good starts with it and good starts without it. It’s no big deal. I know where I want to be in Las Vegas and I know I have what it takes to win. This was just a tough night for me.”

“When a crowd reacts like that it definitely bums you out,” continued Carmichael. “Some people on the other side of the fence don’t see my side or another racers side. I never seem to have problems with any other riders except him (Pastrana). I don’t want to go out and try to take us both out or anything. That is just going to make it harder on me. Why would I want to do that? I was kind of fed up after it. Indy I don’t think was my fault and tonight I don’t think it was my fault. (When he made the pass) He came in on me and I hit the brakes and waited for him to get in front of me. When I passed him its not like I went in there and hit the crap out of him like I hit Windham in Vegas in 1997. I went in there and slowed down so he wouldn’t tuck underneath me and he gassed it and hit my back tire. It made me look like the bad guy. One bad thing about not winning for me is it always makes a long week.”

Event winner, Chad Reed was real pleased with the way things turned out. “It feels great to win,” said the Australian phenom. “I wanted to be in this position for a long time and finally I got here. Unfortunately Ricky crashed but as the old saying goes you have to be in it to win it. I am just looking forward to next weekend. There has been so much talk maybe I can be the one that beats Ricky and tonight I beat him. He was on the ground, so maybe it wasn’t fair I really want to beat him fair and square. At the beginning I was running low 57s which is the fastest and that was in the heat race. I felt good. I got to 10 laps and thought ‘where is everyone?’ It was too easy. I just rode it out and no one was catching me. Then with 5 laps to go I saw Ricky and took it up a little bit and we stayed the same for the last couple laps. The win at Arnhem was good but Ricky was not there. We have a lot of races and it’s going to be a long season. I am prepared.”

“This track was weird” said Reed. “I turned up here last year and had the same problem. I didn’t have enough feeling with the bike. This weekend I felt OK but I hated the track. The dirt is terrible. I like the east coast. I am moving back to Florida with Timmy and I have been doing a lot of riding back there and I am looking forward to going east.”

Chad had some thoughts to share regarding the retirement of the legendary Jeremy McGrath. “Jeremy had a great career,’ said Reed. “Coming into this race when I heard that Jeremy was retiring I was thinking I would like to win my first race here because he won his first here. I have always looked at Jeremy and the one I really look up to. He really brought me to the US he set such a great example for everyone.”

250cc THQ Supercross Event Results, Anaheim 1
1. Chad Reed, Corona, Calif., Yamaha
2. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Honda
3. Tim Ferry, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha
4. David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Yamaha
5. Sebastien Tortelli, Temecula, Calif., Suzuki
6. Ernesto Fonseca, Canyon lake, Calif., Honda
7. Ryan Clark, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha
8. Ezra Lusk, Bainbridge, Ga., Kawasaki
9. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha
10. Stephan Roncada, Menifee, Calif., Suzuki

250cc THQ Supercross Series Season Standings, Anaheim 1
1. Chad Reed, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 25 pts
2. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Honda, 22 pts
3. Tim Ferry, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 20 pts
4. David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 18 pts
5. Sebastien Tortelli, Temecula, Calif., Suzuki, 16 pts
6. Ernesto Fonseca, Canyon lake, Calif., Honda, 15 pts
7. Ryan Clark, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha, 14 pts
8. Ezra Lusk, Bainbridge, Ga., Kawasaki, 13 pts
9. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 12 pts
10. Stephan Roncada, Menifee, Calif., Suzuki, 11 pts

250cc THQ World Supercross GP Season Standings
1. David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 67
2. Chad Reed, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 66
3. Tim Ferry, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 59
4. Sebastien Tortelli, Temecula, Calif., Suzuki, 52
5. Grant Langston, Lake Elsinore, Calif., KTM, 49
6. Mike LaRocco, South bend, Ind., Honda, 46
7. Ryan Clark, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha, 34
8. Keith Johnson, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha 33
9. Jeremy McGrath, Encinitas, Calif., KTM 29
10. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 28

125 Recap
Factory Connection/Amsoil Honda’s Travis Preston won the opening round of the west 125 regional supercross championship at Anaheim with his best performance to date, leading all but two laps before taking the win.

Preston is the defending champion, but he is unique in 2002 he wasn’t favored since rookie sensation James “Bubba” Stewart was heavily picked to win it. Mistakes cost Stewart the title last year and Preston seemed to come out of nowhere to take the title due to consistency. A year has since passed, and a proud CR125 with that #1 plate makes Preston hardly an unknown anymore.

David Pingree took the holeshot in the main event, but soon Preston’s teammate Chris Gosselaar overtook him and was in the lead. Two laps later Preston took over and checked out. Stewart was stuck back in traffic after a bad start, and even though he had the fastest lap times, traffic kept him from getting close to Preston. Andrew Short used his great start to his advantage, and put in 15 strong laps, earning the third and final place on the podium.

“Of all places this is the best place (for my first podium),” said Short who did his first press conference and smiled while listening to the top three 250 riders talk about their race, “I didn’t even know they had these press conferences. It is cool to sit here and listen to these guys talk Our Motoworld Racing dot com Suzuki team has taken a big step, and hopefully tonight I proved it. Our team works hard and this meant a lot to them. I didn’t know how I would do because I was in the LCQ and had to start from the outside. It is good to make a podium in your first race. I achieved one goal and now there is another one. Both of the European races were really good. I got to race at a faster pace with the 250 guys. The pace was so much faster and that was the best thing for me.”

Bubba is so fast he has always been favored to win, but bad things can happen in racing. “I felt good out there when I was practicing,” said Stewart. “Going into the heat race I was really confident with the Kawasaki. I felt really good when I was out there. I think I won by like 24 seconds. Going into the main I felt really confident and just got a horrible start and got caught in a first corner pileup. I just kind of rode around the few couple of laps trying to get things ironed out. When I got in like 10th place I started coming up and I think I got passed a couple time out there. Once I got around Andrew I had a clear track and started catching Travis a little bit. I will try to come back to Phoenix next weekend and try and win that.”

“I think Travis rode an awesome race,” said Stewart, who didn’t seem too worried about missing out on the win this time. “I am comfortable with where I am. I think if I had a good start I could have won it. I haven’t lost any confidence over it if anything it will motivate me to go faster. It’s going to be a long week and I am staying in California. We will be ready for Phoenix. Last year at this time I think I would have thrown in away a couple of laps into it. Now I am a lot smarter. I am taking my time. I got three seconds here and a 12th, but I love it here. This is my favorite stadium. I haven’t won here but the crowd is awesome. I am really bummed. I want to win at this place. If I can win here I can get a rhythm. I have to get this place out of the way.”

Preston rode his most impressive 125 main to date, and set a pace fast enough where Stewart could not catch him by the time he got it together. “It was pretty good,” said Preston. “I had some problems in the heat and did pretty good. Somehow I got a good start in the main and got out front and rode my own race, so it worked out. I like that #1, it looks good. I am definitely trying a little harder to keep it. I really like that number so I’m working hard to keep it. Its seems easier when I am out front of all the people but when its just you guys (in a press conference) its weird.”

Preston is known for his modesty and fun humor on the podium and in interviews, and at the post race press conference he joked a little about people still not paying attention to him. “This weekend I was so into the race,” he said. “For some reason no one takes pictures of me or anything. Everybody is focused on Bubba so that is good. I am having a good time and I can’t wait for next weekend. I think I made a couple mistakes. Next week I am going to try and do a little bit better. This year I feel really strong. I really like my bike. Going into the main I knew I would be on the box. I just didn’t know if it would be first, second or third. I just feel really good out there.”

125cc Western Regional Supercross Results, Anaheim 1
1. Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda
2. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki
3. Andrew Short, Colorado Springs, Colo., Suzuki
4. Christopher Gosselaar, Corona, Calif., Honda
5. Danny Smith, Middleton, Idaho, Suzuki
6. Billy Laninovich, Escondido, Calif., KTM
7. Matt Walker, McRae, Ga., Kawasaki
8. David Pingree, Temecula, Calif., Suzuki
9. Craig Anderson, Corona, Calif., Yamaha
10. Kevin Johnson, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha

125cc Western Regional Supercross Season Standings
1. Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 25
2. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki, 22
3. Andrew Short, Colorado Springs, Colo., Suzuki, 20
4. Christopher Gosselaar, Corona, Calif., Honda, 18
5. Danny Smith, Middleton, Idaho, Suzuki, 16
6. Billy Laninovich, Escondido, Calif., KTM, 15
7. Matt Walker, McRae, Ga., Kawasaki, 14
8. David Pingree, Temecula, Calif., Suzuki, 13
9. Craig Anderson, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 12
10. Kevin Johnson, Albuquerque, N.M., Yamaha, 11