From third place to victory, Ryan Villopoto (below) earned his third win of the season in Atlanta due largely to the antics of Chad Reed (#22) and James Stewart.
The 2011
Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship has reached the halfway point, and last week’s jaw-dropping contest couldn’t have come at a more pivotal moment. For much of the season’s first half, the tug-of-war action between San Manuel
Yamaha’s
James Stewart and Monster Energy
Kawasaki’s
Ryan Villopoto was the featured attraction. This has changed dramatically, however, with the renewed rivalry between Stewart and TwoTwo Motorsports’
Chad Reed.
The proverbial rug was ripped from underneath Stewart as his fourth win of the season turned into a mediocre night of being kicked-off the podium. Perhaps most detrimental to Stewart was having Villopoto, currently Stewart’s most dangerous competitor, snag another victory and increase his lead in the standings. With all this behind them the series now gets ready to unload in Daytona, where GOAT
Ricky Carmichael has been hard at work designing a custom SX circuit. While still a Supercross layout, the long, sandy track contains outdoor elements which should cater to those with strong motocross experience.
No rider benefited more from the fallout between Stewart and Reed than Villopoto. The team green helmsman secured a decent start in the main and rode consistently to stay within sight of the leaders. RV remained level-headed and cautious about overriding his abilities while maintaining similar lap times with the leaders, and with some added patience an opportunity presented itself on the final lap.
“I saw those guys (Chad Reed and James Stewart) up front and couldn’t really do anything about catching them without doing something foolish,” said Villopoto. “We were all running very similar lap times and there wasn’t a particular spot where I was a lot faster and could make up ground. I just tried to be patient and it definitely paid off.”
Ryan Dungey: "“I like Daytona; it's always fun. It's a tough track and it's different - It's Supercross, but it's a bit rougher and the layout is different."
Leading the championship by 10 points, Villopoto eagerly embarks for Daytona where he clenched the win last year.
“I’ve always liked Daytona because it brings the feeling of the outdoors to Supercross,” said Villopoto. “It’s still a Supercross, but the lap times are a little longer and I know endurance will come into play in the main event.”
One of the game changers in Atlanta was Reed’s sheer determination to win. After getting a terrific start, a mistake by JS7 allowed him to get by and it was a spectacle to watch Reed as he laid it all on the line to nab back-to-back victories. While fans and the media continue to conjecture as to who was at fault over the crash, Reed and Stewart remain fairly quiet about the incident while preparing themselves for Daytona. It will be interesting to see what develops between these two in Round 9 as both will attempt strong statements with their follow-up performances.
Also capitalizing on the Reed/Stewart debacle was
Rockstar Makita
Suzuki’s
Ryan Dungey. The defending champion had a rough start to the evening in his heat race, and during the main he netted nearly 20 laps within the top-five. Dungey rode smart and stayed within his limits. In the end he had a second-place finish to show for it. The upcoming round should play in Dungey’s favor as the 2010
AMA Pro Motocross champion has more than enough skills to master Daytona’s outdoor layout.
KTM's Ken Roczen will return aboard the 350 at Daytona after recent tests for the European motocross circuit.
“I'm looking forward to Daytona,” Dungey said after the last race. “I like Daytona; it's always fun. It's a tough track and it's different - It's Supercross, but it's a bit rougher and the layout is different. I'm going to get back home, work on the track, and get ready for Daytona."
One unknown for the upcoming round is
Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen. The 16-year-old German phenom will climb aboard the 350 SX-F at Daytona. Not only did the youth earn an impressive seventh-place finish in his first-ever premier class performance in Houston, but he also has an extensive resume in the MX2 Outdoor World Championship. High things are expected of him as he digs into the Daytona circuit for the first time.
“I have always wanted to race at the Daytona track,” said Roczen. “I had a lot of fun racing the 350 SX-F at Houston and wanted to get one more ride in before I left for Europe.”
In the East Coast Lites class Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s
Dean Wilson accomplished no small feat of his own by earning his first-ever AMA Supercross win. Ironically, the Scotsman’s first victory marked the 200th win for Pro Circuit.
Kawasaki's Dean Wilson recently picked up his first AMA Supercross Lites win and heads to Daytona with strong outdoor skills.
“I am so happy to finally get my first win,” said Wilson. “I feel like I’ve been so close and to finally win is amazing. I don’t know how else to describe it but as a dream come true. I worked really hard over the past two weeks to get my endurance back to where I was before my injury. It really came through this week since I was able to charge from an okay start.”
Wilson is also predicted to be in strong form for Daytona after posting excellent results during the 2010 AMA Pro Motocross Championship, where he took two wins to finish fourth. However, Wilson will have his hands full with Geico Powersports
Honda’s
Justin Barcia, who also finished strongly in the 2010 Motocross season and who won the first East Coast Lites race of 2011 in Houston.
