Round six of the AMA Supercross series headed to beautiful San Diego, which would be the last California round of the series. As always, San Diego greeted the riders and teams with sunny and warm weather, which is something we haven't had much of so far this season.
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The San Diego track was a technical track that had the season's longest start so far.
San Diego saw the return of Bryan Johnson to action to the BBMX line-up since his hand injury suffered in San Francisco a few weeks back.
Kyle Cunningham came into San Diego 10th in points and was looking to move up in the standings. After his impressive 5th place ride last weekend at A3, Kyle came into San Diego ready for battle.
During the afternoon practice/qualifiers, Shaun Skinner battled bike problems as his bike would not run right on the bottom end. Shaun's mechanic, Eric Stewart chased the mechanical gremlins during the afternoon break and Skinner was able to put down laps in qualifying session two. Unfortunately, he came up short by 1/1000 of a second and did not qualify for the night show.
Kyle Cunningham qualified 8th to seat himself into the night show. In the Supercross class, Jason Thomas, Brandon Butler and Bryan Johnson all secured spots for the night's racing.
The Night Show
Kyle Cunningham had a rough heat as he did not get the start he needed. Being stuck mid-pack, Kyle went down in the sandy first turn around lap 4. After kicking the bike a few times, KC finished out of a qualifying spot and his chance for a spot in the main had to come through the LCQ.
KC grabbed a good start in his LCQ and was in the 4th and final transfer position for the main. A fierce battle with Billy Laninovich of the MDK KTM team lasted all race until Billy made a pass on KC at the last corner before the finish on the last lap. KC had to let off to keep from colliding with Laninovich, and that costed KC a transfer spot.
In the Supercross class, Bryan Johnson finished 10th in his heat, just one out of a transfer spot as he battled from a mid-pack start. Bryan and Brandon both had to go into the LCQ, where Bryan was caught up in the start gate and ending his night. Brandon finished 13th in the LCQ. Not bad considering he is still nursing an injured hand. Look for both riders to come on strong as their injuries heal up.
Jason Thomas rode very strong in his heat race, finishing 6th to grab a spot in the main. JT rode very consistent, put his head down and got it done.
The Main
Jason Thomas came charging out of the gate and had a great start, running the first eight laps in 9th place. JT and Nick Wey had a battle for most of the main, going back and forth until Wey made the pass. After that, JT rode very strong to finish the night in 10th, holding off Team Kawasaki's Travis Preston. San Diego was JT's best ride of the season so far and no doubt his confidence level is up there again.
So as the sun sets on the west coast rounds, with only Houston and Seattle remaining, Kyle Cunningham sits 13th in points. Look for Kyle to come out with a vengeance in Houston and Seattle.
Jason Thomas has seemed to find his groove again and will be out for another top 10 in Houston as well. As his hand continues to heal, Bryan Johnson will no doubt be back and running in the top 10 as the series heads closer to home soil for him.
If you are planning to visit any of the east coast rounds, be sure to stop by the BBMX/DNA Energy/BTOsports.com/Rick Case Honda semi to pick up your signed posters of the BBMX team riders. While you are there, take a few photos of the guys(or even with the guys) and submit them to the website. We would love to have photos of our fans here on the site. To check out the full BBMX San Diego photo gallery, click here or the photo below.
