Dungey Earns First-Ever Supercross Podium for KTM

3^rd
place finish at Anaheim 1

ANAHEIM,
Calif. – Red Bull/KTM Factory Team rider Ryan Dungey finished 3^rd
overall at the opening round of the AMA Supercross Series effectively
earning KTM’s first-ever U.S. Supercross class podium finish.

Dungey
looked impressive from the start of the first practice session on his
newly released KTM 450 SX-F Factory Edition race machine. He
qualified third fastest from practice and was placed in the second
heat.

He
nearly nailed the holeshot once the gate dropped for his eight-lap
heat but was cut off as the riders rounded the first corner and
dropped back to 3^rd.
He quickly passed Brett Metcalfe to move into 2^nd
behind Andrew Short at the end of the first lap. Dungey, Short and a
hard-charging James Stewart soon found themselves in a three-way
battle for the lead. Stewart made the pass to take over the lead
position while Dungey and Short battled it out for 2^nd
place. Dungey was able to make the pass on the final lap to earn 2^nd
overall in the heat.

At the
start of the main event, Dungey leaped out front early to earn
another good start on his KTM. He rounded the first corner in 5^th
position and passed Mike Alessi for 4^th
within the first few turns. He continued his forward momentum making
a clean inside pass on Ivan Tedesco on the third lap of the race to
move into podium position. Out front, Ryan Villopoto led the way
while Chad Reed sat in the runner-up position and Dungey sat
approximately 5 seconds back in 3^rd.

Dungey
spent the first half of the race closing the gap on Reed, turning lap
times nearly a full second faster. On the ninth lap Dungey made a
mistake and tucked the front end causing him to crash. He quickly
recovered but lost his position to Stewart. On lap twelve, Stewart
made a slight mistake that Dungey capitalized on and moved his KTM
back into 3^rd.
On the next lap, Reed crashed which allowed Dungey and Stewart to
close on him. The three riders then began a battle for 2^nd
place that ran for the next four laps.

The
crowd was on their feet as the three battled it out swapping
positions. On the sixteenth lap, Stewart crashed, marking one crash
for each of them. Stewart’s crash cost him a lot of time and he
recovered in 6^th
position allowing Reed and Dungey to pull away. Dungey continued to
pressure Reed for the remaining laps eventually crossing the line in
3^rd
just a bike length behind Reed.

Dungey’s
podium finish marked the first for the KTM brand in its U.S.
Supercross racing history. It also marked the first podium for the
new KTM 450 SX-F Factory Edition. “My bike ran flawlessly tonight,”
remarked Dungey after the race. “I would have definitely liked to
pass Chad and take 2^nd
tonight, but I am happy to earn KTM its first podium. I can’t thank
the team enough for all they have done for me in the development of
this new bike.”

Red
Bull/KTM Factory Team Manager Roger DeCoster commented, “The entire
team is excited for the podium finish but we also know that 2^nd
place was within our reach tonight. We were happy with Ryan’s
performance but we know we have some areas that need work and we will
begin to correct them immediately. We hope to continue this success
into next week and improve our position on the podium.”

Next
Event: Phoenix, AZ – January 14, 2012

Overall
Results

1. Ryan
   Villopoto

   
   

2. Chad
   Reed

   
   

3. Ryan
   Dungey – KTM
   

   
   

4. Justin
   Brayton
   

   
   

5. Jake
   Weimer

   
   

6. James
   Stewart

   
   

7. Andrew
   Short

   
   

8. Kevin
   Windham

   
   

9. Mike
   Alessi
   

   
   

10. Josh
    Hansen

    
    

11. Brett
    Metcalfe

    
    

12. Broc
    Tickle

    
    

13. Ivan
    Tedesco

    
    

14. Kyle
    Chisholm
    

    
    

15. Ryan
    Morais

    
    

16. Davi
    Millsaps

    
    

17. Jimmy
    Albertson

    
    

18. Chris
    Blose

    
    

19. Josh
    Grant

    
    

20. Tommy
    Hahn