Torrance, CA: For the second week in a row, the Honda Red Riders
dominated the AMA Supercross an FIM World Championship competition,
winning both the San Diego Supercross and Supercross Lites West
classes. In torrential weather conditions TwoTwo Motorsports’ Chad Reed
won the Supercross event, taking his first victory of the season aboard
his Honda CRF450R, while GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac recorded his
first-ever win in the Lites West series aboard his CRF250R.
Heavy rain
and strong winds invaded San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium on Saturday,
February 19 creating a mud filled round seven Supercross event. Despite
the conditions, American Honda Racing’s Trey Canard put in a solid
performance aboard his Honda CRF450R finishing second in his heat race
before going on to finish one spot shy of the podium in fourth in the
main event. Canard started quickly in the main and moved into the
number two spot behind Reed on the opening lap. On lap three, Canard
made a pass on Reed that stuck moving him into the lead. On lap six,
however, Canard slipped in the wet, handing the lead back to Reed.
Losing several spots in the fall, Canard retaliated working his way
back up to second by lap 15 only to be tripped up in the mud the
following lap. Relinquishing three spots this time, Canard kept
chipping away right up to the checkers, regaining a spot to finish in
fourth.
“I’m bummed yet happy all at the same time,” said Canard. “I
bummed because I really thought I was going to win the race tonight yet
happy with my bike set-up and the way it handled tonight in the
incredibly wet and slippery track conditions. It was definitely gnarly
out there—big ruts and very slippery. I’m also pumped that I managed to
get a great start and be among the top five rounding the first turn. I put
myself in a good position from the start to be up front. My fourth
place result doesn’t really reflect how hard I worked tonight and how
well I actually rode. But considering I fell twice, I’m happy with
fourth.”
After grabbing the holeshot, Reed rode a smart race out front,
leading 17 of 20-laps aboard his CRF450R en route to capturing his
first victory of the season for his TwoTwo Motorsports team. Reed’s win
was his sixth San Diego Supercross victory and he now takes over first
on the all-time win list in San Diego, surpassing Supercross legend
Jeremy McGrath’s five win record.
“In the main I got the holeshot and put myself in the right position
to take full advantage of my start,” said Reed. “I was riding a little
tight, a little bit conservative, when Trey passed me. He showed me
some decent lines to follow while out front and I took it from there
once he went down. It was a shame that Trey crashed because it would
have been great to see Honda go one-two on the podium tonight. Still,
it’s a great feeling to get this win; I’m proud to have pulled this
victory off.”
GEICO Honda’s Kevin Windham had a tough night, colliding with
another rider and suffering damage to his front brake caliper that
knocked him out of the race.
In the Supercross Lites West competition, GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac
took it to the top to score his first-ever Supercross Lites win after
coming close on several occasions this season. Aboard his Honda
CRF250R, Tomac nailed the holeshot and pulled away to a commanding lead
early on. By lap five, the Supercross rookie had already begun to lap
riders and by the race’s end had established over a 10 second lead on
the second place.
“I got a great start in the main,” said Tomac. “I was able to pull a
good gap over everyone during the first five laps and it wasn’t long
until I was lapping riders. The conditions were tough; it was slick out
there and it was very much a one-line track. It feels amazing to get my
first win and I hope to get many more wins in the future.”
Teammate Jimmy DeCotis put in a solid performance aboard his GEICO
Honda CRF250R scoring his best result of the season in fifth overall.
Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oils/Honda’s Cole Seely was among the top
contenders all night, and he finished just shy of the podium in fourth.
Supercross Lites West Main Event
1. Eli Tomac (Honda)
2. Tyla Rattray
3. Broc Tickle
4. Cole Seely (Honda)
5. James DeCotis (Honda)
6. Josh Hansen
7. Ken Roczen
8. Ben Evans
9. Ryan Morais
10. Kyle Cunningham
Supercross Lites West Points (after 6 of 9 rounds)
1. Josh Hansen 128
2. Broc Tickle 125
3. Eli Tomac 116
4. Ryan Morais 96
5. Cole Seely 88
6. Ken Roczen 83
7. Tyla Rattray 80
8. Martin Davalos 69
9. James DeCotis 67
10. Kyle Cunningham 60
Supercross Main Event
1. Chad Reed (Honda)
2. Ryan Dungey
3. James Stewart
4. Trey Canard (Honda)
5. Davi Millsaps
6. Andrew Short
7. Ryan Villopoto
8. Brett Metcalfe
9. Mike Alessi
10. Justin Brayton
Supercross Championship Points (after 7 of 17 rounds)
1. Ryan Villopoto 146
2. James Stewart 143
3. Chad Reed 130
4. Trey Canard 130
5. Ryan Dungey 123
6. Andrew Short 95
7. Brett Metcalfe 93
8. Davi Millsaps 78
9. Justin Brayton 76
10. Ivan Tedesco 66
About Honda:
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of Honda motorcycles, scooters, ATVs, MUVs and personal watercraft in
the U.S. American Honda’s Motorcycle Division conducts the sales,
marketing and operational activities for these products through
authorized Honda dealers. For more information on Honda products, go to
powersports.honda.com.