Roczen Shines in Las Vegas

Red
Bull/KTM rider Ken Roczen won his first race on the KTM 250 SX-F at
the final round of the West Lites AMA Supercross Series in Las Vegas,
NV.

The
final round of the series had riders from both coasts compete in a
final race for their respective series championships before taking
the top 20 riders and placing them into a ten lap East/West Lites
Supercross Shootout.

In the
West Lites fifteen lap main event, Roczen nailed the holeshot on his
KTM and pulled out to an early lead. Roczen led the first three laps
before washing out in a turn before the finish line jump. Roczen
recovered quickly and was able to move into 2^nd
place behind Cole Seely. He then closed the gap on Seely the next few
laps and moved closer to retaking the number one position. Soon Seely
suffered a crash and allowed Roczen to regain the lead. Once back out
front Roczen began to pull away from the rest of the riders and
stretched his lead.

Roczen
went on to take his first career Supercross Lites win 12 seconds
ahead of 2^nd
place rider Broc Tickle. “It feels so good to take the holeshot and
the win in Las Vegas. I have always dreamed of racing in Vegas and to
see the happiness on my teams face makes this the greatest win of my
career,” remarked Roczen.

After
only a short break Roczen was back in action and lining up for the
ten lap shootout. Roczen had another decent start within the top six.
He remained close to the lead riders and crossed the line the first
lap in 5^th.
By the fourth lap he had climbed up to 4^th
and on lap six he passed Martin Davalos to move into 3^rd.
Roczen spent the next few laps all over the 2^nd
place ride of Cole Seely but was unable to make the pass at the end
of ten laps. Roczen finished 3^rd
overall for the night putting his KTM on the podium for a second
time.

Also
finishing well in Vegas was Red Bull/KTM Team rider Andrew Short.
After getting a flat tire in his heat race Short had to get in the
main event through the LCQ. Short easily won the LCQ and headed
toward the main event where he lined up with his teammate, Mike
Alessi, who qualified 5^th
into the main from his heat.

At the
start of the Supercross main event, it was Alessi with the holeshot
on his KTM 350 SX-F. Alessi remained inside the top five until a
crash a few laps into the race sent him over the bars. Alessi tweaked
his knee slightly and hit his head and decided to return to the pits
to recover and was unable to finish the race.

Short
did not have as decent of a start and began the race in almost last
position. He quickly climbed through the pack and had moved into 11^th
by the fifth lap. In an amazing charge through the pack Short was
able to remain smooth and pass a few more riders while also
capitalizing on the mistakes of others as many riders hit the ground.
At the end of the twenty lap main event Short had moved up to 5^th
overall. He remained in that position to finish the race in 5^th
place.

“I had
no idea I was in 5^th
place. I knew that I had a bad start and thought that I was still so
far back. I couldn’t believe when I crossed the finish line and saw
my number on the top five board. I was really stoked to walk away
with a 5^th
place result after the start I had at the beginning of the race,”
remarked Short.

The team
will now begin to prepare for the outdoor season. Alessi and Roczen
will head to the Glen Helen MXGP next weekend while Short will
prepare for the start of the Outdoor Motocross Series to be held on
May 21, 2011 at Hangtown Raceway.

Overall
Results West Lites Main –

1. Ken
   Roczen – KTM
   

   
   

2. Broc
   Tickle
   

   
   

3. Kyle
   Cunningham

   
   

4. Eli
   Tomac

   
   

5. Cole
   Seely
   

   
   

6. Tyla
   Rattray
   

   
   

7. Ryan
   Morais
   

   
   

8. Travis
   Baker

   
   

9. Martin
   Davalos
   

   
   

10. Josh
    Hansen
    

    
    

Overall
Results East Lites Main –

1. Blake
   Baggett

   
   

2. Ryan
   Sipes

   
   

3. Justin
   Barcia
   

   
   

4. Dean
   Wilson
   

   
   

5. Malcolm
   Stewart
   

   
   

6. Matt
   Lemoine
   

   
   

7. Lance
   Vincent

   
   

8. Hunter
   Hewitt

   
   

9. Les
   Smith
   

   
   

10. Justin
    Sipes
    

    
    

East/West
Lites Shootout –

1. Ryan
   Sipes
   

   
   

2. Cole
   Seely
   

   
   

3. Ken
   Roczen – KTM
   

   
   

4. Dean
   Wilson
   

   
   

5. Martin
   Davalos
   

   
   

6. Eli
   Tomac

   
   

7. Kyle
   Cunningham
   

   
   

8. Lance
   Vincent
   

   
   

9. Travis
   Baker
   

   
   

10. Broc
    Tickle
    

    
    

Overall
Supercross Results –

1. Chad
   Reed
   

   
   

2. Ryan
   Dungey
   

   
   

3. Ryan
   Villopoto
   

   
   

4. Chris
   Blose

   
   

5. Andrew
   Short – KTM
   

   
   

6. Jake
   Weimer
   

   
   

7. Austin
   Stroupe

   
   

8. Nick
   Wey
   

   
   

9. Kyle
   Regal
   

   
   

10. Tye
    Simmonds – KTM