Press Release

YOSHIMURA-Backed Teams Strong In Inaugural Dodger Stadium SX





CHINO, CA (January 24, 2011)
Yoshimura-backed teams all exhibited strong performances
during the third round of the 2011 AMA/FIM Supercross Championship
season Saturday night at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. The
Rockstar Makita Suzuki, Rockstar Energy Suzuki, and Honda racing
teams took full advantage of their Yoshimura products with great
results.


Rockstar Makita
Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey and his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki RM-Z450
powered to a third-place podium finish Saturday night in one of the
most exciting main events in recent years. Teammate Brett Metcalfe
pulled the hole-shot just ahead of Dungey and led the first lap and a
half until a small mistake put him on the ground. Metcalfe finished
strong, piloting his Suzuki RM-Z to another eighth-place finish in
the 20-lap main event.


"I’m overall happy about the
day,” said Dungey. “Winning the heat race was definitely a step
in the right direction. In the main, I got a good start on my RM-Z450
and we had to battle pretty much all race long – it was kind of cat
and mouse. Overall, happy on the day; we just came up a little short.
My Rockstar Makita Suzuki team and I accomplished a lot, so we can’t
complain about anything. I’m definitely looking forward to Oakland
and going to another new stadium. We’ll do some work this week and
show up to Oakland ready to go.”


“It was a good day,” said Metcalfe.
“My Rockstar Makita Suzuki team was able to make some changes to my
Suzuki that made me much more comfortable on the bike this week, and
that made me be able to get up to speed earlier in practice. I had a
tough heat race but was able to climb back up to ninth so I didn’t
have to go to the LCQ. In the main event, I just dropped the hammer
and my RM-Z hooked up and I was able to get the hole-shot and led the
first lap. I made a mistake on the second lap and went down and lost
quite a few positions. Overall, I was happy with the ride; it was
just that mistake that disappointed me. I’m really looking forward
to Oakland – another new stadium. And the dirt should be a little
looser and more tacky, which will suit my style a little better.”


American Honda Racing’s Trey Canard
brought the battle to the Supercross competition aboard his Honda.
Canard raced his Yoshimura-equipped Honda CRF450R® to a
fourth-place finish in the main event. After crashing hard in his
heat race, Canard transferred to the main event by way of the Last
Chance Qualifier (LCQ) race. Getting a mid-pack start in the main and
rounding the opening lap in seventh position, Canard quickly set
about working his way through the pack and moved into the number
three spot by lap four. He fought his way into second position by the
midway point in the race only to relinquish two places before the
race’s end, finishing a solid fourth overall.




“Boy was it a tough night of racing for me,” Canard said after
the race. “I really hit the ground hard in my heat race and by the
midway point in the main, I was starting to feel the effects of that
crash. I had some good battles for second and third but in the end,
fourth place was the best I could do tonight. It was amazing to watch
the whole American Honda Racing team come together to repair my bike
in time for the LCQ race. I’m just glad we were able to get back
out there and I’m glad I was able to ride a strong race in the main
event.”



Team Rockstar Energy Suzuki scored a podium and an 11th-place finish
in LA. Ryan Morais piloted his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki RM-Z250 to a
third-place podium finish in the 15-lap lites main event. Martin
Davalos qualified fastest for the day and dominated the second heat
race on his RM-Z250 to end up with a convincing win. Davalos
struggled a bit in the main and finished the evening 11th.


“Overall a
pretty good night,” said Morais. “I made good progress from last
weekend to this weekend and I feel like I rode a lot better.
Hopefully I’ll be able to carry it over to next weekend. The
Rockstar Energy Suzuki team did a great job and I’m happy to put my
Suzuki RM-Z on the podium. I’m going to go home and work on my
starts. It seems like whoever gets the starts winds up winning this
year. I’ll be ready to step it up for Oakland."


“My day started off really good,”
said Davalos. “I felt great on my Suzuki RM-Z and got a really good
practice time. I got a decent start in the heat and took my time in
the first corner – put myself in a good place and ended up with my
first heat race win with the Rockstar Energy Suzuki Team. In the main
event, I got a decent fourth place start but was maybe a little too
cautious and ended up going down. I think I need to work on my
confidence and be more aggressive to improve my mains. I’m looking
forward to a better result in Oakland.”


The next stop of the 2011 AMA/FIM
Supercross Championship for the Yoshimura-backed teams is Saturday,
January 29th, at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, CA.



About Yoshimura R&D of America: Yoshimura is “The Leader
in Performance” and has been for more than 55 years. With unmatched
skills, knowledge, and passion for racing, Yoshimura is on the
forefront of the aftermarket exhaust industry. Yoshimura pipes are
race bred and feature the same legendary performance, fit and quality
that has been their trademark for more than five decades. To learn
more about Yoshimura and view their wide variety of performance
products, visit www.yoshimura-rd.com.





0 comments

The Latest