James Stewart Sweeps Paris




James Stewart


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By Davey Coombs


The other guys never really had a chance. San Manuel Yamaha's James Stewart never took his foot off the gas pedal as he drove through the Paris-Bercy Supercross like a Sherman tank. In his first-ever visit to the City of Lights and this legendary Supercross race, Stewart swept every race he rode in, including the four rounds of elimination match races. He was only led today by MDK/KTM's Justin Brayton, who was his biggest threat all weekend long, though never close enough to make Stewart nervous.


“Justin is really going to surprise some people next year,” said Stewart on the six-time runner-up to him. “He rides really well and he tries hard, and you can tell he's really serious about it.”


Stewart was serious too in the way he approached this event. With the entire L&M Yamaha team on hand to help out, he was spectacular on the tight Bercy track, never missing a beat all weekend long. He will now head back to the U.S. and straight to California for some testing, then it's back home to Florida to train with Aldon Baker, who was also on hand in Paris.


Brayton seemed pleased with his weekend too. “I got a lot of seconds, so that was good, and the fans treated me great. I really enjoy coming here and look forward to coming back again next year.”


The place wasn't so kind to Geico Honda's Kevin Windham and JGR Yamaha's Josh Grant. Windham would finish third in the first race but then get passed by BUD Racing Kawasaki's David Vuillemin in the last main of the weekend, preventing an American sweep of the nine podium spots available. As for Grant, he could only mutter, “This place just doesn't like me,” after crashing out of the match races, bending the subframe and clamps on his Yamaha and ending his weekend early.


“It's hard to do anything out there with a bad start because everyone is doing the same things, but that's no excuse,” said Windham, who last raced in Paris in 1999. “I don't think it will be another nine years until I'm back here because I am having a good time.”


Stewart of course had the best time, and he now goes back home to get ready for Anaheim 1 and the start of the 2009 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, where he hopes to get his title back from Chad Reed.

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