Top 10: Oakland 450s 5

GuyB

1/26/2014 11:07am

Ready to make a run through the 450 Top 10 from Oakland? Let's do this.

Okay, we'll admit it, we're always impressed when a privateer grabs a holeshot in either class. Vince Friese did it in the 450 main. He eventually finished 14th.

1. Ryan Villopoto (Monster Energy Kawasaki) breaks the three-race string of different winners, and did it by quickly dispatching Vince Friese, and then clicking off the laps. He looks considerably more comfortable than he did at the start of the season.

2. James Stewart (Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing) had more in the tank this week, as he's starting to get over the cold that had been bothering him the last couple of weeks. He was seventh at the end of lap one, and methodically worked his way through the pack.

3. Chad Reed (Discount Tire/America's Tire/TwoTwo Motorsports) was on the podium again, for the third time in four races. His third-place finish keeps him in second spot in the series.

4. Ryan Dungey (Red Bull KTM) started fourth, and is riding pretty darn well right now. His finish here matches his series point standing.

5. Justin Brayton (Toyota/Yamaha/JGRMX) started third, and lost spots to James Stewart and Ryan Dungey before finishing fifth, but he definitely fits in with that lead group.

6. Ken Roczen (Red Bull KTM) has been impressive, not just with his speed, but his racecraft. Yep, he's aggressive, but not overly so, as Justin Brayton found in this corner.

7. Justin Barcia (Team Honda Muscle Milk) is having a rough go so far this season, and the crash in the middle of the main event didn't help. You can see him starting to kick out sideways in the shot above, and it ended with him hugging the Tuf-Blox.

8. Wil Hahn (GEICO Honda) made a big step forward this week, cracking the top ten with his best result in the 450 class to date. Good starts definitely help.

9. A ninth for Jake Weimer (Monster Energy Kawasaki) wasn't too bad. He had a hard crash in the whoops during practice, and it took a while to get his feet underneath him.