Red Bull/KTM Race Report - Daytona

All
Red Bull/KTM Team Riders Finish Inside Top Ten, Again!

Short Ties KTM Best Finish Record

All
three Red Bull/KTM Factory Team riders placed inside the top ten at
the ninth round of the AMA Supercross Series held at Daytona
International Speedway. In addition to the positive team result, team
rider Andrew Short’s 4^th
place finish tied the best overall finish record for any KTM rider in
Supercross history. His teammates, Ken Roczen and Mike Alessi
finished 8^th
and 10^th
respectively.

Alessi
was up first in Supercross heat number one. Unfortunately, Alessi
made a mistake and bolted forward before the gate dropped. He was
stuck in the gate and took off dead last from the start. He moved
forward at a quick pace and had climbed up to a remarkable 7^th
place by the end of the second lap. He passed one more rider near the
end of the race to finish 6^th
overall in his heat.

Roczen
and Short were up next in heat number two. Roczen, in only his second
Supercross heat race, took the holeshot on his KTM 350 SX-F. He was
passed on the inside by Davi Millsaps at the exit of the first turn
and missed a jump on the next rhythm section to drop to 4^th
place. He quickly passed back into the top three behind leaders
Millsaps and James Stewart. On the second lap, Stewart made a mistake
and allowed Roczen to close the gap. A few turns later Stewart
crashed, handing 2^nd
place to Roczen. Stewart quickly rebounded and got back around Roczen
on lap four. Meanwhile Short had started inside the top five and ran
up as high as 4^th
place before making a few mistakes at the end of the race to finish
6^th
in the heat. Roczen went on to finish 3^rd
behind heat winner Stewart and the 2^nd
place ride of Millsaps.

The
three Red Bull/KTM team riders were joined by another 350cc rider
when JDR/J-Star/KTM Team rider Tye Simmonds qualified into the main
event. This marked the most KTM 350 SX-F machines that had ever lined
a Supercross main event gate.

When the
gate dropped, Alessi had a great jump but got pushed to the far
outside around the first corner and was run off the track. He quickly
got back on and moved into the top fifteen at the end of the first
lap. His teammates, Short and Roczen had better luck as Short came
out 3^rd
off the start and Roczen was inside the top ten. Short reported, “I
was definitely a little nervous off the start because I had 12^th
gate pick and was worried I wasn’t going to get out front. When the
gate dropped, I hung it all out and was able to make some smart moves
and get out front early. I know that getting a good start in a race
this demanding is what definitely made my race tonight.”

Short
was able to capitalize on his great start by moving into 2^nd
on lap four after Stewart suffered a hard crash. He held 2^nd
position for two laps before Millsaps made a pass on him on lap five.
Chad Reed and Ryan Dungey began to close in on him the following lap
and he began to make mistakes as they continued to pressure. “I got
a little tight when Reed and Dungey were closing on me and I was
trying to ride too hard which caused me to make a few mistakes,”
remarked Short. “Once they got around, I calmed myself down and got
back into my rhythm. That is when I started to get time back on
Millsaps.” Short went on to run Millsaps down with three laps to
go. He made the pass stick on lap seventeen and continued to pull
Millsaps to the checkered flag. Short made history when he crossed
the line in 4^th
position tying former KTM factory rider, Mike Fisher’s, best finish
on a KTM and also earning the best overall finish for the KTM 350
SX-F in Supercross racing.

Back on
the track, Roczen was riding a solid race inside the top ten. Roczen
raced around in 9^th
place for the majority of the race. On lap twelve he was able to
avoid a collision that happened when Bret Metcalfe cross-rutted in
front of Trey Canard and took both riders out. Roczen snuck by them
and moved into 8^th
place. He held 8^th
place through the remainder of the moto to earn his second top ten
finish in the Supercross class.

“I had
a lot of fun tonight. I actually got a good start because I rode
through the middle instead of off to the inside or outside and was
able to move in front of a lot of people right from the beginning.
After that, I just tried to remain consistent and maintain my
position. I was really happy to get another top ten,” stated
Roczen.

Alessi,
who had been run off the track on the start, had climbed back to 11^th
place by lap four. He fell back to 16^th
at one point before turning up the heat after the halfway mark and
working his way toward the top ten. When the checkered flag flew he
had worked his way up to 10^th
place, putting the third KTM into the top ten.

“It’s
great to get three KTM’s in the top ten again. I like Daytona
because it is as close to an outdoor race as we get in Supercross and
I feel more at home on these type of tracks. I wish I could have had
a better start to help my race, but I am happy to finish inside the
top ten,” remarked Alessi.

All
three riders reported that this was the longest Supercross main event
they had ever raced. “The track was so long and tough,” commented
Roczen. “I am getting ready to head back to Europe to race the GP’s
and I think this race was good training for that.”

Next
Event: Indianapolis, IN – March 12, 2011

Overall
Results Supercross Class –

1. Ryan
   Villopoto
   

   
   

2. Chad
   Reed
   

   
   

3. Ryan
   Dungey
   

   
   

4. Andrew
   Short – KTM
   

   
   

5. Davi
   Millsaps

   
   

6. Justin
   Brayton
   

   
   

7. Kevin
   Windham

   
   

8. Ken
   Roczen – KTM

   
   

9. James
   Stewart
   

   
   

10. Mike
    Alessi – KTM
    

    
    

11. Ivan
    Tedesco

    
    

12. Matt
    Boni
    

    
    

13. Trey
    Canard

    
    

14. Michael
    Byrne

    
    

15. Nick
    Wey
    

    
    

16. Fabien
    Izoird

    
    

17. Tye
    Simmonds – KTM
    

    
    

18. Brett
    Metcalfe

    
    

19. Chris
    Blose

    
    

20. Matt
    Goerke
    

    
    

Overall
Point Standings Supercross Class –

1. Ryan
   Villopoto – 196
   

   
   

2. James
   Stewart – 173
   

   
   

3. Chad
   Reed – 172
   

   
   

4. Ryan
   Dungey – 165
   

   
   

5. Trey
   Canard – 154
   

   
   

6. Andrew
   Short – 128
   

   
   

7. Brett
   Metcalfe – 107
   

   
   

8. Justin
   Brayton – 105
   

   
   

9. Davi
   Millsaps – 104
   

   
   

10. Kevin
    Windham – 89