This Week in Monster Energy Supercross: Indianapolis

AURORA, Ill, (March 11, 2011) – As the 20th Monster
Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, race from
Indianapolis looms, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto finds
himself in firm control of the Supercross class standings heading into
the 10th race of the season. Coming off back-to-back wins at
both Atlanta and Daytona, Villopoto now carries a 23-point lead into a
venue in which he was able to capture the win one year ago.

“I
got the win (at Indy) last year and I hope that I can keep the (win)
streak alive,” said Villopoto. “I really want to go after more wins and
finish out the second half of the season strong.”

Luck
has been on Villopoto’s side during his victorious efforts the past two
weeks, but the third-year rider has been arguably the most consistent
competitor in the championship all season. By virtue of running at the
front of the field, he is able to take advantage of the opportunities
that present themselves.

Saturday marks the 20th time the gate will drop for an AMA Supercross race in Indianapolis and the third time that Lucas Oil Stadium has hosted a race.

Photo Credit: Hoppenworld.com

For
San Manuel Yamaha’s James Stewart, Daytona was hard to swallow. A major
crash out of the lead forced Stewart to climb his way through the field
from last place on a difficult track. He was able to overcome the
majority of the competitors that stood in front of him, ultimately
posting a ninth-place finish and salvaging valuable championship
points. However, his misfortune has put him in the deepest hole he’s
been in all season in the standings.

 
“I’ll never quit for anything, I want it too bad,” said Stewart.  “It’s
not about how hard you go down, it’s about how hard you fight when you
get back up.  That was a crazy race for sure and I was definitely
feeling a little sore afterwards, but I went back to training this week
and am looking forward to Indy.” 

Reigning
Monster Energy Supercross Champion Ryan Dungey has been the strongest
rider in the championship over the last month of competition. The
second-year Rockstar/Makita Suzuki rider has posted four consecutive
podium finishes since a rare DNF in Anaheim, including a trio of
runner-up efforts. His consistency has not only helped bring him back
into the title fight, but it’s provided tremendous confidence for he
and his team as they’ve proven to have the ability to bounce back from
adversity.

At
Daytona, that adversity struck again with a freak incident while
leading his heat race. However, Dungey and his team came back to win
the LCQ and ultimately wrap up a third-place effort despite a poor gate
pick.

“I
owe a lot to my Rockstar Makita Suzuki team,” said Dungey in Daytona.
“They worked their butt off to get my Suzuki ready for the LCQ and for
it to run that good in the main was unbelievable. I’m really happy – we
had our work cut out for us. With the cards that were dealt and the
circumstances, I think we handled everything the best we could and did
all we could. I think at the end of the day, we’re happy with the
result. I’m really looking forward to Indy; the new Lucas Oil Stadium
is really cool and the fans there are great. It’ll be good to get back
indoors.”

Monster
Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto currently controls the points lead in
the Supercross class with 196 points. A win this weekend will mark the
14th victory of his career.

Photo Credit: Hoppenworld.com

The
Red Bull KTM team continues to improve each and every week during the
debut season of the 350 SX-F. First-year KTM rider Andrew Short has
posted solid efforts throughout the season on the new bike, including a
season-best fourth-place effort this past weekend in Daytona.

“It
feels so good to continue to make big steps every week,” said Short.
“Earning fourth place in Daytona was just one more step closer to the
podium and where we would like to be. We continue to work hard each and
every week and except to see my KTM on the podium by the end of the
season.”

For
Rockstar/Makita Suzuki rider Brett Metcalfe, the last two weeks have
brought a pair of significant get-offs that have ultimately forced the
Australian rider to sit out this weekend’s race from Indianapolis.

“The
track in Daytona is always tough,” said Metcalfe. “And the crash in
Atlanta took a lot out of me physically. I knew it was going to be
tough coming in to Daytona, but I tried to be positive. We got better
through practice – my Rockstar/Makita Suzuki team really got the bike
working good for me and I couldn’t really ask for anything more.

“I
just wasn’t physically prepared for that kind of race. I tried to make
a game plan and stick to it, but I lost that game plan about halfway
through the main. I felt good at the beginning of the main, but by the
halfway point, it was tough for me and I lost a bit of focus there.
We’re still in one piece but I think its best that I sit this week out
to let myself recover a bit and prepare to come back for Jacksonville.”

The
2011 season has seen its ups and downs for Red Bull KTM’s Mike Alessi.
In his first full season in supercross since 2009 and his first effort
in the discipline aboard the KTM 350 SX-F, Alessi is progressing weekly
and looking to improve as the season moves forward.

“I
really liked the Daytona course,” said Alessi. “I always like that
supercross because it feels more like an outdoor race to me.
Unfortunately, I had some bad luck off the start and ran off the track
twice so I was happy to still come away with a top 10.”

With
the Supercross Lites Eastern Regional Championship in full swing after
three races, it’s a tight battle atop the standings between GEICO
Honda’s Justin Barcia and the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki duo
of Blake Baggett and Dean Wilson.

For
Baggett, Daytona was almost as perfect as the second-year rider could
ask for. After winning his heat race, Baggett stormed to the lead in
the main event and never looked back, going wire-to-wire to claim his
first win for Mitch Payton’s team and the second win of his young
career. Additionally, the win moved Baggett into second in the
championship.

“It
was pretty unbelievable to have my first race win the year at Daytona,”
said Baggett. “I was so happy and I really hope I proved that I am a
championship contender. I have been working on my starts and it really
helps getting out front early and being able to control the race. I
want to be able to do it again in Indy.”

GEICO
Honda’s Justin Barcia leads the points race in the Eastern Regional
Supercross Lites class with 69 points, four points ahead of Monster
Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett.

Photo Credit: Hoppenworld.com

Baggett’s
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki teammate Wilson hoped Daytona would
keep the momentum he garnered from his first-career win at Atlanta just
one week prior. Instead, it resulted in one of the worst outings of the
sophomore rider’s career. A strong heat race suggested the three-way
battle would continue in the main, but a bad start forced Wilson to
come from behind and resulted in some mistakes that led him to an
eighth-place effort.

“I
didn’t have a good race in Daytona, but I try to put that out of my
mind and focus on what I have to do next week,” said Wilson. “I am very
determined to win and I will be pushing hard to pick up some more
points in Indy.”

For
the Rockstar Energy Suzuki stable, Daytona resulted in mixed emotions.
The team was proud of rookie rider Jason Anderson’s hard-working
sixth-place effort in his continued development in supercross.

“Daytona
actually worked out pretty good for me,” said Anderson. “I struggled a
little bit in my heat race but made it through to the main. In the
main, I got bumped at the start and bent my shift lever; it ended up
stuck in third gear. I had to ride the whole race in third gear so I
was on the rev limiter every lap through the whoops, but my RMZ was
amazing and held together – I was pretty excited to come away with a
sixth. I’m definitely looking forward to Indy. The Daytona track was
kind of a curveball for me, so I’m excited to go to Indy and get back
to an indoor stadium.”

Tickets are available at the Lucas Oil Stadium Box Office, SupercrossOnline.com, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge by phone at (800) 745-3000, or online at www.ticketmaster.com. 
Practice and qualifying begins at 12:30 p.m., and the main event begins
at 7:00 p.m.  VIP tickets are available for $75 Adult/Child (VIP
Experience includes one (1) ticket to the event and a private autograph
session with the top riders from 3:00PM - 4:00PM the day of the show);
Club Level $45 Adult/Child; Gold Circle $35 Adult/Child; Mid Level $25
Adult/Child; Treadhead $10 Adult/Child.

For more information on the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, please log on to www.SupercrossOnline.com. For all media requests, please contact Denny Hartwig dhartwig@feldinc.com or 630-566-6305. To follow Monster Energy Supercross on Facebook and Twitter, log on to http://www.facebook.com/supercrosslive and http://twitter.com/supercrosslive.

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