YOSHIMURA-Backed Teams Dominate At Houston Supercross

CHINO, CA (February 14, 2011)
– Yoshimura-backed teams dominated the sixth round of the 2011
AMA/FIM Supercross Championship season at Reliant Stadium in Houston,
TX. The Rockstar Makita Suzuki, Rockstar Energy Suzuki, and Honda
racing teams all proved the performance advantage of their Yoshimura
products with their strong results.

Team Rockstar
Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey put his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki
RM-Z450 back on the box, scoring a second-place podium finish in an
action-packed main event. Teammate Brett Metcalfe rode a strong race
on his Suzuki, scoring an eighth-place finish in the 20-lap race.

“Overall, we had a real solid day,”
said Dungey. “The bike felt great all day. I really owe a lot to
Team Rockstar Makita Suzuki because they worked hard. We need to keep
pushing and start winning these races. I’m really thankful for the
day – coming off of last weekend was a real tough one for the whole
team and myself, but this is a step in the right direction and we’ll
keep building from here. It will be good to get a good solid week in
and show up in San Diego with my RMZ ready to go."

“I’m happy with the way I rode
tonight,” said Metcalfe. “The team made some good changes this
week. We made some big improvements to the engine and I have to thank
Yoshimura for all their help and everybody on the team. I think
myself and Ryan both got great starts. I came out strong in the heat
race and the main event was going good right ‘til the end. I made a
couple mistakes, and a couple guys got me at the end there and I
threw it away in the whoops trying to get a position back on the last
lap. I’m happy for next week because San Diego is close to home. I
should have a good week riding and each week my riding has been
improving. We just need to improve the result.”

American Honda Racing’s Trey Canard
won the supercross main event, scoring his first-ever supercross
class win in his rookie season aboard his Honda CRF450R. Canard got
away to a good start in the main event and managed to stay clear of a
pile-up in the first turn that claimed a number of top riders. Riding
a strong race, Canard moved into second place on lap six before
inheriting the lead from Windham, who crashed on lap eleven. Once out
front, Canard held off reigning champ Ryan Dungey to record the
first-ever supercross victory of his young career.

“I’m so excited,” said Canard.
“Winning a supercross is something I have dreamed of doing my
entire life and to finally get the win feels amazing. It was a crazy
race full of ups and downs for a lot of riders, so to be on top at
the end is something I’m really happy about. I can’t thank the
American Honda Racing team enough for all their support and for
having faith in me. Seeing how much hard work and dedication everyone
on the team puts in each and every week, I’m just glad I could give
them the win they deserved. I’m also incredibly grateful to my
family for all their unwavering support. The win puts me third in the
series points, which is a great spot to be in at this early stage in
the season.”

Team Rockstar Energy Suzuki’s east
coast rookies scored fifth- and seventh-place finishes Saturday
night. In their first-ever pro supercross event, 18-year-old Ian
Trettel rode strong and powered his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki RM-Z250
to a fifth-place finish and 17-year-old teammate, Jason Anderson,
finished just behind Trettel in seventh in the 15-lap lites main
event.

“I really had no idea what to expect
coming into Houston,” said Trettel. “I qualified my Suzuki RM-Z
eleventh fastest which I feel is pretty good because there are a lot
of fast guys here in the east. I got a pretty good start in my heat
race but got pushed around a bit in the first lap and ended up sixth.
I got a pretty good jump on the start of the main, but there was a
lot of bumping and pushing; I felt I just had to be patient. I put my
head down and put my RM-Z250 to work and was able to get my Suzuki up
to fifth. I’m really happy with a fifth-place finish in my first
race – that was my goal, but you never know if you’re going to be
able to put everything together for the first night. I’m going to
study this race and figure out what I need to do to improve my
results for Atlanta.”

“I’m excited with my first pro race
ever,” said Anderson. “I wasn’t really used to the timed
qualifying and I started off a little slow but got better throughout
the end of qualifying. I got into my heat and had a good first few
laps and ended up in third at one point, which was cool. I made it to
the main and got a decent start and my Rockstar Energy Suzuki RM-Z250
powered me up to seventh, which is where I stayed, and that was good.
I’m excited with the result and I want to build on that for
Atlanta."

The next stop of the 2011 AMA/FIM
Supercross Championship for the Yoshimura-backed teams is Saturday,
February 19th, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, CA. You can meet all
of the Team Suzuki riders on Friday, February 18th, from 6 to 7 PM at
the Escondido Cycle Center, 1415 Montiel Road, Escondido, 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.