Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Battle Tightens Up
Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, will return to San Diego for its final Southern California stop inside Qualcomm Stadium this weekend. The sixth race of the 2014 season will honor the over one million service men and women in the armed forces with the first ever Military Appreciation Race, in support of Operation Homefront, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides assistance to service members and their families with a focus on wounded veterans who served on or after 9/11. Feld Motor Sports will make a monetary donation to the Operation Homefront.
Last weekend at the third and final race from Anaheim, Calif., and Angel Stadium for 2014, Discount Tire Racing/TwoTwo Motorsports’ Chad Reed won his second 450SX Class Main Event of the season by leading all 20 laps and fending off a steady challenge from Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen throughout. The victory was the 43rd of Reed’s illustrious career, his second in three races, and his second in Anaheim this season, which tied him for the most wins all-time at Angel Stadium with eight.
“It was a tough racetrack tonight,” said Reed from the podium. “It was about making smart choices and putting yourself in a good position to ride 20 solid laps. This win means more to me than the last one [on January 18] where I came from behind because it’s tougher to go out there and lead all 20 laps. We had our bike dialed in tonight and it was one of those nights where it felt one with me.”
With his win, combined with a third-place finish from Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto, the current 450SX Class championship leader, Reed moved to within just two points of claiming possession of the red number plate to signify the current points leader. For Villopoto, the 2014 season marks the first time in four seasons that he failed to win a race in Anaheim. Historically, every rider that has won a championship in the new millennium has also won at least one race inside Angel Stadium.
Through the first four races of the Western Regional 250SX Class Championship, the competition has been some of the most captivating in the 40-year history of Monster Energy Supercross. Last Saturday in Anaheim, the drama intensified as the championship points experienced a shakeup. With just one race remaining until the Western Region takes a midseason break from competition, San Diego will prove to be a pivotal stop in the title fight.
Just one week after missing out on his first win of the season on the final lap of competition, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson rebounded to take a wild victory of his own in Anaheim. Wilson and Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil Honda’s Cole Seely asserted themselves in the top two positions throughout the 15-lap Main Event and opened a large gap over the field. After taking the lead on the opening lap, Seely led the first 12 laps of the race only to crash while navigating his way through lappers with three to go. Wilson, who had paced Seely throughout the race and began a late charge to the front, was able to slip by his rival and steal the victory.