450 RACE 1 Recap:
Ryan Villopoto managed to overcome a rough start to comeback and win his third straight moto in the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. After his sweep at Hangtown, Villopoto had a slipup right out of the gate, allowing the other top riders to attempt to create some space from the 2011 series champion.
Justin Barcia took the Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot and built an early lead, but the Honda Muscle Milk rider was closely followed by Ryan Dungey. Dungey came out aggressively, challenging Barcia for the lead and desperately seeking his first victory of the season. Dungey managed to pass Barcia with just over 13 minutes to go. Villopoto stayed in the thick of things despite clearly having trouble with the track and coming up close to some fans mid-race. Villopoto made his move at the 8 minute mark managing to pass Barcia and Dungey and remain the only rider with a win in the 450 class this season.
The top 3 kept their distance from Trey Canard and Belgian rider Clement Desalle, who battled it out for 4th place. Desalle is racing in the states for the first time this season with teammate Kevin Strijbos, who are on a break from racing in the Grand Prix. Canard finished 4th, 3 seconds ahead of Desalle.
James Stewart took a spill early, but managed to make his way from the back of the pack to finish 15th. Stewart’s brother, Malcolm, was awarded the Ricky Carmichael Hard Charger Award this week by going from 36th to 15th in one moto at Hangtown. James is an early favorite to win the award next week after nearly replicating the charge put forth by his little brother.
Mike Alessi, Tyla Rattray, and Josh Grant finished 6-7-8. Malcolm Stewart came in 9th, followed by Kevin Strijbos rounding out the top 10.
Riders wore Oklahoma Strong stickers during the race in honor of the victims of the Oklahoma tornadoes earlier this week. Trey Canard, an Oklahoma native auctioned off his signed jersey, along with several other riders, to donate to the victims.
450 Moto 1 Results
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Ryan Dungey (-10.2 seconds)
3. Justin Barcia
4. Trey Canard
5. Clement Desalle
6. Mike Alessi
7. Tyla Rattray
8. Josh Grant
9. Malcolm Stewart
10. Kevin Strijbos
11. Dean Wilson
12. Phil Nicoletti
13. Weston Peick
14. Broc Tickle
15. James Stewart
16. Jake Weimer
17. Derek Anderson
18. Andrew SHort
19. Ryan Sipes
20. Bobby Kiniry
450 RACE 2 Recap:
Ryan Villopoto won the second 450 moto to remain perfect on the season going into next week’s Built Ford Tough Tennessee National. Justin Barcia took another Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot to begin the second moto, followed by Trey Canard and Ryan Villopoto. Villopoto made quick work of his opposition, passing both Canard and Barcia to take the lead within the first 9 minutes of the race.
After a rough start for many riders in the first moto, Moto 2 had a slew of top riders leading the way. Ryan Dungey couldn’t get over the hump but managed to get another 2nd place finish for Red Bull KTM. James Stewart came out strong after struggling early in the day and was able to pass Trey Canard and Justin Barcia to earn a 3rd place finish and reclaim a spot on the podium.
Barcia took 4th, good enough to put him on the overall podium, and Trey Canard held on to 5th even though Mike Alessi made a strong push, passing Clement Desalle and holding him off to finish the race. Desalle was followed by fellow Belgian Kevin Strijbos and the two finished 7th and 8th.
The battle for 8th place lasted much of the race as Strijbos and Tyla Rattray were right behind Dean Wilson trying to take the spot from him. Wilson fell behind and Strijbos took advantage, but Rattray couldn’t pass Wilson and finished in the 10-spot. Malcolm Stewart finished 11th to go 9-11 on the day for 11th overall.
Villopoto and Dungey managed to take the top overall spots for the day, going 1-1 and 2-2 respectively, while Barcia, Canard, and Alessi finished the day 3rd, 4th and 5th overall.
With another sweep, Villopoto has started to open up somewhat of a gap in the championship standings. Dungey sits just 12 points back, but the next closest riders, Barcia and Canard, are 30 back of RV2, giving him a bit of breathing room going forward.
With Barcia’s second holeshot today, he is now tied with James Stewart for the season lead in the Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot Championship, with each taking a sweep at the first two races of the season to earn 4 points apiece.
450 Moto 2 Results
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Ryan Dungey (-6.9 seconds)
3. James Stewart
4. Justin Barcia
5. Trey Canard
6. Mike Alessi
7. Clement Desalle
8. Kevin Strijbos
9. Dean Wilson
10. Tyla Rattray
11. Malcolm Stewart
12. Jake Weimer
13. Ryan Sipes
14. Weston Peick
15. Broc Tickle
16. Andrew Short
17. Fredrik Noren
18. Josh Grant
19. Bobby Kiniry
20. Justin Brayton
Overall Results
1. Ryan Villopoto (1-1)
2. Ryan Dungey (2-2)
3. Justin Barcia (3-4)
4. Trey Canard (4-5)
5. Mike Alessi (6-6)
6. Clement Desalle (5-7)
7. James Stewart (15-3)
8. Tyla Rattray (7-10)
9. Kevin Strijbos (10-8)
10. Dean Wilson (11-9)
11. Malcolm Stewart (9-11)
12. Josh Grant (8-18)
13. Weston Peick (13-14)
14. Jake Weimer (16-12)
15. Broc Tickle (14-15)
16. Ryan Sipes (19-13)
17. Phil Nicoletti (12-27)
18. Andrew Short (18-16)
19. Derek Anderson (17-22)
20. Fredrik Noren (26-17)
Point Standings
1. Ryan Villopoto, 100
2. Ryan Dungey, -12
3. Justin Barcia, -30
4. Trey Canard, -30
5. James Stewart, -34
6. Mike Alessi, -46
7. Tyla Rattray, -51
8. Ryan Sipes, -63
9. Weston Peick, -64
10. Andrew Short, -66