James Stewart Records First Win of Season in 450 Moto 1 at Spring Creek
The experience of James Stewart was on display as he held off Trey Canard to take his first moto victory of the season. Stewart’s win marks the first time in the 2013 season that a rider not named Ryan has won a moto.
Justin Barcia leads the Motorcycle Superstore Holeshot Championship standings after his 5th holeshot of the year. (Photo: Matt Rice)
Shortly after Justin Barcia won the Motocycle Superstore holeshot, a massive pileup ensued that consumed about 10 riders, followed by Ryan Villopoto going down in the sand whoops. Out of the holeshot, the front of the pack saw Barcia followed by Canard, Ryan Dungey, and Stewart. Dungey had a slip up early on, allowing Stewart to get by. Later on, Stewart picked up speed and passed Canard about midway through the race and then got Barcia shortly after on the sand whoops.
After nearly crashing, Barcia was forced to dial it back a bit, setting up a two-rider battle to the checkered flag.
The Team Muscle Milk Honda riders were out front early. (Photo: George Crosland)
Canard was breathing down the neck of Stewart through the last laps of the race, but the 2008 champion showed his wit and experience, taking crafty lines around the track and cutting off Canard as he tried to make some aggressive passes. They battled right up to the finish line, with about a quarter of a second separating the two riders. Barcia took the final spot on the podium, which allows him to gain some ground in the point standings as he finishes ahead of Dungey and Villopoto.
Stewart and Canard engaged in the season’s best battle so far in the 450 Class. (Photo: Matt Rice)
Josh Grant finished fourth for Toyota/Yamaha Joe Gibbs Racing just ahead of the two Ryans, who finished 2 seconds apart. With Villopoto going down early, the race looked promising for Dungey to make up some valuable championship points but Villopoto managed to charge back from 28th to 6th while Dungey had a few mistakes that sent him from the top 5 down to 9th and ultimately back up to 5th. Andrew Short finished seventh for BTO Sports KTM followed by Broc Tickle, Jake Weimer, and Chad Reed finishing in the top-10.
After a very controversial weekend at Washougal, Mike Alessi finished 11th in his first race without his father Tony as his team manager. Alessi and the MotoConcepts Racing team came under a lot of fire after Mike’s brother, Jeff, was caught shining a laser pointer in other riders’ eyes.
The pre-race focus was on Villopoto and Dungey, but neither one was a factor in this moto. (Photo: George Crosland)
The pile-up in the beginning of the race sent Phil Nicoletti into last place after being a consistent top-15 finisher throughout the season. Ryan Sipes also had a nasty crash that took him out of the race and required medical attention.
The second moto will be very interesting to see if the Ryans can reclaim the top spot or if Stewart can come away with his first overall victory since last year in Texas. Canard and Barcia had shots to win Moto 1 as well and could enter the next moto with a tons of confidence.
Stewart’s margin of victory was about as narrow as it gets. (Photo: Matt Rice)
Spring Creek 450 Moto 1 Results
1. James Stewart
2. Trey Canard (-0.25 seconds)
3. Justin Barcia
4. Josh Grant
5. Ryan Dungey
6. Ryan Villopoto
7. Andrew Short
8. Broc Tickle
9. Jake Weimer
10. Chad Reed
11. Mike Alessi
12. Malcolm Stewart
13. Tyla Rattray
14. Justin Brayton
15. Jake Canada
16. Ben LaMay
17. Matt Goerke
18. Michael Byrne
19. Zack Freeberg
20. Akira Narita
Dungey Wins 450 Moto 2 at Spring Creek, Stewart Holds on for Overall
Ryan Dungey won the second moto at Spring Creek but James Stewart finished third, good enough to take the day’s overall top spot.
Stewart won the Motorcycle Superstore holeshot and was followed by Dungey and Josh Grant. Grant passed Dungey but had a hard crash shortly after, knocking him out of the race. Dungey battled with Stewart, taking the lead from him 4 laps into the race after being held off on several pass attempts. Stewart managed to regain the lead but was passed again by Dungey about a minute later, and the Red Bull KTM rider managed to build up a small gap and take the victory in his home state of Minnesota.
Stewart gave up the lead to Dungey, but didn’t go down easily. (Photo: George Crosland)
Trey Canard passed Stewart with 2 laps to go and the two had yet another incredible battle. Canard managed to keep Stewart from getting by him even as Stewart was able to pull slightly ahead on a pass attempt. At one point in the battle, Canard was forced off the track and re-entered a bit ahead of Stewart, but the re-entry appeared to be legal. Canard looked impressive and finishes the day 2-2 for his best run of the season. Stewart has come on strong as of late, finishing in the top three overall at Redbud and Washougal and finally taking the overall win at Spring Creek.
Ryan Villopoto came in 4th after having his second rough start of the day, finishing his first lap in 10th place. Suffering a crash in both motos, Villopoto didn’t win a moto at this round and finished off of the podium, the first time either has happened this season. The season points leader still has a large gap in the standings between him and Dungey even as the 2012 champ was able to finish two spots ahead of him on the day.
Canard (41) came within one point of an overall victory. (Photo: George Crosland)
Justin Barcia finished 5th to go 3-5 and take 4th overall for the day. Mike Alessi improved on his 11th-place finish in the first moto, coming in 6th in Moto 2 and 7th overall. Alessi finished 5th overall at Washougal but had his points revoked as a result of penalties from the laser incident.
Chad Reed finished the race in 7th place followed by Andrew Short, Jake Weimer, and Broc Tickle. Reed has now posted top ten finishes in his last five motos and is quietly going through a slight resurgence.
Villopoto looked off his game for the first time this season. (Photo: George Crosland)
Special recognition to Zack Freeberg, riding in the 450 Class this week, on locking down a career-best 12th-place finish in this moto. With top 20 finishes in both motos, Freeberg lands a very respectable 15th overall.
James Stewart will try to keep up his momentum going into Unadilla two weeks from now, but he’s got his work cut out for him if he wants to keep the two Ryans out of the top spot.
Dungey’s streak of 5 straight overall wins at Spring Creek is snapped, but he did give the local fans a moto win. (Photo: George Crosland)
Mike Alessi rebounded well from his first moto. (Photo: George Crosland)
Spring Creek 450 Moto 2 Results
1. Ryan Dungey
2. Trey Canard (-2.7 seconds)
3. James Stewart
4. Ryan Villopoto
5. Justin Barcia
6. Mike Alessi
7. Chad Reed
8. Andrew Short
9. Jake Weimer
10. Broc Tickle
11. Phil Nicoletti
12. Zack Freeberg
13. Tyla Rattray
14. Ben LaMay
15. Malcolm Stewart
16. Jake Canada
17. Broc Schmelyun
18. Justin Brayton
19. Evgeny Mikhaylov
20. Michael Byrne
Stewart’s last overall victory was at Round 2 of the 2012 season. (Photo: George Crosland)
Spring Creek 450 Class Overall Results
1. James Stewart (1-3)
2. Trey Canard (2-2)
3. Ryan Dungey (5-1)
4. Justin Barcia (3-5)
5. Ryan Villopoto (6-4)
6. Andrew Short (7-8)
7. Mike Alessi (11-6)
8. Chad Reed (10-7)
9. Jake Weimer (9-9)
10. Broc Tickle (8-10)
11. Josh Grant (4-35)
12. Tyla Rattray (13-13)
13. Malcolm Stewart (12-15)
14. Ben LaMay (16-14)
15. Zack Freeberg (19-12)
16. Jake Canada (15-16)
17. Phil Nicoletti (32-11)
18. Justin Brayton (14-18)
19. Broc Schmelyun (27-17)
20. Michael Byrne (18-20)
Updated 450 Class Point Standings
1. Ryan Villopoto, 413
2. Ryan Dungey, -34
3. Justin Barcia, -106
4. James Stewart, -144
5. Trey Canard, -150
6. Mike Alessi, -218
7. Andrew Short, -222
8. Jake Weimer, -229
9. Broc Tickle, -230
10. Josh Grant, -237