Monster Energy Supercross Results: San Diego
Monday 11 February: Millsaps dominates in San Diego to extend his championship lead and Tomac takes control of 250SX Class for his fourth win of the season.
The
sixth race of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship,
signified the final California stop of the 2013 season on Saturday
night, with 55,361 spectators in attendance inside Qualcomm Stadium. For
the second time this season, Rockstar Energy Racing’s Davi Millsaps
captured the victory with a wire-to-wire performance that extended his
lead in the 450SX standings. GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac won his fourth
Western Regional 250SX Class race of the season, closing his deficit in
the championship.
Millsaps pulled an advantage out of the gate of the 20-lap Main Event to secure the Nuclear Cowboyz® Holeshot
Award, with Dodge/Sycuan Casino/RCH Racing Suzuki’s Broc Tickle and
TwoTwo Motorsports Honda’s Chad Reed in tow. Championship contenders
Ryan Dungey, Ryan Villopoto, and Trey Canard, who sit second through
fourth in the points, all started outside the top five, with Canard
crossing the line outside the top 10 on the opening lap.
As
the pace settled in, Millsaps and Reed pulled Team Honda Muscle Milk’s
Justin Barcia into a three-rider tandem that opened a gap over the
field. Reed pressured Millsaps for several laps and even looked to make a
pass, but lost traction on Lap 9 while in pursuit, dropping to seventh.
Barcia assumed Reed’s spot in second and stayed close to Millsaps as
the pair worked through lapped riders, but eventually the championship
leader pulled away for his second win inside Qualcomm Stadium.
"What
can I say, when you’re able to pull the holeshot and ride 20 clean laps
you make life a lot easier on yourself,” commented Millsaps, who has
now won multiple races in a season for the second time in his career.
"It’s been a great start to the season and everyone is working hard to
make this happen. You have to be there every week in order to have a
chance to win this thing (the championship), and we’re doing our best to
keep it out front.”
Barcia
followed Millsaps across the line in the runner-up position, while Red
Bull KTM’s Dungey, last week’s winner, worked his way through the field
to finish third. Reed rebounded from his earlier misfortune to finish
fifth, while Villopoto also experienced misfortune aboard his Monster
Energy Kawasaki en route to finishing sixth. Canard battled from behind
to finish eighth.
Millsaps
extended his advantage in the 450SX Class Championship to 19 points
over Dungey as the season heads east for the first time.
Rockstar
Energy Racing’s Jason Anderson emerged with the Nuclear Cowboyz
Holeshot Award to start the Western Regional 250SX Class Main Event,
with Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Martin Davalos and JDR/J-Star
KTM’s Malcolm Stewart closely behind. As he made a push for the lead on
the opening lap, Davalos lost control of his bike and crashed, falling
to the tail end of the field.
Davalos’
misfortune allowed Tomac to move into second position and set his
sights on Anderson in the lead. On Lap 4, Tomac made an inside move on
Anderson just before the finish and from there opened a comfortable
lead. Behind this battle, Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen moved himself into
podium position and it wasn’t long before he was on Anderson’s rear
fender for second.
Roczen
took over the position from Anderson on Lap 7 and set a pace that
helped him close the gap on Tomac’s lead. As the laps wound down, Roczen
closed in on Tomac and had a chance to steal the win on the final lap. A
final desperation move in the final turn put Roczen alongside Tomac
heading to the finish, but he missed out on a third straight victory by
mere bike lengths.
The Western Regional 250SX Class Championship will now take a break from competition until April 20 in Seattle.
"This
was the best way to go into the break,” said Tomac, who has the most
wins in the class. "It was an awesome race out there and a good track.
It was a little close in the end, but it was a fun race. This place
(Qualcomm Stadium) has been hot and cold for me. I won here in 2011, got
a DNF last year, and now won here again. We’ll go into the break with
some confidence.”
Roczen holds a 17-point lead over Tomac with three races remaining in the championship.
Monster
Energy Supercross continues next weekend, from Arlington, Texas. The
annual stop inside Cowboys Stadium will mark the beginning of the
Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship and the seventh race for the
450SX Class. The action begins next Saturday, February 16, at 8 p.m. ET.
SPEED will provide live coverage of the race at 8:30 p.m. ET.
450SX Class Results: San Diego
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki
- Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
- James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki
- Chad Reed, Australia, Honda
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki
- Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Yamaha
- Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda
- Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., Suzuki
450SX Class Points
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 132
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 113
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki, 105
- Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda, 105
- Chad Reed, Australia, Honda, 97
- Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda, 83
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda, 83
- James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki, 74
- Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Yamaha, 67
- Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki, 57
Western Regional 250SX Class Results: San Diego
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda
- Ken Roczen, Germany, KTM
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Suzuki
- Austin Politelli, Riverside, Calif., Honda
- Kyle Cunningham, Aledo, Texas, Yamaha
- Travis Baker, Romoland, Calif., Yamaha
- Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Honda
- Tyla Rattray, South Africa, Kawasaki
- Martin Davalos, Ecuador, Kawasaki
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda
Western Regional 250SX Class Points
- Ken Roczen, Germany, KTM, 138
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 121
- Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda, 95
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Suzuki, 88
- Kyle Cunningham, Aledo, Texas, Yamaha, 83
- Martin Davalos, Ecuador, Kawasaki, 82
- Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Honda, 82
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., KTM, 62
- Christian Craig, Wildomar, Calif., Honda, 62
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda, 60
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