Race report ... Rockstar Energy Suzuki.Martin Davalos fought back after a trip to the last-chance qualifier to a fourth position after a strong ride on his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki RM-Z250 in the 15-lap lites Main Event and team mate Ryan Morais rode a consistent race to place sixth after only days of recovery from a Tuesday practice crash. Davalos had a rough start to the night after a first turn crash in his heat race sent him to the last chance qualifier. The new Rockstar Energy Suzuki rider eventually won the red-flagged last chance, but that resulted in a poor gate selection. Regardless, Davalos' 2011 Suzuki RM-Z250 powered him to a fourth-place start; a position he maintained and eventually finished.
Morais, still recovering from a crash in practice earlier this week, qualified 10th but rode a strong heat race on his RM-Z250 and ended up with a second-place finish. The Rockstar Energy lites rider had a seventh-place start in the Main and had a consistent ride, eventually finishing in sixth. "I'm pretty happy, considering coming into this week I barely even rode," said Morais. "I had a pretty good crash on Tuesday and dealt with some stuff and didn't really even ride. I'm real excited to go to Phoenix. I will be able to put in a full week of riding before and in a couple of days I should feel normal and be back to full fitness. By Phoenix, I'll be ready to rock and roll." The 2011 Rockstar Energy Suzuki team's next event is Saturday, January 15th, at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.
1. Joshua Hansen |
"Practice went really good for me," said Davalos (pictured). "I was able to get really comfortable on the track and get used to it quickly. Unfortunately, in the heat race I was pushed out to the hay bales and pretty much went down on the ground and unfortunately I hit my chin and my bike was really bent up. I ended up winning the LCQ, but I ended up with a bad gate pick for the Main Event, but I did my best and ended up fourth. I got a little tight at the end and unfortunately I couldn't quite get to third place. I'm definitely looking forward to next week in Phoenix. I'm going to work on a few things this week and will definitely be ready."