A sold-out crowd of nearly 70,000 attended round eight of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship series this weekend in Atlanta, GA. Honda riders had a respectable showing with Team Honda Muscle Milk's Justin Barcia placing fourth and teammate Trey Canard finishing fifth in the 450 Supercross class. It was also the second round of the East 250 class and Muscle Milk-sponsored GEICO Honda's Wil Hahn lead wire to wire in the main event, clinching the first victory of his career.
450 Race
Justin Barcia had a noteworthy ride aboard his Team Honda Muscle Milk CRF450R, finishing just shy of the podium in fourth place. Following a second place finish in his heat race, Barcia launched off the line in the main event to a seventh place start. He quickly made his way into fourth only a few laps in and spent the remainder of the race trying to take over third but was forced to settle for fourth.
"Overall the night went okay,"; stated Barcia. "This is basically my home race so I was really hoping for a podium finish but it is an improvement from last weekend. I felt good in the main and stayed close to (Davi) Millsaps but was never able to make a solid attempt at a pass. I know what we need to work on and am ready to head to St. Louis.";
Teammate Trey Canard started the day off strong, posting the third-quickest qualifying time in practice. He encountered some misfortune in his heat race after getting tangled with Barcia a few laps in and was unable to continue the race, forcing him to transfer to the main event via the LCQ. In the main event, Canard rode a consistent 20 laps to finish fifth. He currently sits fourth in the championship.
Muscle Milk supported GEICO Honda's Eli Tomac, who normally competes in the Western Regional 250 class, is competing in four 450 Supercross events during his mid-season break. In his first showing aboard his Honda CRF450R at Atlanta, Tomac posted a solid seventh-place finish. "There is so much talent in this class, it really is no joke,"; said Tomac. "I learned a lot this race and have some things I want to change on the bike that I hope will help. I need to work on making passes quicker but overall am happy with how the night went. Hopefully it will all come together in St. Louis.";
250 Race
Following his first podium since 2010 in Texas, Muscle Milk supported GEICO Honda's Wil Hahn put together another impressive performance this weekend, nailing down the first victory of his professional career. After posting the third-quickest qualifying time of the day, Hahn finished first in his heat race. In the main he rode a commanding race, grabbing the holeshot and never looking back throughout the entire 15-laps. His win moved him into second-place overall in the championship, a mere two points behind the leader.
"This whole feeling is very surreal,"; stated Hahn. "It went exactly how I would have wanted; I got the holeshot, put in solid laps, stayed calm and took the win. I wanted to make a really hard push in the beginning to put some breathing room between (Dean) Wilson and myself because I knew he was back there. It worked and I was able to ride consistent all the way to the checkered flag.";
Teammate Zach Bell redeemed himself after a challenging first round with a respectable 10th-place finish. Bell showed incredible quickness leading a majority of his heat race, until going down and relinquishing a few spots to finish fifth. In the main event, he jumped to a mid-pack start and rode consistently the entire race. "Overall I am happy with how tonight went,"; said Bell. "I am coming away healthy and am slowly starting to build my confidence up.";
The Focus: 2013 CRF450R Aluminum Frame
Designed from clean-sheet concepts, the all-new aluminum frame carries prominent differences quite visible when compared to the previous-generation frame. Specifically, the junction of the steering head and main frame spars intersect distinctly lower on the steering head pipe, much closer to the midway point rather than toward the top as per the previous design. This change helps lower the center of gravity, instills more tuned flex into the chassis for better front-end traction, and provides more traction feel and better cornering traits. Equally important foundational design changes include maximizing the benefits of the new-generation front and rear suspension components. Other chassis changes include a new aluminum swingarm that provides added rigidity thanks to taller beam height in the front and center sections for less deflection in ruts and improved corner-exit traction.
450 Supercross Class Overall Results
1. James Stewart
2. Ryan Villopoto
3. Davi Millsaps
4. Justin Barcia (Honda)
5. Trey Canard (Honda)
6. Ryan Dungey
7. Eli Tomac (Honda)
8. Chad Reed (Honda)
9. Jake Weimer
10. Mike Alessi
450 Supercross Class Championship Points (after 8 of 17 rounds)
1. Davi Millsaps 174
2. Ryan Villopoto 152
3. Ryan Dungey 148
4. Trey Canard 135
5. Chad Reed 127
6. Justin Barcia 116
7. Andrew Short 102
8. James Stewart 100
9. Justin Brayton 91
10. Matthew Goerke 79
250 Supercross East Class Overall Results
1. Wil Hahn (Honda)
2. Dean Wilson
3. Marvin Musquin
4. Blake Wharton
5. Jeremy Martin
6. Justin Hill
7. Gavin Faith
8. Kyle Peters
9. Vince Friese
10. Zach Bell (Honda)
250 Supercross East Class Championship Points (after 2 of 9 rounds)
1. Dean Wilson 47
2. Wil Hahn 45
3. Blake Wharton 40
4. Marvin Musquin 35
5. Kyle Peters 31
6. Justin Hill 31
7. Gavin Faith 28
8. Vince Friese 24
9. James Decotis 20
10. Lance Vincent 20
