Round six of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship series took place this weekend in San Diego, CA. Honda had a successful night on the podium with TwoTwo Motorsports' Chad Reed and Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/Honda racing's Cole Seely both capturing second place in the Supercross and Lites classes.
Team Honda Muscle Milk rider Justin Brayton showed impressive strength Saturday night after coming back from a bad crash in qualifying to finish sixth overall in the main. After going down hard in the second qualifying practice it was uncertain if Brayton would be able to ride the rest of the night. Following some rest and an evaluation from the Asterisk medical team, the decision was made to ride. Brayton finished a solid fifth in his heat race. In the main, he grabbed a mid-pack start and battled his way through the entire 20 laps to a sixth-place overall finish.
TwoTwo Motorsports rider Chad Reed made his fifth podium appearance for the season with a second-place finish. Following a less-than-desirable start in his heat, Reed was given a second chance after the race was red flagged due to a crash. In the second start he was able to grab the holeshot and gap the rest of the pack for the win. During the main Reed got a third-place start but quickly made the pass for second. He spent the rest of the 20 laps charging at the front, battling with the rider in first up until the last lap.
GEICO Honda's Kevin Windham had a disappointing end to his night after riding strong all day. After posting the fourth-quickest qualifying time of the night, Windham rode a solid heat race, finishing in fifth place. During the main he got a mid-pack start but charged to fourth before going down in the whoops in the closing stages of the race. He was able to get up and finish the race in 16th position.
"The track was pretty difficult. The whoops ate a lot of people in the main and unfortunately I was one of them," said Windham. "I felt good the first 17 laps and the GEICO Honda was running great, which makes me feel confident that I am inching closer and closer to the podium. It is frustrating, though, having such a good ride and then making one mistake that puts you on the ground. I am looking forward to next weekend and heading East."
Troy Lee Designs/ Lucas Oil/ Honda's Cole Seely made his way to the podium for a second consecutive week with a second-place finish in the Lites main. Seely started the night out strong, taking the win in his heat, followed by teammate Travis Baker. In the main, Seely nabbed a third-place start but quickly made the pass for second where he stayed the rest of the 20-lap race. "The night went really well for me," said Seely. "I am happy with a podium heading into the break, as well as sitting way better in points."
After winning three Lites races in a row and taking the points lead, GEICO Honda rider Eli Tomac had an unfortunate night in San Diego. He crashed hard in the long whoop section during the main, preventing him from finishing the race and robbing him of his championship points lead. Heading into the break, Tomac now sits in second place in the Lites West championship by a mere two points.
Supercross Main Event
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Chad Reed (Honda)
3. Ryan Dungey
4. Brett Metcalfe
5. Josh Hansen
6. Justin Brayton (Honda)
7. Davi Millsaps
8. Kyle Chisholm
9. Mike Alessi
10. Nick Wey
Supercross Championship Points (after 6 of 17 rounds)
1. Ryan Villopoto 133
2. Chad Reed 127
3. Ryan Dungey 123
4. James Stewart 101
5. Kevin Windham 78
6. Brett Metcalfe 75
7. Jake Weimer 72
8. Davi Millsaps 70
9. Justin Brayton 68
10. Josh Hansen 64
Supercross Lites West Main Event
1. Dean Wilson
2. Cole Seely (Honda)
3. Matt Moss
4. Gareth Swanepoel
5. Nico Izzi
6. Gavin Faith (Honda)
7. Billy Laninovich (Honda)
8. Travis Baker (Honda)
9. Vince Friese (Honda)
10. Nick Paluzzi
Supercross Lites West Points (after 6 of 9 rounds)
1. Dean Wilson 116
2. Eli Tomac 114
3. Cole Seely 101
4. Marvin Musquin 89
5. Nico Izzi 78
6. Matt Moss 73
7. Zach Osborne 67
8. Travis Baker 63
9. Tyla Rattray 60
10. Jason Anderson 58
About Honda
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. is the sole distributor of Honda motorcycles, scooters, ATVs and MUVs in the U.S. American Honda's Motorcycle Division conducts the sales, marketing, and operational activities for these products through authorized Honda dealers. For more information on Honda products, go to www.powersports.honda.com.
