AMA Supercross heads to Arlington

Parity Packed Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship Races into Arlington’s AT&T Stadium
Bogle Set to Defend Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship

Arlington, Texas’ AT&T Stadium will play host to the seventh stop of the 2015 Monster Energy AMA Supercross this Saturday night as 450SX Class points leader Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey aims to protect his nine-point lead against the most competitive field of riders ever assembled.

The Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship begins on Saturday with defending champion Justin Bogle, who rides for GEICO Honda, ready to stage his title defense against a hungry field of aspiring young riders. Additionally, HRT Racing Suzuki’s Vicki Golden sets her sights on becoming the first female ever to qualify for a Monster Energy Supercross Main Event.

Anaheim 450SX Class Highlights
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Anaheim 250SX Class Highlights
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Some key insights to watch heading into this Saturday night’s race include:

• Vicki Golden attempts to become the first woman in history to qualify for a Monster Energy Supercross race.
• Will Ryan Dungey extend his podium streak, which now sits at five races?
• Can Dungey or Eli Tomac join Trey Canard and Ken Roczen as two-time race winners in 2015?
• Will a fifth different rider emerge victorious in the 450SX Class?
• Can two-time 450SX Class Champion Chad Reed score his first win of the season?
• Will one of the 450SX Class rookies – Jason Anderson, Blake Baggett and Cole Seely – break through for his first career win?
• Dungey and Anderson are the only 450SX Class riders to finish in the top-10 at every race. Can they keep their streaks alive?
• Will Tomac earn his sixth-straight top-five finish?
• Which Eastern Regional 250SX Class rider will make the first statement towards the championship by winning in Arlington?
• Can Justin Bogle start his title defense with a win?

Last Saturday at the Military Appreciation Race from San Diego’s Petco Park, Team Honda HRC’s Trey Canard raced to his second 450SX Class win of the season. As a result of his second win in three races, Canard took sole possession of third place in season standings.

Canard took over the lead from Suzuki’s Ken Roczen on Lap 3 and rode the early stages of the Main Event with a comfortable lead over Roczen until lappers tightened the race for the lead. Roczen, who also has two wins on the season, made a run at Canard following the halfway point of the race but was denied and settled for second place. Prior to the 2015 season, Canard’s last 450SX Class victory came inside AT&T Stadium in 2011, during his rookie season.

“It’s been a long road but I’m just so grateful to be in this position [winning races] again,” said Canard of his fifth career win. “I opened a gap and Kenny [Roczen] closed it right back in. He kept me on my toes the whole time.”

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Roczen was the 450SX Class points leader until a crash and subsequent 15th-place finish in Oakland caused him to lose control of the points. His finish in San Diego was his best since the incident.

“That was a very fun race, I just made too many mistakes,” said Roczen on the podium. “It was a good battle [with Canard]. I wish I would have picked up the pace sooner, but it’s good to be back on the box. It was a good night tonight and we’ll keep charging.”

Dungey, who has an average finish of 2.5 this season, including a win at the third race in Anaheim, rounded out the podium in third place. He finished second in Arlington a year ago, has one win at AT&T Stadium from 2010 and has finished on the podium in four of his five starts.

450SX Class Points leader- Ryan Dungey (127 points) Photos Credit: Kardy Photos

“I felt good in the Main Event,” said Dungey following San Diego. “I was hoping I’d be able to close in on the leaders, but those lappers were tough. We gave it our all and we’re happy with that. We’ll keep working and get ready for next week.”

In the final Western Regional 250SX Class race before that championship’s midseason break, Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha’s Cooper Webb made a statement in San Diego, scoring his fourth win of the season. During practice, Webb suffered a horrific crash, and with his status questionable, he made his way to the starting gate, despite missing the final practice session. He will carry a 30-point lead in point standings when the championship resumes in Houston on April 11.

Webb followed rival Tyler Bowers, a four-time AMSOIL Arenacross Champion and Kawasaki rider, until he made what would be the winning pass for the lead on Lap 9.

“I wasn’t going to race tonight,” explained Webb after the race. “My crash was gnarly and I’m just thankful to walk away from it. I knew tonight was going to be a fight. I told myself I can hurt as much as I want tomorrow, but there’s no better feeling than winning.”

KTM’s Shane McElrath earned a career-best second place finish, his first career podium, with Bowers in third.

Vicki Golden’s journey to Monster Energy Supercross will commence this weekend with her debut race for the HRT Racing Suzuki team. Golden first made history back in 2011, when she became the first female to qualify for an AMSOIL Arenacross Main Event. Last year Golden made even more history when she earned her 250SX Class endorsement through AMSOIL Arenacross’ Ricky Carmichael Road to Supercross, giving her the chance to chase her supercross dream.

In a stacked field of Eastern Regional 250SX Class riders, Bogle’s stiffest competition is expected to come from a pair of international riders in Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Martin Davalos, as well as Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin.

Musquin returns to supercross racing after missing the 2014 season with an injury, but the French rider has a strong foundation to build on. The runner-up in the 2013 Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship is also a two-time MX2 World Champion and has four Main Event wins.

Ecuador’s Davalos has showed flashes of brilliance in recent years, but injuries have set him back. Last year, he finished second overall in the Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship in a season that was cut short due to an injury. Aboard a new team, Davalos is ready for a fresh start and the number-one plate.

Martin endured an up and down season during his sophomore campaign a year ago, but he came on strong at the end of the year, capping off the 2014 supercross season with his first career win at the season finale in Las Vegas. He carried that into a breakout summer season in the AMA Pro Motocross Championship, winning the first title of his professional career. Confidence is high for the Minnesota native and he’s confident he can be a title contender.

Headlining the Road to Supercross graduates in the 250SX Class field as rookies is the GEICO Honda tandem of Jordon Smith and R.J. Hampshire, who will line up alongside Bogle.

Smith is looking to become the first rider in history to complete the Road to Supercross and make his 250SX Class debut in the same season. Smith suffered an injury prior to the start of the 2014 season and was forced to miss the entirety of AMSOIL Arenacross . As a result, he began 2015 competing in the Road to Supercross in the weeks leading up to the Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship. However, Smith revealed this past weekend that he broke his hand in preparation for his Arlington debut and had a plate and six screws surgically placed. Despite the injury, Smith has every intention of racing on Saturday..

Hampshire enjoyed success during his time in the Road to Supercross, winning a pair of Arenacross Lites Class Main Events in addition to one Arenacross Class Main Event. As one of the up-and-coming members of the GEICO Honda squad, Hampshire has the talent to contend for podiums in the 250SX Class in 2015.

During last year’s 450SX Class Main Event in Arlington, Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart won his second consecutive race in Arlington. In the Western Regional 250SX Class, Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo won his first race in the first supercross start of his career.

• San Diego Supercross Image Gallery A
• San Diego Supercross Image Gallery B
• San Diego Supercross Image Gallery C

450SX Class Results: San Diego
1.  Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda
2.  Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki
3.  Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
4.  Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Kawasaki
5.  Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda
6.  Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda
7.  Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki
8.  Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM
9.  Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki
10. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna
11. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Cal, Kawasaki

450SX Class Season Standings – After Round 6 of 17
1.  Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 127
2.  Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki, 118
3.  Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda, 109
4.  Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 100
5.  Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna, 85
6.  Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda, 82
7.  Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Kawasaki, 75
8.  Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha, 71
9.  Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki, 68
10. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM, 66
14. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Cal, Kaw, 40

Western Regional 250SX Class Results: San Diego
1.  Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha
2.  Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM
3.  Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki
4.  Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki
5.  Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
6.  Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna
7.  Zach Bell, Cairo, Ga., Husqvarna
8.  Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Cali., KTM
9.  Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda
10. Chris Alldredge, Powell Butte, Ore., Kawasaki
12. Jackson Richardson, Wildomar, Cal, Honda

Western Regional 250SX Class Season Standings – After Round 6 of 9
1.  Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha, 136
2.  Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM, 106
3.  Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki, 104
4.  Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna, 102
5.  Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM, 86
6.  Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha, 81
7.  Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM, 79
8.  Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki, 79
9.  Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 75
10. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda, 69
16. Jackson Richardson, Wildomar, Cal, Honda, 39

Past Winners in Arlington – 450SX Class

• February 15, 2014    James Stewart
• February 16, 2013    Ryan Villopoto
• February 18, 2012    Ryan Villopoto
• April 2, 2011            Trey Canard
• March 20, 2010        Ryan Dungey
• April 5, 2008            Chad Reed
• March 31, 2007        James Stewart
• March 22, 2006        Chad Reed
• April 2, 2005            James Stewart
• April 17, 2004           Chad Reed
• April 12, 2003           Chad Reed
• April 20, 2002           Ricky Carmichael
• April 21, 2001           Ricky Carmichael
• April 8, 2000            Kevin Windham
• February 27, 1999    Kevin Windham
• April 25, 1998           Ezra Lusk
• April 26, 1997           Jeff Emig
• March 23, 1996        Jeremy McGrath
• April 29, 1995           Dough Henry
• April 23, 1994           Mike LaRocco
• March 28, 1993        Jeremy McGrath
• May 30, 1992           Damon Bradshaw
• April 27, 1991           Damon Bradshaw
• April 7, 1990            Jean-Michel Bayle
• April 1, 1989            Jeff Ward
• April 16, 1988           Rick Johnson
• April 4, 1987            Rick Johnson
• April 26, 1986           David Bailey
• May 4, 1985             Rick Johnson
• April 14, 1984           Johnny O’Mara
• April 16, 1983           Mike Bell
• March 26, 1977        Bob Hannah
• March 19, 1976        Jim Ellis
• February 28, 1975    Jim Ellis
• March 1, 1975 (b)     Steve Stackable

Past Winners in Arlington – 250SX Class

• February 16, 2014    Adam Cianciarulo
• February 16, 2013    Dean Wilson
• February 18, 2012    Justin Barcia
• April 2, 2011            Dean Wilson
• March 20, 2010        Blake Baggett
• April 5, 2008            Ryan Villopoto
• March 31, 2007        Ben Townley
• March 22, 2006        Ryan Villopoto
• April 2, 2005            Grant Langston
• April 17, 2004           Ivan Tedesco
• April 12, 2003           James Stewart
• April 20, 2002           Travis Preston
• April 21, 2001           Grant Langston
• April 8, 2000            Greg Schnell
• February 27, 1999    Nathan Ramsey
• April 25, 1998           John Dowd
• April 26, 1997           Kevin Windham
• March 23, 1996        Mickael Pichon
• April 29, 1995           Damon Huffman
• April 23, 1994           Jimmy Button
• March 28, 1993        Doug Henry
• May 30, 1992           Jeremy McGrath
• April 27, 1991           Jeremy McGrath
• April 7, 1990            Denny Stephenson
• April 1, 1989            Mike LaRocco
• April 16, 1988           Ty Davis
• April 4, 1987            Kyle Lewis
• April 26, 1986           Keith Turpin
• May 4, 1985             Bobby Moore