Reed and Stewart clash while Grant takes surprise win in World SX season opener
Australia’s reigning World Supercross Champion, Chad Reed has started his 2009 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship campaign with a podium finish at the opening round of the series at Anaheim’s Angel Stadium.
Reed, who contested his first AMA Supercross Series event with new team Rockstar/Makita/Suzuki, used the earlier practice and heat sessions to test bike setup ahead of the 20-lap final.
A good start in the Main Event saw Reed get away in third, the defending champion quickly moved into second place and began to chase down number one rival James Stewart.
On the second lap, Reed passed Stewart and started to pull away before a couple of small errors allowed his opponent to pass him on Lap 6. The Australian rider readied to return serve but just a few turns later the two collided after Stewart missed a gear heading into the woops section.
Reed re-entered the race in third place and while gaining ground on the frontrunners, was third at the conclusion of the race.
“It was absolutely wild out there tonight,” Reed admitted. “That had to be the most action packed season opener I have experienced in my career.
“The bike wasn’t bad in the opening heats but we continued to make some changes and by the time we got to the Main Event its performance was unbelievable.
Once I passed James on Lap 2 I probably got a little too confident, then made a couple of mistakes which allowed him to pass me. I knew I had the pace to catch him again but he missed a gear going into the woops and I couldn’t avoid him, the next thing I knew we were both cart wheeling down the track.
“I managed to remount quickly and pushed the bike to its full potential and we salvaged a podium. From what I understand all hell broke loose behind me. Even though it wasn’t a win it was still a great start to the championship and I am really happy with the way everything has worked out. I can definitely see the benefits of all our hard work during the off season,” Reed explained.
Yamaha rookie Josh Grant was the surprise winner at Anaheim in front of a 43,000 strong crowd ahead of Honda’s Andrew Short.
Top Ten Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship Results after Round 1 of 17
1. Joshua Grant, Yamaha, 25
2. Andrew Short, Honda, 22
3. Chad Reed, Suzuki, 20
4. Timmy Ferry, Kawasaki, 18
5. Ryan Villopoto, Kawasaki, 16
6. Ivan Tedesco, Honda, 15
7. Heath Voss, Honda, 14
8. Ben Coisy, Honda, 13
9. Nicholas Wey, Yamaha, 12
10. Paul Carpenter, Kawasaki, 11
GEICO Powersports Honda’s Dan Reardon opened the Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites class main event with the holeshot, leading Weimer and KTM’s Justin Brayton through turn one.
Defending class champion Jason Lawrence was involved in a massive pile-up that collected several riders, including defending Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites class champion Trey Canard.
Weimer moved around Reardon on lap two and began to extend his lead. While riding in second and third place, respectively, Reardon and Brayton crashed into one another, losing several valuable positions. This allowed Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Ryan Morais, of Murrieta, Calif., to move into second.
Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey, of Belle Plaine, Minn., started tonight’s race in 10th place and finished third. Morais finished second and Weimer scored the second AMA Supercross Lites class win of his career and leads the points race.
“This was a great start to the season,” said Weimer. “It couldn’t be any better than tonight. I look forward to a great season.”
AMA Supercross Lites Rnd 1 Results
1. Jake Weimer, Kawasaki, 25
2. Ryan Morais, Kawasaki, 22
3. Ryan Dungey, Suzuki, 20
4. Chris Blose, Honda, 18
5. Jason Lawrence, Yamaha, 16
6. Ryan Sipes, KTM, 15
7. Justin Brayton, KTM, 14
8. Jeff Alessi, Honda, 13
9. Ben Evans, Honda, 12
10. Chris Gosselaar, Kawasaki, 11
