Lites Main Event
After a quick intermission, the stage was set for the evening’s main events. The small bore bikes ripped off the line, and rookie Blake Wharton grabbed the holeshot like a seasoned pro. Wharton, Nico Izzi, and Vince Friese went one, two, and three for the opening laps, and Austin Stroupe was racing hard to get the next position and a few more points. He and Friese, along with Steven Clarke, went for the same lines banging bars, and Stroupe would nudge Clarke in the turn after the second starting line crossover.
At the front of the pack, Blake Wharton made his name known to the St. Louis audience, riding flawlessly and pulling away from second place Izzi. Izzi would struggle with lappers in the waning laps, losing ground to Wharton, allowing Stroupe to close in. Izzi would mistime a vital area on the final lap, and Stroupe would go right past for second place.
Race leader Blake’s brother, Tyler, would not be as lucky as the Geico Powersports/ Honda rider. Just before the last rhythm section, Tyler’s bike slid away from him and he hit the deck. On the opposite side of the track, Friese would also bobble and fall just after the finish line, and would have issues refiring his CRF250. A lap later, Matt Lemoine hooked into a Tuff Block before the double dragon back, and he too would fall, but remount to stay in the top 10.
Back in the field, points leader Christophe Pourcel was buried deep and on a mission to minimize the damage of a bad finish. At the first third of the race, he was running near 15th place, and picked off enough riders by lap 11 to be in seventh. By the race’s 15th lap, the Frenchman worked his way to fifth, which was only his second time off the podium all season.
Final Results
1. Blake Wharton
2. Austin Stroupe
3. Nico Izzi
4. Matt Goerke
5. Christophe Pourcel
6. Matt Lemoine
7. Steven Clarke
8. Daniel Blair
9. Darryn Durham
10. Shane Sewell
11. Chad Ward
12. Jason Thomas
13. Cody Gilmore
14. Teddy Parks
15. Jacob Saylor
16. Vince Friese
17. Spencer Dally
18. Kyle Keylon
19. Tyler Wharton
20. Kyle Gills
Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites Class Season Standings
1. Christophe Pourcel, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki, 131
2. Austin Stroupe, Lincolnton, N.C., Kawasaki, 106
3. Nico Izzi, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 102
4. Blake Wharton, Pilot Point, Texas, Honda, 91
5. Branden Jesseman, New Brighton, Pa., Kawasaki, 73
6. Matthew Goerke, Lake Helen, Fla., Suzuki, 68
7. Wil Hahn, Decatur, Texas, KTM, 68
8. Matt Lemoine, Collinsville, Texas, 66
9. Steven Clarke, Cairo, Ga., Suzuki, 65
10. Daniel Blair, Modesto, Calif., Honda, 63
Page 1: Lites Qualifying Page 2: SX Qualifying Page 3: Lites Main Page 4: SX Main
TAGS: Austin Stroupe, Blake Wharton, chad reed, james stewart, josh grant, Nico Izzi, St. louis, supercross, travis pastrana
