450 CLASS
Moto 1
At the drop of the gate, Geico Powersports Honda’s Brett Metcalfe grabbed the holeshot with Michael Byrne and Rockstar/Makita/Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey chasing him down. Dungey slid into the second place spot immediately. Lucas/TLD/Honda’s Ben Townley made the move on Tommy Hahn in the third lap, moving into the third spot. Dungey reeled in Metty, but Metty didn’t let him by easily. Meanwhile, Davi Millsaps and Chad Reed moved up through the pack, while Townley began to distance himself from fourth place Hahn.
Dungey finally made his move on Metty, and wasted no time ditching him. Townley, though, was more than willing to ride with Metty, as he slowly gained time on the Geico Honda rider. Hahn, too, didn’t want to miss out on the podium, and kept Townley in his sights. Millsaps and Reed fought to join the party. Off the pace, Mike Alessi looked a bit fatigued or at least sluggish. His old rival, Josh Grant meanwhile, decided top five was far more favorable than top ten. Townley, by this point, had made the pass on Metcalfe; Hahn and Reed followed suit. Reed, just before the two lap board, really turned it on, catching the whole field and finishing second. Dungey took the win convincingly…with a 27- second margin of victory.
One name missing from the preceeding is Andrew Short. Unfortunately for the now-Texan, the Honda Red Bull Racing crew had some issues with Shorty’s CRF450R and could not get it fired up beofre the start of the moto. Sadly, Shorty was forced to watch the first moto, in stead of participate.
Results
1. Ryan Dungey (Suz)
2. Chad Reed (Kaw)
3. Ben Townley (Hon)
4. Tommy Hahn
5. Josh Grant (Yam)
6. Kyle Regal (Hon)
7. Brett Metcalfe (Hon)
8. Michael Byrne (Yam)
9. Kyle Chisholm (Yam)
10. Davi Millsaps (Hon)
Moto 2
Brett Metcalfe and his Geico Powersports Honda ripped another holeshot (Geico Honda won all four holeshots on the day), but this time with Mike Alessi breathing down his throat. Ben Townley, however, went down in a heap just before entering the first turn, and thus did not get to mix it up in the front like he had in the first moto It was nearly 30 seconds before he could remount and get back in the race.Andrew Short, looking for some redemption from a DNS in the first moto, chased down Alessi from the get-go. Chad Reed, also got a decent start and honed in on the leaders, but he would have to deal with Kyle Regal first. Alessi and Short wasted no time before going to battle. The two traded positions back and forth, but Alessi got the best of Shorty, and Metcalfe as well, taking over the lead. Alessi couldn’t keep pressure at bay for long, and Dungey took over with Metty, Shorty, Regal, and Reed in close proximity.
When the two lap board came out, Regal had just made the move on Metcalfe, simultaneously Reed did the same around Shorty. From the Dungey inched his way farther and farther form the rest of the field, eventually checking out completely. When the checkers flew Dungey took another big win. Regal scored a second, and Reed salvaged third.
Results
1. Ryan Dungey (Suz)
2. Kyle Regal (Hon)
3. Chad Reed (Kaw)
4. Brett Metcalfe (Hon)
5. Mike Alessi (KTM)
6. Andrew Short (Hon)
7. Matt Goerke (Yam)
8. Kyle Cunningham (Yam)
9. Kyle Chisholm (Yam)
10. Josh Grant (Yam)
450 Class (Overall)
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki (1-1)
- Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki (2-3)
- Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda (6-2)
- Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda (7-4)
- Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha (5-10)
- Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Suzuki (4-12)
- Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM (12-5)
- Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda (3-16)
- Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Yamaha (9-9)
- Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Yamaha (8-11)
450 Class Championship Standings
- Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki, 87
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki, 76
- Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM, 68
- Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda, 66
- Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha, 60
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 55
- Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda, 54
- Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda, 51
- Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Suzuki, 43
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda, 37
WMX Class on Page 3
TAGS: 250 class, alli sports, chad reed, Christophe Pourcel, eli tomac, freestone, lucas oil motocross championship, Race Report, ryan dungey, Texas National
