Round three of the Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championship series stormed into High Point this weekend in Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania, for some intense racing action. In the 450 class class, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto took a huge win in the first moto, and he combined a second place finish in the second moto for an overall victory. He now draws Two Two Motorsports’ Chad Reed closer in the points chase, but Reed remains the red plate holder going into Budds Creek. In the 250 class, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett swept both motos in a dominating fashion, and took the overall. His teammate Tyla Rattray combined a 3-2 finish for a second overall, and he now carries the red plate going into Budds Creek, too.
450 CLASS
MOTO 1
When the gates dropped for the first moto of the 450 class, Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey hopped out front and led the pack of 39 riders into the first turn. His lead did not last for long, though, as Monster Energy’s Ryan Villopoto quickly made his way around the Suzuki rider. Behind them were Mike Alessi, Kevin Windham, and Christian Craig. Points leader and red plate holder Chad Reed had a bad start and was stuck a few positions back from the top five. Lap after lap, Villopoto continued to put his fast lines together, and he started to pull away from Dungey. Coming off a solid finish in Freestone, Davi Millsaps was quickly picking off riders, and he found himself on the rear wheel of Alessi. Alessi maintained his position, though, and he was able to finish the race in third, while Villopoto and Dungey finished first and second, respectively.
After the race, Alessi was docked a position by the AMA for jumping the gate on the start.
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw)
2. Ryan Dungey (Suz)
3. Davi Millsaps (Yam)
4. Mike Alessi (KTM)
5. Chad Reed (Hon)
6. Kevin Windham (Hon)
7. Jake Weimer (Kaw)
8. Brett Metcalfe (Suz)
9. Christian Craig (Hon)
10. Andrew Short (KTM)
MOTO 2
Right when the 450s started to roll up to the gate for the second moto, so did the clouds and rain. For about 10-15 minutes, heavy rain pounded the track to make it into a slippery mess. One rider that was able to come out on top from the start was Red Bull KTM’s Mike Alessi. Behind him were Dungey, Reed, Millsaps, and Villopoto. After the first lap, Dungey slid out and dropped back to seventh, which allowed Reed to move into second. On a move was Davi Millsaps, but after being behind Reed for a couple of laps, the mud claimed his goggles and he had to toss them aside. Alessi started to open up a huge gap between himself and Reed, but a crash allowed Reed to quickly catch up to him, and the Two Two Motorsports rider eventually made the pass for the lead.
As the track started to get broken in, lap times started to pick up, particularly Villopoto’s. RV2 quickly started to track down Alessi, and by the halfway point, he had made his way around the KTM rider. Meanwhile, Dungey recovered quickly from his fall, and he was also able to work his way up and around Alessi. By the time the checker flag came out, Reed had won the moto, while Villopoto and Dungey came in close behind in second and third.
1. Chad Reed (Hon)
2. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw)
3. Ryan Dungey (Suz)
4. Mike Alessi (KTM)
5. Kevin Windham (Hon)
6. Ricky Dietrich (Yam)
7. Tommy Hahn (Yam)
8. Nick Wey (Yam)
9. Brett Metcalfe (Suz)
10. Jake Weimer (Kaw)
| Overall 1. Ryan Villopoto (1-2) 2. Ryan Dungey (2-3) 3. Chad Reed (5-1) 4. Mike Alessi (4-4) 5. Davi Millsaps (3-9) 6. Kevin Windham (6-5) 7. Tommy Hahn (10-7) 8. Brett Metcalfe (8-10) 9. Jake Weimer (7-11) 10. Nick Wey (14-8) |
450 Class Championship Standings (After 3 of 12 rounds)
1. Chad Reed (138/4 wins) |
TAGS: blake baggett, chad reed, eli tomac, Hammerhead Designs, high point, Mt Morris, pennsylvania, Photos, Race Report, ryan dungey, ryan villopoto, Tyla Rattray
