By Jordan Powell
Photos by Jeff Kardas
Round 15 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series headed back west to the Centurylink Field in Seattle, Washington. Rain haunted the seven day forecast, and it appeared that another mudder was going to take place. However, the Dirt Wurx crew got the track built and covered before the rain hit early on in the week, which ultimately paid off come race day. Saturday morning greeted all the Supercross fans with blue skies and warm weather, but most importantly, the track was dry when the tarps were removed. In the end, the perfect conditions made for some great racing in both classes! In the 450 class, Andrew Short took home his very first 450 win in front of thousands of Supercross fans, while Ryan Sipes took home his first win of the season in the Lites class. As far as the championship battle between Dean Wilson and Eli Tomac goes, let’s just say it was an exciting first few laps. During one of the numerous passes for second, the two riders collided, which sent the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider down to the ground. As a result, Tomac now has a four point lead heading into Salt Lake.
LITES HEAT 1
When the gates dropped for the first heat race of the night, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson rocketed out front and led the pack of riders into the first turn. Rockstar Suzuki’s Martin Davalos quickly put himself on the rear wheel of the series points leader, followed by Matt Moss, Travis Baker, Eli Tomac, and Vince Friese. After three laps, Wilson had started to open the gap on Davalos by three seconds, while Tomac moved his way into fourth. The Geico Honda rider kept trying to find an open door to pass Moss, but the JDR KTM rider didn’t allow the pass. At the end of the six laps, Wilson took the win, while Davalos, Moss, Tomac, and Friese—who snuck pass Baker on the final turn—finished within the top five.
Results:
1. Dean Wilson (Kaw)
2. Martin Davalos (Suz)
3. Matt Moss (KTM)
4. Eli Tomac (Hon)
5. Vince Friese (Hon)
6. Travis Baker (Hon)
7. Bryce Hudson (Kaw)
8. E. Meusling (Hon)
9. Preston Tilford (Hon)
LITES HEAT 2
After holding down the fastest lap time in the Lites class, Marvin Musquin had some confidence going into the second heat, and it showed as he grabbed the holeshot on his Red Bull KTM. As the riders rounded the first turn, Wil Hahn was right within striking distance, but went too wide, which allowed Billy Laninovich to move on in. As the riders completed the first lap, it was Musquin, Laninovich, Hahn, Cole Seely, and Jason Anderson. The Rockstar Suzuki rider started to make some moves on the TLD rider, and Anderson made the pass happen coming out of the whoops. Laninovich had fallen back to fifth, which allowed Hahn, Anderson, and Seely to advance. The battle between Anderson and Seely would not be over, as Seely got the Suzuki rider back in the same exact spot on the next lap. By the time the final lap flag came out, Hahn had closed the gap on Musquin, however, he was unable to make the pass by the end of the race. Musquin would take the heat race win while Hahn and Seely rounded off the top three.
Results:
1. Marvin Musquin (KTM)
2. Wil Hahn (Hon)
3. Cole Seely (Hon)
4. Jason Anderson (Suz)
5. Ryan Sipes (Suz)
6. Billy Laninovich (Hon)
7. Kyle Beaton (Kaw)
8. Topher Ingalls (Hon)
9. Myles Tedder (Kaw)
LCQ
Scott Champion ripped the holeshot at the beginning of the Lites LCQ, and never looked back. Killy Rusk jumped in right behind him, but never challenged him. In the end, Champion and Rusk advanced to the main.
Results:
1. Scott Champion (Hon)
2. Killy Rusk (Hon)
SUPERCROSS LITES MAIN EVENT
With two out of three titles wrapped up in the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, all eyes were on Dean Wilson and Eli Tomac as only three points separated them for first. When the gates dropped, Ryan Sipes, Eli Tomac, and Dean Wilson flew into the first corner. Sipes, who just came back from a stage four shoulder separation, held off the two title contenders, and had an open track ahead of him. Meanwhile, the battle between Tomac and Wilson was fully engaged. For the next few laps, the two riders got aggressive with each other and swapped positions numerous times. The hard passes eventually caused Wilson to crash as the two riders hooked up after the finish line. After Wilson got his bike up and going, he had dropped back to eighth. Behind them, Wil Hahn, Cole Seely, and Martin Davalos ran up in the top five. The old teammates exchanged positions a few times, but Seely eventually made the pass for third. Heat number two winner Marvin Musquin suffered from a bad start, but he was quickly moving through the pack. By the halfway point, he had jumped into fifth, and he was quickly catching Hahn and Seely.
After eight laps, Tomac remain in second, but he wasn’t riding at the same speed as he was earlier in the race. This allowed Seely, Hahn, and Musquin to catch up. Musquin picked up Hahn and Seely one by one, and he eventually worked his way onto Tomac’s rear wheel by the end of the race. He made the pass stick, and finished the race in second while Sipes took the win. Tomac rounded off the podium and took the points lead back.
| Overall 1. Ryan Sipes 2. Marvin Musquin 3. Eli Tomac 4. Cole Seely 5. Wil Hahn 6. Jason Anderson 7. Dean Wilson 8. Billy Laninovich 9. Travis Baker 10. Vince Friese 11. Scott Champion 12. Kyle Beaton 13. Killy Rusk 14. Martin Davalos 15. Topher Ingalls 16. Bryce Hudson 17. Matt Moss 18. Eli Meusling 19. Preston Tilford 20. Myles Tedder |
250 Class West Coast Championship Standings (After 7 of 9 rounds) 1. Eli Tomac (134pts) 2. Dean Wilson (130) 3. Cole Seely (119) 4. Marvin Musquin (111) 5. Ryan Sipes (78) 6. Nico Izzi (78) 7. Matt Moss (77) 8. Travis Baker (75) 9. Jason Anderson (73) 10. Billy Laninovich (70) |
TAGS: 2012, andrew short, eli tomac, jake weimer, Ken Roczen, ktm 350sx-f, marvin musquin, Race Report, Ryan Sipes, Seattle Supercross
