In an evening full of surprises, Yamaha’s David Vuillemin took the holeshot and sped away to victory in the 250 supercross main at Anaheim, California last evening. Honda’s Mike LaRocco finished second, while Ernesto Fonseca (also on a Honda) finished third in his 250 debut.
Honda’s defending champion Ricky Carmichael handily won his heat race, and got a relatively good start in the main event (fourth place). He had worked his way into second when he crashed on a step-up jump leading into the first whoop section. Carmichael’s crash looked nasty, and he lay motionless on the track for quite some time. Ultimately, he got up and walked to a golf cart with the assistance of others, and was transported from the stadium. According to preliminary reports, Carmichael does not have any serious injuries.
Also of note was the poor performance of Yamaha’s Jeremy McGrath. McGrath was leading his heat race when, uncharacteristically, he was passed by two riders — Mike LaRocco and Travis Pastrana (Suzuki). McGrath also rode very poorly in the main event, ultimately finishing 13th in the field of 20 riders.
The 125 class was not without drama of its own. Honda’s Travis Preston won the main event after the two leaders, Christopher Gosselaar (Honda) and Rodrig Thain (Yamaha) tangled and fell with less than half a lap to go. Although Gosselaar remounted for third place, Thain could manage no better than fifth. This incident not only put Preston at the top of the podium, but allowed Kawasaki’s young phenom James Stewart to finish second after crashing his way out of podium contention earlier. Stewart, by the way, posted lap times roughly one second faster than the next fastest 125 rider.
Round two is next Saturday evening in San Diego, California.
125 Main Event Final Results (Top 10)
1. Travis Preston #29, Honda 2. James Stewart, Jr. #259, Kawasaki 3. Chris Gosselaar #90, Honda 4. Brock Sellards #18, KTM 5. Rodrig Thain #27, Yamaha 6. David Pingree #39, KTM 7. Ivan Tedesco #45, Yamaha 8. Travis Elliott #105, Honda 9. Keith Johnson #49, Yamaha 10. Michael Brandes #44, Suzuki
250 Main Event Final Results (Top 10)
1. David Vuillemin #12, Yamaha 2. Mike LaRocco #5, Honda 3. Ernesto Fonseca #24, Honda 4. Michael Byrne #35, Honda 5. Ezra Lusk #11, Kawasaki 6. Chad Reed #103, Yamaha 7. Nick Wey #26, Yamaha 8. Kevin Windham #14, Suzuki 9. Stephane Roncada #21, Kawasaki 10. Jean Sebastien Roy #40, Honda
