Red Bull/KTM riders Andrew Short and Mike Alessi put their KTM 350 SX-F race machines inside the top ten for the second week in a row this time at the 7th round of the series in San Diego, CA at Qualcomm Stadium.
Rain leading up to the race created a muddy race course for the riders as they headed to the first practice session. Short shined in the first practice turning the 4th fastest time in his session. At the end of the second session Short remained in the top ten fastest times qualifying 9th overall while Alessi qualified 17th.
Both Red Bull/KTM riders earned a gate spot in the second heat. Alessi got a great jump off the start rounding the first corner in 2nd position while Short wasn’t as fortunate and came around in 7th. Alessi made a few mistakes on the first lap and dropped to 5th. He then began to battle with his teammate for that position as Short fought his way forward. When the checkered flag flew, Short crossed the line in 5th while Alessi qualified 7th.
KTM fans everywhere were on their feet at the start of the Supercross main event as both Short and Alessi came around the first corner in 2nd and 3rd respectively. It was Reed and Short who competed for the holeshot while Alessi cut inside at the end to put two KTM’s into the top three. A few laps into the race Short was sitting 3rd while Alessi had dropped to 6th. Short worked hard to maintain his pace out front while trying to hold off both James Stewart and reigning Champion Ryan Dungey. Unfortunately, both were able to move around Short and by the fifth lap he was 5th with his teammate directly behind him.
The Red Bull/KTM riders did not separate too far away from each other after that. Short and Alessi ran 5th and 6th for the majority of the race. Around the thirteenth lap Alessi began to get heavy pressure from Davi Millsaps. Alessi fought hard to protect his lines and try to keep Millsaps at bay for a good six laps. With three laps to go Millsaps was able to move around Alessi and took over 6th place. Alessi then found himself in a battle with Ryan Villopoto and Brett Metcalfe who had both been trailing Millsaps earlier in the race. Alessi, Villopoto and Metcalfe battled the entire last lap. With three corners to go, Alessi made a mistake in a corner and allowed Villopoto to get by. As he tried to protect his line in the next corner he made another mistake and lost his rhythm losing the next spot to Metcalfe. When Alessi crossed the finish he was 9th overall, marking his best finish so far this season.
“I am bummed that I wasn’t able to hang on to my 6th place position which I maintained through most of the race, but I feel really good about my performance today. This is the first race where I kept my pace through all twenty laps and by doing so I was able to better my best finish. I’m pumped to finish inside the top ten with Short for another weekend,” remarked Alessi after the race.
Short went on to finish the night in 6th overall after a last lap battle with Millsaps. “I don’t consider myself a decent mud rider so I was a little worried about this race. This track was also pretty tricky and there were a few sections that I struggled with tonight. Overall, I am glad to be in the top ten but I really would have liked to finish in the top five,” stated Short.
Both riders will now head to Atlanta for the next round of the AMA Supercross Series next Saturday night.
Overall Results –
- Chad Reed
- Ryan Dungey
- James Stewart
- Trey Canard
- Davi Millsaps
- Andrew Short – KTM
- Ryan Villopoto
- Brett Metcalfe
- Mike Alessi – KTM
- Justin Brayton
- Nick Wey
- Kyle Regal
- Fabien Izoird
- Chris Blose
- Ivan Tedesco
- Michael Byrne
- Maxime Lesage
- Austin Stroupe
- Weston Peick
- Kevin Windham
Overall Point Standings –
- Ryan Villopoto – 146
- James Stewart – 143
- Chad Reed – 130
- Trey Canard – 130
- Ryan Dungey – 123
- Andrew Short – 95
- Brett Metcalfe – 93
- David Millsaps – 78
- Justin Brayton – 76
- Ivan Tedesco – 66
