Suzuki’s Ricky Carmichael put a charge back into the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series with a thrilling win on Saturday night at Chase Field in Phoenix. KTM’s Nathan Ramsey, of Menifee, Calif., won the Western Region AMA Supercross Lites main event.
Tonight’s race will air on SPEED tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. EST.
Seven-time supercross champion Jeremy McGrath, of Escondido, Calif., brought the crowd to its feet with a holeshot to start the 20-lap main event. He lead the first lap and a half before being passed by Yamaha’s Chad Reed, of Dade City, Fla. Meanwhile, Kawasaki’s James Stewart, of Haines City, Fla., was working his way through the field after a first turn crash left him in last place and over 30 seconds behind the leaders.
With Reed out front, Carmichael began to make his charge. Carmichael was sitting back in second place and was slowly making ground on Reed when the leader spun his bike in the rhythm section before the first triple jump and was forced to stop. By the time Reed got back up to speed, Carmichael was on his tail and began inching closer with each turn. And on lap 11, Carmichael finally made his move with an inside pass in the sweeper turn before the final triple.
Once in the lead, Carmichael continued to extend his lead and won comfortably. Reed finished second and Stewart, whose mid-race charge came up a little short, placed third.
“I’m going to cherish this one like it’s the last one; it’s been a while since I’ve won,” said Carmichael, who picked up the 128th win of his career. “Chad had a little mishap and I was able to get by him. He didn’t hit this timing lane and I got it. The track was good for racing. We need close racing which will make (racing) better for everyone.”
Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto, of Poulsbo, Wash., grabbed the holeshot off the start but ran into the fallen Honda of Andrew Short, of Murrieta, Calif., who was in the lead at the time, on lap two as the two riders dropped to middle of the pack. Kawasaki’s Grant Langston also went down on the same lap and added his name to the list of series contenders who were struggling in the early stages.
With his main competition behind him, Ramsey shot to the lead on lap four, one he would never relinquish, cruising to his first win of the season and 15th of his career. Honda’s Billy Laninovich, of Lake Elsinore, Calif., finished second, while Langston put a block pass on Short with two turns to go on the last lap to secure third.
Tonight’s race will air on SPEED tomorrow, January 15, at 6:00 p.m. EST.
Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP Season Standings
1. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki, 95
2. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 89
3. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 84
4. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 69
5. Nicholas Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 63
6. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 62
7. Jeff Gibson, Westerville, Ohio, Honda, 50
8. Jason Thomas, Melrose, Fla., Honda, 48
9. Ryan Clark, Waddell, Ariz., Honda, 42
10. Justin Buckelew, Riverside, Calif., Honda, 33
Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series Event Results, Anaheim 1
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki
2. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha
3. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki
4. Jeremy McGrath, Encinitas, Calif., Honda
5. Nicholas Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda
6. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
7. Ernesto Fonseca, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
8. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda
9. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki
10. David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Honda
Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 45
2. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki, 45
3. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 44
4. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda, 31
5. Nicholas Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 30
6. Ernesto Fonseca, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 29
7. Jeremy McGrath, Encinitas, Calif., Honda, 28
8. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 28
9. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 27
10. Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 23
Amp’d Mobile Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites Event Results
1. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM
2. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda
3. Grant Langston, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
4. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki
5. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
6. Sean Collier, Santa Clara, Calif., Yamaha
7. Paul Carpenter, Ithaca, N.Y., Honda
8. Darcy Lange, San Jacinto, Calif., Kawasaki
9. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
10. Mike Alessi, Apple Valley, Calif., KTM
Amp’d Mobile Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites Season Standings
1. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda, 42
2. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 41
3. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki, 40
4. Grant Langston, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 38
5. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM, 34
6. Darcy Lange, San Jacinto, Calif., Kawasaki, 29
7. Paul Carpenter, Ithaca, N.Y., Honda, 29
8. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha, 25
9. Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Honda, 24
10. Mike Alessi, Apple Valley, Calif., KTM, 23
KTM Junior Supercross Challenge Results
1. Mark Worth, Queen Creek, Ariz., KTM
2. Thunder Ralston, Mesa, Ariz., KTM
3. Jared Conley, Lowell, Ind., KTM
4. Patrick Evans, Monroe, N.C., KTM
5. William Simons, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM
6. Tyler Sullivan, McDonough, Ga., KTM
7. Dylan Brown, Palmdale, Calif., KTM
8. Mark Hushon, Delta, Pa., KTM
9. McKenna Oldenburg, Browerville, Minn., KTM
10. Ryan Miller, Victorville, Calif., KTM
11. Ethan Wilson, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM
12. Nicholas Lioy, Tucson, Ariz., KTM
13. Jimmy Willis, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
14. Cody Pelle, Bakersfield, Calif., KTM
15. Sara Hernandez, Mira Loma, Calif., KTM