Ryan Villopoto secures third consecutive 2012 AMA Supercross win in Dallas – Motocross News
Ryan Villopoto collected his third consecutive victory of the 2012 Monster Energy American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Supercross at the Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas, on Saturday, February 18.
Red Bull/KTM’s Ryan Dungey secured runner-up place after a hard-fought battle, while Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer took third to complete the podium.
The seventh round of the International Motorcyclist Federation (FIM) World Championship had attracted the elite 450-class riders from across the nation to continue their campaign for the coveted Supercross Championship title before 53,952 fans in attendance
at the Cowboys Stadium.
As the 20-lap race got underway, Motoconcepts Suzuki’s Jeff Alessi claimed the Nuclear Cowboyz Holeshot Award. However, he failed to capitalise on his excellent start and soon fell behind Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Villopoto and TwoTwo Motorsports Honda’s
Chad Reed.
While Villopoto held on to his place firmly, Reed ended up suffering a nasty crash prior to the halfway stage that forced him out of the race. With the TwoTwo Motorsports/Honda rider off his back, the Washington-based defending AMA Supercross champion stayed
well ahead of the rest of the pack until the end to eventually secure top honours.
“The track really broke down out there tonight, and when that happens, you have to be smart and play it safe,” said Villopoto after the race. “It's a bummer for Chad (Reed). I am looking forward to next weekend in Atlanta.”
Dungey had gotten off to a shaky start once the gates dropped, but rode exceptionally well to gradually climb his way to third place, just behind Weimer, with two laps left. The two riders kept trading positions, neither of them willing to settle for anything
less than a second-place finish.
The mixture of determination and desperation enabled the Red Bull/KTM rider to eventually overtake the Kawasaki rider once and for all in the final lap to claim runner-up position, forcing Weimer to settle for third-place finish.
Joe Gibbs Racing Motocross (JGRMX)/Yamaha’s James Stewart once again became victim of his routine crashes, this time getting caught up with his team Davi Millsaps on the third lap after getting off to a promising start. Despite all his efforts, he finished
the race in sixth place, making it yet another disappointing result for him in the latest season of the AMA Supercross series.
With the conclusion of the seventh round of 2012 Monster Energy AMA Supercross in Dallas, Villopoto has further cemented his position on top in the season standings with 158 points. Dungey’s second-place in the latest race moved him to second place in the
overall standings with 145 points, while Reed fell to third place with 128 points after failing to complete the race this past weekend. Stewart is still hanging on to fourth place in the standings with 116 points.
The riders will head to Atlanta to continue their campaign for the 2012 AMA Supercross title at Georgia Dome this Saturday, February 25.
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