Ryan Villopoto wins his first AMA Supercross Championship title
The 2011 Monster Energy American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Supercross Championship, an International Motorcyclist Federation (FIM) Championship, wrapped up after featuring some of the greatest action sports athletes in the supercross action in 17 races over a span of five months. At the end of the season, it was Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto who emerged as the winner of the 2011 season of AMA Supercross.
Every battle turned out to be intense, with the riders giving their all to clinch the coveted victory and grabbing the valuable ranking points. Travelling all around America, the exciting athletes participated in numerous battles, determined to come on top.
Though there were sensational performances by a number of riders. One rider, who managed to outshine all his competitors over the last few months, was from Washington, Villopoto. Amassing victories and making it to the podium in majority of the races, there is no doubt that Villopoto had a dream season.
Villopoto kicked-off the current season with a victory at the Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, on the eighth of January this year. He repeated the feat again in the third stop of the AMA Supercross on January 22 at the Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, to clinch his second win and secure his place at the top of the ranking table.
After a hiatus of four races, the Kawasaki rider once again made it to the top of the podium at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 26. He went on a frenzy ride from there, winning the stops at Daytona and Indianapolis to get himself a comfortable lead over the rest of the riders in the season standings. With five victories from the 10 races so far, he had become one of the strongest contender for the title.
Villopoto grabbed his sixth victory at the Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, on April 30, to further cement his place at the top of the ranking table. With 16 races gone, only one final stop was left at Las Vegas. He simply needed a fifth place finish or better to get to the throne.
The battle in Las Vegas took place this weekend, May 7. Villopoto cautious and skilful riding allowed him to avoid getting caught up in any crash and finish in third place, with TwoTwo Motorsports finishing in first and Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey ending the race in runner-up position. The third place finish was more than sufficient for the Kawasaki rider to secure his first ever AMA Supercross Championship title. He ended the season with 338 points, 14 ahead of the runner-up, Reed.
Talking to a reporter after the fate of the season was decided, Villopoto said, “I just have to thank everyone at Kawasaki. The team believed in me through thick and thin. We'll enjoy this. It was a hard-fought battle.”
This was indeed a well deserved title for the Washington-based rider. He had shown consistency and excellent riding throughout the season to get to the throne.
Tags: