INDIANAPOLIS (March 17, 2012) – In front of 59,872 fans at Lucas Oil Stadium, Ryan Villopoto, of Poulsbo, Wash., captured his sixth Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, victory. Rockstar Energy Racing Suzuki’s Blake Wharton, of Pilot Point, Texas, won his first Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Main Event of the season.
Motoconcepts Suzuki’s Mike Alessi, of Victorville, Calif., captured the Nuclear Cowboyz® Holeshot Award to open the Supercross Class Main Event with Muscle Milk Honda’s Justin Brayton, of Murrieta, Calif., and Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin, of Murrieta, Calif., following in second and third, respectively.
A small mistake by Alessi on Lap 5 allowed Brayton to make a pass into the lead. On Lap 10, Villopoto, who waited methodically, worked his way through the pack, passed Yoshimura Suzuki’s Brett Metcalfe, of Lake Elsinore, Calif., for second place. Five laps later, Villopoto passed Brayton for the lead and rode to victory. Brayton finished second and, for the second consecutive weekend, JGRMX/Toyota/Yamaha’s Davi Millsaps, of Murrieta, Calif., finished on the podium with a third-place finish.
“This was by far the hardest track of the season,” said Villopoto. “It was slick out there, and I had to be on my game. It was tough to make passes on this track.”
Red Bull Red KTM’s Ken Roczen, of Murrieta, Calif., led the field through turn one in the Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Main Event, winning the Nuclear Cowboyz Holeshot Award, with Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett, of Grand Terrace, Calif., following in second. Baggett quickly passed Roczen, but Roczen answered back as he passed him near the end of the opening lap.
On Lap 5 the race was red flagged due to a crash by Star/Valli/Yamaha’s Kyle Cunningham. The race was restarted in a staggered format with Roczen, Baggett and Wharton in the top three positions, respectively. Current points leader Justin Barcia, who rides for the GIECO Honda team, restarted in eighth place.
After the restart, Wharton charged his way around Baggett and assumed the number-two position, and on the same lap Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Darryn Durham, of Butler, Pa., moved into third place. While leading, Roczen crashed and suffered a mechanical problem that forced him to re-enter the race in last place. As a result, Wharton assumed the lead and Durham took over second place. Wharton rode to the second win of his career and Durham finished in second place for the second time this season. Barcia rounded out the podium with a third.
“I am lucky to finish where I did tonight,” said Barcia. “It was so slick out there tonight and tough to get through the corners. It just wasn’t our night tonight, but we will be back.”
“I am very thankful to everyone that got me here,” said Wharton. “It was a strange start after the red flag, but it was great for me. I didn’t look up until I saw the white flag, and once I saw it, I knew I had to ride smart for one more lap.”
Supercross Class Results: Indianapolis
1. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki
2. Justin Brayton, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
3. Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
4. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki
5. Cole Seeley, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
6. Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., Suzuki
7. Marvin Musquin, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
8. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Kawasaki
9. Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Kawasaki
10. Nico Izzi, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
Supercross Class Season Standings
1. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki – 246
2. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM – 192
3. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Yamaha – 177
4. Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha – 151
5. Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda – 146
6. Justin Brayton, Murrieta, Calif., Honda – 143
7. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki – 142
8. Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki – 134
9. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Honda – 128
10. Mike Alessi, Hilliard, Calif., Suzuki – 128
Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Results: Indianapolis
- Blake Wharton, Pilot Point, Texas, Suzuki
- Darryn Durham, Butler, Pa., Kawasaki
- Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki
- Jake Canada, Sun City, Calif., Honda
- Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda
- Matthew Lemoine, Collinsville, Texas, Kawasaki
- Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ken., Kawasaki
- Les Smith, York, SC., KTM
- Shawn Rife, Mechanicsburg, Ohio., Honda
Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Season Standings
- Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda – 120
- Darryn Dunham, Butler, Pa., Kawasaki – 98
- Blake Wharton, Pilot Point, Texas, Suzuki – 97
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki – 80
- Ken Roczen, Murrieta, Ga., KTM – 80
- Jake Canada, Sun City, Calif., Suzuki – 72
- Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda – 61
- Kyle Cunningham, Aledo, Texas, Yamaha – 43
- Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., KTM – 42
- PJ Larsen, Murrieta, Calif., KTM – 38
Monster Energy Supercross heads north to Toronto’s Rogers Centre next weekend.
Tune into the enhanced exclusive weekly video content from Supercross LIVE! during the entire 2012 season on SupercrossOnline.com, the Official Website of Monster Energy Supercross.
Weekly Supercross LIVE! Video Content Schedule
The Official Supercross LIVE! Pre-Show Race Days at 11 AM Local Race Time
Behind the Scenes with Supercross LIVE! All Day on Race Days
2 Minutes on the Track Race Days at 3:30 & 5:30 PM Local Race Time
And on the Podium Tonight Following Each Round’s Main Events
The Official Supercross LIVE! Post-Show Saturday Nights at Each Round
Toyota Tailgate Talk Wednesdays at 5 PM ET
After The Checkered Flag Thursdays at 5PM ET
For more information on the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, please log on to www.SupercrossOnline.com, the official website of Monster Energy Supercross. For all media requests, please contact Denny Hartwig dhartwig@feldinc.com or 630-566-6305. To follow Monster Energy Supercross on Facebook and Twitter, log on to http://www.facebook.com/supercrosslive and http://twitter.com/supercrosslive.
Feld Motor Sports®, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam®, Monster Energy Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Nuclear Cowboyz®, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment. For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit www.feldentertainment.com.