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Arlington, TX - Supercross Race Recap
250 –
Dallas was the first round of the much anticipated east coast 250 series.
The day started great with Fox Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider Martin Davalos setting the faster qualifying time and Austin Forkner setting the 8th fastest time.
Qualifying set the tone going in the night event with Austin Forkner taking the win in the first heat race and Davalos taking the win in heat 2. Both riders put in dominating performances.
As the main event started, Davalos had a great jump and looked to be in line for the holeshot heading into the first turn. As the riders started to brake for left hander, Martin was hit from behind causing a chaotic first turn crash. Davalos was thrown across the track taking several riders with him along the way. Luckily, he was not seriously hurt and will be ready to race at Tampa.
Austin Forkner was able to miss the first turn carnage and start the main near the front of the pack. A mid race collision with Zack Osbourne put Austin on the ground. Austin remounted and charged through the pack, and eventually finishing 7th.
450 –
Unfortunately, the Dallas Supercorss marked the first round that Ken Roczen had to sit out with a hand injury he sustained at the San Diego round last week. Ken had surgery to repair his hand on Friday. Surgery went well with Ken already starting therapy this week. No timeline on his return just yet.
Dallas also marked Chad Reed’s 227th main event start. A number that tied him for all time SX starts with Mike LaRocco. Chad looks to take the all-time starts lead with his 228th start in Tampa this coming weekend.
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250 –
Both Fox Monster Pro-Circuit Kawasaki riders Joey Savatgy and Adam Cianciarulo debuted our military inspired San Diego 180 SE kits for the San Diego race.
Once again, Joey and Adam got off to great starts in the main event. Joey with the holeshot and Adam in third. Adam quickly worked his way past Justin Hill to get into second, with his sights set on Savatgy in the lead. Adam put some great laps together to close in on Joey and make his move for the lead in the right hander, just before the triple.
Justin Hill was also on the move, passing Joey for seond and setting his sights on Adam in first. The two had a great battle for the lead with Justin eventually taking the win.
Adam finished second with Joey in fourth. Both riders making up points on points leader Aaron Plessinger who finshed 7th.
The west coast guys take a break now as the east coast will kick their season off in Dallas this weekend.
450 –
Round 6 of the AMA Supercross series brought the riders to San Diego. Ken Roczen paid homage to the armed forces with a set of custom Camo Preest Flexair Racwear. Ken’s gear may have been the highlight of his night.
As the main event statrted, Ken got tangled with a couple riders going in to the first turn and went down. As he picked himself up and started to work his was through the pack he became engaged in a heated battle with Cooper Webb… Both riders not wiling to give an inch. The final move came with Ken getting more traction than he anticipated, trying to dive under Copper in a left hand turn. His bike rocketed out of his grasp and into Webb. The ensuing crash had Ken’s right arm get caught in the swingarm and rear wheel of Webb’s bike, injuring his hand and bringing his night of racing to an end.
Ken will most likely miss a couple of rounds with a hand injury. We are hoping for a speedy recovery and hope to see Ken back to racing soon.
Photos: Ryne Swanberg/Garth Milan of Octopi Media
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250 –
Fox had another strong showing from Monster Pro-Circuit Kawasaki rider Joey Savatgy. Joey got out of the gate strong, running second for the majority of the race. The closing laps saw Joey slip back to third as Justin Hill was able to pass for second. Joey fought back to pass Justin and land in 2nd place on the podium for the night, and retain his second position in the point standings.
Adam Cianciarulo had a tough start in the main event, going off the track in the first turn. Adam battled his way through the pack to finish in 7th, leaving Oakland 4th in the championship points standings.
450 –
In what turned out to be one of the best races to date, Ken Roczen came so close to capturing his first win of the season at Oakland SX.
The track turned out to be the most demanding and technical we have seen this year. Ken got off to a great start, behind his teammate Cole Seely. For a moment, it looked like it was going to be a factory Honda sweep of the top two podium spots. Seely ended up going down in one of the technical rhythm sections with Ken taking over the lead. Ken put in great ride to hold the lead for the majority of the race. As the race came to its closing stages, points leader Jason Anderson was on the move, closing to within striking distance with two laps to go.
What ensued was an epic battle to the finish. Ken and Jason swapped the lead several times in the last two laps, coming down to the last rhythm section where Ken made a small mistake that allowed Jason to pass for the win.
Ken’s great ride moved him up to 2nd in the points standing as the series heads to San Diego.
Photos: Ryne Swanberg/Garth Milan of Octopi Media