Carmichael Wins in Minneapolis

Henny Ray Abrams | February 15, 2003

Patience was the key for American Honda’s Ricky Carmichael.

The championship leader waited until the fourth lap to take the lead, then stretched it with ease before a crowd of 49,732 inside Minneapolis’s Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, to win his fourth AMA Supercross of the year.

“I’ve been the only rider in the top five every race,” Carmichael said, “and that’s what it takes to win championships.”

Carmichael was away second, trailing Team Chevy Trucks Kawasaki’s Ezra Lusk, then was passed by Yamaha’s Chad Reed. But Reed was riding hard and it would cost him, the Australian falling first on the fifth lap, and losing one spot, then again a lap later, that crash more costly.

Carmichael passed Lusk on the sixth lap and steadily edged away, winning the 20-lap race by 7.999 seconds.

“I was just trying to get through lap 10,” Carmichael said, adding that he wasn’t going to get into a speed race with Reed. “When Chad [Reed] went by me and Ezra [Lusk], he was riding pretty darn fast. I thought if he can keep it on two wheels, he deserves to win.”

He couldn’t and Carmichael had his 30th Supercross victory, and a padded points cushion. After seven of 16 rounds, Floridian Carmichael leads Reed, 160-146. Yamaha’s David Vuillemin, who was passed by teammate Tim Ferry for third less than three laps from the end, is third at 127.

Early leader Lusk began the race by winning the $1500 SXGP.com Holeshot Award, then rode to a ragged second.

“I worked awfully hard to get up here,” the Georgian Lusk said. “I’ve been struggling the last few weeks after winning that race [in Phoenix]. I wish I could’ve ridden a little bit faster. I felt like I was going through the motions.”

Ferry said he was able to take second from Vuillemin because he could see the Frenchman was tiring.

“He was worn out,” said the Floridian Ferry, who made it an all southeast podium. “I could tell. I could see what was happening. He was making mistakes.”

Behind Vuillemin came Mach 1 Yamaha’s Nicholas Wey, matching his best finish of the year from a week ago in San Diego.

Then came Reed, whose heat race win was 11 seconds faster than Carmichael’s, but who was overaggressive in the main. The first Reed crash cost him one spot, the second one cost him eight, the Australian dropping from third to 11th. After the second fall he was on a mission, cutting through the field to take sixth.

MotoXXX’s Damon Huffman rode the Honda CR-450F to seventh, his best finish of the year. Huffman said he was continuously adjusting to the four-stroke, and riding it in the softer Midwestern dirt was an adjustment after six weeks of West Coast hardpack.

A clean first lap propelled Team SoBe Suzuki’s Branden Jesseman to victory in the first 125cc Eastern Regional race of the year.

With much of the field held up in a first corner pileup, and a few more slowed by an incident a few corners later, Jesseman got away smoothly, pulling away to let the rest of the field fight over second.

While they squabbled, he cruised, giving the Team SoBe Suzuki team a lone bright spot on a weekend when they lost a second 250cc rider, Stephane Roncada, to injury. The Frenchman broke his tibia and fibula in a practice crash.

“Everyone has tough luck once in a while,” Jesseman said. “Lucky for him [team manager Roger DeCoster] to get a 125 on the podium.”

The early battle for second was among Team Racerhouse.com’s Kelly Smith, Boost Mobile Yamaha/Troy Racing’s Brock Sellards, Team Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Mike Brown and Sellards’ teammate Ivan Tedesco, though only briefly. Tedesco endoed in front of Brown approaching the finish line jump early on, re-mounting to finish sixth.

That left Smith and Sellards to fight over second, Sellards taking over second on the sixth lap and holding it to the finish.

“Out in California, that concrete was getting to me,” the Ohioan said, welcoming the softer dirt of the Metrodome. “It’s really slippery.”

While Sellards and Smith were contesting second, the fastest rider on the track was Amsoil/Chaparral Honda’s Michael Byrne. Byrne was rapidly working his way through the pack after being caught up in the first turn melee and landing in 16th place. The Australian moved by Brown into third on the 11th, where he’d finish. He also won the $1000 SXGP.com Holeshot award.

“I just had to make the most of it,” Byrne, who’d ridden the 250cc class in the West Coast Supercross rounds said. Because of rain in Southern California all week, Byrne wasn’t able to practice on his 125.

Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Results: February 15, 2003 (Round 7)

250 HEAT 1 (8 laps, 1-4 transfer): 1. Chad Reed (Yam); 2. David Vuillemin (Yam); 3. Andrew Short (Suz); 4. Nicholas Wey (Yam); 5. Heath Voss (Yam); 6. Damon Huffman (Hon); 7. Keith Johnson (Yam); 8. Brian Mason (Yam); 9. Marco Dube (Hon); 10. Scott Davis (Suz); 11. Kris Papworth (Kaw); 12. Jamie Brockman (Yam); 13. Cory Young (Yam); 14. Brandon Hoff (Hon); 15. Karsten Butler (Suz); 16. Dave Castillo (Yam); 17. Michael Kann (Yam); 18. Mark Wundrack (Yam); 19. Kyle Garro (Yam); 20. Zeb Armstrong (Hon).

Time: 6 mins., 50.944 secs.

Margin of victory: 21.974 secs.

250 HEAT 2 (8 laps, 1-4 transfer): 1. Ricky Carmichael (Hon); 2. Timmy Ferry (Yam); 3. Larry Ward (Hon); 4. Ryan Clark (Yam); 5. Jason Thomas (Hon); 6. Greg Schnell (Yam); 7. Ezra Lusk (Kaw); 8. James Povolny (Hon); 9. Joseph Oehlhof (Yam); 10. Jimmy Wilson (Yam); 11. Thomas Kelley (Suz); 12. Jerrad Fisher (Yam); 13. Brandon Butler (Suz); 14. Clark Stiles (Hon); 15. Ernesto Fonseca (Hon); 16. Mike LaRocco (Hon); 17. Charlie Dagner (Yam); 18. Chase Reed (KTM); 19. Eddie Ray (Hon); 20. Bryan White (Yam).

Time: 6 mins., 52.762 secs.

Margin of victory: 13.709 secs.

250 SEMI 1 (6 laps, 1-5 transfer): 1. Heath Voss (Yam); 2. Damon Huffman (Hon); 3. Keith Johnson (Yam); 4. Brian Mason (Yam); 5. Marco Dube (Hon); 6. Kris Papworth (Kaw); 7. Kyle Carro (Yam); 8. Jamie Brockman (Suz); 9. Karsten Butler (Suz); 10. Cory Young (Yam); 11. Michael Kann (Yam); 12. Brandon Hoff (Hon); 13. Scott Davis (Suz); 14. Dave Castillo (Yam); 15. Mark Wundrack (Yam); 16. Zeb Armstrong (Hon).

Time: 5 mins., 17.606 secs.

Margin of victory: 0.545 secs.

250 SEMI 2 (6 laps, 1-5 transfer): 1. Ezra Lusk (Kaw); 2. Ernesto Fonseca (Hon); 3. Clark Stiles (Hon); 4. Greg Schnell (Yam); 5. Jason Thomas (Hon); 6. Joseph Oehlhof (Yam); 7. James Povolny (Hon); 8. Jimmy Wilson (Yam); 9. Thomas Kelley (Suz); 10. Charlie Dagner (Yam); 11. Bryan White (Yam); 12. Eddie Ray (Hon); 13. Jerrad Fisher (Yam); 14. Brandon Butler (Suz); 15. Mike LaRocco (Hon); 16. Chase Reed (KTM).

Time: 5 mins., 12.985 secs.

Margin of victory: 10.127 secs.

250 MAIN (20 laps): 1. Ricky Carmichael (Hon); 2. Ezra Lusk (Kaw); 3. Tim Ferry (Yam); 4. David Vuillemin (Yam); 5. Nicholas Wey (Yam); 6. Chad Reed (Yam); 7. Damon Huffman (Hon); 8. Keith Johnson (Yam); 9. Larry Ward (Hon); 10. Ernesto Fonseca (Hon); 11. Jason Thomas (Hon); 12. Heath Voss (Yam); 13. Ryan Clark (Yam); 14. Clark Stiles (Hon); 15. Greg Schnell (Yam); 16. Joseph Oehlhof (Yam); 17. Andrew Short (Suz); 18. James Povolny (Hon); 19. Marco Dube (Hon); 20. Brian Mason (Yam).

Time: 17 mins., 51.821 secs.

Margin of victory: 7.999 secs.

250 AMA SUPERCROSS SERIES POINT STANDINGS (After 7 of 16 rounds): 1. Ricky Carmichael (160/4 wins); 2. Chad Reed (146/2 wins); 3. David Vuillemin (127); 4. Ezra Lusk (120/1); 5. Tim Ferry (114); 6. Michael Byrne (75); 7. Stephane Roncada (70); 8. Nicholas Wey (68); 9. Heath Voss (66); 10. Sebastien Tortelli (63); 11. Mike LaRocco (60); 12. Ernesto Fonseca (59); 13. Larry Ward (53); 14. Keith Johnson (49) 15. Damon Huffman (42); 16. Ryan Clark (37); 17. Ivan Tedesco (36); 18. Brock Sellards (32); 19. Paul Carpenter (22); 20. Michael Brown (19).

125cc

125 HEAT 1 (6 laps, 1-9 transfer): 1. Brannden Jesseman (Suz); 2. Mike Brown (Kaw); 3. Ivan Tedesco (Yam); 4. Paul Currie (Yam); 5. Michael Byrne (Hon); 6. Brock Sellards (Yam); 7. Brett Metcalafe (KTM); 8. Matthieu Lalloz (Yam); 9. Joshua Summey (Yam); 10. Tiger Lacey (Yam); 11. Derrick Fisher (Suz); 12. Eric Kowalik (Yam); 13. William Bryant (Yam); 14. Clinton Shealy (Suz); 15. Jacob Marsack (Suz); 16. Bryan White (Yam); 17. Spencer Hill (Yam); 18. Tommy Harrison (Suz); 19. Robbie Horton (KTM); 20. Scott Davis (Suz).

Time: 5 mins., 23.704 secs.

Margin of victory: 1.172 secs.

125 HEAT 2 (6 laps, 1-9 transfer): 1. Grant Langston (KTM); 2. Erick Vallejo (Yam); 3. Jeff Gibson (Suz); 4. Tyson Hadsell (Yam); 5. Shae Bentley (Suz); 6. Kelly Smith (Yam); 7. Ryan Mills (Hon); 8. Steve Boniface (KTM); 9. Michael Blose (Yam); 10. Charlie Dagner (Yam); 11. Roberty Kinry (Suz); 12. Chase Reed (KTM); 13. Kyle Garro (Yam); 14. Shane Lusk (Hon); 15. Michael Kann (Yam); 16. Justin Thompson (KTM); 17. Ryan Morais (Suz); 18. Brandon Butler (Suz); 19. Thomas Kelley (Suz); 20. Kurt Jennison (Kaw).

Time: 5 mins., 33.170 secs.

Margin of victory: 4.021 secs.

125 LCQ (4 laps, 1-4 transfer): Tiger Lacey (Yam); 2. Chase Reed (KTM); 3. Tommy Harrison (Suz); 4. Robert Kiniry (Suz); 5. Shane Lusk (Hon); 6. Eirc Kowalik (Yam); 7. Derrick Fisher (Suz); 8. Michael Kann (Yam); 9. Clinton Shealy (Suz); 10. Justin Thompson (KTM); 11. William Bryant (Yam); 12. Spencer Hill (Yam); 13. Ryan Morais (Suz); 14. Brandon Butler (Suz); 15. Jacob Marsack (Suz); 16. Kyle Garro (Yam); 17. Charlie Dagner (Yam); 18. Bryan White (Yam); 19. Robbie Horton (KTM); 20. Thomas Kelley (Suz); 21. Scott Davis (Suz); 22. Kurt Jennison (Kaw).

Time: 3 mins., 44.679 secs.

Margin of victory: 2.147 secs.

125cc MAIN (15 laps, 22 riders): 1. Branden Jesseman (Suz); 2. Brock Sellards (Yam); 3. Michael Byrne (Hon); 4. Michael Brown (Kaw); 5. Kelly Smith (Yam); 6. Ivan Tedesco (Yam); 7. Tiger Lacey (Yam); 8. Brett Metcalfe (KTM); 9. Jeff Gibson (Suz); 10. Steve Boniface (KTM); 11. Ryan Mills (Hon); 12. Michael Blose (Yam); 13. Erick Valllejo (Yam); 14. Matthieu Lalloz (Suz); 15. Joshua Summey (Yam); 16. Grant Langston (KTM); 17. Robert Kiniry (Suz); 18. Tommy Harrison (Suz); 19. Shae Bentley (Suz); 20. Chase Reed (KTM); 21. Paul Currie (Yam); 22. Tyson Hadsell (Yam).

Time: 13 mins., 52.489 secs.

Margin of victory: 7.264 secs.

125cc EASTERN REGIONAL SUPERCROSS C’SHIP POINT STANDINGS (After 1 of 8 rounds): 1. Branden Jesseman (25); 2. Brock Sellards (22); 3. Michael Byrne (20); 4. Michael Brown (18); 5. Kelly Smith (16); 6. Ivan Tedesco (15); 7. Brett Metcalfe (13); 8. Jeff Gibson (21); 9. Steve Boniface (11); 10. Ryan Mills (9); 11. Michael Blose (9); 12. Erick Valllejo (8); 13. Joshua Summey (6); 14. Grant Langston (5); 15. Robert Kiniry (4); 16. Chase Reed (1).

Henny Ray Abrams | Contributing Editor

Abrams is the longest-serving contributor at Cycle News. Over the course of his 35-some years of writing and shooting photos, he’s covered events from MotoGP to the Motocross World Championship - and everything in between.