TORONTO, CANADA, MARCH 26 – He had to go to a different country and waited 12 races into the season, but Ryan Dungey finally did it. The defending champ rode his No. 1 Rockstar Makita Suzuki to his first victory of the season Saturday night front of 45,217 in the Rogers Centre and put himself squarely back in the championship chase.
Meanwhile chaos and the unexpected kept happening in Toronto. As a result Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM Championship has a new points leader in Chad Reed. Reed rode a steady race on his TwoTwo Motorsports/Bel-Ray Racing Honda to finish runner up, 1.889 seconds behind Dungey. Trey Canard was third on the factory Honda. Reed now owns a three point lead over Ryan Villopoto, who crashed and finished ninth.
Dean Wilson thrilled the Canadian fans by winning the Lites East final. Wilson worked his way through the field after a poor start on his Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki and once in the lead midway through the race, he pulled away to 3.768 second victory over Justin Barcia. Barcia’s GEICO Honda teammate Blake Wharton finished a distant third. Wilson chipped three points from Barcia’s series lead, but Barcia is still a relatively safe 16 points ahead with just two rounds remaining.
Dungey looked like the rider of a year ago. He followed surprise holeshot and first–lap leader Frenchman Fabien Izoird and then bolted to the lead and immediately began gapping the field. “Once I got out front I just concentrated on turning in clean laps,” Dungey said. “That focus paid off. Towards the end of the race I saw Chad [Reed] coming, but it didn’t rattle me. I knew all I had to do was keep turning in good laps and the rest would take care of itself.” On the heels of missing the main at Jacksonville, Villopoto had another tough night in Canada. The points leader coming into the race was slowed in a first-turn tangle and later crashed, dropping all the way to last place before rallying to finish ninth. James Stewart, the title contender who had blazing speed in qualifying, was also caught up in the first-lap chaos and ran as low as 12th. The San Manuel/Red Bull Yamaha rider gradually made his way through the field to finish fourth, but he didn’t have that chase-down speed he’s shown so often before when he got behind early. Stewart was 38 seconds behind the Dungey at the end.
Justin Brayton rounded out the top five on his JGR/Muscle Milk Yamaha, about nine seconds behind Stewart. Blake Wharton grabbed the holeshot in the Lites East main with teammate Barcia right there. DNA Shred Stix/Star Racing Yamaha’s Ryan Sipes quickly passed Eleven10 Mods Honda’s Darryn Durham to join the leaders. The hard-charging Sipes took the lead briefly, but then all three leaders tried to go through a banked left hander at the same time, side by side and it was Sipes who ended up being forced off the track. For the next seven laps, Barcia paced the field while Wilson looked to close the gap in second. The distance between both riders continued to decrease before Wilson made the winning pass coming out of the whoops on Lap 8.
The win marked Wilson’s second of the season and the second of his career. “The track was really tricky tonight,” said Wilson. “I didn’t get the greatest of starts but I kept pushing forward. It was all I could do. (This win) means a lot to me. We still have three races to go and I’m still far back in the points, but I’ll try my (best).” Wharton rounded out the podium in third. The series moves to Cowboys Stadium next week in Arlington, Texas.
Supercross Class Results: Toronto
1. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki2. Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Honda3. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda4. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Yamaha 5. Justin Brayton, Cornelius, N.C, Yamaha 6. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Yamaha7. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM 8. Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda9. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki 10. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda Supercross Class Season Standings1. Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Honda – 2362. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki – 2333. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki – 2284. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Yamaha – 2165. Trey Canard, Shawnee, Okla., Honda – 2146. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM – 1597. Justin Brayton, Cornelius, N.C, Yamaha – 1378. Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda – 1349. Davi Millsaps, Carlsbad, Calif., Yamaha – 12810. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Yamaha – 109 Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Results: Toronto
1. Dean Wilson, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki2. Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda3. Blake Wharton, Aubrey, Texas, Honda 4. P.J. Larsen, Murrieta, Calif., KTM 5. Ryan Sipes, Ekron, Ky., Yamaha 6. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki 7. Gannon Audette, Cairo, Ga., Yamaha8. Hunter Hewitt, Pilot Point, Texas, Suzuki9. Darryn Durham, Butler, Pa., Honda10. Matt Lemoine, Collinsville, Texas, Kawasaki Eastern Regional Supercross Lites Class Season Standings
1. Justin Barcia, Ochlocknee, Ga., Honda – 1382. Dean Wilson, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki – 1223. Ryan Sipes, Ekron, Ky., Yamaha – 1154. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki – 1005. Blake Wharton, Aubrey, Texas, Honda – 896. P.J. Larsen, Murrieta, Calif., KTM – 807. Matt Lemoine, Collinsville, Texas, Kawasaki – 808. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki – 559. Lance Vincent, Youngsville, La., Honda – 4910. Alex Martin, Millville, MN., Honda – 47
