Carmichael Wins AMA Southwick

AMA/Chevy Trucks U.S. Motocross Championship
Round 4: Southwick, Massachusetts
June 8, 2003

Hondas Haul at Southwick

Since 1997, his first full year as a professional motorcycle racer, Ricky
Carmichael has only been defeated once at Southwick, Massachusetts'
Motocross 338. His only Southwick loss came in 1998, while contesting the
125 class. Local favorite John Dowd got the best of the young Floridian
that day and to date, he's the only man to do so as Carmichael has gone on
a Southwick terror that dates back to 1999. At this year's installment,
Carmichael not only won his sixth Southwick overall, he also tied Honda
hero Jeff Stanton for most consecutive 250 race wins on the famed New
England race track. It's no small feat considering that Motocross 338 is
infamous for being one of the roughest and most exhausting race tracks on
the outdoor calendar.

"It (Southwick) is never easy," said Carmichael after winning both 250
motos. "In fact, I think this year was tougher because Kevin (Windham)
raised the level of competition and there are a few other guys that go
really well in this sand."

Honda CRF450R-mounted Kevin Windham and Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection
Red Rider Mike LaRocco are two of the riders that Carmichael was referring
to, although both riders did not have the first moto results they were
hoping for. LaRocco suffered a poor start and had to spend the moto working
his way through the pack to an eventual fifth place finish. Windham got a
slightly better start, but never advanced beyond fourth place. Carmichael
went on to win the first moto by 25.6-seconds over second place John Dowd.

The second moto went much better for both Windham and LaRocco and stayed
status quo for Carmichael, who got out to an early lead, but had Windham
hot on his tail. Around the fourth lap, Carmichael and his Honda CR250R
began to build a substantial lead over second place Windham that would
eventually end at 13.2 seconds after 18 laps around the recently redesigned
Motocross 338 race track. Windham's 4-2 moto score put him in third
overall, while LaRocco made the top five with a score of 5-4.

Honda CRF450R-mounted Nathan Ramsey not only went well in the Southwick
sand, he also went well coming off the concrete starting pad. In the first
moto Ramsey blasted into the lead from the 40-man gate. Ramsey, still
recovering from a broken femur, held on to the point for another lap before
eventually finishing the 18-lap moto in ninth, one spot behind Honda
CR250R-mounted teammate Ernesto Fonseca.

"We are real proud of Nathan Ramsey," said Honda Motocross Team Manager,
Erik Kehoe. "He made a huge step this weekend by running up front. It looks
like he's putting his injury behind him because he's quickly becoming a
factor again."

In the second moto Ramsey started almost as well, but completed the moto in
tenth. Fonseca, on the other hand, improved his first moto score by one
spot, posting a seventh in the second outing. Fonseca and Ramsey were
rewarded with seventh and eighth places overall; a season high for both
riders. MotoXXX/Yoshimura Honda's Larry Ward, who won Southwick in the 125
class back in 1989, finished one spot behind Ramsey with a 13-9 moto tally.

Hidden by an army of trees behind a high school football field and
maintained by the local VFW, Motocross 338 is by far the sandiest race
track on the AMA schedule. The site has been a National Motocross stop
since 1976 and in that time Honda riders have enjoyed much success on the
sand whoops of Southwick, including Honda CR125R riders. Prior to Stanton's
1989-1992 Southwick dominance, eighth-liter Honda riders such as Micky
Dymond, George Holland, Larry Ward and Jean-Michel Bayle began to make
Honda's presence felt. From 1987 to 1990, the four CR125R pilots kept all
other manufacturers off the top step of the Motocross 338 podium. Add four
other 125 Honda victories from 1993 to 1996 and Honda has almost double the
amount of 125 wins of any other manufacturer at the historic site. Had it
not been for a second moto crash, Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection's
Michael Byrne may have added his name to the distinguished list of
Honda-mounted overall victors at Southwick.

Byrne and young teammate Ryan Mills came out of the 125 gate swinging in
the first moto. Finally free from injury, Byrne completed the first lap in
second place with Mills right on his tail. By the completion of the fifth
lap, Byrne charged into the lead and Mills sat in fourth, a spot that he
eventually improved upon by one. Byrne would win the first moto and Mill
finished third, career highs for both riders. Unfortunately they were
unable to match them in the second 125 outing.

In moto two, Byrne actually gated better, but fell while challenging for
the lead. The talented Australian was still able to take his CR125R to
fourth in the moto, which was more than enough for second overall on the
day behind event winner Craig Anderson. Meanwhile, Mills suffered a poor
start in the second moto and finished 12th, ending the day in a proud fifth
overall.

With a rejuvenated 125 squad, the Honda Red Riders head to Budds Creek,
Maryland on June 15 for the fifth round of the 12-round series. Counting
his past 125 and 250 efforts, Carmichael has already won there a record
five times.

250 Overall Results:
1. Ricky Carmichael (1,1) - Honda
2. John Dowd (2, 3) - KTM
3. Kevin Windham (4, 2) - Honda
4. Tim Ferry (3, 6) - Yamaha
5. Mike LaRocco (5, 4) - Honda
7. Ernesto Fonseca (8, 7) - Honda
8. Nathan Ramsey (9, 10) - Honda
9. Larry Ward (13, 9) - Honda
15. Clark Stiles (17, 14) - Honda
17. Damien Plotts (16, 17) - Honda
19. Kyle Lewis (19, 16) - Honda

250 AMA Motocross Points Standings:
1. Ricky Carmichael - Honda - 197
2. Kevin Windham - Honda - 153
3. Chad Reed - Yamaha - 150
4. Tim Ferry - Yamaha - 149
5. Mike LaRocco - Honda - 124
8. Larry Ward - Honda - 87
10. Ernesto Fonseca - Honda - 78
13. Nathan Ramsey - Honda - 52
15. Kyle Lewis - Honda - 35
18. Clark Stiles - Honda - 29

125 Overall Results:
1. Craig Anderson (2, 1) - Yamaha
2. Michael Byrne (1, 4) - Honda
3. Brock Sellards (9, 2) - Yamaha
4. Andrew Short (7, 5) - Suzuki
5. Ryan Mills (3, 12) - Honda
19. Chris Gosselaar (12, 39) - Honda

125 AMA Motocross Point Standings:
1. Mike Brown - Kawasaki - 156
2. Ryan Hughes -KTM - 151
3. Grant Langston - KTM - 131
4. Eric Sorby - Kawasaki - 116
5. Brock Sellards - Yamaha - 99
6. Michael Byrne - Honda - 93
10. (Tie) Chris Gosselaar - Honda/Ivan Tedesco - Yamaha/Steve Boniface -
KTM/Brett Metcalfe - KTM - 72