Team Honda's Carmichael Makes It Two In A Row!
1/27/03
For Immediate Release
San Francisco rolled out the red carpet as AMA Supercross came to
town for the first time, and The City By The Bay even dished up a big
serving of warm weather?quite a feat for January, even by California
standards. Team Honda's Ricky Carmichael thrilled the crowd of more
than 40,000 at Pacific Bell Park by running away to his second
consecutive victory aboard his CR250R, which extended his first-place
points standing in the series. Earlier in the evening during the 125
West race, Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection's Chris Gosselaar took
his Honda CR125R to the podium for the first time this season while
teammate and 2002 champion Travis Preston maintained his position in
the championship despite a rough time in the 125 main.
In the 250 main, it was White Brothers Honda rider Paul Carpenter who
grabbed a decisive holeshot aboard his Honda CRF450R while Carmichael
followed close behind. "The track was very rocky and that made it
really slippery out there," RC said after the race. "So I just took
it easy for the first few laps, settling into my pace. I was working
on being really smooth on the throttle, because that's the only way
you could make time tonight." On lap six Ricky made an easy pass
around Stephane Roncada to take the lead, and for the second week in
a row, he was never seriously challenged again. By the time the
checkered flag fell, Carmichael had stretched out a lead of more than
six seconds with a fluid, flowing style that belied his blistering
pace.
Meanwhile, RC's Honda teammate Ernesto Fonseca and
Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection's Mike LaRocco were working their
way forward from mid-pack starts. Unfortunately, they came together
on lap 10, and while LaRocco only bobbled, Fonseca suddenly was down.
"LaRocco and I just ran into each other and I crashed. It wasn't
anything intentional, just one of those things that happens during a
race," Fonseca said later. "When I hit the ground it kind of knocked
the wind out of me so I couldn't continue. The thing is, I was
feeling pretty good considering how hard I went down last Saturday in
Anaheim. I took it easy for one day last week, and then I was back
out at practice, riding hard again. In fact, we had tried a few
different things out there in testing. I tried one of Ricky's seats,
which he had lowered by shaving down the foam, and I really liked it.
So I was racing with that new setup tonight and I felt like I was
riding pretty well. I just need to catch a break so I can get my
momentum up."
LaRocco was also dealing with his own San Francisco gremlins. "I was
working my way up but then I made a few mistakes out there, so I kind
of tightened up about mid-race," he said. "After a while I settled
into a rhythm and I felt really fast. So I just went for the best
finish I could get. I'll have to use this fifth place as motivation
to do better next week."
LaRocco's teammate Michael Byrne gated well and held down third place
for a number of laps. "I felt good out there tonight," Byrne said
after the race. "But the track was really rough. By the end of the
race it was all chewed up and rutted out." He finished the night in a
strong seventh place. Paul Carpenter took the CRF450R to an 11th
place finish, his best ever.
In the 125 West main, Chris Gosselaar launched his
Amsoil/Chaparral/Factory Connection Honda CR125R to a great start and
soon had a lock on third place. His teammate Travis Preston was not
as fortunate at the starting line, but he immediately began a steady
charge up through the pack. On lap nine Preston made his way past
Gosselaar and then began pressuring the second-place rider on lap 10.
As the two riders neared the finish line jump, the other rider forced
Preston off the track, where he ran into scaffolding. "I was pushing
hard to take over second place," Preston said after the race, "and as
we approached the finish line jump he came on the inside of me and I
thought he was going to hold his line. But instead, he cut into me
and I had nowhere to go but off the track. I got right back up, put
my head down and finished as well as I could." With only five laps
left in the race, there was precious little time to mount a charge,
so Preston was relegated to 11th place.
Through the melee, Chris Gosselaar took control of third place once
again, and that's where he finished the night. "Boy, that track was
really rocky," the Goose said later that night. "A big rock hit me
right in the mouth and chipped one of my front teeth. But I kept
pushing and I finished well. It's good to be on the podium again."
250 Main Event Results:
1. Ricky Carmichael - Honda
2. Chad Reed - Yamaha
3. David Vuillemin - Yamaha
4. Tim Ferry - Yamaha
5. Mike LaRocco - Honda
7. Michael Byrne - Honda
11. Paul Carpenter - Honda
250 AMA Supercross Point Standings:
1. Ricky Carmichael - Honda - 90
2. Chad Reed - Yamaha - 84
3. Tim Ferry - Yamaha - 74
4. Ezra Lusk ? Kawasaki - 71
5. David Vuillemin ? Yamaha - 67
7. Mike LaRocco - Honda - 56
11. Ernesto Fonseca ? Honda - 31
125 West Main Event Results:
1. James Stewart - Kawasaki
2. Matt Walker - Kawasaki
3. Chris Gosselaar - Honda
4. Andrew Short - Suzuki
5. Josh Woods - KTM
11. Travis Preston - Honda
125 Western Region Supercross Point Standings:
1. James Stewart - Kawasaki - 97
2. Travis Preston - Honda ? 72 (tie)
3. Andrew Short - Suzuki ? 72 (tie)
4. Chris Gosselaar - Honda - 65
5. Billy Laninovich ? KTM ? 61
For complete coverage check out American Honda's website at
www.honda.com.
