450 Words: Detroit
April 23, 2007 12:53pm
It was business as usual for Monster Energy Kawasaki’s James Stewart in the Motor City. After the timed practice sessions, once again Stewart was on top of the lap time charts, and surprisingly his toughest competitor thus far this season—Chad Reed—was fifth.
|
And from what I can gather, it appears that James Stewart wins the race in the first two laps. After the gate drops, he wastes no time breaking away and opening up a lead. It’s pretty amazing to watch how fast he goes and how aggressive he rides. He’s dragging the rear brake up the face of jumps just so he doesn’t overshoot them. From there he sets his KX450F on cruise control, and the biggest obstacle from then on is safely navigating through the lapped riders, which sometimes provides the most excitement.
Stewart put in 20 consistent laps and took his 11th win of the season—giving him a comfortable 38-point lead over Chad Reed with two races left. Ferry hung on to finish third, with Windham fourth and Short finishing fifth for the second race in a row.
|
But what a difference one year can make. Last season we went in to the final two races with a very close points battle—this year is a bit different. Nonetheless, don’t expect Reed to lie down. The San Manuel Yamaha rider has one win this season, and would like nothing more to end his season on a winning note. If not, it may be a long off-season back in Australia.