Dungey Takes Over Points Lead at High Point

-Ryan Dungey and his Suzuki fuel-injected RM-Z450 convincingly won both motos at High Point.
-Dungey is now the AMA Motocross series 450-class leader with a commanding 25-point lead.
-The RM-Z450 came from behind in both motos, and its outstanding power and handling helped Dungey to victory.

Brea, Calif.  – It was two motos and two convincing wins for Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey on Saturday at the third round of AMA Motocross racing at High Point. With his wins at High Point, Dungey has now won four motos in a row and takes over the points lead in the 450 Motocross class. "We had back-to-back good weekends and put ourselves in a pretty good spot," Dungey said after the race. "But it’s still really early in a long championship."

In Moto 1, Dungey set a pattern for the day: taking over the lead midway into the race and being consistently smooth on the rough and rutted track. As the first moto started, Dungey worked his way closer to the front, lap by lap. Just when it looked like the leader may have checked out, Ryan and his Suzuki fuel-injected RM-Z450 rocketed past and took over the lead. Dungey broke free from the pack toward the end of the race thanks to the seemingly endless power of the RM-Z450. "The track conditions at High Point changed throughout the day, especially in that first moto where it was dry and then wet in the second half," Dungey said. "These types of conditions challenge bike set up and the team really hit the mark with engine, suspension, and tires."

In Moto 2, Ryan kept to the pattern he set. Starting out in fifth place, Dungey picked good lines and passed riders for the first half of the race and moved himself into second. The suspension of his RM-Z450 was easily soaking up the jolts the track delivered, and the smooth handling of the bike allowed Ryan to focus on taking over first place. As the leader of the race pulled away from the pack, it looked as though Dungey might have to settle for the second spot on the podium, but he knew his bike had the power to catch the leader. By the halfway point of the race, Dungey rolled on the throttle of his RM-Z and took over the lead. He then put in consistently great lap times and was also victorious in moto two.

Dungey came into High Point second overall in the series, 11 points behind the leader. With his 1-1 finishes in Pennsylvania, and his 1-1 finishes last weekend in Texas, Ryan now has a 25-point lead.

Dungey’s teammate Matt Moss was hoping High Point would be the turnaround he needs in the still-young Motocross season. The track was well suited to Moss’ riding style, and with two races and many weeks of training on the RM-Z450, he felt comfortable as he lined up at the gate. In the first moto, Moss scored his season-best finish of 17th. At the start of the second moto, Moss and his RM-Z ran as high as second at the beginning, and although Moss fell back a bit in subsequent laps, he maintained his place in the top 10 for much of the race. The choppy track eventually took its toll on Moss and he went down toward the end of the moto. With past injuries haunting the Australian since the start of the Motocross season, Moss was unable to rejoin the fray and was forced to settle for 31st place. Moss placed in the top 20 overall, and he is determined to improve his results each round of the series. "The weekend for me was a lot better than last week, so I was happy about that," Moss said. "I wasn't much off the pace, and the bike got me off to some great starts and was handling great. I just need to keep the rubber end down and I’ll be up there next weekend!"

The Rockstar Makita Suzuki team will be working this week with one thing on their mind: the next race. Round 4 of the AMA Motocross series will take place at one of the favorite tracks on the circuit, Budds Creek in Mechanicsville, Maryland.