Star Racing Supercross Round 2 Race Report
PHOENIX, Ariz.- The AMA Supercross Series moved the slightest bit out of California over the weekend racing in front of 39K+ fans at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. DNA Shred Stix/Star Racing/Yamaha riders Kyle Cunningham and Nick Paluzzi adapted to the slick, technical track quickly setting qualifying times that slated them respectively into the night portion of racing.
Up first in qualifying heat 1 were both teammates, it would be Cunningham who jumped out front with an awesome start in 4th. Wanting to lead the way, in the first few laps Cunningham quickly began carving his way up through the field. Track conditions were tough to say the least, but Kyle made his way into 2nd and pressured the leader all the way to the end. Paluzzi, was not as lucky off the start, a short race, made for a tough beginning. Sitting nearly last, Nick put his skills to use, forging all the way up to 9th by races end and happily avoided the LCQ.
The gate dropped for the 15 lap main event and at the end of lap one, Cunningham brilliantly put himself in good position after a very hectic first lap in 6th. Cunningham raced hard for 5 laps making a pass to 5th position. Paluzzi in the opening laps was suffering from some rookie blues; in 16th position and trying too hard he was having his troubles with the slick surface. Then on lap eight, Cunningham’s strong and steady ride that had him vying for the podium came to a halt when the 4th place competitor crashed big and took Kyle down as well. Remounting in 9th, with his machine tweaked and off his rhythm the DNA Shred Stix rider in the closing few rotations of race managed to put his hard training ethics to use, which allowed him to hold onto a decent amount of points considering what had transpired as he finished out 10th. Meanwhile Paluzzi uncharacteristically just never came to grips with the track and gutted out a finish of 15th.
This weekend, be sure to catch our team riders at round 3. The inaugural AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, at Dodger Stadium as it makes history this Saturday night.
Star Racing is proudly supported by:
DNA Shred Stix, Yamaha Motor Corp, Scott Sports, N-Fab, FMF, Cosworth, North County Yamaha, DNA Energy Drink, GYTR, Factory Effex, Dunlop, Easton EXP, Enzo, Renegade Fuels, Sunstar, Motion Pro, ARC, ODI Grips, RK Chains, Excel A60 rims, Yamalube, Ride Engineering, Twin Air, LightSpeed, Braking, Vortex Ignitions, ICW, JD Built, Crank Works, Eibach, Met Tec, Tammer MX
