Yoshimura-Backed Teams Dominate the Podium at Arlington Supercross
American Honda Racing’s Trey Canard clinched his third supercross win of the season in Arlington. After finishing second in his heat race, Canard got away to a good start in the main, moving into the number one spot early in the opening lap. Once out front, Canard was unstoppable on his Yoshimura-equipped CRF450R, leading all 20 laps to take a wire-to-wire victory. Canard’s finish marked his third win and fifth podium of the season and elevated him to fourth overall in the championship. Fill-in teammate Cole Seely, who finished third in his heat race, had a coming together with another rider in the opening lap and was unable to finish the race.
“I am the happiest I have been all season right now,” said Canard. “Everything about this weekend felt right. My bike setup was spot on and I rode really well, plus I had a lot of family and friends here to support me; everything about this event felt good to me. The track was tough, especially the whoops section. I crashed hard in the whoops in practice, but I’m happy that I didn’t let that get to me and I was able to get through them without any issues in the main. It feels amazing to take my third supercross win and to move up to fourth in the championship points.”
Team Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey showed off his determination, consistency and the power of his Yoshimura-equipped Suzuki RM-Z450 while claiming a third-place podium finish in Texas. Dungey’s teammate Brett Metcalfe did not race as he continues to recover but is expected to return to action in St. Louis.
Dungey and his RMZ were strong all day on the tough and technical Arlington track, scoring the fourth best time in the afternoon qualifying and grabbing a second-place finish in his heat race. In the main event, Dungey’s Suzuki powered him off the line to another great start and put him tight with the lead group in fourth. He rode hard but consistent and was able to work his way into second by lap nine before a tangle with a lapped rider on lap 11 put him back to third. Dungey pushed hard for the remaining nine laps and was able to catch back up to the second-place rider but fell just short of making the pass. Dungey sits third in the championship points, one point out of second and seven points from first.
"All in all, it was a good day,” said Dungey. “My whole Rockstar Makita Suzuki team and I worked really good together and they did a great job with my Suzuki tonight. The track was tough; especially the whoop sections were really big and technical. I got off to a good start in the main and was able to work my way up to second in like the tenth lap, but then a couple laps later I came up on a lapper and just misjudged what he was gonna do and went down. I got back up in third and made a hard charge for second and got close but just came up a little short. All in all, I felt great and my RMZ felt great too. I’m looking forward to St. Louis. It’s always a tough track; tacky and technical. We got a win there last year so it would be good to go back there and get another win."
The next stop of the 2011 AMA/FIM Supercross Championship for the Yoshimura-backed teams is Saturday, April 9th, at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, MO. You can meet the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team riders on Friday, April 8th, from 5 to 6 PM at Big St. Charles Motorsports, 3830 West Clay Street, Saint Charles, MO.