Chad Reed came into the 2011 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship saying he was riding for fun, and because he enjoyed being around his team. But clearly, he’s here to work, too, as the TwoTwo Motorsports Bel-Ray Racing rider won the opening round of the series, the Rockstar Energy Drink Hangtown Classic, and won it the hard way.
Reed finished second in the first 450-class moto behind defending 450 Champion Ryan Dungey, but in moto two, an epic battle broke out early between Dungey, Reed and Ryan Villopoto. Villopoto grabbed the holeshot and led early, but the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider was feeling a bit under the weather coming into the race, and wasn’t quite able to maintain his pace all the way to the end. Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Dungey kept applying pressure and then took the lead, with Reed sitting back and lurking the whole time.
At around the halfway point, Reed put in a charge and pressured Dungey, then made the pass and started pulling away. Dungey wasn’t done, though, and he mounted one last charge to get Reed, and with two laps to go he had climbed back onto Reed’s rear wheel. It looked like a battle to the finish was about to materialize, but then Dungey ran out of steam, and Reed pulled back away and won with a big gap at the finish. For Reed, who struggled last year with an illness, it was an impressive show of strength. Dungey and Villopoto rounded out the top three, both in the moto and overall.
In the 250 class, there were lots of contenders on the list, but one that perhaps had slipped through the cracks on most favorite’s lists was Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett. The field included MX GP Champions and AMA Supercross Lites Champions, but Baggett was clearly the fastest of all.
In the Women’s Motocross Class, DNA Shred Stix/Star Racing Yamaha’s Jessica Patterson cleaned up, going 1-1 on the day to top American Honda Racing’s Ashley Fiolek. Patterson led the first moto from gate to checkered flag, but in moto two, she grabbed the early lead but crashed. Patterson then put in a strong charge to catch Fiolek and get the win. Patterson is the defending WMX Champion, and looks like a strong contender to defend it.
Second moto action airs on SPEED tomorrow, May 22, at 11 a.m. EST and 12 a.m. EST.
Reed finished second in the first 450-class moto behind defending 450 Champion Ryan Dungey, but in moto two, an epic battle broke out early between Dungey, Reed and Ryan Villopoto. Villopoto grabbed the holeshot and led early, but the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider was feeling a bit under the weather coming into the race, and wasn’t quite able to maintain his pace all the way to the end. Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Dungey kept applying pressure and then took the lead, with Reed sitting back and lurking the whole time.
At around the halfway point, Reed put in a charge and pressured Dungey, then made the pass and started pulling away. Dungey wasn’t done, though, and he mounted one last charge to get Reed, and with two laps to go he had climbed back onto Reed’s rear wheel. It looked like a battle to the finish was about to materialize, but then Dungey ran out of steam, and Reed pulled back away and won with a big gap at the finish. For Reed, who struggled last year with an illness, it was an impressive show of strength. Dungey and Villopoto rounded out the top three, both in the moto and overall.
In the 250 class, there were lots of contenders on the list, but one that perhaps had slipped through the cracks on most favorite’s lists was Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett. The field included MX GP Champions and AMA Supercross Lites Champions, but Baggett was clearly the fastest of all.
In the Women’s Motocross Class, DNA Shred Stix/Star Racing Yamaha’s Jessica Patterson cleaned up, going 1-1 on the day to top American Honda Racing’s Ashley Fiolek. Patterson led the first moto from gate to checkered flag, but in moto two, she grabbed the early lead but crashed. Patterson then put in a strong charge to catch Fiolek and get the win. Patterson is the defending WMX Champion, and looks like a strong contender to defend it.
Second moto action airs on SPEED tomorrow, May 22, at 11 a.m. EST and 12 a.m. EST.
