Alessi Earns 5th at Pala Motocross
Alessi felt confident on the track early on. “I have ridden at Pala Raceway quite a few times over the past two years so I feel comfortable on this course. It is definitely a challenging track but I’m prepared for how rough it will get and am looking forward to the motos,” commented Alessi after practice.
The #800 rider had 7th gate pick heading to the first moto based on his qualifying practice times. That gate pick turned out to be the best one on the line as Alessi rocketed his KTM 450 SX-F to the front of the pack to grab the holeshot.
Alessi and his Red Bull/KTM led the pack around the first lap of the race. Alessi continued to hold his own for the next two laps before receiving heavy pressure from Justin Barcia, Ryan Dungey and Ryan Villopoto. Alessi dropped to 2nd on lap four and remained in the runner-up position until lap seven where he was passed by series leaders Dungey and Villopoto. Once in 4th he maintained a consistent pace and finished the race in that position.
In moto two Alessi was able to garner a top five start. He came around the first lap in 5th place. He held that spot for another lap before dropping to 6th. On the next lap he fell one more position and moved to 7th. While in 7th he held off the hard charge of Kyle Regal for the entire 30 minute moto. At the end of the race he was able to get a comfortable cushion on Regal and finished 7th. His 4-7 moto results earned him 5th overall for the day.
“I am happy with my overall result. I have been consistently finishing in the top five which has helped me in the overall point standings tremendously. I was able to finish fifth overall in the series which is really impressive since I missed two rounds earlier this year after my crash at Hangtown. I’m glad to finish this season healthy and I’m looking forward to beginning my training for next year,” remarked Alessi.
Overall Results –
1) Ryan Dungey
5) Mike Alessi – KTM
6) Kyle Regal
7) Chad Reed
9) Jake Weimer
10)Les Smith
