Sign of the Lap Times: Seattle

 

 

 

 

 

450SX Class

Lap Rank	Finish	Best Lap	In Lap	Avg Lap Time	Rider
1	3	55.762	4	58.561	Davi Millsaps
2	2	55.810	6	57.532	Ryan Villopoto
3	1	55.949	6	57.448	Justin Barcia
4	4	56.554	7	58.702	Ryan Dungey
5	18	56.846	6	58.746	Trey Canard
6	6	57.486	2	1:00.638	Mike Alessi
7	5	57.860	9	1:00.019	Jake Weimer
8	8	58.625	10	1:00.060	Justin Brayton
9	7	58.793	7	1:00.433	Broc Tickle
10	12	58.940	7	1:00.961	Josh Hill
11	11	59.307	4	1:01.594	Vince Friese
12	9	59.391	12	1:01.228	Andrew Short
13	16	59.543	6	1:02.772	Weston Peick
14	13	1:00.043	3	1:02.377	Ben LaMay
15	10	1:00.204	5	1:01.181	Phil Nicoletti
16	14	1:00.555	6	1:03.225	Chris Blose
17	15	1:01.406	3	1:03.419	Cody Gilmore
18	17	1:01.595	5	1:05.824	Kyle Partridge
19	19	1:03.089	7	1:05.003	Mike Horban
20	20	DNF	DNF	DNF	Chad Reed

450SX

- Justin Barcia led start to finish in Seattle securing his second career 450SX victory in just his fifteenth start. But the 450SX rookie would not take home fastest lap of the night honors, nor would runner-up Ryan Villopoto. That crown belonged to Davi Millsaps, as the Rockstar Energy Racing backed rider set a 55.762 on lap four. Millsaps finished third.

- Consistency was key in Seattle’s treacherous conditions. Series points leader Villopoto and Barcia were the only two riders with only one lap over the one minute mark—and both were set on the final lap, with the race basically in hand.

- Barcia was consistent all race, but used an early spark—setting his first eight laps under 57 seconds—to put some space between himself and Villopoto.

- FOURTEEN: Numbers of riders with an average lap time over one minute, the most since Daytona.

- Phil Nicoletti, who secured his first career 450SX top ten in Seattle, was the only rider that finished inside the top ten to set every lap over one minute.

- Things looked promising for Trey Canard early in Seattle, as he set his first eleven laps under 59 seconds, but things quickly turned for the worse as Canard stalled, then crashed, eventually leading to a DNF.

- It’s no secret that Jake Weimer has been struggling since returning from a mid-season rib injury. But the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider was strong late in Seattle, stringing together his best stint during laps 12-18, during which he set all of his laps under one minute. His top-five finish was his best since round three.

- While his championship hopes took a major turn for the worse in the first turn in Seattle, Ryan Dungey was able to salvage a fourth, thanks in part to a great run during laps 6-12 in which he set all of his laps under 58 seconds. Keep in mind that he was marching through traffic during this charge.

Comparison:

Justin Barcia vs. Ryan Villopoto

Nothing is ever easy when you’re trying to run away from two-time defending 450SX champion Ryan Villopoto. And as you’ll see, RV made things tough on the rookie early. Let’s examine the lap charts a little closer.

Lap	Justin Barcia	Ryan Villopoto
2	56.612	57.071
3	56.805	56.098
4	56.839	56.297
5	56.598	56.854
6	55.949	55.81
7	56.089	56.493
8	56.585	56.779
9	56.291	55.932
10	57.094	56.53
Avg	56.540	56.429
11	57.26	58.515
12	56.842	57.395
13	57.693	57.888
14	58.428	58.252
15	58.628	58.005
16	58.157	59.378
17	58.683	58.631
18	58.056	57.953
19	57.523	58.466
20	1:01.397	1:00.762
Avg	58.266	58.524

Once again, we see how close the top riders in Monster Energy Supercross are these days. While Barcia jumped out to an early lead in the sloppy Seattle terrain, the hometown hero, Villopoto, was actually a tick faster than the rookie. But it was darned close, as even on a track that bred mistakes, they matched average times down to the same tenth of a second. Down the stretch Barcia showed the composure that garnered him two 250SX East Region titles, and was able to hold RV at bay, en route to the win.