Led by Team USA’s Ryan Villopoto Team USA laid a whooping on
the 20 best motocross nations in the world on Sunday, September
23, 2007 at Budds Creek, Maryland to win the 60th annual
Motocross of Nations. While teamed with 450F riders Ricky
Carmichael (Suzuki) and Timmy Ferry (Kawasaki), it was
Villopoto, on his Monster Energy Kawasaki KX250F who truly
upstaged his teammates (and every other rider who dared to line
up next to him).
In the opening MX/MX2 moto, Villopoto enjoyed a great jump out
of the hole and quickly motoring around Germany’s Max Nagl,
Great Britain’s Tommy Searle, Italy’s David Philippaerts and Chad
Reed. With Carmichael down in a first lap crash, it was all on
Villopoto’s shoulders to lead the American charge, and that’s
exactly hat he did, pulling out to 20-second lead. All was well until
lap five when a lonely lapper fell in front of the American, sending
him to the dirt. Ryan got right to his boots, kicked his KX to life
and, once again, roared away. He was simply untouchable, easily
defeating 450cc-mounted riders Reed and Carmichael.
Moto number two at the Motocross of Nations — the Open/MX2
moto — was, yet again, a Ryan Villopoto, the young American
checking out on the first lap, never to be headed. At one point he
had an astonishing 1:30 second lead on Belgian Open bike rider
Ken de Dycker. With teammate Tim Ferry charging from the back
of the field after getting caught up in a first turn crash, Villopoto
held the point for Team USA, dazzling the 40,000 fans who
watched his awe-inspiring performance. After 30-minutes-plus-
tow-laps of racing, Villopoto flashed across the finish line to easily
with the moto. Teammate Ferry raced all the way back to fourth.
After the final moto, the MX1/Open moto that was easily won by
Carmichael and Ferry, Villopoto spoke about his performance in
Maryland. "I got the inside gate in the first moto, I got the
holeshot and I was wondering where Ricky was. I broke the gap
and rode it out to the end.”
And of the lapper who almost did him in?
“I came over the finish line and onto the three rollers and I rode
into some guy who was crashed. I got stuck on top of him. I kind
of got the heart rate up a bit. It helped to have one of the best
bikes out there. It makes it easy going to the line when you know
you have one of the best teams.” click on ozzy go to the full story