Cypress California, February 8, 2008 – Yamaha Factory riders
Grant Langston and Broc Hepler will unfortunately be out of
action at this weekend’s San Diego Supercross due to injuries.
Team Yamaha Supercross Lites rider Broc Hepler suffered a
broken thumb in a small crash during practice at Anaheim III.
Broc immediately flew home to Pennsylvania on Sunday
morning after the race to have his doctor check out the extent
of the injury. Minor surgery was deemed necessary and Broc
had pins placed in his thumb on Tuesday. Luckily no incisions
were necessary. As for the length of recovery, Broc is expected
to be out 4-6 weeks. He should be back in action baring any
complications in time to finish up the West Coast Lites series in
Seattle and race the season ending finale in Las Vegas. After
that Broc is looking forward to focusing all his attention on the
AMA Motocross Lites Championship.
Team Yamaha Supercross rider Grant Langston decided not to
race at Anaheim III after suffering from blurred vision in his
left eye that made focusing very difficult. After escalating the
issue through three different eye specialists, a diagnosis was
made at the prestigious UCLA Medical Center that Grant has a
cluster of leaking blood vessels near the retina in his left eye.
Grant is scheduled to begin treatment for this condition early
next week. The expected recovery period is 4 weeks. Grant
will definitely be out for San Diego and Houston, after that
things will be revaluated. supercross.com & Yamaha Motor
Corp. pic from tedescophoto.com
Grant Langston and Broc Hepler Updates
Broc Hepler Injury Update
Team Yamaha's Broc Hepler just can't catch a break. Well, yes
he can. In practice at Anaheim this past weekend he launched
the jump into the whoops too far and crashed, resulting in a
broken thumb. "I'll probably be out for six weeks," he told us
today.
Hepler was a pre-season title favorite in the Western Regional
Lites division, and going into Anaheim 3 he was sitting fourth in
points with 11-4-2-12 finishes. racerxill.com - pic from
vitalmx.com
B-Hep Supercross Tour
San Francisco - AMA Rnd 4
The rains fell and the mud flew last Saturday in San Francisco.
With a collision right off the start, Broc Hepler struggled to
restart his Yamaha. By the time he was up and running again,
it was too late to catch up in the shortened 10-lap main event.
He crossed the finished line in 12th.
Broc says that he's looking forward to a dry track in Anaheim
this weekend. The weather looks promising so far. pic from
motocross.com
Ryan Dungey RacerX Interview -ozzy go-
Monday Conversation: Ryan Dungey January 21, 2008
Ryan Dungey has clearly fixed his problems with consistency
from his rookie season last year. Last year, he seemed to either
win or DNF. This year, he’s by far the most consistent rider on
the west coast, winning two of the three races, finishing second
in the other, and holding a commanding points lead with only
five rounds left to run. interview on racerxill.com
B-Hep Supercross Tour
Anaheim 2: Hepler on the podium
In another come-from-behind performance this weekend in
the third round of AMA Supercross West, Hepler passed his
way up to second place after a bad start. By the end of the
race, he was quickly gaining on the leader, but ran out of
time to make his move for the lead.
This is Hepler's first podium of the year, and another solid
ride by the factory Yamaha rider.
Next is round 4 in San Francisco on January 26.
brochepler.com - pic from transworldmotocross.com
Yamaha Race Report: Anaheim II
AMA Supercross Round 3 | January 19, 2008 | Anaheim
2008 AMA Supercross Championship in Anaheim, CA. on Saturday
night, Jan. 19. With rival James Stewart out for the season with a
knee injury, Reed’s win vaults him into a significant 16-point
championship lead over Kevin Windham, who finished third.
“Retro Night” at Angel Stadium also proved sensational for Hill,
who scored his first career Supercross podium. While in the Lites
class, YZ250F warriors Broc Hepler and Jason Lawrence showed
massive speed as Hepler claimed a fine second and Lawrence set
the fastest Lites race lap.
Supercross
L&M Racing’s Reed was fastest in Supercross practice, followed
by Stewart (before his withdrawal), Yamaha Factory Racing’s
Grant Langston and Hill, giving Yamaha three of the top four
riders. But when the gate dropped for the main event it was Mike
Alessi who earned the holeshot ahead of Reed and Hill. The pair
quickly got by Alessi and gapped the rest of the field.
Impressively though, Hill stayed close to Reed for the entire race
and ultimately finished 6.1 sec. behind him – a very impressive
result for the Supercross-class rookie. “I felt awesome out there
tonight,” said Reed. “My bike’s a lot of fun to go out there and
race on. We just put the thing on cruise control and watched the
laps wind down.” 
Supercross Lites
In the Lites class, Yamaha of Troy’s Lawrence posted the fastest
practice time, won his heat race and charged from ninth to third
in the final before retiring on lap four. Likewise, Yamaha Factory
Racing’s Hepler started in mid-pack and made a steady drive for
the front, picking off rider after rider and eventually moving into
second behind winner Ryan Dungey. At the checkered flag, just
1.279 seconds separated the two. Hepler’s runner-up finish
moves him to second in the points behind Dungey. “I didn’t do my
start procedure right and wheelied, so I had to work my way up
from the back,” he admitted afterwards. “Now I just need to put it
together and do one step better next weekend!” yamaha-
motor.com - pics from motocross.com &
motocrossactionmag.com
Anaheim II Supercross Lites West Results
Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA - January 19, 2008
2008 Monster Energy Supercross Championships
AMA Supercross Lites West Rnd 3: Anaheim 2
Heat 1 top-10
1. Ryan Dungey (Suzuki)
2. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki)
3. Broc Hepler (Yamaha)
4. Jake Weimer (Honda)
5. Billy Laninovich (KTM)
6. Kyle Cunningham (Honda)
7. Chris Gosselaar (Honda)
8. Cedric Soubeyras (Yamaha)
9. Tiger Lacey (Honda)
10. Shaun Skinner (Honda) DNQ
Heat 2 top-10
1. Jason Lawrence (Yamaha)
2. Austin Stroupe (Kawasaki)
3. Justin Brayton (KTM)
4. Danny Blair (Yamaha)
5. Robert Kiniry (Honda) 
6. Dan Reardon (Honda)
7. Wil Hahn (Yamaha)
8. Hugo Dagod (Yamaha)
9. Justin Keeney (Honda)
10. Jeff Northrop (Honda) DNQ
LCQ top-5
1. Andrew McFarlane (Kawasaki)
2. Tommy Hahn (Kawasaki)
3. Gavin Gracyk (Honda)
4. Jeff Northrop (Honda)
5. Chris Blose (Suzuki) DNQ
Main Event
1. Ryan Dungey (Suzuki)
2. Broc Hepler (Yamaha)
3. Austin Stroupe (Kawasaki)
4. Dan Reardon (Honda)
5. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki)
6. Robert Kiniry (Honda)
7. Billy Laninovich (KTM) 
8. Gavin Gracyk (Honda)
9. Justin Brayton (KTM)
10. Tommy Hahn (Kawasaki)
11. Kyle Cunningham (Honda)
12. Jeff Northrop (Honda)
13. Tiger Lacey (Honda)
14. Cedric Soubeyras (Yamaha)
15. Jake Weimer (Honda)
16. Wil Hahn (Yamaha)
17. Andrew McFarlane (Kawasaki)
18. Danny Blair (Yamaha)
19. Hugo Dagod (Yamaha)
20. Chris Gosselaar (Honda)
21. Jason Lawrence (Yamaha)
22. Justin Keeney Honda)
pics from TedescoPhoto.com
Broc Hepler on Vital Buzz
Short of an ill-timed slide on the inside of a 180-
degree corner while in the lead, Broc Hepler might
have been the winner of the Lites class main event
on Saturday night. Early in the main, Broc and Ryan
Dungey had gotten into a tactical duel in the same
corner, taking turns diving for the inside. Broc had
run around the inside of the corner on several
successive laps, but got a little too generous with
the throttle and slid out, handing the lead to Jake
Weimer. Broc spent the pre-season working with
Todd Jacobs on his training. VitalMxBuzzPhoenix
2008 Broc Hepler SX Tour
SX Round 2: Phoenix, AZ
It was an exciting race in the Lites class as Hepler battled for
the lead with Ryan Dungey. It was back and forth until Hepler
finally secured the lead, but then went down. This resulted in
his taking 4th place after a hard-fought race up front.
The finish boosts Hepler to 5th in points for the year.
The next race is back in Anaheim next weekend, January 19.
brochepler.com - pic from tedescophoto.com
Stewart, Weimer Take Phoenix -ozzy go- speedtv.com
When the Monster Energy/AMA Supercross Series rolled into
Phoenix for round two, the only thing anyone knew for sure was
that the track was going to be dry, unlike the opener in Anaheim.
A lot of riders who had poor outings in the mud at the opening
round were hoping to prove their mettle on the dry circuit.
At least one definitely succeeded.
Torco Racing Fuels Honda’s Jake Weimer failed to make the main
event at the series opener after injuring his shoulder in a heat-
race crash and then falling again while in a qualifying position in
the Lites LCQ. However, despite the injury, and limited riding time
during the week because of it, Weimer grabbed the holeshot in
the Lites main and led the first lap in front of opening-round
winner Ryan Dungey of the Rockstar/Makita Suzuki squad,
Yamaha’s Broc Hepler, Monster/Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Brett
Metcalfe, MDK KTM’s Justin Brayton, DNA Honda’s Kyle
Cunningham and opening-round runner-up Jason Lawrence of the
Boost Mobile/Yamaha of Troy squad.
Dungey and Hepler both found their way by Weimer on the
second lap, displacing Weimer to third, where he came under fire
from Metcalfe. Meanwhile, up front, Hepler was giving Dungey all
he could handle, and then some, and repeatedly passed the
Suzuki phenom, which had the side result of allowing Weimer to
stay close enough to strike if anything happened.
And it did.
On the 10th lap of 15, Hepler and Dungey got a little too close for
comfort coming up to the triple on Chase Field’s first-base line and
Dungey was forced to forego jumping the obstacle, which moved
Weimer up into second. On the very next lap, Hepler fell down by
himself in a tight right-hand turn following the finish line, and
Weimer reassumed the lead with four laps to go, and Dungey
breathing down his neck.
Over the final four laps, Dungey tried everything to get by
Weimer, but he was thwarted at every turn until the last lap of the
race, when Dungey tried to dive inside Weimer approaching the
same first-base-line triple he had trouble on previously, and
Weimer squeezed him down low, halting Dungey’s momentum and
forcing him again not to jump the obstacle. Weimer, meanwhile,
dropped the hammer and seat-bounced the triple, which gave him
all the space he needed to win his first-ever AMA Supercross main
event – one race after failing to qualify for the main event
altogether.
“I’m sure it will sink in tomorrow or something,” Weimer said, “but
right now, it’s pretty hard to believe.”
Dungey hung on for second and extended his points lead in the
West to nine over Lawrence, who wound up fifth on the night.
Metcalfe finished third, just in front of Hepler and Brayton.
Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s holeshot artist Mike Alessi lived up to his
reputation in the 450cc main event, grabbing the holeshot just in
front of defending champ James Stewart of the Monster Kawasaki
squad and San Manuel Yamaha’s Chad Reed, who won the
opening round.
Stewart quickly assumed the lead, with Reed right on his tail, and
the two proceeded to put on a clinic, as they lapped consistently
in the 46-second range, while everyone else was running laps of
47 seconds and higher. Stewart even got into the 45s on a couple
laps during the main event.
For the first few laps of the main, Reed was all over Stewart and
was threatening to pass, but as the time wore on, Reed slipped
little by little and fell further and further behind. Stewart ended up
winning his first main event of the year by just under two seconds
over Reed, with Torco Racing Fuels Honda’s Kevin Windham, and
Honda Red Bull Racing teammates Andrew Short and Ivan
Tedesco rounding out the top five.
Reed and Stewart are tied atop the championship leaderboard
each with 47 points with 15 rounds... full story on speedtv.com
Broc Hepler TransworldMX Interview -ozzy go-
Catching Up With...Broc Hepler 12.31.2007
Ever since we crank-called Broc Hepler last summer, he has a
tendency to look at us a little suspiciously every time we see him.
One of the stars in TransWorld Motocross’ new feature DVD, WHY,
BHep is looking good on his Yamaha YZ250F and is quietly
cautious about his chances of winning the Western Region
Supercross Lites Championship. interview on
transworldmotocross.com
Yamaha's MX Lites Riders on Glen Helen Happenings -ozzy go- amamotocross.com
B-HEP
Team Yamaha’s Broc Hepler was the first non-green
bike with his fourth overall; riding solid all day.
Ibelieve that if the Pennsylvanian can stay healthy,
he can definitely be a championship threat in 2008
Sick Day
Yamaha of Troy’s Matt Goerke was MIA at Glen
Helen. According to one of the boys in blue, Goerke
was sick with the flu. Soon Goerke moves to the new
MDK KTM Lites Team.
Loud
In one of the scariest crashes of Sunday, I saw Lucas
Oil Star Racing Yamaha mounted Matt Lemoine and
his bike careen off the finish line jump – hitting the
ground hard. What actually tipped me off to the
upcoming crash was not Lemoine’s bike revving; but
a collective “Noooooooooo” from the bystanders
around the jump.
pic from motocross.com
Broc Hepler at Glen Helen
It was the final round of the 2007 AMA MX Nationals, and
Hepler pulled out a 4th overall on a long, rough track
with a 5-5.
Getting off to a 3rd-place start in moto 1, a mistake sent
him off the track and back to 7th. He quickly settled into
5th by the moto's end. In moto 2, Hepler's ride was
strong and consistent, landing him another 5th-place
finish.
Broc would like to thank all of his fans for all the support!
Keep coming out to the races, and be sure to watch for
Broc on the podium in the SX Lites. brochepler.com
Yamaha Motor Race Report: Glen Helen -ozzy go-
Yamaha Factory Racing's Grant Langston has put Yamaha back on
top of AMA Motocross for the first time since 1998 by winning the
2007 championship with a stunning pair of rides in San Bernadino,
California, on Sunday, September 9. He flew his 2008 YZ450F to a
win in the first moto and played it smart in the second to take a
third-place finish, the overall win, and the historic title. Langston
now has the personal distinction of holding AMA Motocross and
Motocross Lites titles as well as a world MX2 title.
Langston came into the final round at Glen Helen Raceway with a
narrow points lead over Andrew Short, Mike Alessi and Tim Ferry.
In the first moto, Langston started sixth behind all of his title
rivals. But he got down to business, catching and passing them all
in an explosive eight-lap charge that fans will remember for a
long time. He took the lead from Alessi with three laps remaining
and built up a margin of 10.7 seconds at the flag.
In the second moto, Kevin Windham grabbed the lead from Alessi
on the second lap and maintained it throughout the 14-lap event.
Langston quickly passed Alessi for second and let Windham go,
but rode plenty fast to keep all of his title rivals at bay through
the moto. Yamaha teammate Josh Hill, making only his second
appearance on a YZ450F, kept ahead of Ferry and Short for much
of the race. Langston ultimately dropped to third behind a
charging Alessi, and at the flag secured the championship by a
comfortable 16 points over Short.
"It was great to see the team come together this year and all the
hard work has definitely paid off," said Team Manager Jim Perry
afterwards.
"It feels fantastic to bring the championship to Yamaha and the
YZ450F helped me achieve the team goal," Langston added. "The
2008 bike is just outstanding!" Yamaha Motor.com
Broc Hepler second in Texas
It was the first time the AMA Motocross
Nationals came to the Freestone County
Raceway in Texas, and it was Broc
Hepler's best ride of the year.
Grabbing the hole shot in the first moto,
Hepler settled into a comfortable second,
but was overtaken on the last stretch and
came away with third place. In moto 2,
another fantastic start led to another third
place finish, awarding Hepler with
second overall, and his first overall
podium for the year.
The series concludes next week in San
Bernardino, CA at Glen Helen.
brochepler.com - pic from
TransworldMotocross.com
Freestone's Motocross Lites
2007 AMA Toyota Motocross Championship presented by FMF
Freestone County Raceway, Wortham, TX, September 2, 2007
Freestone Motocross Lites
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki) 1-1
2. Broc Hepler (Yamaha) 3-3
3. Ben Townley (Kawasaki) 6-2
4. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki) 4-6
5. Trey Canard (Honda) 5-5
6. Martin Davalos (KTM) 11-4
7. Tommy Hahn (Honda) 10-7
8. Broc Tickle Yamaha (Yamaha) 9-8
9. Kyle Chisholm Kawasaki (Kawasaki) 8-9
10. Austin Stroupe (Kawasaki) 2-32
11. Joaquim Rodrigues (KTM) 12-12
12. Jake Weimer (Honda) 17-10
13. Matthew Goerke (Yamaha) 7-29
14. Jake Moss (Yamaha) 35-11
15. Wil Hahn (Yamaha) 20-13
16. Andrew Mcfarlane (#30 Suzuki) 13-31
17. Steve Boniface (#141 Kawasaki) 39-14
18. Ricky Renner (#532 Honda) 19-16
19. Kyle Cunningham (#622 Yamaha) 14-30
20. Matt Lemoine (#622 Yamaha) 38-15
AMA Motocross Lites Standings after Round 11 -of 12
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki) 497pts/13 wins/20 top-3
2. Ben Townley (Kawasaki) 478pts/7 wins/18 top-3
3. Josh Grant (Honda) 346pts/1 win/4 podiums
4. Jason Lawrence (Yamaha) 277pts/5 podiums
5. Ryan Dungey (Suzuki) 267pts/8 podiums
6. Jake Weimer (Honda) 226pts
7. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki) 202pts, 3 top-3
8. Tommy Hahn (Honda) 202pts
9. Broc Tickle (Yamaha) 189pts
10. Kyle Chisholm (Kawasaki) 176pts
11. Martin Davalos (KTM) 174pts
12. Broc Hepler (Yamaha) 158pts, 1 wins, 3 top-3
13. Matt Goerke (Yamaha) 153pts
14. Andrew McFarlane (Suzuki) 148pts
15. Josh Hill (Yamaha) 135pts
16. Robert Kiniry (Kawasaki) 110pts
17. Joaquim Rodrigues (KTM) 108pts
18. Chris Gosselaar (Kawasaki) 93pts
19. Matt Lemoine (Yamaha) 82pts
19. Steve Boniface (Kawasaki) 82pts
21. Trey Canard (Honda) 71pts
25. Austin Stroupe (Kawasaki) 53pts/2 top-3
photos from motocross.com & vitalmx.com
