2008' AMA Team's Rankings after Houston top-20
1. Torco Racing Fuels Honda - 288 points +1
2. Rockstar Makita Suzuki – 258 points -1
3. San Manuel Yamaha - 254 points +1
4. Red Bull Honda - 252 points -1
5. Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki - 227 points +1
6. MDK KTM - 225 points -1
7. Monster Energy Kawasaki – 180 points
8. Team Yamaha - 177 points -1
9. Boost Mobile/Yamaha of Troy - 143 points
10. Xtreme Team Green - 118 points
11. Butler Brothers/DNA/BTO Sports Honda - 95 points +1
12. Fun Center Suzuk I - 89 points +1
13. Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull Honda - 87 points -2
14. Toyota/Gibbs Racing Yamaha - 85 points
14. Star Racing/Lucas Oils Yamaha - 85 points +2
14. Team Solitaire/MB1 Racing - 85 points +3
17. MDK/Wonder Warthog Racing - 68 points -2
18. Jayco/Richardson’s RV Suzuki - 60 points +1
19. Team Atomic Racing – 53 points +1
20. Hart & Huntington/Rockstar Honda - 45 points -2
pic from vitalmx.com
Supercross Team's Rankings #7
Supercross Lites West Stats after Houston
Main Event Wins
Jason Lawrence 3 - Ryan Dungey 2
Jake Weimer 1 - Austin Stroupe 1
Main Event top-3
Jason Lawrence 5 - Ryan Dungey 3 - Brett Metcalfe 3
Austin Stroupe 3 - Jake Weimer 2 - Tommy Hahn 2
Justin Brayton 1 - Bobby Kiniry 1
Main Event Laps Lead
Jason Lawrence 47 - Ryan Dungey 26 - Austin Stroupe 15
Jake Weimer 5 - Dan Reardon 4 - Broc Hepler 3
Main Event Fastest Times
Jason Lawrence 5 - Ryan Dungey 2 - Brett Metcalfe 1
Heats Wins
Ryan Dungey 6 - Jason Lawrence 4
Jake Weimer 3 - Brett Metcalfe 1
Heats top-3
Ryan Dungey 7 - Jason Lawrence 6 - Brett Metcalfe 4
Austin Stroupe 4 - Justin Brayton 3 - Jake Weimer 3
Dan Reardon 3 - Chris Blose 2 - Broc Hepler 2
Kyle Cunningham 2 - Tommy Hahn 2 - Matt Lemoine 1
Billy Laninovich 1 - Michael Lapaglia - Zack Osborne 1
Practice Fasted Time
Jason Lawrence 5 - Ryan Dungey 2
Stantings Points Lead
Ryan Dungey 5 - Jason Lawrence 2
Stantings Points top-3
Ryan Dungey 7 - Jason Lawrence 6
Dan Reardon 3 - Justin Brayton 2
Broc Hepler 1 - Brett Metcalfe 1
Austin Stroupe 1
Weimer-30 Dungey-28 & Kiniry-45 at Phoenix
pic from transworldmotocross.com
Kevin Windham's AMA Racing Wins
K-Dub's AMA SX-class Main Event wins 13
2008: Houston (2nd in series)
2005: Anaheim1 (3rd in series)
2004: Anaheim1, Phoenix, Salt Lake & Las Vegas (2nd in series)
2001: Irving (4th in series)
2000: Irving (4th in series)
1999: Tampa & Dallas (7th in series)
1998: New Orleans & St. Louis (4th in series)
1997: Charlotte (18th in series)
K-Dub's AMA SX-Lites Main Event wins 12
1997: Los Angeles 1, Tempe, Minneapolis, Houston, Dallas, Las Vegas (1st in series)
1996: Minneapolis, Anaheim, Seattle, Houston, St. Louis & Denver (1st in series)
K-Dub's AMA MX-class Overall wins 9
2007: New Berlin (5th in series)
2003: New Berlin & Washougal (2nd in series)
2001: Washougal & Delmont (2nd in series)
1999: Sacramento, Budds Creek, Buchanan & Binghamton (2nd in series)
K-Dub's AMA MX-Lites Overall wins 7
1997: Buchanan, New Berlin & Delmont (2nd in series)
1996: San Bernardino, Mt. Morris, Binghamton & Delmont (2nd in series)
1994: First moto win at Mt. Morris
K-Dub's years whitout wins
2007 AMA SX-class: 4th in series
2006 AMA SX-class: 4th in series
2006 AMA MX-class: 2nd in series
2005 AMA MX-class: 2nd in series
2004 AMA MX-class: 3rd in series
2003 AMA MX-class: 2nd in series
2000 AMA MX-class: 3rd in series
1998 AMA MX-class: 2nd in series
1995 AMA SX-Lites: 5th in series
Kevin Windham at Las Vegas in 2004
pic from amamotocross.com
Gracyk and Gosselaar on 450s in the East
A week or two ago, the AMA put out the call
for Lites West guys who might want to jump
to the big-bore bikes once the series moves
East, and it looks like Troy Lee Designs Red
Bull Honda’s Gavin Gracyk and Chris
Gosselaar will answer that call.
With the start of the AMA Supermoto season
just a few weeks off, don’t look for the TLD
big rig out that way. Gavin and Chris will be
riding out of Gavin’s standard home for the
outdoor season, the Cycra rig. vitalmx.com
Factory Riders Out (injured) in AMA SX-class
James Stewart - Monster Energy Kawasaki
Grant Langston – Team Yamaha
Ivan Tedesco – Red Bull Honda
Mike Alessi – Rockstar Makita Suzuki
Michael Byrne – Rockstar Makita Suzuki
pic from tedescophoto.com
Kevin Windham RacerX Interview -ozzy go-
Monday Conversation with Kevin Windham Feb. 18, 2008
Coming into the Houston Supercross, Torco Racing Fuels Honda’s
Kevin Windham hadn’t won a supercross main event since the
2005 season-opening mud race at Anaheim I. Over three years
later, Windham became the first rider to beat Chad Reed in a
main event since James Stewart vacated the series before round
three, proving that there’s still a lot of fight in the old dog yet.
interview on racerxill.com
Torco Racing Fuels Honda Race Report: Houston Supercross
HOUSTON, Tex. – Torco Racing Fuels Honda and the team’s star rider Kevin
Windham had a breakthrough at the Houston, Texas round of the AMA
Supercross Championship. Windham is one of only two riders to have finished
every single main event so far in the top five, but in Houston, Windham took a
big leap forward, winning his first AMA Supercross main event of the season.
Windham started near the front in the main event and took over the lead when
Davi Millsaps crashed on lap two. From there, Windham led the remaining 19
laps. It was the 13th AMA Supercross win of his career, moving him past Ezra
Lusk and David Bailey to 12th on the all-time Supercross win list.
“It was a tough race, because it would’ve been easy to let your mind wander,
and I stayed focused,” Windham said. “When Chad [Reed] was in second, I
felt like I was inching away. I’m thankful for my team, Torco Racing Fuels
Honda, and Planet Fitness, and Amsoil, No Fear Energy, and Jeff Spencer. All
of those guys came together. There are a lot of pieces to the puzzle, and they
all came together for this.”
Windham’s win further solidified his spot at second in the championship, and
actually moved him up three points closer to Reed for the championship lead
with 10 races still left to run.
The Lites class also saw success for the Torco Racing Fuels Honda squad, as
Phoenix winner Jake Weimer got a start near the front of the pack, and then
fought it out with the leaders on his way to a solid third-place podium finish.
“I got a pretty decent start, and then on the first lap, I was like third or fourth
– I was towards the front – and I wasn’t able to do the finish line and got
passed like three times,” Weimer said of the start of the race. “Then, there
were a bunch of us going back and forth, and Dungey went by me. Then, he
made a mistake, and I went back by him, and then he got back by me, then
he made another mistake and I went back by him, and then I never saw him
again.” full story on racerxill.com - pics from tedescophoto.com
Red Riders Race Report: Houston Supercross Lites
The Torco Racing Fuels Honda team had to be happy in Houston.
First of all there was Windham’s win, but in the Lites class, both
Dan Reardon and Jake Weimer had good showings in the first
heat. Reardon finished third, with Weimer in fifth. In the main,
the two riders’ positions switched. Weimer got an excellent start,
rounding the first lap in third, while Reardon was back in 14th.
Reardon began his march forward, riding through some tough
traffic but eventually battling his way up to a respectable sixth.
Weimer, on the other hand, was slugging it out with the fastest
riders in the field, passing, getting passed, and repassing in the
earliest laps. By lap four he was in a solid fourth, where he rode
most of the race. But on the last lap, Weimer had come within
striking distance of Brian Metcalfe. Metcalfe crashed, and Weimer
took over third. Yet the race was far from over. Within sight of
the finish, Weimer himself went down, but kept his bike running
and remounted without losing a spot—a well-earned third place
for the Torco Racing Fuels Honda rider! hondaredriders.com
Red Riders Race Report: Houston AMA Supercross class
Minutes before the Houston Supercross this weekend, a tornado
touched down not far from the track, and the winds were strong
enough to rip the awnings off several of the factory semis parked
in the pits, including that of the Honda Torco Racing Fuels truck—
the team was undoubtedly upset.
Shortly thereafter a tornado of another type entirely touched
down on the track: Honda Torco Racing Fuels Kevin Windham on
his Honda CRF450R. This CRF450R-powered storm flat blew away
every other bike on the track, and gave K-Dub a well-deserved
win in the premier class.
The Houston track, while built by Dirt Wurx, had been designed
by Windham as well. Windham actually drove to the event, living
just five hours from Houston. The track didn’t give Windham any
advantage, though. After the race, number 14 commented, “Man,
I screwed up. I should’ve built this track like my track at home.”
In the first heat races of the night, Honda Red Bull Racing rider
Davi Millsaps was once again right up front, finishing second and
followed closely by teammate Andrew Short. The Millsaps/Short
rivalry isn’t talked about much in the press, but this year it’s
providing fans with some of the best, closest racing on the track.
Millsaps was injured for much of the Motocross season last year,
while Short came within a race of winning the National
Championship.
In the second heat, it was all about Windham, the Centreville,
Mississippi rider scoring an easy win. A heat win is nice, but
everyone kicks it up a notch when the main comes around.
When the gate dropped in the main, it was Honda Red Bull
Racing’s Davi Millsaps with another great holeshot, the second in
two races. Millsaps lit out and rode hard, serving notice that this
was going to be a gloves-off fight right from the first turn. With
Windham right behind, it was Honda one-two for the first lap.
It’s tough to fall in the first laps of a race: the pack is so close
and dense that a downed rider can lose a dozen positions in only
a second. That’s what happened to Millsaps, and by the time he
was up and rejoined the race it was in 20th position.
Andrew Short, meanwhile, had also gotten an excellent start,
completing the first lap in fourth, and then moving up into third
when Millsaps fell. Short held that position until lap eight, riding
in front of series leader Chad Reed. As the leaders began to
approach lapped traffic, though, there was some reshuffling of
the second, third, fourth, and fifth-place riders. Eventually Short
ended up in fifth, where he finished.
Millsaps had begun his charge back, passing three and four
riders per lap. By lap nine, he’d moved from last to ninth. As
you move up in the pack, though, it gets tougher and tougher to
pass, and Millsaps had to settle for an eight-place finish: still
remarkable considering his first-lap mishap.
As for Windham, he just checked out, riding flawlessly and
never challenged once for the lead. “When I got to the lappers
early, Chad [Reed] was in second, I thought to myself, ‘Man,
this is the pivotal point of the race. If I don’t get through these
guys, that’s going to be his chance to tighten up.’ I mean, that
was really the race for me. There were a lot of little steps, but
when you’re racing guys...” full story on hondaredriders.com
pics from tedescophoto.com
Windstorm -ozzy go- theweege.blogspot.com
Back when Kevin Windham first broke into the pro ranks
with Yamaha, they ran an ad campaign harkening back to
the days of Bob "Hurricane" Hannah. After each win, they
rang up the Kevin "Windstorm" Windham nickname in hopes
of creating another Hurricane. Well, now I get the chance to
get all poetic and symbolic and deep.
A giant windstorm swept through Texas last night, enough
to trash most teams' tents and apparently knock out power
transformers all over the area. It was also enough to
ground us in the Houston airport this morning, and now we
are stuck in Charlotte after our whole flight schedule got
jacked up. The weather forecasters were actually right this
time, since they were predicting these winds. Same for the
forecasters who predicted the Windstorm would plow
through the supercross field. Last weekend, Kevin Windham
only notched fifth and never quite got to the same level he
was on at Anaheim 3. But everyone was still calling the #14
for Houston. He designed the track, he had tons of fans
from his native Louisianna heading in to cheer him, and
then he threw down a faster lap than Chad Reed in the final
qualifying session. full story on theweege.blogspot.com
pic from racerxill.com
Houston Supercross class Main Event
Nearly 50,000 fans were on hand at Reliant Stadium to see a
pair of stunning victories in AMA Supercross racing. Kevin
Windham snagged his first SX win since 2005 by besting his
podium mates Chad Reed and Tim Ferry.
It was Red Bull Honda's Davi Millsaps who had the fastest
reaction once the gate dropped for the 20-lap main event and
his CRF450R rocketed to the front with Windham's Torco
Racing Fuels Honda in second and factory Yamaha rider Josh
Hill in third by the end of the lap. Millsaps would crash to
dead last, putting him behind San Manuel Yamaha rider Reed
who finished Lap 1 in seventh. After only two laps he was into
fourth where he circled behind Andrew Short, Hill and
Windham who had taken the lead without complaint. K-dub
did his best to run and hide, knowing that Reed was storming
up behind him, but by the time the Yamaha rider passed his
teammate for second on Lap 10, Windham was too far gone.
"I have been working hard this year, and tonight it paid off,"
said Windham. "I could not have won in front of a better
crowd. I put my head down tonight and used the crowd to my
advantage. The crowd was on their feet for the entire race."
Reed still holds the title race firmly in his grasp with a 32-
point lead. Knowing that he can miss an entire round and still
hang onto the top spot is a serious chunk of insurance as the
series heads to the softer soils back East.
"This is a tough pill to swallow," said Reed. "I gave it
everything I had tonight, but Kevin rode a great race. We
have had a good season, and we will have to put it together
in Atlanta next weekend." motorcycle-usa.com
pic from vitalmx.com
Windham Wins First Monster Energy® Supercross Race Since ’05
Rookie Stroupe Captures First Win of his Career
HOUSTON (February 16, 2008) – Torco Fuels Honda’s Kevin
Windham, of Centerville, Miss., won his first Monster Energy®
AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, race at Reliant
Stadium since 2005 in front of 49,986 fans. Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s
Austin Stroupe, of Corona, Calif., won the first Western Regional
AMA Supercross Lites race of his career.
Red Bull Honda’s Davi Millsaps, of Cairo, Ga., won the $1,500
Progressive Holeshot Award with Monster Energy® Kawasaki’s
Tim Ferry, of Dade City, Fla., in tow through turn one. Points
leader Chad Reed, of Tampa, Fla., went through turn one near
the middle of the pack.
While leading, Millsaps crashed and Windham moved into the lead
and never looked back. Reed, who rides for Team San Manuel,
moved into second place on lap 11 and couldn’t catch Windham.
Reed finished second and Ferry finished third.
“I have been working hard this year, and tonight it paid off,” said
Windham. “I could not have won in front of a better crowd. I put
my head down tonight and used the crowd to my advantage. The
crowd was on their feet for the entire race.”
“This is a tough pill to swallow,” said Reed. “I gave it everything
I had tonight, but Kevin (Windham) rode a great race. We have
had a good season, and we will have to put it together in Atlanta
next weekend.”
Rockstar Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey, of Belle Plaine, Minn., won the
$1,000 Progressive Holeshot Award as he led Pro Circuit
Kawasaki’s Brett Metcalfe, of Murrieta, Calif., and Lawrence
through turn one. Metcalfe passed Dungey for the lead but was
re-passed on the opening lap. Moments after moving into the
number-one position, Dungey crashed and fell back several
positions and allowed Lawrence to assume the lead. Two laps
later Dungey suffered another crash.
On lap five Stroupe, who is a rookie this season, moved past
Lawrence for the lead and held on for the next 10 laps.
“I am going to the next race, and I plan to do exactly what I
did here tonight,” said Lawrence who now has a six-point lead.
“I will
be ready for the next race.”
“I finally had a decent start, and that helped me in the
beginning of the race,” said Stroupe. “I put myself in position to
stay up front and that’s what I did.”
AMA Supercross class race will air on CBS Sports Sunday,
February 17 at Noon, and the AMA Supercross Lites class race
will air on SPEED Friday, February 22 at Noon.
supercrossonline.com
pics from tedescophoto.com
Windham takes Supercross event at Reliant -ozzy go- chron.com
A vicious storm was not the only force blowing stuff in and around Reliant Stadium on
Saturday night.
While strong winds were tossing every work and hospitality tent around the pit area
outside the stadium, Supercross rider Kevin Windham was busy tearing up the dirt track
inside, which was fine considering he had designed it.
Most importantly, the veteran rider tore up the competition, Supercross class leader
and favorite Chad Reed included, racing his way to his first victory of the season, which
he celebrated with a towering no-hands jump upon crossing the finish line.
Windham catapulted to the lead of the AMA Supercross series’ premier race at Reliant
Stadium when holeshot winner Davi Millsaps hit the ground hard in lap two.
Windham rever relinquished the lead, fending off a furious charge by Reed, who went
for seventh to second place with 10 laps to go before fading back, all but
handing Windham his first series win since 2005.
“I would have loved for Davi to stay in front and battle, but at this point in my career,
you take them any way they come,” Windham said of the victory.
Reed’s second-place finish in the 20-lap final race ended a four-race win streak and
marked only the second time this season the Australia native fails to earn a victory.
“I can’t take anything away from Kevin,” said Reed, who saw his lead in the standings
reduced to 32 points over Windham.
Series veteran Tim Ferry was third in the series’ 42nd visit to Houston.
Austin Stroupe captured his first Supercross Lites victory of the season, easily holding
off series leader Jason Lawrence beginning in lap six of the 15-lap final race to put an
end to a three-win streak by Lawrence. full story on chron.com
K-Dub at Phoenix - hondaredriders.com
Houston Monster Energy Supercross Timed Practice/Qualifying Results
AMA Supercross class top-10
1. Kevin Windham (Honda CRF450R) 00:47.437
2. Chad Reed (Yamaha YZ450F) 00:47.467
3. Andrew Short (Honda CRF450R) 00:47.554
4. Timmy Ferry (Kawasaki KX450F) 00:47.560
5. Josh Hill (Yamaha YZ450F) 00:47.975
6. Davi Millsaps (Honda CRF450R) 00:48.509
7. Josh Hansen (Yamaha YZ450F) 00:48.943
8. Ryan Clark (Honda CRF450R) 00:49.589
9. Josh Summey (Yamaha YZ450F) 00:49.624
10. Nathan Ramsey (Yamaha YZ450F) 00:49.640
AMA Supercross Lites class top-10
1. Jason Lawrence (Yamaha YZ250F) 00:47.516
2. Ryan Dungey (Suzuki RM-Z250) 00:47.566
3. Austin Stroupe (Kawasaki KX250F) 00:48.902
4. Billy Laninovich (KTM 250SXF) 00:49.223
5. Justin Brayton (KTM 250SXF) 00:49.288
6. Jake Weimer (Honda CRF250R) 00:49.557
7. Tommy Hahn (Kawasaki KX250F) 00:49.649
8. Kyle Cunningham (Honda CRF250R) 00:50.038
9. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki KX250F) 00:50.104
10. Dan Reardon (Honda CRF250R) 00:50.306
Torco Fuels Honda's Kevin Windham last week at San Diego
pics from tedescophoto.com
Davi Millsaps RacerX Interview –ozzy go-
Monday Conversation 2 with Davi Millsaps February 11, 2008
In his first full season of 450cc supercross racing, Davi Millsaps has
already had a lot of ups and downs. His first three rounds of racing
were just short of disastrous, with a seventh, a 14th and a 19th.
However, the last three rounds have seen Millsaps not only grab
three podiums, but lead a significant portion of the mains. It seems
it’s only a matter of time before Millsaps grabs his first 450cc win.
Interview on racerxill.com
Bobby Kiniry RacerX Interview –ozzy go-
Monday Conversation with Bobby Kiniry February 11, 2008
Bobby Kiniry isn’t a name that was on a lot of lips when people
were speaking of the podium threats for the 2008 Lites West SX
Championship, but as they say, there’s a reason why the races
are run. If we knew who would finish where before the drop of
the gate, there would be no point in holding the race. Kiniry has
shown good speed all season, but it finally came together for him
in San Diego, where he got his first-ever AMA Supercross
podium. Incidentally, it was also Team Solitaire’s and MB1’s
first podium finish. Interview on racerxill.com
Red Riders Race Report: San Diego Supercross Lites
Honda Torco Racing Fuels rider Dan Reardon started off the
evening right, grabbing second place in the first heat right
behind Ryan Dungey. Reardon rode a solid race, getting a
good start and maintaining his position. The deep turn-one
sand pit that was a challenge to the 450 riders was a
formidable obstacle on the smaller bikes, especially since the
racing is so tight in this class. Staying out of the inevitable first-
lap pileups in this turn was critical.
Jake Weimer led the way in the second heat on his Honda
Torco Racing Fuels CRF250R, taking the win by a decisive five
seconds. Weimer was simply untouchable, and really looked
good for the main given his performance in the heat.
The main was another story, though. While both Jake Weimer
and Dan Reardon had escaped any of the first-turn wrestling
matches in their heats, in the main they both got caught up,
and finished the first lap in the back of the pack. In a race this
competitive, that’s just an insurmountable obstacle. Weimer
finished the night in 17th, while Reardon dropped out on lap
13, while running in the 21st spot—a real stroke of bad luck for
a rider who’s won three national titles in his native Australia.
hondaredriders.com - pic from tedescophoto.com
Torco Racing Fuels Honda Race Report - San Diego -ozzy go-
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The last California round of the 2008 AMA
Supercross Championship started out looking promising for the
Torco Racing Fuels Honda team. Riders Dan Reardon, Jake
Weimer and Kevin Windham all got the holeshots in their
respective Heat races, and Weimer and Windham went on to win
their Heats, while Reardon finished second to erstwhile points
leader Ryan Dungey in his.
Out and out speed wasn’t a problem for the Torco Racing Fuels
Honda team in San Diego.
However, Weimer couldn’t turn a decent start in the main event
into a top finish, as he fell in the early going and spent the rest of
the race fighting from behind, despite his earlier Heat win.
“The Heat race was good,” Weimer said. “I got the holeshot and
checked out. I rode good, smart and smooth. I was feeling good
going into the main, and I started fifth, and then just kind of went
downhill from there. I maybe got a little over-anxious and carried
way too much momentum into a corner, and that’s pretty much
the end. There’s not much to say. I felt good all night, and I felt
like I rode well, but it didn’t pan out like I wanted.”
Weimer sits 16th in points with two rounds left to run.
Lites teammate Reardon had a similar main event, although
damage from his crash eventually knocked him out of the race,
following a strong Heat.
“The Heat race wasn’t bad,” Reardon said. “After last week, I was
so paranoid that I just wanted to make things work. I got a great
start, and then Dungey passed me, and I finished second. It got
me a good starting spot in the final. Come the final, I got a good
start. I didn’t holeshot, but I was in like fifth or something, and
from there I moved my way up to fourth, and that’s when things
turned bad. I had a crash and bent the bike up a little bit and I
had no front brake, and then I was trying to ride around with it,
and the front brake ended up locking up on me. It was definitely
a disappointing night, but it happens. I’ll regroup and look
forward to making a good race of it next week in Houston.”
Reardon’s misfortune dropped him from third to seventh in points
with two rounds left to run in the... full story on racerxill.com
pics from hondaredriders.com & vitalmx.com