Dungey wins again; claims Championship with 2 rounds to go!
Ryan Dungey is the 2010 450 Outdoor National Motocross Champion! To say that Dungey has had a great season would be a huge understatement. RD has won in all conditions this season and the Southwick sand would not be any trouble for the newly crowned champ. Ricky Carmichael always preached that "you make your own luck". Ryan Dungey obviously listened because no matter what was happening around him he stayed focused and got the job done.
In the first Moto at Southwick Brett Metcalfe and Ben Townley put their Honda's up front early and set a very fast pace. The two riders battled until Townley found himself on the ground making way for Ryan Dungey and ONE Industries team rider Tommy Hahn to move into second and third behind Metcalfe. "Metty" was on a mission and looked to have the first moto locked up but with less than 1/2 lap to go he waved Dungey by and came rolling to a stop when his Honda ran completely out of fuel. The Honda's of Ben Townley and Andrew Short also ran out of gas on the demanding Southwick course.
At the end of the first moto it was Dungey with the win followed by One Industries rider Tommy Hahn and Mike Alessi on the 350 KTM. Kyle Chisolm and Kyle Regal rounded out the top five.
Moto two started with Ben Townley up front again on his Lucas Oils Honda. Townley lead for several laps before giving way to Ryan Dungey. Last years winner Matt Goerke was making his return to racing after a broken leg sidelined him during the Supercross series and was able to finish third in the moto behind Dungey and Townley. Mike Alessi and Kevin Windham rounded out the top five. Brett Metcalfe's day didn't get any easier as he crashed on the first lap of the second moto trying to pass Kevin Windham and had to battle his way back to seventh. Tommy Hahn suffered a mechanical problem in moto two and was unable to finish after recording a second place in moto one. Andrew Short also struggled at Southwick and was not able to delay Ryan Dungey claiming the Championship at Southwick. (He made his own luck!)
The over-all results for Southwick saw Dungey in first with 1-1 moto scores, Mike Alessi in second with 3-4 moto scores and Matt Goerke grabbed the final spot on the podium via 6-3 motos. Kyle Chisolm (4-6) and Kevin Windham (7-5) rounded out the top five.
The 250 class saw Wil Hahn grab the holeshot ahead of Trey Canard with the points leader Pourcel stuck way back in the field. Canard had a great opportunity to gain valuable Championship points on Pourcel and quickly moved into the lead. Monster Energy Kawasaki's Tyla Rattray turned the heat up and dropped his lap-times to amazing speed and with only a couple of laps to go looked to have the speed to get past Canard but Trey dug deep and held on for the moto win. Wil Hahn claimed his first podium of the season behind Rattray with Justin Barcia and Dean Wilson rounding out the top five. The points leader Pourcel could only make his way up to seventh place by the end of the moto.
Moto two was another holeshot for Wil Hahn on his Lucas Oils backed Honda. Justin Barcia moved into the lead pretty quickly on his Geico Powersports Honda and gapped the field. Pourcel was in the top five in moto two with Dean Wilson and Trey Canard before Canard crashed while battling with Wilson. Barcia held on for the moto win ahead of Monster Energy Kawasaki riders Tyla Rattray and Christophe Pourcel with Wilson and Wil Hahn rounding out the top five.
The over-all results for the 250 class found Tyla Rattray with the win via 2-2 moto scores ahead of Justin Barcia in second with 4-1 moto scores and Trey Canard with 1-9 motos. Wil Hahn (3-5) and Pourcel (7-3) rounded out the top five. Christophe Pourcel still holds the Championship points lead with 399 points ahead of Trey Canard with 386 and Rattray's 364.
The series heads to Delmont Pennsylvania (Near Pittsburgh) next weekend for the Steel City National On September 4th. Please check back for a full report on Monday September 6th.
