Just when it seemed nobody could stop Ricky Carmichael, who was enjoying a five race winning streak in the THQ AMA Supercross Series, defending champion Chad Reed took his first victory of the season last weekend in San Diego. This Saturday, February 26, the 22-year-old Australian is hoping to start a winning streak of his own as the series move into the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.Reed breathed new life into the championship run by moving his Yamaha past the Suzuki of series leader Ricky Carmichael on the final lap in San Diego. Reed is hoping to repeat what he did in the second half of 2003 when he closed out the year with six-straight wins. It’s going to take that kind of run for Reed to have a chance to catch three-time AMA Supercross champ Ricky Carmichael, the rider from Havana, Fla., who has sprinted to his best start ever, winning five of the seven rounds coming into the Georgia Dome. Despite losing to Reed last week Carmichael holds a commanding 29-point lead in the series over Reed.The exciting last-lap pass and win last week in San Diego is certain to go down as one of the most memorable victories for Reed. He appeared moved in accepting the trophy on the podium.”I’ve asked a lot of my team this year,” Reed said after winning San Diego. “They’ve risen to the occasion and this win is a credit to them. I never expected it would take so long get a win this year and hopefully this will be the first of many more this season.”Reed’s victory last weekend was the 19th of his career and it tied him with Damon Bradshaw for sixth on the all-time AMA Supercross wins list.Carmichael crashed trying to re-pass Reed in San Diego, but was able to remount his Makita Suzuki and still salvage second. While not thrilled with his performance Carmichael seemed to take his first loss in six races in stride.”Chad rode a great race; I got beat plain and simple,” Carmichael admitted. “The loss will give me the incentive to go home and practice that much harder. Sometimes when you win so often you start to lose some motivation and this is the kind of thing that will keep me motivated to continue to improve.”Jeremy McGrath took the $1,500 Butterfinger Crisp Holeshot Award, sending fans into a frenzy as Carmichael began to close the gap. Side by side over the tabletop, they looked at eachother in mid air and Carmichael pointed to McGrath, showing respect before taking over the lead and checking out.Veteran Mike LaRocco moved back into third in the standings over Amsoil Chaparral Honda teammate Kevin Windham after taking third last weekend. LaRocco is a former Atlanta Supercross winner.Honda’s Billy Laninovich, won the $1,000 Butterfinger Crisp Holeshot Award in the 125cc main event. Kawasaki’s Ivan Tedesco, the reigning champion, moved into the lead on lap three but was passed on lap seven by Ramsey. Ramsey, of Menifee, Calif., held on for the win. Tedesco was second and Honda’s Andrew Short finished third.”I kept pushing myself out there tonight,” said Ramsey. “I knew that Ivan (Tedesco) wasn’t going to let me get by him easily. I just rode hard and picked up my second win of the season.”The AMA 125 East Supercross Series will resume with round two in Atlanta. Georgia’s own Davi Millsaps leads the standings after winning the 125 East opener in Indianapolis on his factory Suzuki a few weeks ago. Millsaps, of Cairo, Ga., just turned 17 last week and is one of the leading up-and-coming riders in the series. If Millsaps is to hang on to his series lead, he’ll have to hold off former AMA Motocross Champion Grant Langston, who comes into Atlanta ranked second, and Josh Hansen, a second generation pro racer who’s currently third in the series.The Atlanta Supercross will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2 starting at 5 pm EST on Sunday, Feb, 27.250cc THQ AMA Supercross Series Event Results
1. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha
2. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki
3. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda
4. David Vuillemin, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
5. Kevin Windham, Centerville, Miss., Honda
6. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki
7. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
8. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha
9. Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda
10. Jeremy McGrath, Encinitas, Calif., Honda250cc THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 167
2. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 138
3. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda, 119
4. Kevin Windham, Baton Rouge, La., Honda, 116
5. David Vuillemin, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha, 101
6. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki, 94
7. Ernesto Fonseca, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 93
8. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 89
9. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 81
10. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 73125cc Western Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Event Results
1. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM
2. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
3. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
4. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda
5. Thomas Hahn, Belpre, Kan., Honda
6. Paul Carpenter, Ithaca, N.Y., Kawasaki
7. Jay Marmont, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
8. Eric McCrummen, Oakley, Calif., Honda
9. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
10. Justin Keeney, Lebanon, Ore., Kawasaki125cc Western Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 127
2. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM, 91
3. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda, 82
4. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 79
5. Danny Smith, Middleton, Idaho, Yamaha, 77
6. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha, 69
7. Ryan Sipes, Nine Grove, Kan., Suzuki, 67
8. Thomas Hahn, Belpre, Kan., Honda, 65
9. Jay Marmont, Murrieta, Calif., KTM, 64
10. Ryan Morais, Canyon Lake, Calif., Suzuki, 53
THQ World Supercross GP Season Standings
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 222
2. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda, 187
3. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 148
4. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 136
5. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki, 128
6. Tyler Evans, Corona, Calif., Suzuki, 124
7. Damon Huffman, Valencia, Calif., Honda, 120
8. Erick Vallejo, Garland, Tex., Yamaha, 89
9. Jason Thomas, Melrose, Fla., Honda, 78
10. Joe Oehlhof, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 74125cc Eastern Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Davi Millsaps, Cairo, Ga., Suzuki, 25
2. Grant Langston, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 22
3. Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., KTM, 20
4. Brock Sellards, Sherrodsville, Ohio, Yamaha, 18
5. Matt Walker, McDonough, Ga., Kawasaki, 16
6. Joaquim Rodrigues, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 15
7. Brandon Jesseman, De Witt, Iowa, Suzuki, 14
8. Tucker Hibbert, Centerville, Miss., Honda, 13
9. Greg Schnell, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Honda, 12
10. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., Yamaha, 11Tickets for the event are available at the Georgia Dome Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, all participating Yamaha dealers, or you can charge by phone at 404/249-6400.
1. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha
2. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki
3. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda
4. David Vuillemin, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
5. Kevin Windham, Centerville, Miss., Honda
6. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki
7. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
8. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha
9. Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda
10. Jeremy McGrath, Encinitas, Calif., Honda250cc THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 167
2. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha, 138
3. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda, 119
4. Kevin Windham, Baton Rouge, La., Honda, 116
5. David Vuillemin, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha, 101
6. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki, 94
7. Ernesto Fonseca, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 93
8. Michael Byrne, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 89
9. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 81
10. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 73125cc Western Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Event Results
1. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM
2. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
3. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda
4. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda
5. Thomas Hahn, Belpre, Kan., Honda
6. Paul Carpenter, Ithaca, N.Y., Kawasaki
7. Jay Marmont, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
8. Eric McCrummen, Oakley, Calif., Honda
9. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
10. Justin Keeney, Lebanon, Ore., Kawasaki125cc Western Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 127
2. Nathan Ramsey, Menifee, Calif., KTM, 91
3. Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda, 82
4. Andrew Short, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 79
5. Danny Smith, Middleton, Idaho, Yamaha, 77
6. Brett Metcalfe, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha, 69
7. Ryan Sipes, Nine Grove, Kan., Suzuki, 67
8. Thomas Hahn, Belpre, Kan., Honda, 65
9. Jay Marmont, Murrieta, Calif., KTM, 64
10. Ryan Morais, Canyon Lake, Calif., Suzuki, 53
THQ World Supercross GP Season Standings
1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Suzuki, 222
2. Mike LaRocco, Corona, Calif., Honda, 187
3. Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Yamaha, 148
4. Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Honda, 136
5. Sebastien Tortelli, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki, 128
6. Tyler Evans, Corona, Calif., Suzuki, 124
7. Damon Huffman, Valencia, Calif., Honda, 120
8. Erick Vallejo, Garland, Tex., Yamaha, 89
9. Jason Thomas, Melrose, Fla., Honda, 78
10. Joe Oehlhof, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 74125cc Eastern Regional THQ AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
1. Davi Millsaps, Cairo, Ga., Suzuki, 25
2. Grant Langston, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 22
3. Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., KTM, 20
4. Brock Sellards, Sherrodsville, Ohio, Yamaha, 18
5. Matt Walker, McDonough, Ga., Kawasaki, 16
6. Joaquim Rodrigues, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 15
7. Brandon Jesseman, De Witt, Iowa, Suzuki, 14
8. Tucker Hibbert, Centerville, Miss., Honda, 13
9. Greg Schnell, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Honda, 12
10. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., Yamaha, 11Tickets for the event are available at the Georgia Dome Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, all participating Yamaha dealers, or you can charge by phone at 404/249-6400.
