Reed, Carmichael and Stewart Face Off Again in Dallas; 125 East Series Heats Up
Yamaha's Chad Reed heads into the upcoming Dallas Supercross hoping to become the first rider in series history to win the Texas Stadium event three straight times. The race, held in Irving, Texas, on April 2, is round 12 of the 16-race THQ AMA Supercross Series.
Reed is on a two-race winning streak coming into this Saturday's race and he hopes to keep his momentum going. In 2003 Reed went on a six-race romp and pushed Ricky Carmichael all the way to the final race in the series championship chase. Reed is coming off what he described as one of the strangest victories of his career two weeks ago in Orlando.
"To win and barely break a sweat was weird," said Reed who rode to his third win of the year in Orlando. "I got a bit fortunate with the mistakes made by the other riders. Every point counts in trying to catch Ricky. I believe I still have a shot at the title. We still have a lot of racing to do and anything can happen."
Reed took the victory in Orlando after Kawasaki's James Stewart and Suzuki's Ricky Carmichael both crashed while leading. The win moved Reed past the legendary Jeff Ward to fifth on the all-time AMA Supercross wins list with 21-career victories.
Carmichael still holds a 29-point lead in the series with five rounds remaining, but he's not happy with losing two straight main events.
"My crash in Orlando was a crazy mistake that I just can not do," said the three-time AMA Supercross champ. "I've been frustrated the last couple of races, but I just have to come back and keep it on two wheels. It seems that Chad comes on strong in the second half of the season and I've got to step up and stop his momentum. People tell me I can win the championship by settling for second, but I don't want to just lay down. It's a bad habit to get into. I'm here to win and I know I can do it."
The race is a rematch of sorts between Carmichael and Reed. The two had arguably the best AMA Supercross race of the 2003 season at Texas Stadium. The riders swapped for the lead close to a dozen times during the 20-lap final. Reed finally opened up a small gap in the latter stages of the race.
Stepping into the mix is Kawasaki's young gun James Stewart. Stewart comes to Texas Stadium with the confidence that he can runand even betterthe pace of Reed and Carmichael. He beat Carmichael in a heat race in Orlando and built a good lead in the main before crashing.
"Overall, I'm happy coming out of Orlando healthy," said Stewart who returned to the circuit since breaking his arm in January. "I'm just trying to get some racing under my belt. I'm going into Dallas with confidence. My arm feels 100 percent. Hopefully in Dallas, Chad, Ricky and I can battle together the entire race."
The AMA 125 East Supercross race enters the second-to-last round in Texas Stadium. In one of the most hotly contested championships in the history of the series Monster Energy Drink/Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Grant Langston is tied with Red Bull KTM's Josh Hansen atop the standings. Makita Suzuki's Davi Millsaps won the last round in Orlando and moved to within seven points of the leading duo.
"The championship is going down to the final race," said Hansen, son of 1982 AMA Supercross champ Donnie Hansen. "With just two races to go everything is on the line and it should make for really good racing."
Langston agrees and adds that there's very little room for strategy now. "It's gotten to the point that it's very simple. You have to win."
Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, all participating Yamaha dealers, at the Texas Stadium Box Office, or charge by phone at 214-373-8000 or 972-647-5700. Texas Stadium also features a special Family Section. When ordering tickets through Ticketmaster, request Family Section for an alcohol-free family atmosphere.
The Dallas Supercross will air nationally on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 3 starting at 12:30 p.m. EST.