With its stop at San Francisco's AT&T park, the Amp'd Mobile AMA Supercross Series usually comes prepared for the wet stuff. Rain, the bay, champagne sprays to the crowd, one way or another people always get soaked in this town. This year's round was no different. But this wetness was only the bubbly kind and the G-O-A-T did the honors.
For once the weather held. With rain showers falling sporadically the days before and the day of the race, many wondered if this would be another mud bath. But the clouds parted on Saturday, the sun came out most of the day and the track, while wet and slippery in the Heat races, became nice and tacky by the Main Events. Opening ceremonies were dampened as the fireworks, screaming fans and the booming baritones of the Supercross Voice Guy proved to be of no use in motivating the top riders from getting their bikes dirty. David Vuillemin, being a very talented mud rider, wasn't scared. DV did a nice wheelie along with a muddy burnout for the crowd--the only rider to take the plunge. He was rewarded by slipping into the main on the last lap of the LCQ. That, I suppose, gets us into the racing.
The Lites class has been saving Supercross for the last couple rounds. Exciting racing from everyone on the Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki team (and from everyone else in the world trying to catch them) has kept the fans knee deep in good racing. The little bikes didn't disappoint in San Francisco.
With a sweet holeshot and clean first corners, Chris Gooselar took his #102 Pro Circuit bike to the lead early. He was never really challenged but behind him, French Kawasaki pilot from the Motoworld racing.com team, Steve Boniface kept him honest. In third, fourth, fifth, sixth and all the way to about 300th place, the racing was awesome.
Josh Grant was just settling in to his pace, picking lines and navigating the slippery first heat track when KTM's Josh Hansen parked his #100 bike right underneath Grant's left grip on the landing of the first triple. Grant held on as Hansen ate some tuff bloks. Bad luck seemed to follow Grant the whole race as the Sobe/Samsung Mobile/No Fear Honda rider got into it with Jason Lawrence (speaking of fireworks!) on the same exact corner and was pitched off the track, onto the plywood covering the stadium floor and proceeded to do his best to get back on track. Unfortunately, the plywood was like ice with a thin layer of rain and mud. And AMA, Live Nation and track personnel were running for their lives. Eventually, Grant gave up and pulled off.
The second Lites race wasn't as exciting. But due to the slippery and mildly rutted jump faces, there were some exciting aerial corrections. Villopoto was on the gas with a great start and pulled away thanks to his solid speed and ability to yank his bike over rhythm sections like no one else. When #51 wants his bike to triple in the middle of a section...his bike triples in the middle of a section. It's that simple. Riding extremely well was KTM's Martin Davalos. #577 had a sweet start, right behind Villopoto and put some pressure on the Kawasaki rider for a few laps before jumping off the second triple and landing next to the track. He was one of the 200 riders who either did this, or came really close (including Chad Reed in his heat).
In his best looking ride to date, Chad Reed paced James Stewart almost the entire race. His corner speed, timing in the rhythm sections and aggressiveness in the whoops were more like Chad 2004 than Chad 2007. And that's great. Stewart did pull away towards the end and by the time Reed slipped off the face of the first triple, landed next to the face of the landing and putted around the next corner and triple on the outside of the track, Stewart had it in the bag.
The early going of heat two was the Suzuki show with Ricky Carmichael, in his last San Francisco appearance, pulling a huge holeshot and towing his buddy Ivan Tedesco along with him. Factory man Tim Ferry consistently reeled Tedesco in but, like many before him, was duped by a slippery track and went down right after the start straight. RC coasted his #4 Makita Suzuki to the win like he's done six million times before. It never really gets old though, does it?
As it often turns out, the LCQ's had some of the best racing of the evening. Well, the Lites LCQ wasn't anything special with Grant and Hansen advancing to the main after their slimy experiences in Heat One. It was the Supercross LCQ that had the action, though. David Vuillemin, with a terrible start was stuck in about sixth place in the short, four lap race. He pushed and pushed to a solid third with one lap to go. Jason Thomas (#31) was hanging on to second place and his ticket to the main with Travis Preston pulling away in the lead. Le Cobra was coiled and ready to strike and with one corner remaining he parked his #12 Xyience MDK Honda inside Thomas and took the last transfer spot. I'm sure Thomas wasn't too stoked on DV's move. However, after doing the only wheelie during opening ceremonies (everyone else was scared to get their bikes dirty) we consider the pass a gift from the moto gods.
The start of the Lites main was good clean fun. Villopoto pulled the early lead with a tight battle between his Pro Circuit teammate Chris Gosselaar and KTM's Martin Davalos. The two were all over each other, even coming into contact a couple times as they kept it insanely close. Their proximity to one another would eventually be both of their downfalls as little goose went down hard after the mechanics area and Davalos literally plowed into him. Both riders were up on their own with Davalos getting up quickly and Gosselaar taking some time with a well-rung bell.
This little pileup moved fourth place Josh Grant and Jake Weimer on their Sobe Samsung Mobile No Fear Hondas into second and third place respectively. The top three were spaced out at this point and Yamaha's Josh Hill was riding a solid fourth. Behind him, Boost Mobile Yamaha of Troy's Jason Lawrence stayed close. Eventually Lawrence would get thrown out of his line on the second triple...knocking him off the track again! He would come back for a top five finish though. Villopoto nabbed the win and started on his championship points lead. Grant and Weimer were second and third with the best showing for the Honda-mounted teammates.
Supercross main events up to this point have been bordering on boring. With Stewart showing he has more speed than anyone in the early rounds, it looked like San Francisco could be another yawner. However, track conditions, Ricky Carmichael and a newly motivated Chad Reed had something to say about that.
Chad Reed pulled a huge holeshot with Carmichael cleanly in third and Stewart doing what he does best by sliding into second through a line or hole that you shouldn't slide into second through. I'm not sure how he did that, but it ended up being Reed, Bubba and RC one, two and three on lap one. Reed was flying, setting the pace with newfound aggression and superb timing. It looked like he had enough to finally hold off the two guys that beat him most. At least, until lappers started getting in his way. Twice Reed was the victim of non-intentional blocking which cost him precious time. First it was Eric Sorby who blocked Reed out in the last turn and let Stewart by for the lead early in the race. Then, later in the race Heath Voss nearly knocked Reed crooked of the triple and kept him from challenging Stewart for second. Stewart in second? What's going on here? Well, Ricky's going on, that's what. RC did what won him all those championships...he kept the pace strong, followed, pressured and waited for a little mistake, this time a bobble by Bubba and Reed in front of him allowed the Goat enough room to smoothly go to the front and take his first win of the season at his last Supercross in California.
Next week, Anaheim again and with newfound speed, Reed could keep it interesting...let's hope so!