Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126899
a:: w .~ ..J ..J W ::l ~ ~ 0 e t- > '" 0 Vl t- O :x: "- to 00 0") ....... ~ l!":i ..c U .... ro :~ (A bo ve) Rick Johnson (5) stretch ed hi s point lead to 20 points with his win ov er teammate D av id Bailey , (Below) Jeff Ward (1) and Mike Healey (46 ), AMA Nippondenso Supercross series: Round 6 . Johnson outjumps 'em in Atlanta By Tom Mueller ATLANTA, GA , FEB. 22 Team H o n da 's R ick Johnson demonstrated j u st h ow well he rides u nder pressure by winnin g the Sup erbowl of Motocross in Fulton Cou nty Stadiu m Saturday n ight. Johnson led th e entire 20 laps, perform ing flawlessly despite pressure from his teammate, David Bailey, Johnson' s win in At- 6 lanta was his third of th e season, which secured his points lead and made h im th e rider to bea t as the Nippondenso Series reached the halfway point. T he Superbowl o f Motocross, now in its 10th yea r a t Atl a n ta , was a sellO U I. An a ttenda nce o f 50,OOO- pl us at the event made promoter Mik e G ood- win ecstat ic. " We so ld th e last ticket we h ad at 8;15 (p. m.)," sa id Goodwin . " T he riders sh o u ld put on a gr eat sh ow on th e tra ck we built; 1 kn ow th e fans will enjoy it." The eve nt was indeed a show. A mud -bo g co mpeti tion was interlaced wi th the supercross, making for a lo ng even t which ra n until I:00 a. m . A large port ion o f th e fa ns had go ne h ome by th e ti me th e ma in event bega n. Heats One o f Team Honda's n ewest and brig htes t stars, M ick y Dym ond , showed the way in heat o ne. Dym ond took the lead off th e sta rt an d never relinqui shed it, Kaw asak i pil o t Rick R yan ended up with seco n d a fter Suzu ki 's Erik Keh oe bai led o ff in a double jump secti on while holding the ru n ner-u p slo t, Keh oe rem ounted to ta ke thi rd , with th e fin al transfer slot from th e heat goi ng 10 H ondamou nted G uy Coo per. j eff Frisz look ed 10 nave fourt h in hand, bu t u n loaded in a whoop sect io n just shy o f th e finish line, Mike Heal ey put his Suzuki into a quick lead in h eat two, but Kawasaki teamster Ron Lechien had th e front spoi for good within a half lap . Yamaha 'sjim H oll ey £lewinto second over a long double jump, but th en drop ped to fourth wh en he impacted o n th e front side o f a n infield double jump. H eal ey a n d h is teamm at e, A.j . Wh itin g , go t by H olley for th e 2-3 spots, with H oll ey fourth, H onda 's j ohnny O 'M ara led hea t three .u n ril Yamaha 's Keith Bowen p icked u p hi s rh ythm a nd took th e point, Yamaha 's Broc Gl over was cha lle nging for third unti l h e fell in a wh oop section a nd hi s teammate, Dann y Sto r bec k , go t b y. It wa s Lech ien, O'Mara, Storbeck and Gl over at th e chec kere d flag. H onda teammates David Bailey a n d Ri ck j ohnson put th e p ack in ' tow in h eat four an d ran 1-2. Reigning Supercro ss cha m p j eff Ward fin ished th ird aft er pushing p ast Bill y L iles a nd Ro ss Pederson . Liles got th e fourth an d fin al transfer spot; Pederson cra sh ed o u t o f co n tentio n whil e under pressure from Ward. " I cou ld hear the crowd roar, and 1