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/126958
Jeff Emig (12) and Brian Swink (4) battle for positions during the Kawasaki Race of Champions at the Las Vegas Motocross Park. Emig finished fifth overall. The start of the final Race of Champions moto saw winner John Kitsch (2) nab the holeshot ahead of Jimmy Gaddis (5), J.R. Jackson (9), Emig (12) and Buddy Antunez (3). Kawasaki/NMA World Mini/Grand Prix Kitsch, Emig high rollers in Vegas J By Nate Rauba HENDERSON, NV, APR. to-12 "That was great!" exclaimed John Kitsch after completing a three-moto sweep and taking the Kawasaki Race of Champions' win at Las Vegas Motocross Park. "It was the best event all week, but of course it was the only luck I h d" ' a ' . Jeff Emtg turned out to be me lucky Mini rider over me threeday long National Motorsport Association-sanctioned event, as he captured the overall victories in both the 83cc Stock Expert 12+ class and the Super Mini class. Brian Swink took me ~in in another Heavyw~i~ht MiDt class, the 83cc Modtfled Experts. In Pro class action, Honda rider Kyle Lewis dominated the 125cc ranks wim wins in bom me Stock and Modified divisions. Frankie Brundage won the 250cc Stock Pro class with a pair of seconds, while Mike Kiedrowski took the 250cc Modified class with a 2-1 score. Mike Larson aced both 500cc Pro motos after some close racing with Tommy Watts, who led both motos until a derailed chain ~topped him in the first moto and a crash knocked him out of the second round. Short motos, due to the large number of entries and size of the program, and a narrow, tight twisty track made Slarts critical, especially in the Pro classes. . "Getting the Slart really helps, it's a big part of the race hecause the laps are so short," said 125 and 250cc Pro rider Doug Dubach. Rival Brian Manley agreed. "It's real hard to pass out there, and if you try to pass someone you take a chance of being passed at the same time," he said. Emig led at the start of the first 83cc Stock Expert 12+ moto and never gave up the lead. Kawasaki rider Jack Ricks .held second at the end of the first lap, but feU back to seventh on lap two. Grayson Goodman, aboard a Honda, took over second ahead of Tommy Clowers, Randy Moody and Kitsch. Halfway through the six-lap moto, Suzuki rider Buddy Antunez replaced Moody in fourth, then picked off both Clowers and Goodman to take second with one lap remaining. Emig took the win, followed by Antunez and Goodman, while Kitsch passed Clowers on the final lap to take fourth. Clowers led the Slart of moto two, followed by Emig, Moody, Ricks and Jason Schultz. Emigquickly took the lead on the first lap and immediately began to pull away, while Clowers dropped back to third behind Moody. "I got second off the line and had to pass Clowers," said Emig. "When I did I just pulled away and got a big gap so that I could ride easy and smooth." Ricks moved into second by midmoto, and Swink bad gained fourth. Swink moved up another position on the next lap, leaving Moody to a charging Antunez. On the final lap, Emig had a good lead and was able to cruise to the win ahead of Ricks and Swink, while Antunez led a scramble for fourth at the finish. Moody beld on to fifth, finishingjust ahead of Kitsch. Emig grabbed the overall with his I-I finishes, Antunez scored second overall and Kitsch's 46 was good for third. Suzuki's Jimmy Gaddis, who rode most of the weekend with a cracked bone in his righ t wrist, led the first lap of the 83cc Modified Expert moto with Suzuki-mounted Junior Jackson, David Griego, Emig and Kitsch trailing. On lap two, botb Emig and Kitsch displaced Griego, and a lap later Griego had fallen out of the top 10. At the halfway mark, Gaddis still led witb Jackson second, while Kitsch had passed Emig for third and Swink moved into fifth. Kitsch continued his climb toward the front when he passed Jackson on the fourth lap and followed Gaddis to the checkered flag to take second. Swink got by Emig on lap five, then went by Jackson the final circuit to take third. Jackson was fourth ahead of Emig. Griego grabbed the holeshot at the Slart of moto two but fell in a tum and was forced to watch the pack go by. Antunez inherited first just ahead of Gaddis and Kitsch, but it didn't last long. Kitsch quickly got by Gaddis, but a short time later, both Antunez and Kitsch had dropped several positions. That left Gaddis with first who quickly put some distance on Jackson, Swink, Yamaha rider Chad Pederson and Goodman. On lap two, both Swink and Pederson had passed Jackson, while Kitsch crashed and came around even further back. Gaddis gained about a five second lead on Swink by the halfway point, but he went down in a tum. Swink took the lead and moved away from Gaddis, and on the last lap, Pederson put on a charge which carried him past Gaddis and close to Swink at the finish. Swink took the moto and the overall, Pederson was second ahead of Gaddis, Jackson and Schultz. The Super Mini class, designed to .acommodate the big-wheel Kawasaki minis, was split into two divisions. Each division ran two motos, and the top 15 overall transferred to a runoff. The overall placing in each division was combined with the runoff finish to get the overall wmner. In the first moto of division one action, Emig took the lead from Ricks on the first lap, as Jackson, Honda-mounted Brian Roth, Goo