AMAlEA Sports S upercr-os s Ser"'ie s
F inal R o u n d : S a m B o yd Stad iu m
B Y C HRIS J O N NUM
PH OTO S BY S T EVE BRU HN
LAS VEGAS, NY, MAY 5
uc h of the pre-race discourse
had
i n cl u d e d
the
word
"mumm y, " but Ricky Carm ichae l
spe nt the series finale establishing
once and for all that he is the new
pa pa of the SX jMX world. Not tha t
th is fact was in much doubt following
his cl inching of the class crown two
rounds early , but sub tl et y has never
exactl y been the ki d's strong point hence his ty ing in La s Veg as of erst while Sup ercro ss g o d fath er Jeremy
M cG rath 's rec ord 14 si ngl e-se aso n
main -ev en t wins, with 13 coming in
success ion .
Carmic hael 's authorit arian evening
was a m ic ro cos m of his series , as he
won his heat rac e and quickly recover ed fr om a m edi oc re st art to m an ha ndl e the m ain eve nt . Ov er th e past
12 m on ths, th e Flo ridian has ele vated
h is ridin g to a level that few thought
c oul d be a tt a i n e d , ac ce pt ing and
achie ving an y challenge put in front
M
16
M AY 16 . 2001 •
cu
e
I
e
lAbove) New AMA
Supercross
Ch ampion Ricky
Cannichae l gave
the soldout crowd
at Sam Boyd
Stadium all that
they came to see,
as he tied J eremy
McGrath's records
f or consecutive
wins and wins In a
si ng le se ason .
(Ri ght) Will you
stili ca ll me
Supennan ? In the
fi nal race of what
will likely be his
ca reer's
penultimate
season, Jerem y
McGrath sh owe d
that he Is not to
be discounted f or
a strong return In
2002. He finished
a solid second.
n
e
vv
s
