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/128169
(Left) Teddy Maler (311) leads Josh LichUe (811) in 125cc Stock Intennedlate action. Maler took the win. (Below) Josh Grant (86) .nd Ry.n V1l1opoto (615) duke It out In the Supenninl race. Grant finished second overall, while V1l1opoto was fifth. rains and nasty winds that turned the rodeo grounds, and the track, into a muddy mess, and the winds destroyed many awnings that were turned into twisted pieces of metal. By Tuesday's practice day, however, the track was in incredible condition, and by Wednesday the racing action was under way, and the motocross racers made the earlier aO-mph winds look like a mere breeze. The 250cc Modified Pro division was, you might say, lightning-fast, and one of the lightning bolts was Evan Laughridge, from Forest Ranch, California. Laughridge powered his Suzuki around the Ponca City track like the powerful bolts of lightning that struck Sunday night. When all was said and done, Laughridge checked out and went 1- 1 to take home the first-place money. Jesse Casillas, on his number- 75 Yamaha, from Jamul, California, was consistent, holding Gavin Gracyk off in the last moto to go 2-2 and bring home the second-place prize. Gracyk, who hails from Blissfield, Ohio, piloted his KTM to a third-place finish with a 5-3 tally. The next two places were filled by two Texans - Ty Conner and Shane Doughty. Conner posted 4-5 moto finishes to take fourth overall, while Doughty made a second-moto comeback to go 7 -4 for fifth overall out of the 36-rider field. And this wasn't Laughridge's only success. The Suzuki rider also took top billing in the 125cc Modified Pro race, as well as in the 250cc Modified Pro race. Laughridge was going for a Pro-class sweep but came up a little short in the 250cc Stock Pro class, where he settled for runner-up honors to Casillas. Laughridge was one of three, three-class winners. In the 43-rider-strong 250cc Modified Intermediate class, there was plenty of good racing action, especially between Suzuki riders Derek Costella and Cole Siebler in the final run-off. Costella, who hails from Las Vegas, ended up coming out on top of their battle. Costella went 1-3 in the divisional races to make the main and took home the gold after defeating Siebler in the final. Siebler, who traveled from Idaho to attend, took second in both of his divisional races to make the run-off, but came up just short of win. Still, Siebler stettIed for a very respectable second overall. Teddy Maier, from Fort Dodge, Iowa, took third on his Kawasaki, while Californian Daton Beavers, also on a Suzuki, finished fourth in the main. Yamaha rider Steve Haughelstine, another Californian, rounded out the top five overall. In the 250cc Stock Intermediate class, Beavers came back to take the overall win. The two 125cc Intermediate divisions again featured exciting racing and two different winners. Maier fended off Suzuki rider Josh Lichtle to with only 15 riders from two divisions number-one trophy. No doubt, Alessi had his Honda smoking around the Ponca track. He did, however, have to keep his guard up a little bit, as he had Washington's Ryan Villopoto to contend with all week. Villopoto, who had ridden well in the qualifiers, ran into a wall of bad luck in the Super Mini main and was forced to settle for fifth overall. Joshua Grant, from Redlands, California, pressed hard in every moto and was rewarded with second overall allowed to qualify for the main, you can just imagine just how intense the racing action was. When all of the dust had settled and the fur stopped flying from the four qualifiers and run-off, it was Honda's Mike Alessi, from Moorpark, California, who emerged with the victory. Actually, Alessi made it look almost easy on his side, as he won his two heat races and topped things off with another win in the run-off to take home the take the Stock-class win, while Yamaha-mounted Nick Adams bested Siebler to grab first-place honors in the Modified class. A deep field of 56 riders turned out for the Super Mini (-16) class, and co U co I • n e .. S • AUGUST 28, 2002 23