THQ World Supercross GP Series/AMA Supercross Series
Round 3/1 : Edison International Field
Chad Reed takes the AMA season opener
(Top) Mike Brown (3) got the holeshot
in Anaheim, but Chad Reed (22) made
the most of the first tum and led
before the end of the lap. He wasn't
seriously challenged from then on.
(Left) Reed's win is the first in the
Post-McGrath era. McGrath was also a
rookie when he won his first race - at
Anaheim 10 years ago. Reed is also
the first Australian ever to win an AMA
Supercross.
By STEVE Cox
PHOTOS BY STEVE BRUHN
ANAHEIM, CA, JAN. 4
icky Carmichael has gotten
accustomed lately to being the
fastest guy on the track, regardless of
where he finishes. At the U.S. Open,
he was the fastest by a little. In the
250cc Nationals, he was the fastest
by a lot. He was generally the fastest
when he needed to be during the
supercross series last year as well.
Well, he's not anymore. Two different riders took their measure of
Carmichael at Edison International
Field in Anaheim, and in front of a
sold-out crowd of 45,050, one of
those two, Chad Reed, took
Carmichael to task, beating the
defending champ by over 24 seconds
in the main event and posting the
fastest lap time in the process.
The other rider to give Carmichael
fits was SoBe Suzuki's wunderkind
Travis Pastrana, who repeatedly
caught Carmichael in their heat, then
passed him, and then collided with
him in the following corner, where
Pastrana fell - much to the chagrin of
the crowd, who repeatedly booed the
champ for the rest of the night (see
"The Knife's Edge").
R
8
JANUARY 15, 2003'
cue
Yamaha's Reed started the main
right behind Pro Circuit's Mike Brown,
who grabbed the holeshot, and Reed
moved into the lead just a couple of
turns into the lap. And that was it.
Done.
Reed pulled away slowly at first,
mainly because it was Amsoil/Chaparral Honda's Mike LaRocco giving
chase. Carmichael's race didn't start
great - he got the green flag in ninth but a fall on the second go-around set
him back.
Lap three saw crash two for the
Honda rider, and it took that crash to
restart his getting cheers from the
audience. At that point, Carmichael
was dead last and way behind timewise.
And Reed kept creeping away.
Pastrana soon caught LaRocco for
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