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The Prequel
Glen Helen Raceway Park
Langston Returns!
By JOHN BETHEA
SAN BERNARDINO, CA, MAY 14
T
here is a difference between daytime motocross and supercross, and when the AMA took a shoe· horn to the schedule
last year, inserting an open weekend between the Supercross
finals in Las Vegas and the Outdoor Nationals' opening event at
Hangtown, Glen Helen track officials leaped at the opportunity
to create a transitional weekend of daylight racing with a 30minute-plus-two-Iap format.
Grant Langston literally stole the hoopla from 2S0cc winner
Chad Reed when he made a dramatic turnabout from last year's
shOWing to make a huge come-from-behind sweep of the 125cc
class, by far the most spectacular showing of the Saturday
afternoon program with $20,000 prize money and pre-National
publicity up for grabs.
Last year at this time, Langston decided to take the rest of
the season off as he struggled with muscular problems, pulling
out without defending his 12Scc National Championship plate.
Now injury-free and fresh off Supercross success back east,
Langston told his Kawasaki sponsors he wanted to ride here.
"Normally, they don't go for non-National events," he noted,
"but they came out and supported me."
And it paid off, as he led from holeshot to checkers in one of
the four-Iappers to determine starting positions on the first-mota
gate. Mike Brown won the other, while Reed and Ryan Hughes
won the 250cc heats.
Langston then jumped out to an early lead in the first moto,
building a four-second advantage before the first lap was
completed. Riverside, California's Joshua Grant. who normally
PHOTO BY JOHN BETHEA
nabs holeshots, was barely in the top 10 of the 55-rider field; he
eventually finished sixth.
Instead, it was Brown, then Brock Sellards, and then Jesse
Cassillas riding shotgun in the early laps. On lap three, Brown
stumbled back to ninth, eventually pulling out. Sellards soon
found himself in a vicious race for second with Cassillas, Turbo
Reif and Kelly Smith; this lasted the first five laps. Cassillas then
controlled second, ahead of Reif, until late in the mota when he
tired and started making mistakes. Reif seized the opportunity
and grabbed second. Their hot laps cut Langston's 20-second
advantage in half by halfway. (The South African also suffered a
brief stall on a downhill.)
Smith and Sellards were now fourth and fifth, but the latter
pulled out with mechanical woes. Idaho's Danny Smith
immediately moved into fifth to set the finishing order.
In mota two, Langston and Sellards tangled in turn one, and
both fell. Langston got remounted quickly, but Sellards stalled;
when he finally got going, he was a third of a lap behind, in last
place. He managed to make it back up to 12th, but he was out of
contention for the win. Then, after lap four, Brown was out,
apparently due to bike problems.
Meanwhile, Langston was blistering the circuit. After
restarting about 26th, he had moved to 14th at the end of lap
one, and he was up to second by the halfway mark. By then,
Grant was leading by seven seconds.
"When I saw Grant," said Langston, "I knew I could win."
Langston caught Grant with five laps still left, pulling off the
comeback ride of the day and cruising to the win. Grant took
second in the mota and third overall. Cassillas got the runner-up
CN
purse.
GUN HEUN RACEWAY PARK
SAN BERNARDINO, CAUfORNIA
RESULTS: MAy 14,2005
125 MOTa I: I. Grant Langston (!