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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128390
AMA 250cc National Motocross Series Presented by FMF
it was acting up on the hot lap there.
Then, on the start, I let go of the clutch
and it kind of bogged and hesitated a little
bit. Then [when] I was behind Kevin, it
was just kind of bogging and misfiring.
Then it was bogging through the whoops
before the finish, and then after that it
never bogged again. It cleaned out and
the rest was good."
When Carmichael moved into the
lead, he made an impressive pass on both
early leader Fonseca and Windham.
When Windham went to make a pass
on Fonseca, he lost his drive, leaVing the
door wide open for Carmichael to
pounce. Windham had a front-row seat.
"He [Fonseca] was riding good, he
wasn't holding me up," Windham said. '"
couldn't get around him at that point. I
kind of hugged a comer pretty tight, kind
of the way I normally ride this track, and
Ricky got a good drive in some fluff that
got pushed off the edge of the track and
kind of came around me first. He really
didn't seal the deal on Ernie until right in
the mechanics' area, but he set it up a few
turns back. It was a good move, and I was
just being a little bit cautious."
Soon after Windham moved around
26
Fonseca and attempted to close in on
Carmichael, once again Carmichael was
already gone. The Suzuki rider had a flVesecond lead after only one lap, and it only
grew from there.
"You can't really let up too much,
because Kevin or somebody is riding really hard to try to catch you," Carmichael
said, "so I race the stopwatch also and try
to turn good laps all the time. I try to
make fun of it also and enjoy it."
As Carmichael raced the stopwatch,
Windham did the same. For most of the
race, he was all alone in second. Behind
him, Fonseca circulated the course in
third, well in front of the next rider on the
track, Team Kawasaki's Michael Byrne.
"I got a good start and Uied to follow
Windham for as long as I could," Fonseca
said. "Pretty much after that I rode steady."
By the halfway point, the running
order was set. Carmichael was way out
front, Windham was second and Fonseca
was third. When the checkered flag came
out, Carmichael crossed the line firsT, followed by Windham and Fonseca.
For Fonseca, it was his first time being
on the podium in the competitive 2S0cc
class.
AUGUST 10, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS
"I knew there was a lot better chance,
because the other two top riders [Reed
and Stewart] were not here," Fonseca
said. '" mean, yeah, that was my goal. I
wanted to be on the podium, and I knew
I had a decent chance. I just wanted to get
two good starts, ride steady and not
make any mistakes."
01
WASHOUGAL MOTOCROSS PARK
WASHOUGAL, WASHINGTON
REsuus: JULY 31, 2005 (ROUND 8
Of
12)
MOTO I: I. Ricky Carmichael (Suz); 2. Kevin
Wondham (Hon); 3. David VulHemln (Yam); 4. E.......o
Fonseca (Hon); S. Travis Pr-eston (Hon); 6. HIchaeI Byrne
(Kaw); 7. Nick W"f (Hon); 8. John Dowd (Suz); 9. R)"'l
CM (Hon); 10. Man Goeri