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/1542349
j\
Briefly...
over
Stewart and eight
points
over the injured
Chad
Reed,
can ride
conservative-
ly from here on out
to
pre-
serve
a lifth Supercross
title
(as
long as he keeps finishinS
ahead
of Reed). But
that's not
Carmichael's
style, and the
lulakita Suzuki rider claims
to have
given
it his
all at the
Citrus Bowl,
"There
is
no excuse; I
got
my
ass kicked,'' Carmichael
said.
"l
don't know
what the
problem
was. Did I
have an off night?
Maybe. But at the
same time, I
iust
wasn't on
his
pace.
I know
where
I struggled and I need
to
improve on it.''
Privateer Nick Wey,
riding the
MDlVi'lotosport Honda,
took his
second
podium
of the year
with a
third, after
he
passed
Carmichael's
Hakita Suzuki teammate
lvan
Tedesco
at the white flag
to take
the
position.
After
the event, Stewart was
pleased
with his
performance,
but
was
keeping things in perspective.
"Kawasaki
put
in a strong
effort to make the
bike better
for
me this
week, so we had
the best motorcycle. and I felt
like lwas the
best
guy
or.lr
there tonight. From
here on
t-.
Kevin
Windham returned
to aacing at
Orlando
after spending
three months recu-
peratin8
from
a broken left forearm
suf-
fercd in a practice
crdsh
at the Honda test
t'ack in California- "K-Dub"
was
glad
to b€
back, but
wasnt
putting
any
pressure
on
himsell
"Things
are
toinggood
righr
now,
and I am feelinS
strong. I have
been
riding
20 laps really
strong at my house," \Mnd-
ham said.
"Up
until
this week, I haven't
had
anythinS to
judge
rnyself by,
and
I
was kind
of wond€ring
where I was
at, but
Josh
Grant and Tucker
Hibbert came
down this
week, and it was
exciting to ride with
both
of thoie
guys
for the
w€ek. I d nk my
times
are
pretty
decent and this
will be a
Sreat
low-pressuae
situation for
me here at
Orlando, and whatever I get, I get.
It is not
a
situation where I arit
goint
to
the line
expecting
aMhinS. I
juit
wart
to have a
good
time and keep myself sale- I
think it is
time
to come back and rece myself
into
some
sort of battle on the track
and see
where
I fit in. I think everyone realizes
that
right now
I am looking to the outdoors.
But
it is
still
nice
to be back {or rest of the
Supercross
series."
Windham
finished sec-
ond in his day qualifler.
behind Team
Honda'i
Bilt Laninovkh,
ro trahsfer into
the
evenint
program.
He was impressive in
his heat r&e
where
he kept Carmichael in
sitht en route
to a second-place
flnish.
Red Bull KTM'!
loeh
Hansen
was a no-
show in
Orlando afte.
struggling through
dle first four race5
of the East
Region Lites
Seri€s with a back injury
Red Bull
KTM
team manager l-arry
Brooks
said,
"He
has
been strugtling all
season. lt actually started
about two week before
the first race,
so
there was no time to
really rest it up,
We've
been tryint everything
there is
to
try and it is not getting any
better - it is
getting
worse, actually. Since
he
is
not in
the running
for the championship end
we
have a little
bit of time, we decided to sit
him down, fi8ure
out what it is,
try
(o
fix
it
and come
back for the outdoors."
Kyle L€wis was another
no-'how in
Odan-
do, missing his second-straitht
eyent after
taking a hard crash in practice at ln+
Lewis
cut his face and bruised his cheekbone
in
the
accident and was still having some
vision
problems
before the Orlando rece,
but he war
hoping to make a aeturn to
action in Detroit.
Several teams
began their testing for the
outdoor scason
during the week b€tw€€n
Da).tona and
Orlando, A.cordihS to Larry
Brooks
of Red Bull
KTM, I\4ike Aessi has
ContintJ€d oo
pdg.
2l
I-
Slewort mqnoged
to emerge from
the firtl
turn
on lwo wheels
ond run
owoy from Ricky
Cqrmichoel
(4),
lvon Teder.oig)
ond the'resl of
the
po