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/1542399
,rtill.T rrtoiorspo.rr Pq.& Toocle, UT ! ltr \ l li r a -/ I r I It Cill') Sp 3' I Jeff Word wo5 hqppy to ledv. Lrtoh with o win ond the chompionrhip poinrs leod. he AMA Su permeto Championship hasn't fulfilled the expectations that Sreeted its arraval in 2003- None of the tracks from that first six- race season remain on the calendar. Only one remains from 2004 and three are holdovers from last year's five-event. six- round series. Whether the series grows or not depends on a number of factors. At the top of the list is quality venues that are well promoted. The newest stop on this year's nine-event calendar, l'4iller l4otorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, is the perfect example. The fourth round of the AMA Supermoto Championship wasn't a stand- alone event, but an incentive for road- race fans attending the inaugural AMA Superbike Championship races iust across the paddock. Pay for the Superbikes and the Supermoto was free. Which meant the promoter wasn't relying on a Supermoto-only fan base to pay the bills. The track, one of several possible M to the dismay of the pavement happy. ln the end the winners were the sort of mul- titalented riders that Supermoto rewards. Tioy Lee Designs/Honda s Jeff Ward narrowly retained his series points lead after a disastrous first moto and dominant second. Graves Motorsports Yamaha's Dor.rg Henry stepped in when Ward fal- tered in the first and raced to a comfort- able win. Ward was untouchable in the second, beating HenrT by 3.2 seconds- The pair left Utah separated by seven points, 156 to 149, after four of nine rounds. "l'm still happy," Ward said. "l'm still leading the points and I won. lt could be a lot worse," said Henry "l had a couple of crashes the last cou- ple of weeks. I iust wanted to keep it on ffi change for the two motos. Teammate I'lark Burkhart finished behind Henry in the flrst moto, at a gap of 5.855 seconds, then came third in moto two behind Ward and Henry He moved into third in the championship standings. Team Troy Lee Designs Honda's Chris Fillmore was third and fourth. "Jeff's [Ward] misfortune - I ended up in third and I iust rode a solid comfortable race the whole way," the lYichiganite said after the first moto. Team Red Bull KTM HMC's Kurt Nicoll beat teammate Jurgen Kunz.el in both motos. The flrst was a race, with Nicoll tailing Kunzel until the eighth of ten laps when he made the pass. Nicoll was founh, Kunzel fifth. The second was less competitive between the teammates, but I more of a battle for Nicoll. The Englishman tangled with Fillmore and Burkhart until the trio separated in the final few laps. Nicoll took fifth, with Kunzel a distant sixth. Cernics/Red Bull/Suzuki's Travis Pastrana finished 8-8. The versatile Pastrana crashed in moto one and had overheating problems in both motos- Local hero Cassidy Anderson won his fourth Hot \{heels Supermoto Lites final in a row. This one was specral. Racing in front ef about 300 friends and family, the Provo native said he took inspiration from the crowd. ''Being lin my] hometown, there's no way lwas goinS to take second in this race. I was going to light to the end," the Troy Lee Design{Honda rider said. Second, at 3.141 seconds, was Graves Motorsponsfiamaha's Brandon Currie. Former motocrosser David PinSree was third on the Red Baron Racing KTlvl. Anderson leads the championship with BY HENNY Rrv Agu s ' PHoros BY Bnrrx J. NE6oN AND ToM ElIs I - June t 7, 2()06 OFF.ROAD AMA Supcrmoto Championship 0 \r/4 t \" ( ,fl i%. 4 \ I I \ s lD kf ,fi t l,l x v I s Doug Henry wos bock on lhe gor in Uloh. r [ti r 7' t; I \ ir \. .I\, It' \ :7 4 \--4 [Ld s - .'t/ F 30 JUNE 28,2006 . cYcLE NEws