wins in the highly competitive 30+
Pro division.
Villopoto dominated Saturday's
opening day of racing with 1-1
results on the hillside racetrack,
which is only open once a year
exclusively for this event. The
former Supercross and Moto-
cross champion is now reunited
with the Kawasaki team and used
Mammoth as one of his first
major events with Team Green.
He made it look easy, setting a
strong pace to start the day and
winning the opening moto by
four seconds. RV2 then backed
it up with another victory in the
second moto after starting third
and eventually getting a flat tire
toward the end of the race. The
elevation didn't seem to affect
Villopoto, who was last year's
30+ Pro winner, as he repeated
the feat and earned the title as
Saturday's champion.
The battle for Saturday's podi-
um was one to watch as RJ Wage-
man and Gary Sutherlin duked
it out for second and third. Both
riders swapped positions through-
out, giving fans a show as they
tore down the steep descents.
Sutherlin managed to take sec-
ond thanks to his 3-2 results, and
Wageman rounded out the podium
with 2-4 scores. Sean Lipanovich
earned a moto podium in race two
after passing a downed Wageman
in the early laps.
Sunday saw the same three
racers at the front of the pack.
This time, though, Wageman
earned the overall win with 2-1 fin-
ishes. The Yamaha rider rocketed
off to another pair of holeshots
on day two and led most of the
opening moto before Villopoto
eventually tracked him down.
Race two saw Wageman again
do battle with Sutherlin for the
lead, as the two managed to hold
Villopoto at bay for the first time
all weekend. Wageman withstood
multiple attacks from Sutherlin,
a former WORCS Champion, and
clinched the win, going 2-1 for the
Sunday title. Villopoto still took
second overall with 1-3 finishes,
while Sutherlin rounded out the
podium with 3-2 scores.
Other notables from Vet Week-
end included Tyson Taylor and
Arik Swan, who split wins in the
40+ A division, and Bill Sauro and
Billy Mercier, who were the big
winners in the 50+ A division. Kurt
Nicoll swept all four motos in the
60+ Open class.
Racing continues this week, with
Mini Bikes taking over the moun-
tain before the Big Bike Weekend
concludes this year's event.
Ryan Nitzen
Saturday 30+ Pro (Top 5)
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw) 1-1
2. Gary Sutherlin (Hus) 3-2
3. RJ Wageman (Yam) 2-4
4. Sean Lipanovich (KTM) 4-3
5. Benny Breck (Yam) 7-5
Sunday 30+ Pro (Top 5)
1. RJ Wageman (Yam) 2-1
2. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw) 1-3
3. Gary Sutherlin (Hus) 3-2
4. Sean Lipanovich (KTM) 4-4
5. Bryce Huffman (Kaw) 5-5
VOLUME ISSUE JUNE , P59
Wageman fired back with the
overall win on Sunday.
