WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
VOL. 53 ISSUE 15 APRIL 19, 2016 P53
he and Stewart collided and Stewart went down.
Stewart completed the first lap in 11th place.
As Stewart was working his way back up through
the pack, he went down again, trying a little too hard
to make up time in the same sand turn. He went
wide, clipped the Tuff Blocks and was thrown over
the bars, this time pretty hard. Once again, he got
up and took off, only to crash (a minor slide out)
one more time heading into the last lap. He ended
up eighth, which wasn't too bad when you consider
that it could have been a lot worse.
"I thought it was my night," Stewart said. "Then
I had a couple falls, but you know what? That
happens in racing. I was able to salvage an eighth
and keep the red plate. I'm happy, I'm safe and
looking to redeem myself next weekend."
Martin led every lap for the win, taking the
checkered flag 8.8 seconds ahead of his team-
mate Aaron Plessinger, making it a Yamalube/
Star Racing Yamaha 1-2 podium. Even though
Martin got the win, Plessinger was also a big win-
ner on the night by grabbing a handful of points
on Stewart. With three rounds to go, Plessinger
trails Stewart by one point. Martin is third in the
standings, 15 points behind Plessinger.
For the second time this season, TLD/Red Bull
KTM rider Shane McElrath finished out the night
on the podium in third place. He also placed
third two weeks ago in Detroit. McElrath held
second for the first five laps before Plessinger
got him. From then on, he had GEICO Honda's
RJ Hampshire in his rearview mirror but had little
trouble keeping him at bay, crossing the line three
seconds ahead of the Honda rider.
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki's fill-in
rider Gannon Audette had another strong ride
and was again the team's top finisher, as his
teammate, Tyler Bowers, was one of the unfortu-
nate ones to get caught up in that first-turn pileup.
Bowers ended up ninth.
Traders Racing/Kawasaki's Anthony Rodriguez
and TLD/Red Bull KTM's Alexander Frye finished
sixth and seventh, respectively. TiLube/Storm Lake
Honda's Paul Coates rounded out the top 10 overall.
