Steel City Report: American Honda

Courtesy of American Honda

Torrance CA: Honda Red Bull Racing’s Kevin Windham came out on top at round eleven of the AMA Motocross Championship at Steel City Raceway in Delmont, PA on Saturday, September 4, aboard his CRF450R. GEICO Powersports Honda’s Trey Canard made it a double victory for Honda by clinching the 250-class victory aboard his CRF250R.

 

Despite not competing in the premier 450 Motocross class for years, Windham showed that at 32 years of age he still has what it takes to win. In moto one the 16-year racing veteran battled for the lead with GEICO Powersports Honda’s Brett Metcalfe before taking control of the race and setting the stage for a Honda podium sweep. Windham came out on top, Metcalfe nabbed second and Troy Lee Design’s Ben Townley clinched third place aboard his CRF450R. In the second moto Windham moved into an early lead but relinquished a spot on lap four. The Honda racer held off a determined charge by Metcalfe once again to take the checkers in second place, which earned him the overall victory (1-2).

 

"This win is definitely up there with some of my greatest career moments and I’m stoked to have the opportunity to be out here racing," said Windham. "I’m learning to cherish each and every one of these moments with each passing year as I’m not getting any younger and you never know when the next opportunity will come again. The Honda Red Bull Racing team was awesome this weekend and I really had to work hard to keep Metcalfe honest in both motos."

 

The battle for second place in the championship got even hotter for Windham’s teammate Andrew Short, who came into Steel City with a three-point lead over Metcalfe in the series points standings. Short continued to rip off fast starts in both motos but his 4-5 moto results versus Metcalfe’s 2-3 tally saw the pair switch spots in the overall standings. Short’s hunt to regain second in the championship chase will be played out at the final round next weekend at Pala Raceway, CA.

 

Metcalfe’s 2-3 finishes at Steel City gave him second overall at the round. Despite suffering a broken nose during the first moto, Townley still finished third, but a first-turn pile-up in moto two took him out of the competition. Still his third place finish in moto one (plus a 37^th in moto two) gave him 10th overall.

 

In 250cc competition, Canard made a perfect sweep of both motos, pulling off a pair of flawless rides to score his fifth overall victory this season aboard his CRF250R. With just seven points separating Canard from the points leader with one round to go, his campaign toward winning his first-ever Motocross Championship will be decided at the final round next weekend. Teammate Eli Tomac had a good showing, going 4-5 aboard his CRF250R to finish just shy of the overall podium in fourth place. GEICO Powersports Honda’s Justin Barcia nabbed sixth (10-6) and Blake Wharton finished seventh (9-7) aboard his CRF250R while Wil Hahn got eighth (5-11) aboard his Troy Lee Designs Honda CRF250R. Rounding out the top ten, Honda privateer Darryn Durham went 8-10 to secure 10th overall.

 

In the Women’s Motocross Championship, Ashley Fiolek showed good speed from the get-go aboard her CRF250R, going 1-2 to take second overall for the round. In the opening moto, Fiolek grabbed the holeshot and went on to lead every lap of the race en route to taking victory. In moto two, she put in a solid chase for the lead that included a spectacular charge in the closing turns of the race. Unfortunately Fiolek went down with a turn to go but still managed to take the checkers in second spot to put her second overall. Tarah Gieger went 4-7 aboard her Troy Lee Designs Honda CRF250R for sixth overall.

 

450 Overall Results
1. Kevin Windham 1-2 (Honda)
2. Brett Metcalfe 2-3 (Honda)
3. Justin Brayton 5-4
4. Andrew Short 4-5 (Honda)
5. Mike Alessi 7-7
6. Ryan Dungey 40-1
7. Nick Paluzzi 10-8
8. Kyle Chisholm 14-6
9. Robert Kiniry 9-11
10. Ben Townley 3-37 (Honda)

 

450 Point Standings
1. Ryan Dungey 493
2. Brett Metcalfe 356
3. Andrew Short 351
4. Mike Alessi 301
5. Ben Townley 291
6. Josh Grant 260
7. Kyle Chisholm 238
8. Ryan Sipes 211
9. Chad Reed 204
10. Kyle Regal 201

 

250 Overall Results
1. Trey Canard 1-1 (Honda)
2. Christophe Pourcel 2-2
3. Tyla Rattray 3-4
4. Eli Tomac 4-5 (Honda)
5. Broc Tickle 7-8
6. Justin Barcia 10-6
7. Blake Wharton 9-7 (Honda)
8. Wil Hahn 5-11 (Honda)
9. Dean Wilson 17-3
10. Darryn Durham 8-10 (Honda)

 

250 Point Standings
1. Christophe Pourcel 443
2. Trey Canard 436
3. Tyla Rattray 402
4. Dean Wilson 387
5. Justin Barcia 317
6. Eli Tomac 296
7. Blake Wharton 285
8. Broc Tickle 259
9. Martin Davalos 229
10. Jake Weimer 195

 

WMX Overall Results
1. Jessica Patterson 2-1
2. Ashley Fiolek 1-2 (Honda)
3. Mariana Balbi 3-4
4. Alexa Pearson 7-3
5. Sara Price 5-5
6. Tarah Gieger 4-7 (Honda)
7. Vicki Golden 9-6
8. Sherri Cruse 6-9
9. Jacqueline Strong 8-10
10. Sarah Whitmore 11-11

 

WMX Point Standings
1. Jessica Patterson 335
2. Ashley Fiolek 313
3. Tarah Gieger 261
4. Vicki Golden217
5. Sara Price 212
6. Mariana Balbi 207
7. Sarah Whitmore 178
8. Alexa Pearson 172
9. Tatum Sik 152
10. Jacqueline Strong 136

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