Savatgy Brings Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Momentum into Texas
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ELLENTON, Fla.
(February 16, 2016) - Six races into the Monster Energy AMA Supercross,
an FIM World Championship, season and one rider has enjoyed the
best-ever start to his already celebrated career. Red Bull KTM's Ryan
Dungey, the reigning 450SX Class Champion, has won four of the first six
Main Events and has not finished worse than second. As a result, he
brings a 26-point lead into the seventh race of the championship this
Saturday, February 20, from Arlington, Texas' AT&T Stadium. In the
Western Regional 250SX Class, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki's Joey
Savatgy earned his second win in three races to grab a three-point lead
heading into Arlington. The Western Regional Championship will reach
its midseason break following Saturday night's race.
With
144 of a possible 150 points this season, Dungey has achieved the most
success of his career at this point in the championship. It's the
fastest start for a rider since Chad Reed won five of the first six
races in 2008 to earn 147 of 150 points.
Saturday night's race will air live on FS1 and the FOX Sports Go app
at 8:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. CT / 5:00 p.m. PT.
Media
Day will take place Thursday, February 18, at Noon CT at AT&T
Stadium, featuring Team Honda HRC's Trey Canard and Cole Seely and
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's Jason Anderson, Christophe
Pourcel and Zach Osborne.
On Saturday, February 20, fans can Log on to www.SupercrossLive.comto watch Race Day Live with Jim Holley and Andy Bowyer at 1:50 p.m. ET/ 12:50 p.m. CT / 10:50 p.m. PT.
Some key insights to watch heading into this Saturday night's race include:
- Ryan Dungey earned his 26th career 450SX Class win in San Diego. It was his 22nd consecutive podium and 17th-straight race finishing within the top two.
- Dungey can become the second-winningest rider in North Texas (Dallas/Arlington) history with another victory. He would tie James Stewart and Rick Johnson with three.
- Cole Seely earned his best finish of the season with a second place. It was his second podium of the season and ninth career 450SX Class podium.
- Ken Roczen earned his fourth-consecutive podium with a third place in San Diego. He now has 18 career podiums in 36 career 450SX Class starts, coming in right at 50%.
- Jason Anderson earned his third straight fourth-place finish. He has a top-five finish in each race this season along with his season opening victory.
- Trey Canard earned his first top five of the season with a fifth. It was his first start since the second Anaheim and his first top five since race 11 of 2015.
- Andrew Short made his 2016 debut, his 124th career start. It was his 13th consecutive season with a start which ties him with Larry Ward, Jeremy McGrath, and Tim Ferry for fifth all time.
- Joey Savatgy earned his second career 250SX Class victory in San Diego. He now has two wins, eight podiums, and 12 top-five finishes in his 22 career starts.
- Webb now has 16 podiums in 23 career 250SX Class starts. The only active 250SX Class rider with more is Martin Davalos with 17 podiums in 65 starts.
- The three points separating Savatgy and Webb with two races remaining is the closest margin in the 250SX Class since the 2011 Western Regional when Broc Tickle held a two-point lead over Josh Hansen with two races left.
Dungey has his fourth win of the 2016 season.
Photo Credit: Jeff Kardas
Last
Saturday in San Diego, Dungey posted a wire-to-wire effort, grabbing the
SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award and leading all 20 laps of the Main
Event. His laps-led total increased to 76, which is 63% of the total
laps completed this season. It was also his second wire-to-wire
performance in the last three races.
"I
just tried to keep the pressure low the entire Main Event; keeping good
traction with the rear tire was key," said Dungey. "I got a good start,
which was huge in putting me in a position to win and I just tried to
be consistent for all 20 laps. We had to overcome a few things today,
but that's racing. I'm happy to be back on top of the podium."
In
second was Team Honda HRC's Cole Seely, finishing on the podium for the
first time in three races with a season-best effort. The result moved
Seely to fourth in points, six points out of third.
"I've
been in a funk these last two weekends, but I'm thankful for the
dedication of my team to stick behind me. I feel a lot better on my
bike," said Seely. "I really didn't make any mistakes, I just couldn't
quite keep the pace with Ryan [Dungey]. It feels great to get back up
here [on the podium]."
RCH
Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing's Ken Roczen finished
third. Roczen sits second in the championship and although he faces a
26-point deficit in the standings, he's been the hottest rider in the
class other than Dungey, finishing on the podium for four straight
races, including one win.
"Tonight
I have to be satisfied. I didn't win, but I didn't really feel
comfortable on the bike today," said Roczen. "We salvaged third. Ryan
[Dungey] finished in front of us, but we're leaving healthy with a good
result."
Savatgy took over the points lead with his win at Petco Park.
Photo Credit: Jeff Kardas
In
the Western Regional 250SX Class, Savatgy entered San Diego knotted
with Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha's Cooper Webb atop the standings. It
appeared as though the two riders might battle one another for the win,
but a tip-over by Webb in the early stages of the race while trying to
track down Savatgy meant the Kawasaki rider would race his way to an
unchallenged victory.
"It
feels great to get another win," said Savatgy. "Cooper [Webb] tried to
take credit away from my first win, so it feels great to get another
one. I'm just so excited to be back here and in the points lead."
Webb
was able to rebound from his early misfortune and finished second. He's
just three points behind Savatgy and still has the most wins in the
class, but has not in three races.
"I
just tucked the front end. Just a mistake by me," explained Webb. "I
was able to get up and not lose too much time. It was early in the race
so I was able to get those spots back. I just need to stop crashing."
Rounding out
the podium was GEICO Honda's Christian Craig, following up his first
career win the week prior with a third-place effort. Craig now has the
longest podium streak in the class, which now sits at four races. He
remains third in the points and sits 16 points out of the lead.
Last
year in Arlington, Dungey earned his second win of the season, grabbing
the holeshot and leading all 20 laps. In the opening race of the
Eastern Regional 250SX Class, Red Bull KTM's Marvin Musquin joined his
teammate Dungey atop the podium.
Previous Race Results
Petco Park - San Diego
February 13, 2016
450SX Class Results
1. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
2. Cole Seely, Sherman Oaks, Calif., Honda
3. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki
4. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna
5. Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda
6. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki
7. Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM
8. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha
9. Weston Peick, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha
10. Justin Brayton, Mint Hill, N.C., KTM
450SX Class Championship Standings
1. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM - 144
2. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki - 118
3. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna - 111
4. Cole Seely, Sherman Oaks, Calif., Honda - 105
5. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha - 103
6. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki - 103
7. Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM - 77
8. Justin Brayton, Mint Hill, N.C., KTM - 72
9. Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., KTM - 71
10. Jake Weimer, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki - 62
Western Regional 250SX Class Results
1. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki
2. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha
3. Christian Craig, Corona, Calif., Honda
4. Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha
5. Zach Osborne, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Husqvarna
6. Mitchell Oldenburg, Alvord, Texas, KTM
7. Jimmy DeCotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda
8. Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda
9. Cole Thompson, Brigden, Canada, KTM
10. Cole Martinez, Rimrock, Ariz., Yamaha
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
1. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki - 123
2. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha - 120
3. Christian Craig, Corona, Calif., Honda - 107
4. Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha - 99
5. Zach Osborne, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Husqvarna - 90
6. Jimmy DeCotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda - 85
7. Mitchell Oldenburg, Alvord, Texas, KTM - 81
8. Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda - 75
9. Kyle Cunningham, Willow Park, Texas, Suzuki - 64
10. Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Honda - 63
Tickets are available at the AT&T Stadium Box Office, charge by phone (800) 745-3000, or online at www.SupercrossLive.com or www.tickets.com.
Practice and qualifying begin at 12:30 p.m. and the Main Event starts
at 6:30 p.m. Ticket Prices: Club Level $72; Main Level & Hall of
Fame Level $57-72; Silver Level $52-72; Upper $38. Fans can also get in
to the Pits for FREE from 12:00-6 p.m. Race Day when they recycle a
MONSTER Energy Can at the stadium's pit entrance (valid only with event
ticket).
The
entire 2016 Monster Energy Supercross Championship will air live on FOX
Sports, including two races on the FOX broadcast channel. In addition,
the authenticated FOX Sports Go app will live stream each race.
As
a precursor to the live television, don't forget to catch all of the
pre-race coverage with Supercross Race Day Live presented by AMSOIL,
which will stream on SupercrossLive.com from 12:50 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. local
race time each Saturday during the season. Practice, qualifying, behind
the scenes features, and key rider interviews will all be highlighted
on the Supercross Race Day Live presented by AMSOIL webcast.
For more information on the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, please log on to www.SupercrossLive.com,
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