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Supercross & Motocross
SX: Dungey Scores Improbable A3 Victory
Ryan Dungey went from on-the-bubble to the top of the podium in a dramatic evening of Monster Energy Supercross racing in Anaheim.
Red Bull KTM's Ryan Dungey (Photo: Simon Cudby)
How quickly fortunes change in the sport of Monster Energy Supercross.
Already down on his luck entering A3, Ryan Dungey appeared destined to suffer a new low Saturday night in Anaheim. He didn't even make out of the gates before a rear shock failure knocked him out of contention, and then found himself in very real danger of not qualifying through the LCQ after getting caught up in a first corner pile-up. Meanwhile, double champ Ryan Villopoto came into the event boasting two straight wins and threatening to pile up the victories as quickly as the weekends came.
However, the night ended with Red Bull KTM star Dungey standing atop the podium after scooping up his first victory of what has been a difficult '13 campaign. Meanwhile, Villopoto was reminded of his disastrous first stop in Anaheim, getting caught up in a first-lap incident and falling on lap 3 en route to an eighth-place result.
Dungey, who got the very final gate pick for the Main Event, charged into second coming out of the first corner and zapped the quick-starting Mike Alessi to steal away the lead on the race's second lap. After weathering some early pressure from points leader Davi Millsaps, Dungey put the hammer down and escaped to grab the checkered flag with more than five seconds to spare.
"This one means a lot," Dungey said with a wide smile. "Today there was a lot going on. In that heat race we had a little malfunction but we regrouped and I'm really glad we got into that LCQ. That was a squeeze. Outside gate here on the start and I was looking at my mechanic thinking, 'we've got to pull this.'
"It feels great. I can't tell you what a great feeling this is. It's a good step in the right direction."
WATCH: Dungey's Heat Race DNF
WATCH: Dungey Escapes LCQ
WATCH: Dungey Does It
Meanwhile, Villopoto was the victim of another Chad Reed-related opening-lap mishap, playing the role of James Stewart in what a virtual repeat of last week's pile-up. Reed came together with JGR's Justin Brayton as they jockeyed for position, and the Kawasaki ace got caught up in the fray. Dropping well down the order, RV1 made a mistake while pressing a couple laps later, dropping all the way to 16th in the process. He battled his way forward again, ultimately finishing in eighth.
While the contrasting fortunes of Dungey and Villopoto were the highlight of the evening, Rockstar Energy Racing's Millsaps remains the story of the early season. Millsaps pushed Dungey in the opening stages, only to find himself overhauled by a resurgent Stewart on the Yoshimura Suzuki. However, Millsaps hung tough and and struck once the wounded Stewart ran out of steam, claiming his fourth podium result in five '13 events with a runner-up finish at A3.
Millsaps said, "The track was definitely the slickest we've had all year and the little bit of rain we got didn't help. I was running as hard as I could but I was making a lot of mistakes; I let Dungey get away from me. But I want to thank my team and it's pretty cool that I can podium for them."
WATCH: Millsaps Takes Heat 1
Already down on his luck entering A3, Ryan Dungey appeared destined to suffer a new low Saturday night in Anaheim. He didn't even make out of the gates before a rear shock failure knocked him out of contention, and then found himself in very real danger of not qualifying through the LCQ after getting caught up in a first corner pile-up. Meanwhile, double champ Ryan Villopoto came into the event boasting two straight wins and threatening to pile up the victories as quickly as the weekends came.
However, the night ended with Red Bull KTM star Dungey standing atop the podium after scooping up his first victory of what has been a difficult '13 campaign. Meanwhile, Villopoto was reminded of his disastrous first stop in Anaheim, getting caught up in a first-lap incident and falling on lap 3 en route to an eighth-place result.
Dungey, who got the very final gate pick for the Main Event, charged into second coming out of the first corner and zapped the quick-starting Mike Alessi to steal away the lead on the race's second lap. After weathering some early pressure from points leader Davi Millsaps, Dungey put the hammer down and escaped to grab the checkered flag with more than five seconds to spare.
"This one means a lot," Dungey said with a wide smile. "Today there was a lot going on. In that heat race we had a little malfunction but we regrouped and I'm really glad we got into that LCQ. That was a squeeze. Outside gate here on the start and I was looking at my mechanic thinking, 'we've got to pull this.'
"It feels great. I can't tell you what a great feeling this is. It's a good step in the right direction."
WATCH: Dungey's Heat Race DNF
WATCH: Dungey Escapes LCQ
WATCH: Dungey Does It
Meanwhile, Villopoto was the victim of another Chad Reed-related opening-lap mishap, playing the role of James Stewart in what a virtual repeat of last week's pile-up. Reed came together with JGR's Justin Brayton as they jockeyed for position, and the Kawasaki ace got caught up in the fray. Dropping well down the order, RV1 made a mistake while pressing a couple laps later, dropping all the way to 16th in the process. He battled his way forward again, ultimately finishing in eighth.
While the contrasting fortunes of Dungey and Villopoto were the highlight of the evening, Rockstar Energy Racing's Millsaps remains the story of the early season. Millsaps pushed Dungey in the opening stages, only to find himself overhauled by a resurgent Stewart on the Yoshimura Suzuki. However, Millsaps hung tough and and struck once the wounded Stewart ran out of steam, claiming his fourth podium result in five '13 events with a runner-up finish at A3.
Millsaps said, "The track was definitely the slickest we've had all year and the little bit of rain we got didn't help. I was running as hard as I could but I was making a lot of mistakes; I let Dungey get away from me. But I want to thank my team and it's pretty cool that I can podium for them."
WATCH: Millsaps Takes Heat 1
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