The 2013 Seattle Supercross won’t go down in the memory banks like last week’s race in Minneapolis did, but it was still very memorable for three riders. With on-and-off rain (props to the Dirt Wurx crew for keeping it all together in a challenging environment) and a tight track, riders like Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen, Monster Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto and Honda Muscle Milk’s Justin Barcia will all leave Seattle thinking nothing but good thoughts.
Justin Barcia once again got the taste of champagne from the top rung.
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First up is Barcia, who holeshot the main event and took off for 20 uncontested laps to grab his second career 450SX win. With knee-deep ruts and sloppy conditions causing issues for every rider on the track, Barcia was playing a game of yo-yo with points leader Villopoto where they would reel each other in and then pull back out. This went on until about the halfway mark before Justin settled in for a nice win. Barcia’s not been happy with his rides lately, but this was dominance from the start. And speaking of starts, maybe it was the riding with SmartTop’s Mike Alessi he did this week that helped him with those starts. Barcia will remember Seattle fondly.
Justin Barcia started out front after some midweek riding
with holeshot specialist Mike Alessi.
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And even though he was second for the second straight week, hometown hero Villopoto will also look back at Seattle with great reverence. Despite the loss, RV stretched his points lead over Davi Millsaps to 25—a full race lead. If things break right for him next week at the penultimate round in Salt Lake City, RV could clinch right then and there for his third-straight supercross title. He didn’t win, but he did win, if you know what I mean.
Villopoto didn't need a W to extend his points lead.
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And Roczen, well, he rebounded from a tough heat race—where he fell a couple of times—to take the main event win and extend his 250SX West Series lead to 20 points. Roczen didn’t seem to have enough to challenge GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac, but Tomac went over the bars in the main while leading and that was enough for Kenny. He rode away for the win. Roczen has enjoyed some success in Seattle each year he’s raced there—on the big or small bike. Roczen will remember Seattle with nothing but love.
Ken Roczen prevailed after a rough start to the night.
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Even though Tomac’s championship odds look bleak with only two races left, you never know what can happen, and he definitely did have some luck in his crash. It was a good-news/bad-news deal for GEICO as they did go two-three with Zach Osborne, who got his first podium of the year. Osborne looked good all day long.
Rockstar Energy Racing’s Davi Millsaps got the last spot on the podium. It was a good night for Millsaps in that he passed Ryan Dungey back for second in points due to Dungey placing fourth in the night (to be fair, Dungey had a great comeback ride from last place in the first turn). Millsaps has won seven heat races (including in Seattle) and made ten podium appearances this year.
Davi Millsaps rode smooth to retake second in 450SX points.
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Team TwoTwo Motorsport’s Chad Reed went down with Dungey in the first turn and walked off holding his hand—a DNF for the Honda rider, but by all accounts he’ll be fine. Stay tuned…
Another Honda rider that had a rough night was Trey Canard, who also DNF’d late in the race. Canard ran as high as fourth before a crash and a couple of stalls had him way back.
TLD Honda’s Cole Seely was fantastic in Seattle. A past winner at the race, Seely was outside the top ten off the start and then made it happen. From way back he caught Osborne and was fighting for the third spot on the last lap. It was a great ride for the rider third in the points, but will go mostly unnoticed.
A couple of great rides by full privateers Mike Horban and Cody Gilmore got them into the 450SX main event while others like N-Fab Yamaha’s Bobby Kiniry and Valli Yamaha’s Kyle Regal watched it. Great job to those guys, as it was Horban’s first main this year and Gilmore’s second.
N-Fab Yamaha’s Phil Nicoletti had another good night; he ended up tenth in the 450SX main. He was coming from the back as well.
It hasn’t been great for Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer lately, but it was much better in Seattle. He was fast in practice and fought hard for a fifth in the main event. It’s something to build on for Jake as he wraps up this season.
Will this be the ride that will help build Jake Weimer's momentum?
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HRT Honda’s Austin Politelli—in a ride that was a lot like Seely’s—came from fourteenth to sixth in 250SX to be the first guy in the top ten with the least amount of support. He also moved inside the top ten in the points. Great ride for the kid.