Race Stuff ....... February 2000

Round 1: Edison International Field
Anaheim, California January 8, 2000

Does history repeat itself? Not always. Last year at the Anaheim Supercross kickoff, factory rider Ezra Lusk led a Honda sweep of the top four places.

This year, a crash in practice put Lusk on the sidelines with a dislocated left shoulder. Therefore, the rider favored to make it two consecutive Anaheim kickoff wins could only watch as six-time and defending AMA Saupercross Champion Jeremy McGrath won the opening round of the AMA/EA Sports Supercross Series at Edison International Field before a sold-out crowd of 45,050. Honda riders filled the next three spots.

Honda-supported Mike LaRocco got a little better start than McGrath and held fourth at the end of the first lap. After McGrath passed him on the third lap of the technical track, LaRocco followed and maintained a steady pace on his CR250R, eventually finishing three seconds behind McGrath. Factory Honda racer Kevin Windham, who, like McGrath, won his heat race, flirted with the lead in the early laps and ended up third.

Ricky Carmichael got the holeshot at the beginning of the 20-lap main event, thus earning the $1000 holeshot bonus from Yahoosports.com, with teammate Larry Ward right behind and Windham quickly asserting himself in third. It took Windham only a couple laps before he surged into second place and began pestering Carmichael, but it didn't last long for the Red Rider, who slipped back to fourth before regaining his composure to earn third at the end.
"I felt good out there," Windham said. "Unfortunately, halfway through I started getting out of my pace and started tensing up a little bit. Those guys were riding a really good pace up front, and I just didn't feel comfortable with it tonight. We'll go back and work this whole week, and hopefully I can get it down for the next race next weekend. Every weekend I seem to get a little stronger and a little stronger. The main thing tonight is I made it through without landing on my head."

Second in his heat race behind Windham, LaRocco upped his pace in the main. He spent the first quarter of the race in fourth, then passed Windham for third, with McGrath and Carmichael in his sights. After successfully working past Carmichael, LaRocco settled into second, not quite able to close the gap on McGrath.

"Jeremy was riding well," LaRocco admitted. "Right where I felt good, like I had his speed, it was tough to make up time on him."

The third member of the factory Honda team, Sebastien Tortelli, came from 10th on the first lap to finish fourth. After placing fifth in his heat, he made the main by claiming second in his semi.

125cc Heat #1 1. Casey Lytle 2. Danny Smith 3. Billy R. Payne 4. Chris Gosselaar 5. Jori Dostell 6. Robbie Horton 7. Erik Vallejo 8. Justin Buckelew 9. Michael Byrne 10. Rusty Holland
125cc Heat #2 1. Greg Schnell 2. David Pingree 3. Kenny Bartram 4. Derrick Shae Bentley 5. Travis Preston 6. Tallon Vohland 7. Serge Guidetty 8. Stephan Demartis 9. Gio Tedesco 10. Rodrig Thain
125cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Jason McCormick 2. Keith Johnson 3. Casey Johnson 4. Travis Elliott 5. Rusty Holland 6. Rodrig Thain 7. Ryan Terlecki 8. Bryan M. McGavran 9. Mike C. Corder 10. Anthony Amaradio
125 Main Event 1. David Pingree 2. Csaey Johnson 3. Greg Schnell 4. Danny Smith 5. Derrick Shae Bentley 6. Jori Dostell 7. Tallon Vohland 8. Jason McCormick 9. Christopher Gosselaar 10. Billy R. Payne
250cc Heat #2 1. Jeremy McGrath 2. Tim Ferry 3. Larry Ward 4. Ricky Carmichael 5. Sebastien Tortelli 6. Heath Voss 7. Phil Lawrence 8. Greg Albertyn 9. Grayson Goodman 10. Shayne King
250cc Semi-Final #1 1. David Vuillemin 2. John Dowd 3. Michael Brandes 4. Stephane Roncada 4. Tyler Evans 5. Jean-Sebastien Roy 6. Kelly Smith 7. Derrick Shae Bentley 8. Erik Anderson 9. Carter Gurnee 10. Adam Land
250cc Semi-Final #2 1. Dvaid Vuillemin 2. Ricky Carmichael 3. Jean-Sebastien Roy 4. Tim Ferry 5. Sebastien Tortelli 6. Nicholas Wey 7. James Povolny Jr. 8. Kelly Smith 9. Ty Kady 10. Matthew D. Bateman
250cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Jean-Sebastien Roy 2. Heath Voss 3. Shaun J. Perolio 4. James Povolyn Jr. 5. Kyle Lewis 6. Erik Anderson 7. Billy M. Binckley 8. Kelly Smith 9. Todd T. Downs 10. Dennis J. Umphres
250cc Main Event 1. Jeremy McGrath 2. Mike LaRocco 3. Kevin Windham 4. Sebastien Tortelli 5. David Vuillemin 6. Jimmy Button 7. Greg Albertyn 8. Ricky Carmichael 9. Larry Ward 10. John Dowd

Round 2: Edison International Field Anaheim, California
January 15, 2000

Round two of the 2000 AMA/EA Sports Supercross Series looked almost like a replay of round one. It took place again at Edison International Field in Anaheim, California (albeit on a very different track layout); it played before another sell-out crowd of 45,050; and last year's winner, Honda rider Ezra Lusk, was again absent from the start line due to injuries suffered last week. Behind winner Jeremy McGrath and Frenchman David Vuillemin, Honda-supported Mike LaRocco took a hard-fought third place, thus maintaining second in series points.

Defending World Supercross Champion Vuillemin got the holeshot in the 20-lap main to collect the $1000 bonus from Yahoosports.com and held McGrath off for three laps. Once McGrath went by, the American champ seemed to tow Vuillemin along as they steadily moved away from the rest of the field.

Honda Red Rider Kevin Windham injured his wrist in practice, but it was strong enough for him to dominate his six-lap heat race. In the main, Windham completed the first lap in fourth place while LaRocco circulated in seventh. "I did exactly what I didn't need to do," LaRocco said. "I fought through traffic that whole race, except for the last two laps. I've just got to get those starts down."

LaRocco dueled with Jimmy Button until Button stalled his bike. That put "LaRocket" within striking distance of Windham, who was feeling the effects of his injured wrist. Unlike in the shorter heat race, Windham couldn't hold LaRocco at bay, and he eventually finished eighth. Teammate Sebastien Tortelli finished ninth following an amazing comeback after going down in the first turn and completing the first lap in 19th place.

After LaRocco eased past Windham for sixth on lap nine, he needed only a lap to get around Timmy Ferry, but fourth place wasn't good enough for LaRocco, especially after his second place podium finish the week before. However, it took quite a bit longer for LaRocco to close the gap, then find a way around Carmichael, who clung stubbornly onto third place.

Finally, on lap 16, LaRocco found a way around Carmichael to secure his second podium placing in as many weeks. McGrath and Vuillemin, however, had too much of a head start for LaRocco to catch up, and he had to settle for third place and a solid second in series points.

125cc Heat #1 1. Casey Lytle 2. Rodrig THain 3. Tallon Vohland 4. Justin Buckelew 5. Greg Schnell 6. Jori Dostell 7. Rusty Holland 8. Billy R. Payne 9. Travis Preston 10. Travis Elliott
125cc Heat #2 1. David Pingree 2. Danny Smith 3. Christopher Gosselaar 4. Jason McCormick 5. Robbie Horton 6. Derrick Shae Bentley 7. Isaiah Johnson 8. Brad Hagseth 9. stephan Demartis 10. Doug Parsons
125cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Doug Parsons 2. Travis Elliott 3. Ryan Terlecki 4. Serge Guidetty 5. Mark Burkhart 6. Daniel M. Blair 7. Anthony Amaradio 8. Bryan M. McGavran 9. Jeff Northrop 10. Ted Campbell
125 Main Event 1.Tallon Vohland 2. Danny Smith 3. Robbie Horton 4. David Pingree 5. Jori Dostell 6. Csaey Lytle 7. Greg Schnell 8. Rodrig Thain 9. Travis Elliott 10. Christopher Gosselaar
250 cc Heat #1 1. Kevin Windham 2. Mike LaRocco 3. John Dowd 4. Stephane Roncada 5. Greg Albertyn 6. Tyler Evans 7. Heath Voss 8. Phil Lawrence 9. Jimmy Button 10. Shayne King
250 Semi #1 1. Jimmy Button 2. Greg Albertyn 3. Tyler Evans 4. Heath Voss 5. Grayson Goodman 6. Phil Lawrence 7. Shayne King 8. Cory Bauder 9. Joseph Oehlhof 10. Carter Gurnee
250 Semi #2 1. David Vuillemin 2. Ricky Carmichael 3. Jean-Sebastien 4. Tim Ferry 5. Sebastien Tortelli 6. Nicholas Wey 7. James Povolny Jr. 8. Kelly Smith 9. Ty Kady 10. Matthew D. Bateman 250cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Nicholas Wey 2. James Povolny Jr. 3. Shayne King 4. Cory Bauder 5. Kelly Smith 6. Zeb Armstrong 7. Joseph Oehlhof 8. Erik Anderson 9. Carter Gurnee 10. David Demangos
250 Main Event 1. Jeremy McGrath 2. David Vuillemin 3. Mike LaRocco 4. Ricky Carmichael 5. Tim Ferry 6. Larry Ward 7. Jimmy Button 8. Kevin Windham 9. Sebsatien Tortelli 10. John Dowd

Round 3, Qualcomm Stadium
San Diego, January 22, 2000

EA SPORTS Supercross set a record attendance figure for the San Diego event with 61,244 fans present at Qualcomm Stadium. David Vuillemin, #934, sensational French rider, here in the states for his first full stateside supercross tour, ripped the Yahoo Sports Hole Shot and tore through the first turn capturing the lead, and the win in Round Three of the EA SPORTS Supercross.

"For sure, I am happy," said the French rider after his win, "I rode consistent and the track was good for me; I've never started like that before." Jeremy McGrath, runaway winner of the first two rounds of the 2000 series, suffered from a first turn pile up which resulted in the loss of his front brakes. However, he was able to work his way through the pack of riders and finished the 20-lap race in fourth place.

Kevin Windham held second place for 14 laps, but relinquished his lead to Mike "The Rock" LaRocco in the final two laps. "The track was a little slipperier than I expected - I wanted to catch Vuillemin, but he ran a strong race," said LaRocco in his post race interview. LaRocco, famous for his endurance, was able to power through this complex track with soft dirt, and pass less-experienced and less-conditioned riders.

In the 125cc Main Event, Motoworld of El Cajon's Greg Schnell captured his first supercross victory. Schnell started in fifth place and made his way to the front in an action-packed race that saw four leaders. Rodrig Thain led in lap one until he was passed by the aggressive Casey Lytle of FMF Honda. Round #2 winner, Tallon Vohland grabbed the lead from Lytle after he made a costly error on the seventh lap. Vohland's lead was short lived as Greg Schnell passed him after only one lap. Derrick Shae Bentley, previously plagued by injuries, rounded out the podium taking third place.

125cc Heat #1 1. Tallon Vohland 2. Rodrig Thain 3. Erik Vallejo 4. Jason McCormick 5. Travis Elliott 6. Derrick Shae Bentley 7. Brad Hagseth 8. Mark Burkhart 9. John R. Serekia Jr. 10. Justin Buckelew
125cc Heat #2 1. Greg Schnell 2. Casey Lytle 3. David Pingree 4. Rusty Holland 5. Stephan Demartis 6. Ryan Teriecki 7. Jason Thomas 8. Cory Bauder 9. Robbie Horton 10. Jimmy J. Varis
125cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Justin Buckelew 2. Travis Preston 3. Billy R. Payne 4. Isaiah Johnson 5. Donald Upton 6. Christopher Gosselaar 7. Scott Davis 8. Levi A. Reid 9. Tim C. Beatty 10. Harold H. Hageman
125 Main Event 1. Greg Schnell 2. Tallon Vohland 3. Derrick Shae Bentley 4. Rodrig Thain 5. Travis Preston 6. David Pingree 7. Billy R. Payne 8. Jason McCormick 9. Ryan Terlecki 10. Jason Thomas
250cc Heat #1 1. David Vuillemin 2. Mike LaRocco 3. Damon Huffman 4. Jean-Sebastian Roy 5. Sebastien Tortelli 6. Kyle Lewis 7. Phil Lawrence 8. Tim Ferry 9. Dustin A. Nelson 10. Derrick Shae Bentley
250cc Heat #2 1. Jeremy McGrath 2. Kevin Windham 3. Ricky Carmichael 4. Larry Ward 5. John Dowd 6. Brock Sellards 7. Greg Albertyn 8. Nicholas Wey 9. Tyler Evans 10. Grayson Goodman
250 Semi #1 1. Tim Ferry 2. Sebastien Tortelli 3. Kyle Lewis 4. Heath Voss 5. Dustin A. Nelson 6. Stephanie Roncada 7. James Povolny Jr. 8. Phil Lawrence 9. Jason Thomas 10. Derrick Shae Bentley
250 Semi #2 1. Brock Sellards 2. Nicholas Wey 3. John Dowd 4. Tyler Evans 5. Shayne King 6. Billy M. Binckley 7. Joseph Oehlhof 8. Grayson Goodman 9. Takateru Atsuta 10. Jeremy Chaussee 250 Last Chance Qualifier 1. Stephane Roncada 2. Greg Albertyn 3. James Povolny 4. Jason Thomas 5. Kelly Smith 6. Billy M. Binckley 7. Takateru Atsuta 8. Jeremy Chaussee 9. Ty Kady 10. Joseph Oehlhof
250cc Main Event 1. David Vuillemin 2. Mike LaRocco 3. Kevin Windham 4. Jeremy McGrath 5. John Dowd 6. Sebastien Tortelli 7. Damon Huffman 8. Tim Ferry 9. Greg Albertyn 10. Ricky Carmichael

Round 4, Bank One Ballpark
Phoenix AZ, January 29, 2000

125cc Heat #1 1. David Pingree 2. Justin Buckelew 3. Greg Schnell 4. Jiri Dostal 5. Billy Payne 6. Isaiah Johnson 7. Rusty Holland 8. Brad Hagseth 9. Ryan Terlecki 10. Cory Bauder
125cc Heat #2 1. Tallon Vohland 2. Jason McCormick 3. Erick Vallejo 4. Travis Preston 5. Csaey Lytle
125cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Cory Bauder 2. Derrick Shae Bentley 3. Rodrig Thain 4. Doug Parsons 5. Donald Upton 6. Anthony Upton 7. Stephan Demartis 8. Mark Burkhart 9. John Sereika Jr. 10. Jimmy Varis
125cc Main Event 1. Casey Lytle 2. Derrick Shae Bentley 3. Travis Preston 4. Billy Payne 5. Jiri Dostal 6. Rodrig Thain 7. Travis Elliott 8. Jason Thomas 9. David Pingree 10. Erick Vallejo
250cc Heat #1 1. Ricky Carmichael 2. David Vuillemin 3. Larry Ward 4. Stephane Roncada 5. Jean Sebastien Roy 6. Heath Voss 7. Kelly Smith 8. Michael Craig 9. Kyle Lewis 10. John Dowd
250cc Heat #2 1. Jeremy McGrath 2. Kevin Windham 3. Timmy Ferry 4. Greg Albertyn 5. Sebastien Tortelli 6. Damon Huffman 7. Brock Sellards 8. Tylder Evans 9. James Povolny Jr. 10. Grayson Goodman
250 Semi #1 1. John Dowd 2. Jean Sebastien Roy 3. Kelly Smith 4. Mike LaRocco 5. Shayne King 6. Kyle Lewis 7. Michael Craig 8. Heath Voss 9. Erik Anderson 10. Jeremy Chaussee
250cc Semi #2 1. Brock Sellards 2. Damon Huffman 3. Sebastien Tortelli 4. Tyler Evans 5. Grayson Goodman 6. Cory Bauder 7. James Povolny Jr. 8. Jason Frenette 9. Ty Kady 10. Matt Karlsen
250cc Last Chance Qualifier 1. Michael Craig 2. Kyle Lewis 3. Heath Voss 4. James Povolny Jr. 5. Cory Bauder 6. Jason Thomas 7. Joseph Oehlhof 8. Jason Frenette 9. Ty Kady 10. Zeb Armstrong
250cc Main Event 1. David Vuillemin 2. Jeremy McGrath 3. Ricky Carmichael 4. Mike LaRocco 5. Timmy Ferry 6. Greg Albertyn 7. Sebastien Tortelli 8. Kevin Windham 9. Damon Huffman 10. Stephane Roncada

This page last update 6 September 2000