The Monster Energy Supercross Series headed to downtown Seattle, Washington, for round 15 at CenturyLink Field, and the stop would play a pivotal role in finalizing the 450 class championship. Ryan Villopoto came into Seattle with a 450-point lead over second place contender James Stewart, and if all went right for the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider, RV would head into the week off with his fourth consecutive 450 title. The sun came out and the rain stayed away for an exciting round in the Pacific Northwest.
Monster Energy Supercross 450 Championship
Ryan Villopoto | 1st Place
Starting the night off with a 45-point lead in the championship hunt, Ryan Villopoto came into Seattle with the goal of claiming the title in front of his hometown crowd, but the defending champ had his difficulties in his heat race, forcing him into the semis after failing to advance with a fifth. Villopoto would go on to win his semi, and his winning ways would follow him into the main event as a holeshot powered him to an early lead where he kept a safe distance between himself and determined James Stewart. Villopoto took the win in Seattle, but a second-place finish by Stewart was enough to delay Villopoto’s hopes to secure the title to at least one more round.
James Stewart | 2nd Place
James Stewart may realize his chances for the championship are slim to none, but that didn’t prevent him for laying it all on the line in Seattle. Stewart grabbed a third-place start behind Ryan Dungey, and after a handful of gutsy pass attempts on the KTM, Stewart finally powered his Suzuki past Dungey to take over the position, allowing him to focus on the leader, Villopoto. Stewart managed to close to gap between himself and RV, but after a few close calls including coming up extremely short while attempting the quad, Stewart backed off and settled for second, which was enough to prevent Villopoto from wrapping up the championship.
Ryan Dungey | 3rd Place
Following a dominating win in his heat race, Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey sandwiched himself between Villopoto and Stewart on the start, but after holding off the number 7 Suzuki for a few laps he finally surrendered the spot to a hungry James Stewart. After giving up the position to Stewart in the first couple of laps, Dungey finished the night on the podium ahead of Eli Tomac and Justin Barcia.
Eli Tomac | 4th Place
After a rough start to his rookie year, GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac continues to find himself running in the top five. Tomac started the main behind the lead group, but after making a few passes early in the race and a crash by Ken Roczen, he quicky sat behind third place Dungey, and that’s where he found himself when the checkered flag waved after 20 laps.
Justin Barica | 5th Place
When the top four seemed to settle into it’s order in the beginning part of the main, Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Justin Barcia had found himself in a four-way battle for fifth place between himself, Andrew Short, Trey Canard, and Ken Roczen. Barcia fought for the position after making his way past several riders including Short, Alessi, and Peick, and he was able to hold on to the position to finish the night rounding off the top five.
Main Event Results
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw)
2. James Stewart (Suz)
3. Ryan Dungey (KTM)
4. Eli Tomac (Hon)
5. Justin Barcia (Hon)
6. Trey Canard (Hon)
7. Ken Roczen (KTM)
8. Andrew Short (KTM)
9. Josh Hill (Suz)
10. Mike Alessi (Suz)
11. Weston Peick (Suz)
12. Chris Blose (Hon)
13. Nick Wey (Kaw)
14. Nick Schmidt (Hon)
15. Kyle Regal (Hon)
16. Killian Rusk (Yam)
17. Ronnie Stewart (Suz)
18. Phil Nicoletti (Yam)
19. Tevin Tapia (Suz)
20. Cody Gilmore (Kaw)
21. Vince Friese (Yam)
22. Bracken Hall (Hon)
Monster Energy Supercross 450 Championship Points Standings (After 14 of 17 rounds):
1. Ryan Villopoto (318/5 wins)
2. James Stewart (270/5 wins)
3. Ryan Dungey (267/1 win)
4. Ken Roczen (249/2 wins)
5. Justin Barcia (214)
6. Justin Brayton (196)
7. Andrew Short (194)
8. Broc Tickle (126)
9. Josh Hill (122)
10. Wil Hahn (122)
The post Villopoto Victorious |n 450 Main Event | 2014 Seattle SX appeared first on Transworld Motocross.