2014 AMA Supercross – Anaheim 2 Results

Chad Reed earned his first AMA Supercross win in nearly two years with a hard-fought battle in the second round of three rounds at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif. The win was the 42nd career victory for the TwoTwo Motorsports Kawasaki rider, but the first since Jan. 21, 2012, in Los Angeles.

Ryan Dungey had the early advantage, taking the holeshot. Behind him were Kawasaki-riders Nick Wey and Ryan Villopoto, and Red Bull KTM teammate Ken Roczen. By the end of the first lap it was Yoshimura Suzuki‘s James Stewart chasing Dungey down at the head of the pack.

Dungey held the lead for the opening six laps before crashing and dropping back to fifth. Stewart then moved into the lead, followed by Roczen, Villopoto and Reed.

Reed was sixth after the opening lap but slowly made his way to the front. He moved into a podium position when Villopoto lost his front end trying to pass Stewart on Lap 15. On the following lap, Reed passed the rookie Roczen to move into second, setting up a showdown with his longtime rival Stewart. Finally, on Lap 18, Reed passed Stewart for the lead, holding on the rest of the way for the win.

“41 wins have come easy, but 42? That one was sweet,” said Reed. “This was a long time coming and its so gratifying. I’m really proud of our team and the work we’ve done in the offseason.”

Stewart finished second while Roczen’s third place finish gave him the overall championship lead with 60 points in three rounds. Villopoto recovered from his mistake to finish fifth ahead of Dungey, putting him at 59 points on the season.

Cole Seely earned the win in the 250 class Western Regional race. Troy Lee Designs Honda rider led all 15 laps, taking the lead soon after Yamaha‘s Cooper Webb took the holeshot. Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson had a good start as well in third, but dropped back to 15th after crashing on Lap 3.

Seely was uncatchable at Anaheim 2, leaving Webb to battle with Rockstar Energy KTM‘s Jason Anderson for most of the race. At the checkered flag it was Seely awarded the win with Anderson second. After the race, however, Anderson was accessed a penalty of two positions for jumping while a medical flag was waving, dropping him to fourth. Honda rider Chris Proscelle was also accessed a penalty, dropping him to 19th.

With the penalty, Webb was awarded second place for his first career AMA Supercross podium. Troy Lee Designs Honda rider Malcolm Stewart (James’ brother) was upgraded to third. The penalty also means Anderson scored only 18 points instead of 22, giving Seely the lead in the Western Regional championship.

The 2014 AMA Supercross Championship continues Jan. 25 at Overstock.com Coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

[Source: AMA Supercross]

By Dennis Chung