Ricky Carmichael holds up his 2006 AMA Supercross number one plate while James Stewart shows off his World Supercross GP #1.
In a sport largely marred by the utter domination of one rider over the field, having a finale with three riders having a chance to win the title is not only unusual, it's almost unheard of. However, at the Amp'd Mobile/AMA Supercross Series finale in Las Vegas, that's exactly what was on the line. If James Stewartthe winner of four of the previous five raceswere to win the main event, whoever finished second to him, between Ricky Carmichael and Chad Reedwould win the title. If someone else finished second to Stewart, Stewart would win the title.
James Stewart backs it in on the slippery hard-pack of the Vegas track's "Thunder Alley."
Stewart planned to do his part, which was to win the race, and he started off on the right foot with the main-event holeshot.
"I think we all feel pressure in racing, just racing period," Stewart said. "Stick a title on the line, and it goes up a little bit, but I was actually pretty good until I saw the 125 class, and those guys were eating it everywhere, so I was sitting up there like, 'Man, is the track really that bad?' But I got the holeshot tonight, and then I just rode 20 good laps. It was good."
That's what he needed to do. Carmichael got around early second-place man Kevin Windham on lap two and chased Stewart valiantly as Reed came through the pack. Reed had a run-in with Carmichael's teammate Ivan Tedesco on his way through.
"The only real problem I had was with Ivan a little bit, but my teammate would've done the same, so no complaints there," Reed said.
Chad Reed pushed hard and stayed close to Carmichael, but was never able to reel him in.
Windham made way for Reed, not wanting to get into the championship fight, and Reed had a clear track for the final 16 laps to try and catch Carmichael for the title.
In the end, he couldn't quite pull it off, finishing 3 seconds behind his championship rival Carmichael, who was just over 4 seconds behind Stewart at the finish.
"I felt like I rode a solid race tonight," Reed said. "I tried to make passes early and get up there and just try to chase Ricky down. It was a tough track. It was really fast, slick, and all I asked this weekend was just to go out there and ride the way I knew how I could ride, and not to leave anything on the table, and I felt that I rode a solid race. I was there. I'd pull him in a little bit, and then he'd pull out, so it was a lot of fun. It was an exciting weekend. It didn't turn out in my favor, but I think the end result was a really fun weekend with all three of us really tight, and the whole live supercross and stuff like that. It's 20 laps. That's what we train to do, and I felt that I rode 20 solid laps and was fine. I needed to just go a little faster."
Stewart did all he could do in winning the main event.
"I'm just really happy to be in this position to be only 2 points out," Stewart said. "I could also go back and look at a lot of races, but I can't. I'm really happy, and my goal was to finish this year and try to do my best. I won me a title, and me and my mom was talking about it the other day. You can't look back on the past. There's nothing I could do. All the races I went down in the first corner, and the haybales and all that, to finish 2 points shy, you've got to look at that as great."
And Carmichael is now a five-time AMA Supercross Champion, ending his final full SX season with yet another titlehis 14th AMA National title overall.
"It was amazing," Carmichael said. "Man, you guys have no idea what I was telling myself all week. I basically talked myself into this performance tonight. I didn't feel that comfortable all weekend, since St. Louis we had to change some shock springs and stuff like that, unfortunately, and going away from the Ti spring definitely hurt me. But I talked myself into it. The team, everyone at home... I have to thank my mom. Last Tuesday, we had a long talk in the shop, and it was good. And Aldon Baker, my trainer, we worked hard this week at home, and I was super-pumped with the way it went down to get another title in my last full season. Chad is a great competitor, and I knew he was going to be on his game. He's always done pretty good here, and his success rate is really good, and I just said, 'Man, I can't let it happen this weekend.' And I didn't do it."
Carmichael's second place in Vegas earned him his final career Supercross Title.
Supercross Main:
1. James Stewart (Kaw)
2. Ricky Carmichael (Suz)
3. Chad Reed (Yam)
4. Kevin Windham (Hon)
5. Travis Preston (Hon)
6. Nick Wey (Hon)
7. Ivan Tedesco (Suz)
8. Josh Demuth (Hon)
9. Brock Sellards (Hon)
10. Heath Voss (Yam)
11. Jiri Dostal (Yam)
12. Tyler Evans (Suz)
13. Jason Thomas (Hon)
14. Kyle Lewis (Hon)
15. Jeff Dement (Suz)
16. Jeff Gibson (Hon)
17. Isaiah Johnson (Yam)
18. Jacob Saylor (Hon)
19. Ryan Clark (Hon)
20. Josh Woods (Suz)
Chad Reed tied for second in AMA points, but Stewart's 8 wins gave him the runner up position. Reedy still claims third and had a remarkable season.
Amp'd Mobile/AMA Supercross Series Final Points Standings:
1. Ricky Carmichael (338/6 wins)
2. James Stewart (336/8 wins)
3. Chad Reed (336/2 wins)
4. Ivan Tedesco (255)
5. Nick Wey (249)
6. Michael Byrne (228)
7. Travis Preston (207)
8. Ernesto Fonseca (125)
9. Ryan Clark (118)
10. Mike LaRocco (108)
Amp'd Mobile World Supercross GP Final Points Standings:
1. James Stewart (380/10 wins)
2. Ricky Carmichael (365/5 wins)
3. Chad Reed (354/2 wins)
4. Ivan Tedesco (292)
5. Nick Wey (286)
6. Michael Byrne (259)
7. Jason Thomas (193)
8. Jeff Gibson (188)
9. Ryan Clark (185)
10. Tyler Evans (138)
Supercross Lites
Andrew Short (29), Mike Alessi (800) and Davi Millsaps (1) battle for the early lead in the Lites East/West Shootout.
Since 2000, the Dave Coombs Sr. 125cc East/West Shootout has only been won by one of the newly crowned champions one time, in 2004 when James Stewart won the 125cc East and the Shootout. That being said, the odds seemed to be stacked against last year's winner (and newly crowned Lites East title holder) Davi Millsaps and Lites West champ Grant Langston.
Then, while riding a small section of the track for the media on Friday before the race, Langston went down, partially dislocating his right wrist. With him out, it left the job up to Millsaps.
Another holeshot for Alessi who went on to finish second, his career SX best.
Mike Alessi actually grabbed the holeshot in the main event, followed by his teammate Jay Marmont and 2003 Shootout winner Andrew Short. Millsaps rounded the first lap in sixth.
By lap two, Short was second to Alessi with Millsaps right on his tail, and the two Honda teammates went by the SX rookie on the following lap. For the next few laps, Millsaps hounded Short for the lead, but then Millsaps went down.
"I wanted to race Millsaps," Short said. "We like to kid around in the truck, and he's a jokester, and he one-upped me by getting the title, and I didn't, so he has bragging honors in the truck. I had to at least get some revenge and get some ammo on him before the outdoors started, because he's going to be on the 450. It went good. I was just bummed that he went down. I wish I could've raced him straight up."
Andrew Short wished he could have battled with Millsaps more before his (Davi's) crash.
Alessi inherited second.
"I just tried to ride behind them and follow their pace, and they were going so fast," Alessi said. "I saw Millsaps go down, and I saw my chance to get second. I jumped into second."
Multi-race winner out east, Josh Grant, soon began to pressure Alessi, and even went by Alessi, only to have Alessi stuff his way back by, and then have Grant go down trying to block Alessi's line a couple turns later.
"I don't know what Josh Grant was doing," Alessi said. "He got by me, and then I just came up the insidewe didn't even touch or anythingand two corners later, he jumped right in front of me and tried to take me out and went right off the track. I don't know hat he was thinking there. I just stayed in second."
Alessi was able to win the battle for second over Josh Grant. | 
Here comes the stuff. Wait for it... |
There it is. | |
After Grant fell, it handed third to his teammate Tommy Hahn, who held the spot to the finish.
"There was people going everywhere the first couple laps," Hahn said. "I rode super-conservative. I probably got like a 10th-place start, and I just rode conservative and watched everybody kill themselves in front of me. I just went around them and put my head down and rode a solid race."
Alessi held on for secondhis best-ever SX finish.
"I saw Tommy coming, but there was only like 4 or 5 laps left, so I just played it safe," Alessi said. "It feels good to get second. This was my best finish of the whole year, and it feels great to end it on a great note, and healthy. I successfully made it through the supercross season without getting hurt. Three podiums, got lots of holeshots, so nothing to complain about."
Though the Lites West Championship slipped through his fingers, Short was glad to end his season on a high note.
But the Shootout, for the second time in his career, belonged to Short.
"It doesn't solve last weekend," Short said of the weekend he lost the Lites Western title. "I was definitely bummed. I wouldn't be normal if I wasn't bummed, but I've got to move on, and tonight was great to get a win. I was pretty excited. I didn't really expect it. I wasn't riding that good in the heat race, and I wasn't putting myself in the right position at the right time, but I'm pumped. I don't even know what to say."
Dave Coombs Sr. 125cc East/West Shootout:
Now it's time for outdoors!
1. Andrew Short (Hon)
2. Mike Alessi (KTM)
3. Tommy Hahn (Hon)
4. Josh Grant (Hon)
5. Ryan Morais (Suz)
6. Ryan Villopoto (Kaw)
7. Darcy Lange (Kaw)
8. Bobby Kiniry (Hon)
9. Kyle Partridge (Yam)
10. Justin Brayton (Yam)
11. Branden Jesseman (Yam)
12. Billy Laninovich (Hon)
13. Kyle Chisholm (Kaw)
14. Jay Marmont (KTM)
15. Bryan Johnson (Yam)
16. Matt Goerke (Yam)
17. Kelly Smith (Hon)
18. Teddy Maier (Kaw)
19. Jason Lawrence (Suz)
20. Davi Millsaps (Hon)
21. Paul Carpenter (Hon)
22. Chris Gosselaar (Kaw)