CARMICHAEL WINS AT SOUTHWICK
 In
the sands of Southwick's Motocross 338, Team Makita Suzuki
Racing's Ricky Carmichael celebrated the city's proclaimed
"Ricky Carmichael Day" by winning his third straight
AMA Toyota Motocross race of the 2007 season on Sunday afternoon.
The 15-time AMA Champion won both 30-minute motos handily
to take the overall victory at the Massachusetts track.
This is Carmichael's eighth consecutive win at Southwick
and he joins Kent Howerton as the only other Suzuki rider
to win three premier-class races in a row at this track. Additionally,
this marks Carmichael's 99th AMA motocross victory and his
147th AMA career win. The rider they call the Greatest of
All Time is
running an abbreviated racing schedule and will only race
a few more MX events this year.
Ricky Carmichael:
"Today was really good. We struggled with some chassis
setup until the last practice then we found a great setting
and that's what we raced with all day. It ended up being really
good, especially in the second moto; the Suzuki was like a
jewel. The bike was working phenomenal. Everything for Suzuki
was great, and I'm just happy to get that 99th win and hoping
to get 100. A lot of preparation went into the race, not so
much speed as just a lot of motos. As much as I like the sand,
let it be known it's still hard work. James Stewart and I
were on it again that first moto. I ate a lot of dirt, no
doubt about it. In the second moto, I was really, really happy
to get the holeshot because that's the first one I've gotten
in a long time. I didn't get any in Supercross and I hadn't
gotten one in Motocross until today. Then, I just tried to
put in some good laps on the RM-Z450. It was a very, very
good race. Any time you beat someone of James' caliber it's
very, very gratifying. It's almost the end of the road…
I'm looking forward to the end, no doubt. Still, you've got
to give it your all, all the time and I hope that over the
10 years that I've been racing here that it's been worth it
for the fans."
In the Motocross Lites class, Team Makita Suzuki Racing's
Ryan Dungey picked up his second podium of the season. The
17-year-old Minnesotan rode an impressive race on his Makita
Suzuki RM-Z250 and finished on the podium in both 30-minute
Lites motos to take third-overall for the day. Additionally,
this strong result moves Dungey up to third-place overall
in the series championship
points. standings
Ryan Dungey:
"It was a great weekend, starting with practice. We
made some changes to the Suzuki that I liked. In the first
moto, I tried to charge hard during the whole moto and I was
happy to get my Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 up on the podium. This
is a big step up from the amateurs and I'm just trying to
do the best I can and keep working hard. In the second moto,
I got a great start on my Suzuki and got the holeshot and
ran a good solid race. I'd like to thank my Makita Suzuki
team and everybody who helped get me here."
AMA Toyota Motocross Top 10 Finishers:
1. Ricky Carmichael (Team Makita Suzuki)
2. James Stewart (Kawasaki)
3. Grant Langston (Yamaha)
4. Andrew Short (Honda)
5. Mike Alessi (KTM)
6. Gavin Gracyk (Honda)
7. John Dowd (Suzuki)
8. Troy Adams (Rock Star Suzuki)
9. David Vuillemin (Honda)
10. Kevin Windham (Honda)
AMA Toyota Motocross Lites Top 10 Finishers:
1. Ben Townley (Kawasaki)
2. Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki)
3. Ryan Dungey (Team Makita Suzuki)
4. Jason Lawrence (Yamaha)
5. Josh Grant (Honda)
6. Kyle Chisolm (Kawasaki)
7. Josh Hill (Yamaha)
8. Billy Laninovich (Honda)
9. Billy Ainsworth (Kawasaki)
10. Robert Kiniry (Kawasaki)
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