BYRNE RACES TO BUDDS CREEK TOP 5
 Rockstar
Makita Suzuki Factory Racing's Michael Byrne continued to
rack up strong AMA Motocross results with a top-five finish
at the weekend's seventh round at Budds Creek in Maryland,
USA.
The Australian rider rallied after a tough first moto - where
he finished seventh - to bring home a fourth-place finish
in the second moto. The end result was an impressive fifth-place
overall finish. Currently, Byrne is in sixth place in the
points chase.
Rockstar Makita Suzuki's David Vuillemin returned to racing
but had a rough weekend and didn't finish the second moto
due to a hand injury, and Mike Alessi is currently recovering
from a crash last week at Red Bud.
In the Motocross Lites class, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Ryan
Dungey got the holeshot in the first moto and wound up finishing
in third place. The second moto saw the young Minnesota rider
finish second and take second overall for the day. Team mate
Nico Izzi brought home eighth-and sixth-place moto finishes
for a seventh-place overall result. Dungey is currently in
second place overall in the championship while Izzi is in
fifth place.
Michael Byrne:
"I got two great starts in both motos; the Rockstar
Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 was running really well as usual. But
in the first moto I made a mistake and had to play catch-up
and only managed to get to seventh position. But in the second
moto, I felt like I rode pretty strong though I wasn't quite
close enough to catch third and be in the battle for the podium."
David Vuillemin:
"I was happy to come back to racing but in the first
moto a rock got stuck between my shift lever and the engine
and I was stuck in neutral at the second turn. I got the rock
out and started well behind 40th place. I caught up to 18th.
In the second moto, I got hit by a rock really bad on the
knuckle of my left pointer finger on the first lap. It hurt
real bad but I kept going because I'd gotten a decent start.
I did a few laps but I couldn't hang on anymore so I decided
to stop to be safe."
Ryan Dungey:
"We had been struggling a bit in practice and we made
some changes to the Rockstar Makita Suzuki RM-Z250 and that
helped a good little bit. I was able to get in my corners
a little better and I was able to get the holeshot in the
first moto. The Rockstar Makita Suzuki team has been doing
a great job and I'm just really pumped to be on the podium
again. Now I'm just focusing on riding as hard as I can and
trying to get the job done."
Nico Izzi:
"I went from fourth to first place in the first moto
and I led it for a couple laps. I worked really hard in the
beginning and then I got really, really tired. That was not
what I anted to do, but I know my speed is there; I just need
to keep working on my fitness. I know next year will be a
lot better if I keep working at it. Again, it's not what I
wanted but it wasn't a horrible day. The momentum is still
there, it was just an average weekend for me."
Motocross Results:
1. James Stewart (Kawasaki)
2. Timmy Ferry (Kawasaki)
3. Andrew Short (Honda)
4. Josh Hill (Yamaha)
5. Michael Byrne (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
6. Cody Cooper (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
7. Nic Wey (KTM)
8. Jimmy Albertson (Honda)
9. Jeff Alessi (Honda)
10. Paul Carpenter (Honda)
Motocross Lites Results:
1. Ryan Villopoto (Kawasaki)
2. Ryan Dungey (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
3. Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki)
4. Martin Davalos (KTM)
5. Kyle Cunningham (Honda)
6. Ryan Sipes (KTM)
7. Nico Izzi (Rockstar Makita Suzuki)
8. Trey Canard (Honda)
9. Jake Weimer (Honda)
10. Justin Brayton (KTM)
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