New Zealand’s Ben Townley has claimed his second successive podium of the season as the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross championship has hit the halfway point for round 6 of the 12 round series. The Lucas Oil – Troy Lee Designs – Honda racer narrowly missed out on his first moto win at the Red Bud National however another solid score of 4-3 has shifted the Kiwi to fourth in the championship standings.
With probably his strongest qualifying time of the season Townley had fourth pick of the gate going into the first moto and grabbed a good start as he quickly passed Andrew Short to take the lead. With series leader, Ryan Dungey, and reigning outdoor champion, Chad Reed joining the action, Townley pushed hard to try and gap his pursuers. Dungey challenged ‘BT ‘several times for the lead however every time he made a pass, BT would counter attack and regain the lead. With one lap to go Townley made a vital mistake and went down costing him what should have been his first moto win of the season.
With the same four riders once again challenging for the win, moto 2 saw fellow Honda racer, Andrew Short out front with Dungey, Townley and Reed in hot pursuit. Dungey made his way past Short with ‘BT’ following suit so as not to lose tow with the American. With 6 laps gone Townley made a mistake which enabled Reed to move closer enabling the Australian to then make his move to take over second place from the Kiwi. Townley regained his rhythm and tried to challenge Reed but had to settle for 3rd spot at the checkered flag.
“Red Bud is such a great track to ride on and it makes racing here so much fun. I thought I had the first moto in the bag but got cross rutted and went down. I had a great race with Ryan and we traded positions quite a few times which was good for my confidence. In the second moto I made a mistake while chasing Ryan and that took away my momentum and allowed Chad to get me. We got 2 good starts this weekend and it will not be long before we can fit all the pieces of the puzzle together.” explained a determined Townley.
The calendar takes a week break before round 7 takes place in Millville, Minnesota on the 17th July .
www.bentownleymx.com
Race results:Round 6 of 12
450 Class (Moto Finish)
1)Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki (1-1)
2)Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki (2-2)
3)Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda (4-3)
4)Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda (3-5)
5)Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda (5-4)
6)Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha (6-6)
7)Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda (7-7)
8)Ryan Sipes, Flaherty, Texas, Yamaha (8-8)
9)Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM (10-9)
10)Nick Wey, Dewitt, Mich., Kawasaki (9-12)
450 Class Championship Standings
1)Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., Suzuki, 268
2)Chad Reed, Australia, Kawasaki, 204
3)Brett Metcalfe, Australia, Honda, 201
4)Ben Townley, New Zealand, Honda, 189
4)Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda, 189
6)Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Yamaha, 182
7)Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM, 177
8)Kyle Regal, Kemp, Texas, Honda, 122
9)Ryan Sipes, Flaherty, Texas, Yamaha, 114
10)Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Yamaha, 108