Round four of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship series took place this weekend in Oakland, CA. The Oakland Coliseum, which usually serves as home to the Oakland Raiders and Oakland A’s, was filled Saturday night with thousands of Supercross enthusiasts.
It was another great week for Honda, with GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac winning the Lites class for a second week in a row. In the Supercross final, TwoTwo Motorsports rider Chad Reed also was on the podium for a third time this season, placing second.
Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Justin Brayton came into Oakland looking for redemption after a tough round three in Los Angeles, and he looked fast throughout qualifying and the heat races. Unfortunately, when the gate dropped for the main Brayton got off to a mid-pack start heading into the first turn. The remainder of the 20 laps was spent in an admirable charge through the pack, which eventually netted him ninth place. Reed fared better in the main as he got the holeshot and led the pack for almost half the race until being passed by another rider. He continued to fight hard and rode a very solid race to finish second.
“The starts are so important,” said Reed. “Hopefully we can keep building on these last couple weeks, keep getting the starts and accumulating those points.” The CRF450R Honda rider is now tied for the points lead and will be running red plates going into Anaheim 2.
Andrew Short also had an impressive ride Saturday night aboard his Supercross.com/Honda CRF450R, putting together 20 consistent laps to finish in fifth place. GEICO Honda rider Kevin Windham showed impressive speed with a fourth place overall qualifying time in practice. He also put together a solid main by finishing in sixth place, right behind Short.
“The night was good, it was a nice rebound for me after Dodger Stadium,” said Windham. “I spent most of the week focusing on trying to come out and get my job done after last weekend. I saw the whole thing with Trey and it was really difficult for me. It felt like I had a good heat and great times during the day and I am pleased with my finish but I am really looking to get GEICO Honda on the podium.”
For the second week in a row the night belonged to GEICO Honda’s Lites rider Eli Tomac. Heat two was stacked full of Honda riders with Cole Seely of Troy Lee Designs/ Lucas Oil/ Honda finishing in first, Tomac in second and Billy Laninovich in third. In the main event Tomac got a third-place start, followed by Seely in fourth.
Tomac made his way to the front of the pack by lap three and after that he was untouchable, laying down incredible lap times. He quickly pulled away and took the checkered flag, making him the first rider in the 2012 season to win back-to-back races. He will be running the red leader’s number plates once again in Anaheim.
“After the front two guys made some pretty big mistakes, I wanted to make sure I stayed consistent once out front,” said Tomac. “I didn’t do anything crazy and was able to ride a solid race. I am excited, the red backgrounds look good on a Honda.” Seely finished in 11th position after crashing in the beginning of the race and restarting almost last. His Troy Lee Designs teammate Travis Baker had a great ride, finishing sixth in the main.
