In a stunning debut for the all-new Yamaha YZ450F, L&M Racing’s James Stewart won the 10th annual U.S. Open of Supercross in the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 9-10. The three-time event champion took huge wins in both 20-lap main events, making it look like he and his YZ450F were riding in a different class from the competition. In the overall results Stewart clinched the $100,000 winner’s purse ahead of rivals Davi Millsaps (2-3) and Dan Reardon (3-4), with Yamaha YZs occupying four of the top 10 overall positions. Adding to the luster for Yamaha was young Chris Aldredge, who won the 85cc Mini Invitational by turning in 2-1 finishes on his YZ85.
U.S. Open... Things didn’t go quite so easily for Stewart in Saturday night’s main event, as a first-corner pileup relegated him to mid-pack. Meanwhile Reardon came away with the holeshot, with Ryan Villopoto, just returning from a knee injury, soon passing him for the lead. But a charging Stewart dispatched Reardon on the fourth lap and caught Villopoto by the race’s halfway point, then ignited the crowd by swapping places several times with his rival before accelerating to a huge 9.8-second win over Villopoto and Davi Millsaps. “It was a fun race,” Stewart grinned afterwards. “I didn’t get the start that I wanted but I got the job done. The money is one thing but our team works really hard so this is rewarding for them. It’s just an awesome bike and an awesome team.”
Supercross Results - Saturday |
| 1 |
James Stewart - YAM |
|
| 2 |
Ryan Villopoto |
|
| 3 |
David Millsaps |
|
| 4 |
Daniel Reardon |
|
| 5 |
Michael Byrne |
|
| 6 |
Matt Boni |
|
| 7 |
Nick Wey - YAM |
|
| 8 |
Ezra Lusk |
|
| 9 |
Tyler Bowers - YAM |
|
| 10 |
Chris Blose |
|
|
Stewart absolutely commanded Friday night’s main event by grabbing the holeshot and leading all 20 laps ahead of Millsaps and Reardon – and thoroughly demonstrating the enormous potential of the new fuel-injected YZ. Making matters even better for Yamaha, Matt Goerke and Christian Craig rounded out the top five with fellow YZ pilots Tyler Bowers in seventh aboard a new 2010 YZ250F (and the only 250 rider to finish in the top 10 on both nights), and Nick Wey in eighth. “I am just happy to get out here and race tonight,” Stewart said later. “There is a lot of work that I have to do, but the bike worked great tonight. This is always a fun event and I am excited to be a part of it.”
If you missed the live webcast, catch the 2009 U.S. Open of Supercross on CBS next Saturday, Oct. 17 from 1:30pm-3:00 pm ET.
Supercross Results - Friday |
| 1 |
James Stewart - YAM |
|
| 2 |
David Millsaps |
|
| 3 |
Daniel Reardon |
|
| 4 |
Matthew Goerke - YAM |
|
| 5 |
Christian Craig - YAM |
|
| 6 |
Cole Siebler |
|
| 7 |
Tyler Bowers - YAM |
|
| 8 |
Nick Wey - YAM |
|
| 9 |
Chris Blose |
|
| 10 |
Michael Byrne |
|
|
|