The incredible fight that has been the Lucas Oil Motocross Championship came to a close this weekend at Pala Raceway with the second annual Pala National. In the 250 class, the Championship was wrapped up last week at Steel City with Dean Wilson being crowned the 2011 AMA Motocross Champion, but there was still the 450 Championship left to decide. Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto and defending race and series Champ, Rockstar/Makita/Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey, came to the finale separated by fourteen points, and the final two motos would decide who would be the 2011 AMA 450 Motocross Champion.

Ryan Villopoto - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - 2011
Ryan only needed to finish 4-4 on the day to secure the 2011 Motocross Championship. Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

In moto one, stress levels for the two Championship contenders would reach dangerous levels when they both rounded turn one outside of the top ten. With chaos all around, Dungey and Villopoto emerged at the end of lap run running ninth and tenth. With a comfortable fourteen point lead, Villopoto didn’t need to race with Dungey, but to the surprise of everyone, the number two got into several exchanges with Dungey as the two moved forward through the pack. At one point while they battled, Villopoto even nearly went down hard when his hand slipped off the bars in a very high speed section, but the three-time motocross Champ saved it and, soon after, passed Dungey.

Up front, KTM’s Mike Alessi led the way early before being passed by Factory Honda’s Justin Barcia. Justin rode an incredible race in the lead, but before long, the young 450 fill-in rider was under attack from the Championship contenders who were in their own battle. The first through was RV2 quickly followed by Dungey. The two ran away to finish one and two in moto one. With Villopoto’s  moto win, he stretched his points lead to seventeen heading into the final moto of the year.

Justin Barcia - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - 2011
Barcia has been the surprise of the 450 class since filling in for the injured Trey Canard on the Factory Honda. The kid they call "Bam Bam" has been a regular on the podium since jumping up to the premier class. Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

Holding onto third in moto one was Justin Barcia followed in by the number 800 KTM of Mike Alessi, the Rockstar/Makita/Suzuki of Brett Metcalfe and BTO Sports/Suzuki of Kyle Regal in sixth. It was nice–after not racing most of the year–to see Regal’s Suzuki up near the top five. Riders in this sport often suffer from being “out of site, out of mind,” so it was good that Kyle reminded us of his skills by lining up for the last few Nationals.

With seventeen points now separating the two Ryans in the Championship, all Villopoto had to do was finish thirteenth to clinch the title. When the gate dropped, the two contenders were once again together and buried in the middle of the pack. Villopoto jumped in behind Dungey, but this time–instead of battling with the number one–he settled in right behind him. From there, Villopoto followed Dungey as they made their way through the pack.

Ryan Dungey  - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - 2011
The three riders representing the U.S. at the 2011 Motocross of Nations next weekend in France debuted their U.S.A. gear and graphics in moto two. Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

In the lead early on in moto two was the former points leader, Two-Two Motorsports Chad Reed. In moto one, Reedy had crashed in turn one, remounted dead last and came back to finish twelfth, so he was looking for redemption in moto two. The Australian led the first six laps until a mistake let Barcia around. Just a few laps later, the two Ryans went by as well. Reedy put up a heck of a fight in 2011, but in the end, that mental edge he had early in the season seemed to melt away with his Milleville crash. Reed still held on to finish a solid fourth in moto two and finished third on the year in Championship points. Congrats to Reed on a career resurrecting 2011 season, and here’s to many more.

As  moto two wore on, Dungey was looking for a little consolation for losing the Championship and to get that he needed to pass Barcia for the overall. When he first moved around Reed for second, Barcia was nine seconds ahead, but he went to work and, with two laps to go, was all over the number seventeen. Dungey worked on Barcia for one lap and, just before the white flag, grabbed the lead and went on to the moto win. With a 2-1 score on the day, Dungey was your overall winner. Barcia’s 3-2 left him third overall. But the big winner on the day was Ryan Villopoto.

Ryan Villopoto - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - AMA Motocross - 2011 - 450
Ryan Villopoto gave the crowd at Pala his patented fist pump that we've seen so many times before. Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

With a 1-3 score on the day, Villopoto was second overall and, more importantly, was crowned the 2011 AMA 450cc Motocross Champion for the first time in his career. Ryan has now won five AMA National Championships and one Regional Lites SX crown  in his young hall of fame career, and his 2011 450 Motocross Championship has to be one of the sweetest. The three-time AMA Motocross Champion has spent the last two motocross seasons on the couch watching, so to come back and win the 450 Championship has to be an incredible feeling. Put that on top of his 2011 450 Supercross Championship, and it’s been a year full of incredible feelings. In 2012, the number two will now be the number one both indoors and out.

Congratulations to Villopoto, Dungey and Reed on an incredible year of battles, and good luck to them all next week in France for the Motocross of Nations.

Ryan Dungey  - Ryan Villopoto - Justin Barcia - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - 2011
450 Podium - Ryan Dungey (center) Ryan Villopoto (left) Justin Barcia (right) Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

450 Overall Results – Pala National Full race results>>

1 1 Ryan Dungey Waconia, MN, US Suzuki RMZ 450 2 1 47
2 2 Ryan Villopoto Poulsbo, WA, US Kawasaki KX450F 1 3 45 * Clinched AMA 450 Motorcross Championship
3 17 Justin Barcia Monroe, NY, US Honda CRF450R 3 2 42
4 24 Brett Metcalfe Australia, AU Suzuki RMZ 450 5 5 32
5 800 Mike Alessi Hilliard, FL, US KTM 450 SX-F 4 7 32
6 30 Kyle Regal Howell, MI, US Suzuki RMZ 450 6 8 28
7 22 Chad Reed Australia, AU Honda CRF450R 12 4 27
8 10 Justin Brayton Fort Dodge, IA, US Yamaha YZ 450F 9 6 27
9 32 Jacob Weimer Twin Falls, ID, US Kawasaki KX450F 10 12 20
10 44 Les Smith York, SC, US Yamaha YZ 450F 14 9 19
 Ryan Villopoto - Pala National - Lucas Oil Motocross Championship - 2011
Photo by Hoppenworld (click to enlarge)

450 Motocross Points – Final 2011 points standings Top 25 points>>
1 2 Ryan Villopoto 526 *450 AMA Champion
2 1 Ryan Dungey 514
3 22 Chad Reed 429
4 24 Brett Metcalfe 374
5 800 Mike Alessi 304
6 32 Jacob Weimer 271
7 10 Justin Brayton218
8 29 Andrew Short 196
9 14 Kevin Windham 193
10 18 David Millsaps 173

Author

Dan Lamb is a 12+ year journalist and the owner of MotoXAddicts.