Photo by: Hoppenworld
With RV, K-Roc and Dungey starting together and less than a 2/10’s of a second between their fastest laps, the win came down to who made the least mistakes. Photo by: Simon Cudby
The 2014 Atlanta Supercross and round number eight of the 2014 Monster Energy Supercross series looked like another early chapter in what many are seeing as the possible changing of the guard in the 450 class. We saw the former two-time 450SX Champion and the winner of the last two main events, Yoshimura/Suzuki’s James Stewart, crash early on and leave the Red Bull/KTM duo of Ken Roczen and Ryan Dungey and the current three-time defending Champ, Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto, to battle for the win. After passing Roczen and the early leader, MotoConcepts’ Mike Alessi, on lap six, it looked like Villopoto would be the first man to win his third main event of 2014, but a late-race mistake sent Roczen flying over RV’s head and past the checkered flag for the win. Dungey kept the #94 and #1 close but was never able to challenge for the win en-route to the #5’s fourth podium of the year in third. With Roczen’s second win of his rookie campaign, he shaved three points off Villopoto’s lead and heads to Indy just nine points back
In the 250SX class, rookie phenom Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo grabbed his second-straight holeshot and, just like in Dallas, was quickly passed by his teammate Martin Davalos. Unlike in Dallas, though, Martin was able to keep the rubber side down and hang on for his first-ever main event win. Adam tried closing back in on his teammate late in the race, and Martin, with some definite late-race jitters, made some mistakes, but in the end, he held tough for the win. Behind the Monster/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki duo, GEICO/Honda’s Justin Bogle scored his first supercross podium since 2012. With Justin’s serious injury in the off-season, few thought he would even be on the line in ’14, so it had feel good for the Oklahoman to stand on the box in Atlanta.
In the lap time battle, it was Ryan Villopoto with the fastest lap of the main event. Not only did the #1 have the fastest lap (52.344) on lap four, he also laid down the second fastest lap (52.378) on lap number six. With that, you would think RV could have gotten away, but unfortunately for the #1, Roczen stayed glued to his rear wheel with consistency and a fast lap (52.404) of his own. It was an incredible battle of wills that came down to who made the last mistake. Even more incredible than their speed was their consistency, and even with both making one big mistake, their average lap times showed mind boggling focus. Roczen checked in with an average lap-time less than a second off his fastest lap—a 53.436—and RV’s was just a tick off at 53.505. This is why the training partners are 1-2 in the Championship.
That eighth fastest overall time—fastest in 250SX class—of 53.502 was turned in by Davalos. Last weekend in Dallas, Davalos had the second fastest overall time, but that resulted in two crashes and a third place finish. In Atlanta, though, he appeared to back it off a little, and while he was a second off the fastest 450’s, he was still the fastest 250 and can now call himself a main event winner. The only other 250 under the 53-second mark was Cianciarulo with a 53.957. Right now, the two Mitch Payton hired guns look like they have the field covered, but with six rounds left, there’s still a long way to go.
You can check out the top ten 250 and 450 times from the Atlanta SX below. Scroll down to see how the main events broke down lap-for-lap with MotoXAddicts’ lap-time comparison charts. Also, see how the top 3 250SX riders matched up against the top 3 450SX finishers lap-for-lap.
Full 2014 Atlanta SX results here>>>
| Top 10 450 Times | Top 10 250 Times |
|---|---|
| 1. Ryan Villopoto – 52.344 2. Ken Roczen – 52.404 3. Ryan Dungey – 52.515 4. Mike Alessi – 52.824 5. Wil Hahn – 53.315 6. Weston Peick – 53.337 7. Justin Brayton – 53.464 8. Broc Tickle – 53.536 9. James Stewart – 53.609 10. Josh Grant 53.747 |
1. Martin Davalos 53.502 2. Adam Cianciarulo – 53.957 3. Blake Wharton – 54.164 4. Justin Bogle – 54.368 5. Blake Baggett – 54.442 6. Vince Friese – 54.600 7. Matt Bisceglia – 55.117 8. Anthony Rodriguez – 55.138 9. Jimmy Decotis – 55.467 10. Kyle Cinningham – 55.592 |
Each graph charts the lap times of the top five finishers in each main event. You can run your cursor over the lines to see which rider the line signifies and that rider’s time for each lap. Click on a rider’s name on the right to remove them from the chart so you can run riders’ times against each other heads up. Also, riders are colored to match their bike brand.
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