Blake Baggett wins 450SX main in Glendale
While the four-wheeled variety of racers are still off for a few more weeks, Monster Energy AMA Supercross began Round 2 of their season at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
It was a rather tumultuous Saturday night for several drivers. Malcolm Stewart had to go to the hospital for injuries sustained during a crash. Eli Tomac almost didn’t make the 450SX Main. Ken Roczen got knocked off his bike while leading the race. And so on and so forth …
At the end of the night, it was Blake Baggett who reigned victorious, earning his first career 450SX win.
Baggett benefited from an aggressive move by Jason Anderson with a little over 10 minutes left in the race. Anderson clipped the front tire of Roczen’s bike, causing Roczen to fall to the ground.
Baggett then proceeded to run Anderson down, making a pretty aggressive move of his own, and successfully taking the lead with about a minute left.
“The last five laps are a complete blur,” Baggett said after the race. “I was looking back and forth between the timer and the finish line. I was worried I wasn’t going to have enough time to make a move, but it worked out.”
Anderson remained in the second position while Roczen was able to hang on for third. Tomac and Marvin Musquin rounded out the top five.
Rozcen currently holds the points lead by one point over Justin Barcia. Tomac is in third with a four-point gap, while Baggett is in fourth, seven points back.
Adam Cianciarulo won the 250SX Main by 9.557 seconds over last week’s winner Colt Nichols. Shane Mcelrath was third, followed by Rj Hampshire and James Decotis.
Nichols leads Cianciarulo by five points.
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Malcolm Stewart suffers broken femur in Glendale crash
A nasty crash in Round 2 of Monster Energy AMA Supercross in Glendale caused the race to be red-flagged and sent rider Malcolm Stewart to the hospital.
Stewart suffered a broken femur as a result of the crash and underwent surgery on Sunday.
Stewart’s Smartop/Bullfrog Spas/MotoConcepts Honda team has not released any further details at this time.
The younger brother of former supercross champion James Stewart, Malcolm was in his second race of what was supposed to be his first full-time season in the 450 class.
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Loeb wins sixth stage of Dakar Rally, Al-Attiyah maintains overall lead
In a racing event known largely for attrition and won on staying power, world rally champion Sebastian Loeb has managed to win a second straight stage and third overall in the Dakar Rally.
Nasser Al-Attiyah remains as the overall leader, finishing second behind Loeb after making a mistake about 15 kilometers from the finish.
Loeb is now second overall and trails Al-Attiyah by about 38 minutes.
Loeb’s victory pushed fellow Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel’s down to third overall, losing almost 20 minutes after stopping to help Nani Roma and subsequently getting stuck in a sand basin.
The Dakar Rally will come to a conclusion on Thursday.
Note: Chilean Pablo Quintanilla won the stage in the motorcycle class, taking the overall lead from American Ricky Brabec.
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