Cycle News Staff | April 9, 2016
In what was arguably the most exciting battle for victory of the 2016 Monster Energy AMA Supercross season, Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey outlasted RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Ken Roczen to capture his seventh win and extend his points lead in front of over 60,085 fans at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, April 9.
Ryan Dungey held off Ken Roczen in a close finish at the Indianapolis Supercross. Photography by Hoppenworld.com
Smartop/MotoConcepts Racing’s Mike Alessi earned his first SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award to start the 450SX Class Main event ahead of Dungey and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Christophe Pourcel. Dungey moved into the lead by the end of the first rhythm section, while Alessi was then forced to deal with pressure from Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac.
Tomac moved past Alessi into second, while Roczen followed into third. Shortly thereafter Roczen made the pass on Tomac for second and set his sights on Dungey out front. Deteriorating track conditions made it difficult for Dungey to open a lead, allowing Roczen to close in. On Lap 3 the first of several battles for the lead occurred as Roczen moved alongside Dungey in the whoops, only to have the KTM rider fend him off. The two rivals found themselves side-by-side again to close out Lap 5, with Roczen attempting to make a pass on the inside of one of the track’s most difficult turns. The attempt slowed Roczen’s momentum and allowed Dungey to then open his largest lead of the race to that point.
The battle for the lead stabilized for the next handful of laps as Dungey and Roczen navigated through lapped riders. On lap 11 Tomac crashed while comfortably running third, losing several positions as he attempted to restart his bike. That allowed Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson to move into third, after starting ninth.
On Lap 15 the gap between Dungey and Roczen had shrunk to mere bike lengths once more, and the two riders were side-by-side yet again. Dungey briefly held off Roczen for a third time, but a mistake on Lap 16 allowed Roczen to move out front, bringing the crowd to its feet. The German rider quickly established a lead, but as he came to complete the lap a mistake forced him to roll the finish line, allowing Dungey to jump back out front. Roczen made a push in the final laps to try and create another passing opportunity, but another small mistake on the final lap allowed Dungey to take the win by 1.7 seconds. The duo finished more than 27 seconds ahead of third place.
It was Dungey’s 29th career 450SX-class victory, giving him sole possession of sixth on the all-time wins list. It was also his 29th consecutive podium finish, extending his record streak.
“That’s what it’s all about right there. That’s why we work hard [during the week], to put on a good show,” said Dungey, who won for the third-straight season in Indianapolis. “It’s not going to be easy all the time, but we fought to the end. I was riding on the ragged edge there to keep it [the bike] in line. I was able to get a good start and that’s what put me in position to run up front and take the win.”
It was Roczen’s eighth podium of the season and his second straight runner-up result.
“Ultimately I wish the race kept going for another five laps. The track was really rough out there, but we kept fighting the whole way,” said Roczen. “I was able to make a pass for the lead but I made a mistake right before the finish and couldn’t make the jump, so that gave [Dungey] back the lead. I made another mistake later and that pretty much ended it.”
Anderson finished third for the second week in a row and is now in the midst of a three-race podium streak.
Dungey extended his points lead to 45 over Roczen with four races remaining. Anderson solidified his hold on third, 63 points back.
