Supercross: Ryan Dungey Caps Off SX Season With Las Vegas Win
Kit Palmer | May 8, 2016
Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey showed why he’s going to carry the number-one plate in the 450 class for another year after capping off the 2016 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship with his ninth win of the year and the 31st of his career. Dungey, who clinched the 2016 450SX championship a week earlier in New Jersey, rode a smart and steady race in the muddy conditions and eventually crossed the finish line 12 seconds ahead of runner-up Jason Anderson on the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna.
Ryan Dungey managed to stay clean while out in front in the 450SX Main. Photography by Steve Cox
But Dungey didn’t have it easy at first. He did grab the holeshot but season-long rival Ken Roczen started off right behind him and eventually passed the KTM rider, but before he could finish off the lap, Roczen went down right in front of Dungey, and Dungey tagged him and also went down. At this point it was a race to get going again first, and it was a race that Dungey won. Roczen finished off the lap, pulled into the pits for repair, and then headed back to the pits for good.
This is what the track looked like earlier in the afternoon. Photography by Steve Cox
From then on, it was all Dungey, and Anderson finished all alone in second. Well back in third finished Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac. He took the checkers approximately 25 seconds behind Anderson.
Chad Reed, on the Monster Energy/360 Fly, Chaparral, Factory Yamaha, made a late-race pass on Yoshimura Suzuki’s Blake Baggett to nab fourth.
Broc Tickle, Justin Brayton, Trey Canard, Cole Seely and Justin Barcia rounded out the top 10.
Ken Roczen (94) was challenging for the win when he went down. He got up and later pulled out of the race. Photography by Steve Cox
“We really focused on the last couple races of the season to get the championship. We wanted to end the season strong and that was the goal tonight,” Dungey said. “These were definitely the toughest conditions of the season. Ken [Roczen] was putting on a charge and riding well, but he made a mistake and I had nowhere to go. Thankfully I was able to get up and get going again, and finish strong. I’m really glad we came out on top tonight.””
Anderson ended up third in the championship, followed by Tomac and Reed, who rounded out the top five.
