Dungey Finishes 2nd at the Hangtown Motocross Classic
OutdoorHub 05.20.12
Rancho Cordova, CA – Red Bull/KTM Factory rider Ryan Dungey earned 2nd overall at the first round of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Series aboard his KTM 450 SX-F Factory Edition motorcycle.
Dungey suffered a poor start in the first moto to come around the step-up jump in 12th place but was able to move his KTM into 10th by the end of the first lap. From there he continued to pick up one or two positions while turning some of the fastest laps of the race in order to move up to 4th place by the halfway mark. He put a pass on Andrew Short to takeover the 4th place spot and soon began to reel in Brett Metcalfe. With four laps to go, he was able to make a pass stick on Metcalfe and move into 3rd place. He rode a mistake free race to the end in order to secure a podium spot at the finish.
When the gate dropped for the second moto, Dungey had a much better start than the first. He launched his KTM off the line to earn a 2nd place start. He and James Stewart pulled away from the group and began a chase for the number one spot. Dungey stayed within a few bike lengths of Stewart throughout the moto and at one point had the gap to less than one second. Unfortunately, in the final three laps, Dungey encountered some lappers that caused him to lose two additional seconds to Stewart and put him out of contention for the win. However, he was still able to finish in a strong spot and took home 2nd place at the conclusion of the second moto. His 3-2 results earned him 2nd overall for the day.
“I really enjoyed racing here today. I had some good luck and some bad luck but I’m glad to be on the podium and finish safely. I feel like my fitness was there today and I just need to get up front and out of traffic earlier to get my KTM up front. I am looking forward to the next round at Freestone Raceway.
