Stewart Carmichael Showcase Epic Battle; Stewart Wins and Carmichael Rides Away from Amp’d Mobile Supercross as the Greatest of All Time
Former AMA Supercross Lites Champ Jesseman Scores Win in Orlando
ORLANDO (March 17, 2007) – Kawasaki’s James Stewart, of Haines City, Fla., held off the a hard-charging Suzuki of Ricky Carmichael, who hails from Tallahassee, Fla., to win his eighth Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series race of the year before 42,991 fans at the Citrus Bowl. Yamaha’s Brandon Jesseman, of New Brighton, Pa., won his first AMA Supercross Lites class main event since 2003.
In the AMA Supercross main event, Reed, of Dade City, Fla., won the $1,500 Progressive Direct Holeshot Award with Carmichael on his wheel in second. Stewart started the main event in fourth place and moved into third on the opening lap and began chasing Yamaha’s Chad Reed, of Dade City, Fla., Reed made a mistake on lap three, which allowed Stewart to move into second place.
It wasn’t until lap 12 that Stewart made his way past Carmichael and the two traded positions leaving Stewart in the lead. Carmichael fired back on lap 16 and the two engaged in another battle. When Stewart rode off to victory the guard was officially passed as Carmichael retired from supercross racing and will begin a career in stock car racing. Reed finished third.
“That was a ride of a lifetime,” said Carmichael. That is why we all race and it was so much fun. I am so happy to go out with such a great ride like this. To be a great motorcycle racer is one thing, but I want to be remembered as a great person.
“That was probably the best race that Ricky and I have ever had,” said Stewart. Once I passed Chad (Reed), I knew it was going to be a good one. I had a blast out there tonight.”
Honda’s Billy Laninovich, of Lake Elsinore, Calif., earned the $1,000 Progressive Direct Holeshot Award with and Robert Kiniry, of LaFayette, N.Y., in second and third respectively. Jesseman, who won the 2003 Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites championship, moved into the lead on lap five.
Kawasaki’s Ben Townley, of Tallahassee, Fla., came into tonight’s race with two wins and sat third in points. On lap nine he tangled with Laninovich and crashed.
KTM’s Mike Alessi, of Victorville, passed Laninovich for second place on lap 11 but crashed in the turn before the finish line and dropped to fourth place. Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites points leader Ryan Morais, of Temecula, Calif., finished in second. Kawasaki’s Darcy Lange, of Hemet, Calif., finished third.
“I am going to go home and work hard, just as I have all year,” said Jesseman. “This is a huge win for me and my team. I look forward to next weekend in Indianapolis.
KTM Junior Supercross Challenge
Skylar Demuth, Boca Raton, Fla., KTM
Cole Campbell, Port Orange, Fla., KTM
Brandon Hogan, Rock Hill, S.C., KTM
Joshua Wilson, El Dorado, Calif., KTM
Matthew Mehary, Garland, Texas, KTM
Alec Mellick, Aubrey, Texas, KTM
Joshua Guffey, Bainbridge, Ga., KTM
Riley Ripper, Magnolia, Texas, KTM
Taitt Kuchta, Clovis, N.M., KTM
Aaron Hill, Orlando, Fla., KTM
Taylor Benton, Cartersville, Fla., KTM
Cotton Eigenmann, Titusville, Fla., KTM
Nicholas Merchan, Azuay, Ecuador, KTM
Noah Freeman, Winterville, Ga., KTM
Dakota Brunson, McKinney, Texas, KTM
Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP Season Standings
James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki, 279
Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha, 256
Timmy Ferry, Largo, Fla., Kawasaki, 202
Ricky Carmichael, Tallahassee, Fla., Suzuki, 185
David Vuillemin, Menifee, Calif., Honda, 159
Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Honda, 151
Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Suzuki, 138
Paul Carpenter, Ithaca, N.Y., Kawasaki, 131
Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 130
Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 122
Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series Event Results, Orlando
James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki
Ricky Carmichael, Tallahassee, Fla., Suzuki
Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha
Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki
Timmy Ferry, Largo, Fla., Kawasaki
Grant Langston, Clemont, Fla., Yamaha
David Vuillemin, Menifee, Calif., Honda
Kevin Windham, Centerville, Miss., Honda
Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Honda
Josh Summey, Stanley, N.C., Honda
Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series Season Standings
James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Kawasaki, 260
Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha, 231
Timmy Ferry, Largo, Fla., Kawasaki, 183
Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda, 166
Ricky Carmichael, Tallahassee, Fla., Suzuki, 160
Ivan Tedesco, Murrieta, Calif., Suzuki, 136
Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Suzuki, 132
Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Honda, 129
David Vuillemin, Menifee, Calif., Honda, 128
Travis Preston, Hesperia, Calif., Honda, 98
Amp’d Mobile Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites Event Results, Orlando
Branden Jesseman, New Brighton, Pa., Yamaha
Ryan Morais, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha
Darcy Lange, Hemet, Calif., Kawasaki
Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM
Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda
Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Yamaha
Ben Townley, Tallahassee, Fla., Kawasaki
Robert Kiniry, LaFayette, N.Y., Kawasaki
Jeff Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM
Tucker Hibbert, Centerville, Miss., Yamaha
Amp’d Mobile Eastern Regional AMA Supercross Lites Season Standings
Ryan Morais, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha, 78
Darcy Lange, Hemet, Calif., Kawasaki, 72
Ben Townley, Tallahassee, Fla., Kawasaki, 64
Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM, 56
Branden Jesseman, New Brighton, Pa., Yamaha, 54
Matt Goerke, Lake Helen, Fla., Yamaha, 54
Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Yamaha, 52
Billy Laninovich, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Honda, 50
Jeff Alessi, Victorville, Calif., KTM, 48
Ryan Sipes, Vine Grove, Ken., Honda, 37
Amp’d Mobile Western Regional AMA Supercross Lites Season Standings
Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki, 172
Jason Lawrence, Carlsbad, Calif., Yamaha, 135
Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Honda, 103
Christopher Gosselaar, Victorville, Calif., Kawasaki, 97
Josh Grant, Riverside, Calif., Honda, 92
Josh Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Yamaha, 88
Josh Hansen, Lake Elsinore, Calif., KTM, 87
Matthew Lemoine, Pilot Point, Texas, Yamaha, 86
Troy Adams, Homosassa, Fla., Suzuki, 71
Kyle Cunningham, Springtown, Texas, Yamaha, 66
Tonight’s AMA Supercross class race will air on SPEED tomorrow, Sunday, March 18, at 6:00 p.m. The AMA Supercross Lites class race air on SPEED XX. Racing continues next Saturday at Indianapolis’ RCA Dome.
For more information about the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series, please log on to www.supercrossonline.com. For media requests, please contact Denny Hartwig at 630-566-6305 or e-mail at dennyhartwig@livenation.com.
About Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP™/Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series
Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP, produced and promoted by Live Nation is a 17-round global off-road motorcycle stadium racing circuit. Riders must compete in the international rounds to be eligible to win the world championship. In 2006-2007, the 17-event Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP will be comprised of two international events and 15 of the 16 events that are conducted in major cities throughout the United States as a part of the Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series. Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series is a 16-event series solely conducted in the United States. The other Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series event held in Daytona Beach, Fla., is independently produced by the International Speedway Corporation and is not a part of the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP. An Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series rider will be crowned as the national champion for the series of events conducted in the United States only.
The FIM, Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme, is the body that globally governs motorcycle sport at the world level. Among other matters, the FIM groups together 94 affiliated National Federations relating to the sport of motorcycle racing. AMA Pro Racing is the National Federation representative that sanctions motorcycle-racing events in the United States. Dorna Off Road S.L. is an internationally recognized sports management group established in 1988 with an emphasis on major international motor sports events. Dorna is headquartered in Madrid, Spain with branch offices in Barcelona, London and Tokyo. In addition to its involvement with Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP, Dorna manages the rights to MotoGP. For more information on Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP/ Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series, log on to www.supercrossonline.com.
About Live Nation
Live Nation is the world's largest live music company. Our mission is to inspire passion for live music around the world. We are the largest promoter of live concerts in the world, the second-largest entertainment venue management company and have a rapidly growing online presence. We create superior experiences for artists and fans, regularly producing tours for the biggest superstars in the business, including The Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand, Madonna, U2 and Coldplay. Globally, we own, operate, have booking rights for and/or have an equity interest in more than 160 venues, including House of Blues® music venues and prestigious locations such as The Fillmore in San Francisco, Nikon at Jones Beach in New York and London’s Wembley Arena. Our websites collectively are the second most popular entertainment/event websites in the United States, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. In addition, we also produce, promote or host theatrical, specialized motor sports and other live entertainment events. In 2006, we connected nearly 60 million fans with their favorite performers at approximately 26,000 events in 18 countries around the world. Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Live Nation is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol “LYV.”
About AMA Racing
AMA Racing is the competition arm of the American Motorcyclist Association and is the leading sanctioning body for motorcycle sport in the United States. Its professional properties include the Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series, the AMA Toyota Motocross Championship presented by FMF, the AMA Superbike Championship presented by Parts Unlimited, the AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship, the AMA Supermoto Championship and the AMA Pro ATV Championship. In amateur and pro-am competition, AMA Racing sanctions over 4000 events in 24 different disciplines and supports over 110 thousand active members. For more information about professional racing, visit www.amaproracing.com. Accredited media outlets can also access an on line Press Room at www.amaproracing.com/pressroom. For amateur racing information visit www.amadirectlink.com/amrace/amasports.asp.