E3 Spark Plugs News

As the 250cc AMA Pro MX teams pulled through the gates at the legendary Moto-X 338 track in Southwick, Massachusetts, you could feel a spark in the air and the 250cc riders didn’t disappoint. With Geico Powersports Honda ace Trey Canard closing the points gap on Kawasaki’s Christophe Pourcel, E3 Motorcycle Spark Plugs fans lined the fence as the gate dropped on Moto One for the Lites riders. Wil Hahn took an early lead after the short uphill start at Southwick with Canard in hot pursuit. Pourcel was running top ten early in Moto One but dropped his Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki in a deep, sandy berm.

Veteran motocrosser John Dowd raced his 22nd AMA Pro MX National race at Southwick's Moto-X 338 this weekend. Photo courtesy of www.johndowd.com.

Once Canard worked his way past Hahn for the lead, the Oklahoma rider put a 4-second lead on the rest of the talented field. Late in the race, former World 250cc Grand Prix Champion Tyla Rattray began to close on Canard and would eventually pull alongside. But, Canard picked up his pace and claimed the win in the opening moto. Rattray would hold on for second, followed home by a pair of Honda riders with Wil Hahn in third and Georgia rider Justin Barcia in fourth. Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider Dean Wilson would finish Moto One in fifth with Honda’s Eli Tomac finishing sixth just ahead of Pourcel. Pourcel’s seventh place finish in the opening moto allowed Canard to pull within 5 points of the national championship leader.

Wil Hahn would get his second holeshot of the day but Barcia, would take lead before the end of lap one with Pro Circuit riders Pourcel and Rattray in pursuit. Canard had worked his way into the top ten before going crashing his Geico Powersport Honda in the deep ruts at Moto-X 338. Barcia would hold off a late charge from Rattray. Pourcel would finish in third ahead of teammate Dean Wilson. Canard would mount a charge but was passed by his teammate, Eli Tomac, and later faded to ninth in Moto Two. Barcia would hold on for the win and finished second overall for the day. Rattray’s (2-2) finishes were good enough for the South African to earn his second win of the 2010 season and third place went to a frustrated Canard.

With only two rounds to go, the 250cc Lite teams head to Delmont, Pennsylvania, for the penultimate round of the 2010 AMA Lucas Oil MX National Championship on Labor Day weekend. Pourcel leaves Southwick with a manageable 13-points lead over Canard. The Steel City motocross track is located just to the east of Pittsburgh, and E3 Spark Plugs Racing fans are expected to show in record numbers for the Labor Day Weekend event. If you want peak performance from your motorcycle, car or truck, insist upon E3 replacement spark plugs. Our patented DiamondFire Technology lets the fuel burn faster and cleaner in your favorite ride.

The AMA Lucas Oil Pro MX Championship traveled to the leatherneck country of central New York State over the weekend for the 450cc MX pro national championship. Perfect weather. . HOT and perfect track conditions . . ROUGH awaited a world-class field of challengers for Round 9 of the 2010 season at the famed Unadilla motocross track. For the last 40 years, the same classic layout, has played host to the greatest outdoor motocross racers to ever race a dirt bike. This weekend was no exception and many had predicted this would be the best outdoor motocross race of the series.

Belgian Clement Desalle (riding for Rockstar Teka Suzuki) finished 2-2 for second overall at Unadilla in his only appearance at the Lucas Oil AMA MX Pro series. Desalle is currently second in points for the World Championship chase. (Photo Courtesy of Suzuki Racing.)

E3 Car Spark Plugs racing fans know that a rookie 450cc motocross racer is never supposed to win both the AMA MX Pro Championship and the AMA Supercross Championship in their maiden season. In fact, it has never happened in the history of professional motocross. Plus, the decked was stacked against Rockstar Makita’s Ryan Dungey. After all, San Manuel Yamaha rider James “Bubba” Stewart was making his return to outdoor motocross after a two-year hiatus. Plus, Belgium’s Clement Desalle, currently second in the World Grand Prix MX Championship, was scheduled to race in his only 450cc AMA motocross event of the season.

In Friday’s practice, Stewart let everyone know that he hasn’t lost any of his speed by clocking the fastest lap times of the day. But, in Saturday’s opening moto, Bubba’s timing was a tick off. After working his way around Red Bull Honda’s Andrew Short for second place, Stewart went down and had to work his way back through a talented field of the world’s best riders. Desalle had a solid ride and would finish in second. Late in the race, Stewart had passed the Belgian but crashed a second time and had to settle for third. Once again, somebody forgot to tell Ryan Dungey he was not supposed to win. So, he did.

The stage was set for Moto Two and neither Desalle nor Dungey would disappoint the Unadilla fans. At the start, It was yellow bikes out front and Stewart’s Yamaha was buried somewhere in the middle of the 40-rider field. A few laps later, Bubba would pull off the track and call it a day. Meanwhile, Desalle and Dungey put on a show. Desalle was in the lead and had been running the fastest lap times of the day, when Dungey picked up the pace and passed his Suzuki teammate. At the checkered flag, it would be Dungey’s win with Desalle in second. Geico Powersports’s Brett Metcalfe and Red Bull’s Kevin Windham would work past Andrew Short for third and fourth place finishes. Short would cross the line in fifth.

The win was Dungey’s eighth in a row and allowed “the rookie” to extend his point’s lead in the Lucas Oil AMA 450cc MX national championship series to triple digits. The teams will have two weeks off and a little time to regroup before heading to Massachusetts for Round 10 of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro MX Championship at the famed Southwick Moto-X 338 track. Don’t forget to follow your favorite rider on the E3 Spark Plugs Racing blog and, for peak performance from your bike, always ask for E3 Motorcycle Spark Plugs. Our patented DiamondFire technology is designed to deliver Energy, Efficiency and Ecology for all of your engines.
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