May 11, 2006
Las Vegas, NV - Kawasaki Racing Team rider, James Stewart, won his first-ever Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP Championship last Saturday night before a sold-out crowd at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. Stewart began the evening by easily trouncing the competition in his eight-lap heat race. The feat marked the first time in Supercross history that a rider has remained undefeated in heat races during the World SX/GP season. Stewart continued his momentum straight into the main event by capturing the holeshot and remaining unchallenged for all 20 laps aboard his KX450F. In all, Stewart recorded 18 heat race wins and 10 main event wins towards winning the World Supercross GP title.
Stewart’s teammate, Michael Byrne, was unable to compete after he sustained a dislocated right thumb during a practice crash. Byrne is scheduled for further evaluation this week to determine the extent of the injury and his return to competition.
In the Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Shootout. Team Monster/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider, Ryan Villopoto, captured the holeshot before he became tangled with Mike Alessi shortly after and went down. The talented rookie was forced to start from the back of the pack on his KX™250F and managed to salvage a sixth place finish. Villopoto’s teammate Chris Gosselaar crashed shortly afterward and was out of contention due to a sprained left ankle. Richmond Kawasaki’s Darcy Lange finished seventh.
Newly crowned Amp’d Mobile AMA West Supercross Lites champion, Grant Langston, was unable to compete after he sustained a dislocated right wrist during a practice crash on Friday following the pre-event press conference. The Team Monster/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider is scheduled for an MRI early this week to determine his return to competition.
Kawasaki Racing Team was also recognized as the Amp’d Mobile World Supercross GP / Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series’ team of the year. The award was presented along with the individual rider accolades during the annual series awards banquet at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Sunday evening.
The teams now turn their attention to the AMA Motocross Championship, which is set to begin on May 20th at the Hangtown Nationals in Sacramento, California.
