Staggered Starts Nearly Knock Out Event : Supercross Final Changes Format Twice; Ward Emerges With Win

Jeff Ward of Mission Viejo won the World Supercross Final at the Coliseum Saturday night before 45,724 fans.

Ward held a slight lead over Johnny O’Mara of Gardnerville, Nev., throughout the race. On the final lap, O’Mara came as close as Ward’s back tire, but Ward cut him off on a hairpin turn and finished strong to win.

The format for the main event was changed twice during the evening. Originally, race promoter Mike Goodwin had planned a staggered start. It would penalize first- and second-place finishers from the four heats by starting them in a second wave of riders with a five-second handicap. Third- and fourth-place qualifiers would be allowed to start first.

But the staggered starts created some problems. In the second heat, O’Mara had a big lead when he slowed down as he approached the finish line, forcing two riders to finish ahead of him.

In the third heat, Ron Lechein was also well in front, and actually stopped and waved to the crowd. He allowed Jon Van den Berk to pass, but Van den Berk went just a few yards before he stopped and also gave the crowd a salute. The two finished third and fourth--and in the first row for the main event.

After boos and an apology from first-heat winner Rick Johnson, who got on the public address system to say, “I thought we were here to win. I’m sorry, I thought these guys were more professional than this,” Goodwin decided to go back to one wave of racers.

However, Johnson and a few other riders changed their minds.

The crowd cheered with approval when asked if they wanted the race back in its original staggered format.

An hour earlier, the fans had cheered wildly when told there would only be one wave of racers.