Bradshaw Rides Confidently, : So He Still Rides Win Streak

You know you’re hot when it’s news when you lose.

So Damon Bradshaw didn’t.

Bradshaw, 19, “The Beast from the East” from Mooresville, N.C., has owned the west with three consecutive victories, at Houston, Seattle and Anaheim.

Add the Coors Light Challenge at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium to the growing list of conquests. The current AMA Camel Supercross leader added to his points lead with a convincing victory over Kawasaki’s Mike Kiedrowski and Honda’s Jean-Michel Bayle in front of 36,796.

Bradshaw, before the race, said: “I’m not going to settle for second or third; I’m 13 points ahead, but I’m going to ride tonight like I’m 13 points behind.”

And he ended the evening stretching his points lead to 20 over Jeff Stanton and 21 over defending champion Bayle.

But afterward, he said he didn’t ride one of his best races, he was just fortunate enough to avoid mistakes once in the lead.

Bradshaw opened the race in fourth, trailing three Kawasakis, Kiedrowski, Jeff Ward and Jeff Matiasevich. But Bradshaw made short work of Ward and Matiasevich and was in second place when the first lap was completed. Then he stalked Kiedrowski, challenged him on a 13-hump whoop-de-do series and passed him on the 180-degree turn coming out of the moguls.

Kiedrowski spilled with eight laps remaining and Stanton took over second, but Kiedrowski finished second and Bayle took third when Stanton spilled with three laps remaining.

Bayle, a Frenchman, is defending Supercross champion and the only non-American to win the title, was fortunate to finish third after a hard crash took him out of his first qualifying heat.

In the 125 c.c. 20-lap main event, Murrieta’s Jeremy McGrath won riding a Honda.

Teammate Buddy Antunez of Ontario took third. Jimmy Gaddis of Las Vegas finished second.

McGrath, who was never challenged, said he will race six 250 c.c. races this season beginning in two weeks in Atlanta.

“I’ve been practicing real hard and it’s been paying off,” said McGrath, who has won three races in a row. “I think maybe those guys (250 c.c. riders) are in a little bit of trouble.”

Bradshaw is not shaking in his boots.

Supercross Notes

San Diego fans reacted no differently than other fans around the country during driver introductions--they booed Honda rider Jean-Michel Bayle. Why? Bayle, the defending Supercross champion, is a Frenchman, the first non-American to win the championship.

In addition to Stanton, other heat winners were Damon Bradshaw (Yamaha), Jeff Matiasevich (Kawasaki), Guy Cooper (Suzuki) and Micky Dymond (Honda). . . . Jeff Ward was asked during the program to ride a memorial lap instead of a tribute lap. Ward, 30, obliged to a standing ovation. He’s retiring after this season. . . . San Diego showed well in the first 125 c.c. heat as Tyson Vohland, riding for Escondido’s North County Yamaha, qualified for the main event by finishing second to Murrieta’s Jeremy McGrath on a Honda.