Carmichael Finishes Strong to Win Supercross Event

Ricky Carmichael overcame a poor start Saturday night to defeat seven-time 250cc champion Jeremy McGrath in front of a sellout crowd of 45,050 at Edison Field in the EA Sports Supercross Series.

Carmichael, tied for the points lead with McGrath before the event, was 10th coming out of the first turn after getting caught in traffic. But the Florida native worked his way through the field and passed McGrath with three laps remaining.

“To come from behind, that’s the most self-satisfying win you can have,” Carmichael said.

McGrath, who had won two previous stops in Anaheim this year and eight of the last 10, took the hole shot and still owned a comfortable lead midway through the 20-lap final, even after Carmichael moved into second.

McGrath lost some momentum with four laps remaining, landing hard on the face of a triple jump and failing to generate enough speed for the next.

Carmichael briefly passed McGrath heading into the ensuing curve, but McGrath regained the lead on the straightway. Carmichael made another surge heading over the finish-line jump and took the lead for good.

“I was riding as fast as I could,” McGrath said. “I could see him coming up from behind. It was a long 20 laps.”

The track had a different look than the previous two stops in Anaheim. It was built similar to those in the 1980s, when bikes spent more time on the track than in the air.

The biggest adjustment included moving the final jump before each turn back several yards. This allowed riders to keep the throttle open longer and generate more speed heading into the curves.

McGrath had to come from behind to win his heat. He beat the remaining riders to the first turn, but slid sideways coming out and dropped back to fifth place.

In the 125cc final, Suzuki factory rider Danny Smith of Middleton, Idaho, led the first five laps before Yamaha of Troy rider Ernesto Fonseca of Costa Rica passed him over a set of triple jumps and went on to won for the fourth time this season.