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DAN REARDON
250 SX / SD
IMAGE / MPG WORDS / HARNISHFEGER DESIGN / WILSON
>> 2017 has marked Dan Reardon’s unexpected return to the States to contend in the 250 West Coast Championship. The ex
3 time-Australian Supercross champion got the call to fill in for
Colt Nichols on the Star Racing Yamaha team shortly before the season began and he jumped on the offer. It would be his first time racing American supercross since he raced for Geico Honda back in 2009. A lot has changed since Reardon raced on this side of the world but he seemed to reacclimatize quickly and set down the ninth fastest lap time in practice this week at San Diego. His night began with an eighth place start in the heat race where he would be able to beat out a few riders in front of him to secure sixth place and a few better gate picks for the main.
Those few extra gate picks would sure show their worth in the main event because Reardon fired out of the gate and into sec- ond place. He tried to take advantage of the poor starts by title contenders, Hill and McElrath to name a few, and push for the lead. Davalos had other plans and made a quick move on him but Reardon stayed hot on his tail. The two foreign riders would jockey for position during the opening laps until Reardon bit the dust com- ing out of a rhythm section ending his bid for a podium finish. He would remount to finish seventeenth but the veteran must be left thinking about what could have been.
130 GRITMOTO • JANUARY 15, 2017