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At that point, Dungey laid down a display of speed and consistency that would later earn him the reputation that he is known for today. It was vintage Dungey, but no one knew it yet. He went completely unchallenged for the remainder of the race and wore his emotions on his sleeve as he circu- lated the last lap of the Georgia Dome, pounding his chest and signalling to the mechanics area as he approached the finish line jump for the final time. The pyrotechnics erupted as he crested the take-off and he pointed enthusiastically towards the managers tower while he floated through the air towards the landing, celebrating the first of many wins that himself and Roger DeCoster would share over the next ten years. The last of those race wins would come late in the 2017 supercross season at the penultimate round of action in New Jersey, but it was the fourth place that he earned
in the last race of his career at Sam Boyd Stadium that would prove to be one of the moments that would define his legacy. Dungey had a five point cushion on his fiercest rival, Eli Tomac, heading into the series finale and the fight for
the number one plate was up in the air. Dungey had never been in this position before, clinching his previous three premier class supercross championships before the last round of the season in Las Vegas. It was glaringly obvious that Tomac had a speed advantage heading into the final round of the season, boasting nine victories on the season
to Dungey’s three, but the KTM rider only needed to finish fourth or better to clinch the title (something that he had done for fifty-one consecutive supercross races prior). As the final race of the 2017 season got underway, the Min- nesota native put himself exactly where he needed to be by snagging the holeshot. It wasn’t long until Tomac made a move for the lead, running Dungey to the top of a berm in an attempt to ruffle the feathers of the KTM rider, forcing him to lose a couple of positions. It appeared that Tomac was going to check out and hope for a mistake or a mechanical failure from the defending champion, but instead he employed
a very different approach. In an attempt to force Dungey
out of the top four for the first time in over fifty races, the Kawasaki rider purposefully rode slower; blocking the fast line, slowing through corners, taking Dungey off of the track, and so forth. The composure and determination that led him to his first win at the Georgia Dome in 2007 had matured and evolved, but it was vintage Ryan Dungey that stole
the show yet again as he overcame Tomac’s antics and claimed his most impressive championship to date. Only few people knew at the time, but it would be the last time that the superstar would cross the finish line in a Monster Energy AMA Supercross race. His finger extended towards Tomac as the two of them rolled the rhythm section after the finish, and although the intentions may never truly be known, the
66 THE PULSE • FEBRUARY 2018