Page 16 - ISSUE-47

RYAN DUNGEY
450 SX / 4TH
IMAGE /MPG WORDS / ECKERT DESIGN / WILSON
>> With word going around that Ryan Dungey may be entering his final Supercross event as a racer while holding a 9-point lead over Eli Tomac for the championship, the edge of everyone’s seat began to get a little warmer than usual. Having won the 2015 championship and defending it in 2016, there are few rider’s that have felt the momentum that Ryan’s been riding for the past few seasons; so much so that you may wonder why he would retire on the top of his game. Following Villopoto’s abrupt retirement a few years ago, it seems to be a growing trend recently within the sport. Beyond the rumors, though, Dungey’s season hasn’t been as glossy as it may seem. At one time, Ryan held a 29-point lead over Eli Tomac but then slowly losing the lead to the green #3 over the past several weeks, Dungey entered last weekend out of the top spot. With luck going his way in New Jersey, things got brighter for the defending champ as a mistake by Tomac gave 1st place back to Dungey with the aforementioned point lead. Flash forward seven days and it all comes down to the final round in Las Vegas.
Sixteen races have led Dungey to the brink of his 4th Supercross championship and when racing got underway in heat two for the seventeenth, you could tell that Ryan was on a mission to complete the objective. Blasting off the line as if there was no gate there to begin with, Dungey took the holeshot ahead of Josh Grant. Never building a gap over Grant in 2nd, Ryan led wire-to-wire, winning the race a by a few bike lengths and taking the win straight into the main event.
Now, twenty minutes plus one lap away from becoming a coveted four-time champ, the reality for Dungey sets in. With the fast bursts of fire overhead glowing the starting line red, the bikes revving to the moon in anticipation of the start straight that lay ahead, the red-plated #1 jumped out of the gate to reach the first turn in 2nd. Wasting no time to get by Blake Baggett for the lead, Dungey held the top spot early. Needing to finish 4th or better to secure the title, Ryan began to settle in. It didn’t take long for Tomac to close the gap, though, as Eli took the Dungey high in a bowl-turn forcing Ryan back to 3rd. For the next few laps, Ryan followed Anderson in 2nd but with the title on the line, Dungey got by Jason and began to set his sights on Tomac three seconds in front of him. With eight and half minutes left, the champ closing the gap, Ryan almost went
down in the sweeper that exited the stadium but keeping it pinned, was able to mount a charge and get by Tomac in the sand as the riders reentered. It took all of one section for Eli to take his Kawasaki into the KTM of Dungey, pushing Ryan off the track. Getting back on course in the safest way possible, the move cost Dungey valuable time but able to return to the race pace instantly, Dungey stayed in 2nd. The battle heated up as the crowd stood in awe watching the warriors fight for their lives. Inching back up to Tomac and getting back by for the lead, Tomac, again, instantly took the opportunity to rough Dungey up. In the final moments of the race, the move by Tomac appeared to be desperate but who can blame him; this one was for all the marbles. Unable to enter the whoops with the required speed, Dungey was left to fend off the charge of An- derson and Josh Grant, a battle he would lose. With only a few turns left, there was no time to make up ground and Dungey would settle for 4th. In quite possibly the most jaw-dropping main event of the year, after battling tooth and nail, he did it. He didn’t win the race, but only losing four points to 2nd place finisher Eli Tomac, he won the war and Dungey becomes only the 4th rider to win four 450 championships. The title may be the final of his career but the win helps cement the legacy of Ryan Dungey in Supercross history, a feat that will transcend the tests of time.
16 GRITMOTO • MAY 7, 2017