Mt Morris, PA - May 26, 2002

Carmichael dominates High Point

Ricky Carmichael has completely dominated the first three rounds of the AMA/Chevy Trucks U.S. Motocross championship, and he shows no signs of slowing down. He has won motos in hard pack, mud, and a track that was just right-High Point in Mount Morris Pennsylvania. At the next round the series moves to Southwick Massachusetts, which is a sand race, and one Carmichael won last year.

Carmichael got two great starts and only had to pass John Dowd's powerful KTM 520 early in each moto, and he just checked out. His closest competition this weekend was his own Honda teammate Sebastien Tortelli.

The High Point track has been known for its run of muddy weekends in recent years, but this one was just right. Even though bad weather was forecast, the rain stayed away and the track conditions were ideal.

In both motos Dowd got out front for the holeshot, but Carmichael would pass quickly and lead every lap. Ezra Lusk and Tortelli were the next fastest, but neither could stay close enough to watch Carmichael for long. Just behind them Robbie Reynard put in his best two motos of the year with a very notable 4-4 on a privateer Honda.

Lusk lays in an awesome performance

Lusk's 3-3 was also his best outdoor score in a very long time. "It feels really good, it has been since 1999," he said of his first podium since then, "For me it kind of started back in 2000 when I was hurt pretty much the whole year and I never really got back up to full speed, especially in outdoors. Supercross always came a little bit easier to me. It was a little easier for me to get back on the podium there. Outdoors were a little bit harder for me."

With several of the 250 class front runners like Travis Pastrana, Kevin Windham, and Mike LaRocco out injured, the pack up front is a little thin, which gives Lusk a tougher target to focus on-Carmichael, and his teammate Tortelli. "I am learning a lot, especially when I am around guys like Sebastien and Ricky here, and especially late in the race," he said, "It is always a lot of fun to race with these guys. It was definitely a momentum builder for me to get on the podium this weekend. Ricky has been winning for a long time. He has been putting in the work and getting the finishes for a long time. I think I work just as hard as he does. It is just going to take a little bit of time for me to build the blocks that he has built over the years. He has an enormous amount of confidence and he is riding that right now. I am always excited to go to Southwick. I grew up in that kind of stuff."

Tortelli finishes 2-2 for second after teammate Carmichael

"The track was awesome today," Tortelli said, who talked about how important it is to get a start if he wants to stay with Carmichael. "We are lucky we didn't get any rain and the dirt was just perfect. I had to ride through traffic a little bit because I got bad starts. That is my fault. I just didn't get good starts yet this season. I need to work on that and get better at it. The same thing is always happening. Ricky is getting great starts and taking the lead quickly and opening a gap. I get in second and he already had a 10-second gap and I am just trying to catch him. We are going the same speed. I can make up some seconds but not 4 seconds a lap. I just need to change things about the start and get up there with him."

Carmichael's early leads allowed him to get a cushion immediately and just watch his back, and focus on fast laps. "I got out really far real quick," he said, "I think Sebastien and I were racing each other with lap times and checking each other on the track. It was pretty challenging. In the last couple weeks I have been pulling away a little more than I did this weekend. My bike is super fast. I didn't think it was handled as good as it has been handling. It is going to be like that. It is super fast so it kind of compensates for itself. I am surprised at how good I did today and I am waiting for things to turn around here. It's almost too good to be true."

Dirt flying

Like Lusk, Carmichael likes the next round. "I am looking forward to Southwick," he said, "I like the sand and I am excited."

Carmichael has set plenty of records in his career since 1997, and this win was his 71rst overall, now one ahead of the legendary Bob Hannah. The only target he has left is Jeremy McGrath, who has 72 wins in supercross alone. Carmichael's career is at a peak, which makes him a treat to watch if you enjoy watching a record breaking athlete in his prime do better and better, but it is a little dull if you want to see close battles for the lead.

Vuillemin pulls a 5-6 finish for 5th

Carmichael spoke of his wins at a post-race press conference. "I think a rider has a certain amount of wins in him," he said, "Then you are done. Either you have 140 wins in you or you have 30 wins in you. I don't know what that number is. You can't win every single race of your life. I am just going to try and I don't care about the number really. I just want to win some titles and do good for myself and the sport and take care of my sponsors and at the end of the day however many wins I have is what I have. I just try to keep charging and do consistent laps because there is going to be a time when I am going to have to charge the whole race. I try and make it fun and keep an eye on Sebastien and whoever is riding good that day."

Ernesto Fonseca

1. 1-1 Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Honda
2. 2-2 Sebastien Tortelli, Los Angeles, Calif., Honda
3. 3-3 Ezra Lusk, Acworth, Ga., Kawasaki
4. 4-4 Robbie Reynard, Oklahoma City, Ok., Honda
5. 5-6 David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Yamaha
6. 7-5 Tim Ferry, Largo, Fl., Yamaha
7. 8-7 John Dowd, Chicopee, Ma., KTM
8. 10-8 Kyle Lewis, Henderson, Nev., Honda
9. 9-9 Sean Hamblin, Sun City, Ca., Suzuki
10. 11-11 Heath Voss, Mico, Tx., Honda

1. Ricky Carmichael, Havana, Fla., Honda, 150 pts
2. Sebastien Tortelli, Los Angeles, Calif., Honda, 122 pts
3. Tim Ferry, Largo, Fl., Yamaha, 112 pts
4. David Vuillemin, Corona, Calif., Yamaha, 106 pts
5. Ezra Lusk, Acworth, Ga., Kawasaki, 102 pts
6. John Dowd, Chicopee, Ma., KTM, 81 pts
7. Kyle Lewis, Henderson, Nev., Honda, 79 pts
8. Robbie Reynard, Oklahoma City, Ok., Honda, 70 pts
9. Sean Hamblin, Sun City, Ca., Suzuki, 63 pts
10. Stephane Roncada, Murrieta, Ca., 53 pts

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