Race Day

Welcome to Broome-Tioga. We are back in New York for Round 10 of the AMA FMF Outdoor National Series. The buzz today seems to be silly season rumors as there are still a large number of national caliber riders that are unsigned for next season. There have been a few announcements, but most riders who are not spoken for next season are still up in the air.

The other buzz is that this weekend marks the return of a couple of fast guys. First is Kawasaki's James Stewart, who is finally healed enough from his crash at Unadilla and his subsequent practice crash at Glen Helen a couple of weeks ago. In addition, the long-missing and now off-the-radar 2003 125 East Supercross Champion Brandon Jesseman is back on his Motoworld Suzuki. After a poor showing in his qualifying moto, Jesseman came back and won the 125 Last Chance Qualifier to earn his way into the big show.

Broome-Tioga marked the return of James Stewart Photo: Karl Ockert

Ryan Villopoto?..New Kid On the Block Photo: Karl Ockert

Broome-Tioga will also mark the professional debut for amateur sensation Ryan Villopoto. Villopoto, a long-time Team Green rider, will be riding for Mitch Payton's Monster Energy Pro Circuit squad. Ryan won the second qualifying race Sunday morning, besting a number of 125 class regulars.

Ryan Hughes has moved up to 250 class aboard an ECC Suzuki RMZ450. Ryan's switch comes on the tails of him signing with Suzuki to ride the WORCS series next year.

In other silly season news, the new Boo Koo (Energy Drink) Honda team has announced that they have indeed signed David Vuillemin for 2006. He will join Steve Boniface on the team. Boo Koo is getting into motorcycle racing in a big way as they have also signed on as the Title Sponsor of the new Advanstar Arenacross Series.

Brandon Jesseman made his long-awaited return at Broome-Tioga Photo: Carl Stone

Ryno steps up to the 250 class for the rest of the season Photo: Carl Stone

And then there is Makita Suzuki's Ricky Carmichael. What can be said that hasn't already been said? RC was once again four seconds faster than anybody in practice. Second fastest this week was James Stewart. RC has also owned Broome-Tioga for the last five years, and if you look back at his 125 days, the only time he has been beaten at Broome-Tioga was in 1998 when John Dowd bested him.

In the 125 class it is still Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Ivan Tedesco with a commanding points lead. He lost a bit of ground last week at Millville, but still holds a large enough lead that he could race defensively for the rest of the season and hold on to the title. The real battle right now is for second and third in points as there are five riders running very close in points and the outcome is far from decided.

125 Moto 1

With the 125 class so competitive this year, getting a good start is paramount to finishing well in any given Moto. Tedesco needs a top ten start, everybody else needs a holeshot. With ten different people having won Motos this season, getting a start anywhere from eleventh back pretty much makes winning an impossible task.

The start of 125 Moto 1 at Broome-Tioga was truly epic as Tedesco seemed to have the drive off the line on the inside, followed by Josh Grant, but when everything was said and done, KTM's Mike Alessi showed that he really is back to 100% by going around the outside to claim the holeshot.

Tedesco is getting consistently good starts Photo: Hal Kennedy

Tedesco came out of the first corner with a better line and went past Alessi, but Alessi straightened up and immediately went back by Tedesco. Meanwhile the Honda of Josh Grant continued to pressure Tedesco until he was also able to get by. Next it was Tedesco's teammate Matt Walker who would start putting the pressure on Ivan, but before Walker could really start hammering on Tedesco, Josh Grant went down and Tedesco was able to get through the carnage and make a small gap between himself and Walker.

At the end of the first lap Mike Alessi had more than a five second lead. He was followed by Tedesco, Walker, Ryan Mills, Grant Langston, Andrew Short, Jason Lawrence, Mike Brown, Paul Carpenter and Davi Millsaps. Josh Grant had fallen all of the way back to 14th.

In lap two, Alessi saw his window of opportunity and continued charging. Even though he cased the uphill double quite hard, he managed to hold on and put another couple of seconds on Tedesco. Matt Walker went down in the second lap and got back up in 15th position.

Alessi out to an early lead in 125 Moto 1 Photo: Hal Kennedy

Langston had a great first Moto, holding off a charging Helper Photo: Karl Ockert

In lap three is was Ryan Mills' turn to crash after inheriting third from Matt Walker. Mills' crash would put him out for the Moto. Further back in the pack, Josh Grant was starting to make his way back up into the top ten.

At this point in the Moto the lead pack had pretty much sorted itself out. The two riders who were on the move were Suzuki's Broc Hepler and Honda's Josh Grant. Hepler was turning lap times that were equal to or faster than Alessi, who was continuing to run away from the lead pack. Both Hepler and Grant were picking up a position every couple of laps.

Tedesco seemed to be riding defensively and protecting his points lead. Every time he was challenged he seemed to give up his position without much of a fight. But then again, he has everything to lose by getting into a situation where he could go down and possibly get injured.

J-Law continues to improve Photo: Carl Stone

Josh Grant is making a name for himself in the 125 class Photo: Carl Stone

As the Moto began to wind down Hepler turned it up another notch, first picking off Andrew Short to take over 3rd, then putting massive pressure on Langston in a bid to take over 2nd. Langston did everything possible to keep Hepler behind him. On the final lap there were several drag races between Hepler and Langston, but Langston managed to hold off Hepler and finish in 2nd.

At the end of 125 Moto 1 it was Alessi, Langston, Hepler, then a long gap back to Short, Lawrence, Josh Grant, Ivan Tedesco, Kelly Smith, Paul Carpenter and Davi Millsaps.

250 Moto 1

There was a great deal of anticipation for the start of the first 250 Moto. With James Stewart back in the mix, everyone was hoping for a repeat of the RC/Bubba battles from earlier in the season. While RC has continued to come out on top each time, James is still the only guy who has even come close to Carmichael all season. Even if James can only run with RC for a few laps it is better than what we have become accustomed to as RC runs away from the field week after week.

Carmichael nails the start of 250 Moto 1 Photo: Hal Kennedy

At the start of 250 Moto 1 it was Carmichael with the holeshot, followed by John Dowd and Justin Buckelew. Dowd and Buckelew were quickly disposed of by both Windham and Stewart and the race was on?.between Windham and Stewart.

Vuillemin rode from behind in 250 Moto 1 to save his 3rd place rank in the standings Photo: Karl Ockert

As the pair found open track Stewart immediately began pressuring Windham. But Windham, who has been running very close to Carmichael's pace most of the season, was not impressed. Stewart would catch KW and then KW would pull away. This happened over and over in the first two laps, but eventually Windham would start to pull a gap on Stewart.

At the end of the first lap it was RC, Windham, Stewart, Buckelew, Michael Byrne, Ryan Clark, Robby Reynard, John Dowd, Travis Preston and Matt Goerke in the top ten.

By the fourth lap Carmichael had a nearly ten second gap on Windham, who had managed to put nearly three and a half seconds between himself and Stewart. At this point it was clear that we would be watching another runaway victory by Carmichael, with Windham doing the same in second and Stewart doing the same in third.

As it has been with the 250 class for most of this season, the real action was back in the pack. Both Yamaha's David Vuillemin and Honda's Ernesto Fonseca had gotten horrible starts and were charging from the rear of the pack in an attempt to salvage points. These two are in a very close race for third overall in the standings and both needed to finish in the top ten to avoid losing ground in the standings.

Also having a great race today was the privateer from Texas, Robby Reynard. Reynard has long been a fan favorite and between himself, Michael Byrne, Travis Preston, Nick Wey, Matt Goerke and John Dowd there was nearly constant action on the track. The action between the riders outside of RC, KW, Stewart, Reed, Vuillemin and Fonseca is really starting to heat up as there seems to be a group of about seven or eight guys who are very evenly matched.

The Broome-Tioga crowd would have to wait for the RC/Bubba battle Photo: Karl Ockert

As the Moto wore on there were a number of changes in standings between these riders, and towards the end both Vuillemin and Fonseca joined the fray.

At the finish of 250 Moto 2 it was Carmichael, with nearly 30 seconds on Windham, followed by Stewart, with nearly a minute on Byrne, Preston, Reynard, Wey, Fonseca, Vuillemin, and Buckelew. Carmichael had actually managed to lap up through 9th place, decimating the field once again.

125 Moto 2

At the start of 125 Moto 2 Tedesco made an interesting gate choice by lining up on the far outside. At Broome-Tioga the far inside is usually considered to bet he best gate pick. Regardless, Tedesco was actually able to pull the holeshot, but was quickly under pressure from Mike Alessi.

This is where Motos are won and lost in the 125 class Photo: Carl Stone

Alessi made quick work of Tedesco, who then had to deal with even more pressure from a blazing fast Broc Hepler. Tedesco folded under the pressure and made a large bobble that let Hepler get by. Hepler wasted no time and quickly caught and passed Alessi for the lead.

At the end of the first lap it was Hepler, Alessi, Tedesco, Josh Grant, Mike Brown, Kelly Smith, Grant Langston, Andrew Short, Paul Carpenter, and Steve Boniface in the top ten. Shortly after the finish line jump Ryan Mills was able to get past Boniface to take over 10th.

The running order quickly stabilized and the 125 freight train was on the move. The only exception to this was Andrew Short, who managed to get past Langston on the second lap and Smith on the third lap.

Hepler dominates 125 Moto 2 Photo: Hal Kennedy

Short was fast in 125 Moto 2, but had to struggle through the lead pack Photo: Hal Kennedy

On the sixth lap Langston was also able to get by Smith, but Short had already made a nice gap for himself and was now pushing Mike Brown, as both riders started to gain on Josh Grant in 4th. At this point in the Moto Andrew Short was actually turning the fastest lap times on the track.

On the seventh lap Short got by Brown and began to close on Josh Grant. On the eighth lap Short caught Grant, but then bobbled and allowed Grant some breathing room. Grant's fortune wasn't long as Short once again caught him and began to apply more pressure. Further back KTM's Ryan Mills got past Carpenter.

Mike Brown continues to lose ground in the 125 overall season standings Photo: Carl Stone

On the ninth lap Short finally found his way around Grant and managed to open up a small gap in the whoops. Ryan Mills also managed to pick up another position by getting past Kelly Smith. Then in the tenth lap Danny Smith would get by Paul Carpenter to take over 10th.

At this point the running order would stay stable until the end of the Moto, with the exception of Kelly Smith getting back by Ryan Mills on the last lap when Mills stalled. At the finish of 125 Moto 2 it was Hepler, Alessi, Tedesco, Short, Josh Grant, Mike Brown, Grant Langston, Kelly Smith, Ryan Mills and Danny Smith.

250 Moto 2

The start of 250 Moto 2 was what everyone had hoped for as Stewart took the holeshot, followed by Carmichael and Fonseca. RC immediately began to put pressure on Stewart, but Stewart was able to hold him off. The Broome-Tioga crowd went nuts as the RC/Bubba battle commenced. Fans were running from one side of the track to the other to catch sight of the two, who were quickly leaving the rest of the pack behind.

Two-thirds of Team USA looking relaxed before start of 250 Moto 2 Photo: Hal Kennedy

At the end of lap one it was Stewart, Carmichael, Fonseca, Windham, Dowd, Vuillemin, Hughes, Wey, Buckelew and Preston.

As RC and Stewart started into lap two, Carmichael seemed to be leaving a couple of bike lengths between himself and Stewart as he sized up the situation. As they entered the back section Carmichael found a place to make his move. RC took the inside on a downhill in an attempt to squeeze Stewart out. But Stewart didn't back off, and although it appeared that he was attempting to avoid Carmichael, Stewart was over his head and bounced off of the side of RC and wadded himself.

Stewart gets the holeshot in 250 Moto 2 Photo: Karl Ockert

No sooner had the battle started than it was over. Once again James Stewart was down, this time holding his shoulder. James would eventually remount his bike and finish the lap without a rear fender, but this would be the end of the day for James as he pulled into the pits.

The speed at which Stewart and Carmichael were racing left Windham nearly ten seconds behind, so when Stewart went down Carmichael inherited a commanding lead. It was obvious at this point that we would be watching the Carmichael and Windham show once again, and once again the focus shifted to the racing going on further back in the pack.

Stewart leads an aggressive Carmichael in lap one of 250 Moto 2 Photo: Hal Kennedy

On the fourth lap Ryan Hughes began pressuring John Dowd. Dowd continued to shut the door on Ryno, but on the next lap Hughes was able to get by and make it stick. Further back Reynard managed to get past Preston to take over 9th.

On the next lap Wey also managed to get past Dowd. Then on lap six Byrne took his shot at Dowd and made a very aggressive pass. On lap seven Reynard got past Dowd and then set his sights on Byrne as Vuillemin began to close the gap on Fonseca.

Stewart after bouncing off of Carmichael. The kid gets an "A" for effort Photo: TOG

On lap eight Preston got by Dowd. On lap nine Byrne got by Wey. On lap ten Reynard passed Wey. On lap eleven Preston got past Wey. Once again we were seeing a very competitive game of musical chairs among the riders in 5th through 10th.

At this point things pretty much stabilized. Byrne managed to catch and pressure Hughes a couple of times, but Ryno held his ground and Byrne eventually dropped back. At the finish it was Carmichael, Windham, Fonseca, Vuillemin, Hughes, Byrne, Reynard, Preston, Wey and Dowd.

Wrap-Up

While 1st and 2nd place in the 250 class are all but wrapped up by Carmichael and Windham, we now have a tie for 3rd between Fonseca and Vuillemin. In addition, Fonseca scored his third 3rd place podium in as many races and seems to have turned it up a notch. As long as Fonseca can continue to get good starts, Vuillemin will be forced to push it to another level in order to take 3rd overall away from Fonseca.

Without RC, Windham would own the 2005 AMA 250 MX Championship Photo: Carl Stone

If the racing further back in the pack of the 250 class gets any more intense, both Fonseca and Vuillemin could find themselves with a much larger fight on their hands. And with the addition of Ryan Hughes to the 250 class, there could potentially be a new

3rd place guy in the last two rounds. Hughes had a very strong showing at Broome-Tioga with 15-5 Moto finishes. Not bad for the first ride on a new bike.

No matter how you slice it, the racing from 3rd place back is going to be intense in the 250 class for the last two rounds.

In the 125 class everything is really still up for grabs. While Tedesco has a comfortable lead in the points standings, one bad Moto could still change everything. Behind him in the standings are Alessi, Short and Josh Grant, all of whom have been finishing consistently better than Tedesco in the last couple of rounds. Tedesco is still the only guy in the top ten who has not had a truly bad round, which might also explain why he is riding to apparently protect his points lead, rather than being super aggressive and hanging it all the way out.

Tedesco is also moving up to the 250 class next season, so this is really his last opportunity to claim a 125 Outdoor Title.

RC victorious once again Photo: Hal Kennedy

Fonseca managed to pull down his third 3rd overall in a row Photo: Carl Stone

The pressure is also on everyone who has not yet signed a contract for next year. Sponsors are looking at performance very closely right now and everyone is pushing hard to get results in hopes of landing a better ride. To top this off, there are a number of very promising amateur riders who will be graduating to the pro ranks that are also vying for the same sponsorships. Already this season we have seen Jason Lawrence (J-Law) come into the 125 class and begin to make a name for himself. The same can be said for Daniel Sani and now Ryan Villopoto.

As we look forward to the first two weekends in September for the last two rounds of the 2005 AMA FMA Outdoor National Series at Steel City and Glen Helen, the competition is hitting fever pitch and one of the best seasons ever is going to finally come to an end. Two epic tracks will determine the outcome for the season and the racing will be intense. If you are anywhere near to either of these tracks, you have no excuse for not getting there to see the bar banging action in person. There may never be another season like this one.

RC earns another Fox and crossbones Photo: Karl Ockert