Hill takes first SX victory in Minneapolis

Yamaha's Josh Hill toasted a fine maiden AMA-SX triumph in front of almost 41,000 fans at the Metrodome in Minneapolis last Saturday for round eleven of seventeen in the 2008 championship. The 18 year old steered his YZ450F to the chequered flag ahead of Ryan Dungey and Kevin Windham. Series leader Chad Reed was a protagonist in the Main Event but a crash dropped him down the race order and he finished seventh for the second week in succession. Reed, who was struggling with sickness and sat out second practice, was hounding the back wheel of early leader Hill as the Yamahas formation-flew in the first half of the sprint. The Australian then made an uncharacteristic mistake at the end of the whoops section, and his slip caused him to plummet down the leader-board to ninth position. Hill was then free to continue his fine rhythm to the finish line. "I knew that I had to get going because somewhere in the mix, Chad would be there," said Hill, a first ever debut-winner in Minneapolis who is currently negotiating his first season in the SX class. "I was just in the right place at the right time. Chad made a mistake, and I just cruised along to victory, pretty much. After I broke away from Dungey, I kind of just was able to get into a smooth pace and keep it going." "Chad had problems," he continued. "I haven't beaten Chad straight-up. Has anybody? He's gnarly! It's not going to be easy at all to do this again, and with my rollercoaster-ride season... if I keep my track-record, I should be 17th next weekend! But I think my program has really improved to a point where I'm mentally in the game a lot more when I show up to the race. Before, I'd really work hard during the week, and I'd do my homework, but I'd show up at the race and either be drained or just mentally not focused and I think Ryan Hughes has really helped me out with that." As for Reed it was the first time he has missed the podium for two races this season. His error also sliced his advantage in the overall standings down to 17 points with six rounds left to run. AMA Motocross Champion Grant Langston is still unable to compete due to an eye problem. Another Yamaha-mounted teenager, Tyler Bowers, was sixth in the East Coast Lites division on the YZ250F. The AMA-SX (also an FIM World Championship) campaign now enjoys a break for the first time this year. The teams and riders will have two weeks to recollect over Easter weekend before the trip to the Rogers Centre in Toronto on March 29th. Race 1 - 20 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, 16'7.800 2, Ryan Dungey, Suzuki, USA, 0'5.397 3, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 0'12.134 4, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 0'14.319 5, Thomas Hahn, Kawasaki, USA, 0'24.287 6, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 0'28.537 7, Chad Reed, Yamaha, AUS, 0'31.192 8, David Vuillemin, Suzuki, FRA, 0'32.536 9, Travis Preston, Kawasaki, USA, 0'33.729 10, Nathan Ramsey, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 11, Paul Carpenter, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 12, Charles Summey, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 13, Eric Sorby, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 14, Heath Voss, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 15, Nicholas Wey, KTM, USA, -1 Laps 16, Tyler Bright, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 17, Jeff Gibson, Kawasaki, USA, -2 Laps 18, Dusty Klatt, Kawasaki, USA, -2 Laps 19, Jason Thomas, Honda, USA, -5 Laps 20, Manuel Gomes Rivas, Kawasaki, ESP, -12 Laps Rider Standings 15/03/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Chad Reed, Yamaha, AUS, 237 2, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 220 3, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 172 4, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 164 5, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 137 6, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, 135 7, Nathan Ramsey, Yamaha, USA, 134 8, David Vuillemin, Suzuki, FRA, 115 9, Paul Carpenter, Honda, USA, 96 10, Nicholas Wey, KTM, USA, 95 11, Charles Summey, Yamaha, USA, 81 12, Heath Voss, Honda, USA, 74 13, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, 69 14, Jacob Marsack, Honda, USA, 61 15, Eric Sorby, Honda, USA, 55 23, Grant Langston, Yamaha, RSA, 38 36, Broc Hepler, Yamaha, USA, 3 Manufacturer Standings 15/03/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 249 2, Honda, 235 3, Kawasaki, 199 4, Suzuki, 164 5, KTM, 95