Reed maintains podium record with 2nd position in Houston

San Manuel Yamaha rider Chad Reed saw his run of five consecutive victories come to an end in Houston for the seventh round of seventeen in the 2008 AMA Supercross series, a FIM World Championship, but the Australian continued his 100% podium record with second position and guards a 32 point lead in the competition. The 42nd Supercross in Houston did not witness a fourth straight sweep for Yamaha in both classes even though Jason Lawrence did also climb the rostrum in second spot in the Lites West Coast category to remain poised at the top of the standings with one round to go. In 1974 Pierre Karsmakers marked Yamaha's first success in Houston and the manufacturer has enjoyed thirteen more triumphs since then, Reed himself contributing two of those. In a so-far-dominant campaign the number '22' was not able to increase his season statistics at the Reliant Stadium. Kevin Windham, who helped design the short layout, gained his first 25 points of the year after taking the lead on the first lap and setting the pace at the front. Reed, who had started badly, pulled through the pack to pass brand-mate Josh Hill and secure second place at mid-race distance but could not close to Windham's rear wheel. Tim Ferry was third.

"That's a tough one to swallow. I gave it everything I've got. Kevin rode a good race, and I want to congratulate him but this is a disappointment," said Reed, who took his third career runner-up position at Houston and has never dropped out of the top three at the event. "It was just one of those nights," added the 25 year old who has totalled 31 victories and became the first racer to win all the Californian rounds with his chequered flag last week in San Diego. "Once I got into second, I couldn't cut into Kevin's lead. We've had a good season, and it's still good to be up on the podium." 18 year old Hill was running as high as second before being overtaken by Reed and Ferry. With Broc Hepler and Grant Langston still absent with physical ailments (broken hand and an eye problem respectively) the teenager produced a positive showing for his second best result of the season so far. In the Lites category Yamaha of Troy's Jason Lawrence again made the podium for the fourth meeting in succession. His second position on the YZ250F behind Austin Stroupe and some costly mistakes by title rival Ryan Dungey means that the 20 year old stretched his advantage in the championship by five points, to six in total. The final round of the West coast series will take place on 26th April in Seattle as the East coast championship now cranks into life. "I think that might be my main advantage, being smart - something Dungey hasn't been all year. That's four races in a row that he's crashed out," said Lawrence. "He's handing me this title, and I've got one more race to hold it together. I'm going to go to that race and do exactly what I did right here. Dungey can win it by a mile, but I'm going to get the title." The schedule refuses to ease for the riders and teams and they continue onto Atlanta for round eight next weekend. Race 1 - 20 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 16'3.700 2, Chad Reed, Yamaha, AUS, 0'3.078 3, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 0'13.680 4, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, 0'17.600 5, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 0'23.850 6, Nathan Ramsey, Yamaha, USA, 0'41.159 7, Charles Summey, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 8, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 9, Nicholas Wey, KTM, USA, -1 Laps 10, David Vuillemin, Suzuki, FRA, -1 Laps 11, Paul Carpenter, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 12, Ryan Clark, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 13, Jeff Gibson, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 14, Jacob Marsack, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 15, Jason Thomas, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 16, Dusty Klatt, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 17, Bryan K Johnson, Honda, USA, -2 Laps 18, Antonio Balbi, Honda, USA, -3 Laps 19, Josh Hansen, Yamaha, USA, -4 Laps 20, Travis Preston, Honda, USA, -16 Laps Rider Standings 16/02/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Chad Reed, Yamaha, AUS, 169 2, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 137 3, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 119 4, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 101 5, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 98 6, Nathan Ramsey, Yamaha, USA, 85 7, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, 82 8, Nicholas Wey, KTM, USA, 77 9, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, 69 10, David Vuillemin, Suzuki, FRA, 60 11, Paul Carpenter, Honda, USA, 53 12, Charles Summey, Yamaha, USA, 53 13, Ivan Tedesco, Honda, USA, 53 14, James Stewart, Kawasaki, USA, 47 15, Grant Langston, Yamaha, RSA, 38 Manufacturer Standings 16/02/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 169 2, Honda, 145 3, Kawasaki, 142 4, Suzuki, 94 5, KTM, 77