YOSHIMURA SUZUKI’S JAMES STEWART SECOND IN OVERALL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS AFTER TOP-FIVE FINISH AT HOUSTON
April 7, 2014
HOUSTON, TX (April 7, 2014) - Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing's James Stewart pushed through exhausting illness to move into second place in the overall championship points at round 14 of the 2014 AMA/FIM Supercross Championships. Despite his flagging health, Stewart turned in a truly inspired ride on his Yoshimura Suzuki RM-Z450 and finished fifth at NRG Stadium in Houston, TX, on Saturday night.
Although Stewart had been flying high from winning the last three rounds and capturing his 50th career Supercross victory, he came into the Lone Star State feeling under the weather. Despite this, he still gave 100 percent.
“This has been a rough week for me,” said Stewart. “I just had some kind of stomach bug and I’ve been feeling pretty weak. I felt good enough to travel to Houston, but I started feeling worse as the day went on. I rode the first untimed practice and the second timed session, but I was only able to ride two laps because I was feeling so bad.”
After spending as much time recuperating as possible, Stewart came out for his heat race and managed to take the win. Again retiring directly to the pits to convalesce, Stewart’s priority was to save his strength for the 20-lap main event. When the evening’s race started, Stewart got off the line in the top 10 after narrowly avoiding several riders who went down in turn-one. After that, the Yoshimura Suzuki rider settled safely into sixth and overtook fifth place by race’s end.
“In the heat race, I got a decent start and was able to pass for the lead but by the second lap, I was just done,” said Stewart. “I had no energy, I felt really weak and I made a few mistakes, but I was able to win. Afterward, I went back to the pits to try to recover and we were debating whether it was safe to go out and race the main. I wanted to, so I went out and got an OK start and made my way up to fifth and just salvaged everything I could. I’m happy with fifth, considering how I’m feeling. And I’m really happy about moving up to second in the points. Now I just want to get healthy and come back next weekend. We have three races left and I want to go out and get three W’s. I still feel good as far as riding goes, I just have to get healthy now.”
Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s next event is the 15th round of the 2014 AMA/FIM Supercross Championships on Saturday, April 12th, at Century Link Field in Seattle, WA.
Houston 450 Supercross Results:
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Justin Barcia
3. Ken Roczen
4. Trey Canard
5. James Stewart
6. Andrew Short
7. Ryan Dungey
8. Mike Alessi
9. Eli Tomac
10. Chris Blose
2014 450 Supercross Standings:
1. Ryan Villopoto – 293
2. James Stewart – 248
3. Ryan Dungey – 247
4. Ken Roczen – 235
5. Justin Barcia – 198
6. Justin Brayton – 196
7. Andrew Short – 181
8. Broc Tickle – 126
9. Will Hahn – 122
10. Josh Hill – 112
Check out the Houston “Behind The Scenes Race Report” at
http://youtu.be/mXgRgheAJh8
About Yoshimura R&D of America: Yoshimura is “The Leader in Performance” and has been for more than 55 years. With unmatched skills, knowledge, and passion for racing, Yoshimura is on the forefront of the aftermarket exhaust industry. Yoshimura pipes are race bred and feature the same legendary performance, fit and quality that has been their trademark for more than five decades. To learn more about Yoshimura and view their wide variety of performance products, visit www.yoshimura-rd.com.
About Suzuki: Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. (SMAI) distributes Motorcycles, ATVs, Scooters, Outboard Motors and Automotive Parts and Accessories via an extensive dealer network throughout 49 states. SMAI’s supplier, Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC), based in Hamamatsu, Japan, is a diversified worldwide manufacturer of Motorcycles, ATVs, Scooters, Automobiles and Outboard Motors. Founded in 1909 and incorporated in 1920, SMC has 147 distributors in 201 countries. For more information, visit www.suzuki.com
Team Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing is grateful for the support of their sponsors: Suzuki Motor of America, Yoshimura Racing, Motorex, Dunlop, Renthal, Vortex, Showa, Seven, Hinson Clutch Components, Renegade Fuels, Mechanix Wear, Works Connection, Twin Air, Moto Tassinari, Shorai, Matrix, N-Style, Zero Gravity, D.I.D., Excel, NGK, GET and RG3.
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