Yamaha's Grant Langston, of Clermont, Fla., won the Rockstar Energy Drink U.S. Open at the packed MGM Grand Garden Arena tonight finishing 2-5 and winning $100,000. Honda's Jake Weimer, of Rupert, Idaho, won the main event."That was the craziest race of my entire life," said an elated Langston. "I was hit about 15 times out there tonight, and I hit 15 people myself. I didn't know where I was at, so I kept looking at my pit board. I never gave up tonight."
Last night's champion, Chad Reed, needed to win the Progressive Holeshot and the main event tonight to win the $250,000 Trifecta Bonus Award. Earlier in the evening, he captured the superpole, which put him one step closer to the jackpot.
When the gate dropped, the field of 14 riders sprinted to the first turn. Reed, Langston and Tim Ferry tangled in turn one, ending all hopes of winning the $250,000. Weimer won the Progressive Holeshot with fellow Honda rider Josh Demuth, of Keller, Texas, in tow.
"I never gave up after that crash," added Langston
On lap 11 Reed and Honda's Andrew Short, of Smithville, Texas, collided and crashed. Upon re-entering the race, Reed crashed again with Langston. Weimer held on for the win, Demuth finished second and Suzuki's Mike Alessi, of Victorville, Calif., finished third.
"That was an awesome race," said Weimer. "I crashed last night and made up for it tonight with a great start."
Last night Reed led all 20 laps of the main event, beating Langston and Short respectively.
"I was going for the holeshot and went down," said Reed. "Timmy (Ferry) had a bad night last ... we race with a lot of emotion and things happen."
Although Langston and Reed tied in overall points, Langston was awarded the victory due to his fifth-place finish over Reed's eighth-place finish tonight. In the two-race format, the results of the second race take precedence over the first race.
Honda's Mike LaRocco swept both nights of racing in the Alpinestars Rematch race. LaRocco, who won the 2002 U.S. Open championship, and Jeff Emig, who won the 1999 U.S. Open championship, traded positions several times in tonight's main event before Emig stalled the bike in the corner, allowing LaRocco to run away with the win.
Open Class Results Overall Results
1) Grant Langston, Clermont, Fla., Yamaha, 38pts, 2-5
2) Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha, 38pts, 1-8
3) Josh Demuth, Keller, Texas, Honda, 37pts, 6-2
4) Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Honda, 36pts, 10-1
5) Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., Suzuki, 36pts, 5-3
6) Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda, 34pts, 3-7
7) Dan Reardon, Australia, Honda, 32pts, 7-4
8) Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, KTM, 28pts, 8-6
9) Tim Ferry, Largo, Fla., Kawasaki, 27pts, 4-12
10) Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Suzuki, 22pts, 9-11
Alpinestars Rematch Race Overall Results
1) Mike LaRocco
2) Damon Huffman
3) Jeff Emig
Open Class Results, Saturday
1) Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Honda
2) Josh Demuth, Keller, Texas, Honda
3) Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., Suzuki
4) Dan Reardon, Australia, Honda
5) Grant Langston, Clermont, Fla., Yamaha
6) Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, KTM
7) Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda
8) Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha
9) Heath Voss, Mico, Texas, Honda
10) Jason Thomas, Melrose, Fla., Honda
Alpinestars Rematch Race, Saturday
1) Mike LaRocco
2) Damon Huffman
3) Jeff Emig
KTM Junior Supercross Challenge Results, Saturday
1. Joey Crown, Metamora, Mich., KTM
2. Tristan Miller, Alpine, Calif., KTM
3. Sean Cantrell, Newbury Park, Calif., KTM
4. Shawn Lewis, Jackson, Ga., KTM
5. Bret Welch, Oklahoma City, Okla., KTM
6. Jack Flower, Dallas, Ore., KTM
7. Cobe Lehnertz, Lodi, Calif., KTM
8. Logan Chambers, Parker, Ariz., KTM
9. JJ Kepley, Laurel, Miss., KTM
10. Grayson Graham, Bainbridge, Ga., KTM
11. Skylar Demuth, Boca Raton, Fla., KTM
12. Dylan Bolinger, Corona, Calif., KTM
13. Christopher Boothe, Atkins, Va., KTM
14. Stephane Sum, Loretto, ON
15. Cody Purcell, Redondo Beach, Calif., KTM
16. Clay Woeste, Florence, Ken., KTM
Open Class Results, Friday
1) Chad Reed, Tampa, Fla., Yamaha
2) Grant Langston, Clermont, Fla., Yamaha
3) Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda
4) Tim Ferry, Largo, Fla., Kawasaki
5) Mike Alessi, Victorville, Calif., Suzuki
6) Josh Demuth, Keller, Texas, Honda
7) Dan Reardon, Australia, Honda
8) Justin Brayton, Fort Dodge, Iowa, KTM
9) Michael Byrne, Newnan, Ga., Suzuki
10) Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Honda
Alpinestars Rematch Results, Friday
1. Mike LaRocco
2. Jeff Emig
3. Damon Huffman
KTM Junior Supercross Challenge, Friday
17. Tristan Miller, Alpine, Calif., KTM
18. Sean Cantrell, Newbury Park, Calif., KTM
19. Logan Chambers, Parker, Ariz., KTM
20. Cody Purcell, Redondo Beach, Calif., KTM
21. JJ Kepley, Laurel, Miss., KTM
22. Clay Woeste, Florence, Ken., KTM
23. Joey Crown, Metamora, Mich., KTM
24. Shawn Lewis, Jackson, Ga., KTM
25. Christopher Boothe, Atkins, Va., KTM
26. Skylar Demuth, Boca Raton, Fla., KTM
27. Cobe Lehnertz, Lodi, Calif., KTM
28. Dylan Bolinger, Corona, Calif., KTM
29. Grayson Graham, Bainbridge, Ga., KTM
30. Stephane Sum, Loretto, ON
31. Bret Welch, Oklahoma City, Okla., KTM
32. Jack Flower, Dallas, Ore., KTM
Source: LiveNation