VICTORY AND PODIUMS FOR TEAM SUZUKI IN TORONTO SUPERCROSS
March 14, 2016
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross, FIM Championship went north of the border this past weekend to Canada to visit the Rogers Centre in Toronto. Team Suzuki riders turned in strong showings in front of 50,605 fans, with Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Ken Roczen capturing his third 450SX Class victory of the season.
Team Suzuki highlights for Toronto included:
- Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Ken Roczen scoring his third victory of the season on his Suzuki RM-Z450.
- Matthew Bisceglia scoring his first 250 East Supercross podium of the season with a third aboard his MAD Racing/Yoshimura/Suzuki RM-Z250.
- Soaring Eagle/Jimmy Johns/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Jake Weimer taking a top-10 finish in the 450 class final.
- Team MicroBilt/PRBC Suzuki’s Vicki Golden earning a spot in the evening program on her Suzuki RM-Z250.
Roczen Takes Toronto Victory
RCH Suzuki’s Ken Roczen avoided a first-lap pileup in the main event and used the razor-sharp handling of his Suzuki RM-Z450 to move through the field and into the lead on the second lap of Toronto’s 20-lap main event. From there, Roczen powered away to win with a solid 3.401-second margin of victory.
"It was an awesome race, the conditions were tough and my bike worked flawlessly," said Roczen, who now has three wins over the last six races. "This is my first win in Toronto, so let’s see if we can keep the ball rolling heading into Detroit next weekend."
It was a good night for RCH Suzuki overall, as teammate Jake Weimer scored another top-10 finish on his Suzuki RM-Z450 in Toronto. Roczen sits second in points as the championship heads to the final part of the season.
Yoshimura Suzuki’s Blake Baggett Continues Comeback
Yoshimura Suzuki’s Blake Baggett continued his comeback from a shoulder injury at the Rogers Centre. Baggett survived the massive first-lap pileup to finish 11th, his best result in three finishes so far this season aboard his Yoshimura Suzuki RM-Z450.
“It was near carnage in the first turn,” Baggett explained. “I got into the back end of (Justin) Bogle when he went down and got stuck. All in all, I’m just trying to get better each weekend. We’re doing some good testing now and hopefully we can keep improving and try to get into that top five and maybe on the podium before Supercross is over and then head into the outdoors.”
Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart was sidelined, still recovering from a crash the previous round that left him badly bruised. Stewart hopes to return to action soon, perhaps as early as this coming round in Detroit.
In addition to the three factory Suzuki riders, Nicholas Schmidt (TPJ/Fly Racing/Suzuki) and Kyle Cunningham (Motorcycle Superstore/Suzuki) both put their Suzuki RM-Z450s into the main even and finished 16th and 19th respectively.
A Breakthrough for MAD Racing/Yoshimura/Suzuki’s Matt Bisceglia
It was a standout weekend for MAD Racing/Yoshimura/Suzuki’s Matt Bisceglia. Bisceglia raced his speedy Suzuki RM-Z250 to third in the 250 East final in Toronto. It marked the first podium of the season for the Texan.
“It was a good race” said Bisceglia, who put his Suzuki out front and into the lead for the first two laps of the final. “I’ve just been trying over the last couple of weeks to get as ready as I can. It feels good to be up here on the podium. My Suzuki got me off to a great start and I just went out there and had fun. It felt awesome.”
Jimmy Albertson also made the 250 East main in Toronto on his Motorcycle Superstore/Suzuki RM-Z250. He finished 17th.
Vicki Golden Makes Evening Program
It was a good night in Canada for Vicki Golden on the Team MicroBilt/PRBC Suzuki RM-Z250. The only female regular on the circuit qualified inside the Fast 40 and transferred to the evening program for the first time this season.
Also putting their Suzukis in the night show were 450 riders Dustin Pipes, Alexander Nagy, Steve Roman and Johnnie Buller.
The series next moves to Detroit’s Ford Field on March 19. The race will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 2 starting at 7:00 pm Eastern. Several Suzuki riders will be on hand early to meet fans and sign autographs from 6-7:00 pm on Friday, March 18 at Roseneau Powersports, 24732 Ford Road, Dearborn, MI 48127.
Back to News