JDR/J-Star/KTM rider Tye Simmonds had a decent showing at his first-ever U.S. AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series race finishing 16^th overall.

The opening round of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series took place at Hangtown Raceway. Simmonds qualifying times were not as decent as he expected, qualifying 28^th fastest into moto one. Despite his poor gate pick for the moto, Simmonds was able to come around the first corner in 12^th position.

“I was able to get a pretty nice start in the first moto and was very close to the top ten as we rounded the first corner. The start is key in every race and starting better than I typically do really helped me in the first moto score,” remarked Simmonds.

Simmonds moved up to 11^th on the second lap and maintained that position for the majority of the race. With only three laps to go he lost one position to Ricky Dietrich before crossing the finish line in 12^th overall.

The second moto was a bit tougher for the Australian as he rounded the first lap in 19^th place. He passed one rider for 18^th on lap two but then struggled to find his pace in the moto.
“I was riding really tight the first few laps and wasn’t able to get into a good rhythm,” stated Simmonds. He eventually got into his comfort zone around the halfway point at which time he picked off two more riders and moved into his finishing position of 16^th overall. His 12-16 moto scores earned him 16^th overall for the day.

“My overall goal is to be inside the top ten. I think this is a realistic goal for me in my first race season. I am really looking forward to Texas as I know my conditioning should come into play at that round and hopefully I inch closer to a top ten result.”

Next Event: Freestone MX – May 28, 2011

Overall Results 450 Class –

1)    Chad Reed – 2,1

2)    Ryan Dungey – 1,2

3)    Ryan Villopoto – 3,3

4)    Kevin Windham – 6,4

5)    Brett Metcalfe – 5,5

6)    Davi Millsaps – 4,7

7)    Tommy Hahn – 8,8

8)    Christophe Pourcel – 7,11

9)    Ricky Dietrich – 11,9

10) Christian Craig – 14,10

11) Michael Byrne – 10, 14

12) Jake Weimer – 21,6

13) Kyle Chisholm – 16,12

14) Nick Wey – 15,13

15) Mike Brown – 13,15 (KTM)

16) Tye Simmonds – 12,16 (KTM)

17) Andrew Short – 9,34 (KTM)

18)  Calle Aspergren – 26,17

19) Kevin Rookstool – 19,19 (KTM)

20) Robby Bell – 17,22

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