February 16, 2005
Indianapolis, IN - Team Monster/Pro Circuit /Kawasaki's Grant Langston celebrated his return to competition at the opening round of the 125 Eastern Regional Supercross Series in a big way. The promising young rider finished second in the 125 main event before a crowd of 52,833 at the sixth round of the THQ AMA Supercross Series at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.
Langston nearly pulled off the win but still brought home a satisfying finish for his first Supercross event in over a year. After finishing second to Steve Boniface in his heat race, Langston was determined to get a good start in the main and put his Kawasaki KX250F in position to make a run for the win. He got off the line well at the start, but found himself trailing Davi Millsaps as they began the first of 15 laps. Langston would hound Millsaps for the entire race, never allowing more than a couple of seconds to separate the two. He actually pulled alongside Milsaps’ rear tire a couple of times, but was unable to make the pass as Millsaps gained additional ground to become the eventual winner.
"I'm definitely happy for the result, but I knew tonight was my shot at getting a win," said Langston. "I can’t complain; it felt good to be back, and my Kawasaki ran great. I’m also in a good position for the points,” Langston continued. “22 points is a lot better than no points, we’ll just have to get them next time.”
Team Monster/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider and Langston’s teammate Matt Walker wound up taking the checkered flag for his heat race after Josh Hansen lost his gas cap and went down just past the mechanics area. Walker started the 125 main event in 8th following the first turn and seemed to gain momentum during the 15-lap event, but time ran out and Walker was forced to accept a 5th place finish.
Kawasaki’s Michael Byrne had an up-and-down evening, as his eight-lap 250 heat race pitted him against both Ricky Carmichael and Kevin Windham, with Byrne delivering a consistent performance to register a third place finish in the qualifier. The main event, however, was not as satisfying, as the affable Australian encountered some problems on the track. After remaining in the top seven throughout the first half of the race, Byrne fell after tangling with Sebastian Tortelli on lap 10. The unfortunate mishap caused Byrne to accept a disappointing 10th place finish. Carmichael took his fifth-straight checkered flag for the season. Byrne currently sits at 8th in the overall 250 point standings.
The THQ AMA Supercross Series returns to Southern California this Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego for the seventh stop on the 16-race series.
