PICKERINGTON, Ohio-- Jurgen Kunzel and Micky Dymond wrapped up a spectacular weekend of racing in the AMA Red Bull Supermoto A-Go-Go season finale in front of a crowd estimated to be in excess of 40,000 fans on the downtown streets of Reno. Both the AMA Supermoto and Supermoto Unlimited Championships were won in dramatic fashion.
Kunzel had undoubtedly the best week of his racing career. The 31-year-old German won his first AMA Supermoto race in Nashville on Sept. 24 riding his Red Bull KTM and a week later he scored a come-from-behind championship in Reno. Kunzel came into the Reno final 31-points behind series leader and defending champ Jeff Ward. After finishing third in the first race to Ward’s second, Kunzel needed a major break in the double-points paying finale to steal away the championship from Ward.
In the finale Kunzel got just the opening he needed when Ward crashed and struggled for a long time to restart his bike. In the meantime Kunzel rode hard to a solid second-place result behind doubleheader winner Mark Burkhart. That gave Kunzel enough points to earn the title, finishing 16 points ahead of Ward in the final standings.
As Kunzel rode up to the podium his Red Bull KTM team members were celebrating, but Kunzel smiled nervously, not yet believing the title was actually his. When AMA Pro Racing’s Michele Rossi finally handed him the No. 1 plate, he jumped for joy into the arms of teammate Kurt Nicoll.
“I could not believe that I won the championship,” said an elated Kunzel. “I felt very bad for Jeff (Ward). He had a great season and it was a tough way for him to lose the championship. At the same time I’m overjoyed for my team. They put so much work into this. I’ve worked hard for three years to get to this point. I had so much bad luck in my racing career over here, perhaps I was due for a little good luck.”
Kunzel gave KTM its first individual AMA Supermoto Championship. Red Bull KTM also earned the team championship.
Kunzel, who scored seven podium finishes in the 12-round series including the Nashville win, is the first German to win an AMA championship in over 30 years. Adolph Weil won the Trans-AMA Motocross Championship in 1973.
Micky Dymond won the AMA Supermoto Unlimited Championship in the final turn of the final lap of the Reno race. He and New Zealander Darryl Atkins battled wheel to wheel for the victory. Whoever won the race would win the title. Atkins charged hard into the final turn and ran just a tad wide. That allowed Dymond to run underneath Atkins. The two made contact and Atkins slid off into the hay bales. Atkins picked up his bike and pushed it across the start-finish line to score third, but Dymond’s victory gave him the title by four points over Atkins.
“This is amazing to come back and win another AMA championship after so many years,” said Dymond, who was a two-time AMA 125 Motocross Champion in the mid-1980s. “I’m having so much fun with racing right now just doing things that I like to do. To win this title is just a bonus. Supermoto is definitely a up-and-coming sport and I’m glad to get my name in the record books in this series.”
Dymond was a picture of consistency in 2005, scoring five podiums in the six-race series. His Reno win was his first-career victory in the series.
Team HMC/Generations of Sonoma won the team championship with riders Atkins, Cole Walsdorf and David Baffeleuf.
About AMA Pro Racing
AMA Pro Racing is the leading sanctioning body for motorcycle sport in the United States. Its properties include the THQ AMA Supercross Series, the AMA Motocross Championship, the AMA Superbike Championship, the AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship and the AMA Supermoto Championship. For more information about AMA Pro Racing, visit www.amaproracing.com.
