YZ450F rider James Stewart aced his tenth victory of the 2009 AMA Supercross series - also an FIM World Championship - by taking the chequered flag at Jacksonville for round 14 of 17. The LandM San Manuel representative again finished ahead of arch-rival Chad Reed and has now narrowed the deficit in the standings to just 5 points from the Australian with three races remaining.
Over 31,000 spectators flocked to the Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for the first visit of the supercross show to the Florida venue. For Stewart it was another chance to sample some spoils in his home State after disappointment earlier in the campaign at Daytona.
The 23 year old owned his qualification heat, and in the main event shadowed leader Reed for much of the 20 lap duration before a flurry of exchanges for control took place. Stewart emerged victorious from the duel; that mirrors the close struggle for the title now complete with the mind games and pressure that goes with the high stakes.
“The championship’s on the line, and there is tension. If I threw dirt at him, or he threw dirt at me, we’re going to flare up, and it’s just part of racing. He rode great tonight. I can’t take anything away from him, and for me, I just came out on the better end. I have a week off to regroup, and we’ll see what happens,” he said after equalling Yamaha’s highest win total in one season, set by Jeremy McGrath in 2000. It was also his 35th career success.
Stewart has again reduced Reed’s numerical advantage in the championship after having to recover from a first round DNF in Los Angeles. Stewart’s own grip on the series was loosened after his seventh place at Daytona (Reed has not finished off the podium) and since then he has been playing catch-up once more to the champion with two triumphs in the last two weeks.
Josh Hill was fourth in Jacksonville, Kyle Chisholm notched his best finish yet with eighth and Josh Grant failed to reach the chequered flag.
Round fifteen will take place at the Qwest Stadium in Seattle in two weeks time.
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