Baggett Crowned 2012 Lites Outdoor Motocross Champion At Lake Elsinore

The 2012 Pro Motocross Championship had an exciting end on September 9th at the historic Lake Elsinore motocross track. Two of the three class title champions were still undecided heading into the final race. Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey, proved he deserved his crowning of the 450 title by once again taking an overall win… his 10th consecutive victory in the 450 Class. All eyes were on the Lites class, as Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett led by just 14 points prior to the day’s results. He proved his speed though, and successfully earned his first pro title by fending off strong challenges by Team Geico Honda’s Eli Tomac and Justin Barcia. Baggett surprised many by racing hard for the moto 1 win instead of remaining safe and steady. Baggett worked his way to the front after a bad start and took the win away from his challengers. In moto 2 Justin Barcia opened up a nice lead and could possibly have taken away the title with his commanding moto 2 win. Baggett however, answered back by flying through the stacked field to finish in second. Amazingly, Baggett even went down in a turn and fell back again, yet fought his way all the way back to a second place finish to take the overall win and the 2012 season title. Mitch Payton of Pro Circuit, Baggett’s team owner, was ecstatic, as the win marked the team’s 100th victory. Many had expected a possible upset by Team Honda’s Eli Tomac, but unfortunately he faced bad luck in both motos. In moto 1 he ran out of stamina due to heat exhaustion,  after an impressive charge to steal Baggett’s lead and title. Then in moto 2 Tomac lost all hopes with multiple issues, and had to settle for a disappointing 14th place, for a 7th place finish and a third place overall behind Barcia.

The final round of the WMX  Women’s Motocross Championship was actually the closest title chase of all. Just 10 points separated the top three riders heading into Lake Elsinore. An Italian rider named Chiara Fontanesi, who was recently crowned Women’s World Champion won both motos and emerged as the talk of the class. Ashley Fiolek however, was the true winner, taking home the 2012 WMX Championship title. Her closest competitor in points, Rockstar Suzuki’s Jessica Patterson was unsuccessfully in chasing down Fiolek due to a crash and injury, and had to settle with a third overall in points. Meanwhile, Tara Geiger’s fifth place finish, was enough to land her a season best second overall in points. Mariana Balbi of Brazil had a very impressive year, continuing to build momentum, finishing second on the day and forth overall for the season.

2012 Lake Elsinore 450 Overall Results:
1. Ryan Dungey, KTM (1-1)
2. Mike Alessi, Suzuki (2-2)
3. Broc Tickle, Kawasaki (3-3)
4. Tyla Rattray,  Kawasaki (4-4)
5. Jake Weimer,  Kawasaki (5-9)
6. Justin Brayton,  Honda (12-5)
7. Christian Craig, Honda (7-10)
8. Andrew Short,  Honda (8-13)
9. Ben LaMay, Yamaha (10-12)
10. Weston Peick, Suzuki (13-11)

2012 Final 450 Class Championship Standings
1. Ryan Dungey, KTM, 580
2. Mike Alessi,  Suzuki, 453
3. Jake Weimer,  Kawasaki, 355
4. Andrew Short,  Honda, 354
5. Broc Tickle, Kawasaki, 349
6. Josh Grant, Kawasaki, 277
7. Justin Brayton,  Honda, 247
8. Kyle Chisholm, Kawasaki, 211
9. Davi Millsaps,  Yamaha, 176
10. Tyla Rattray, Kawasaki, 172

2012 Lake Elsinore 250 Lites Overall Results:
1. Blake Baggett,  Kawasaki (1-2)
2. Justin Barcia, Honda (3-1)
3. Marvin Musquin,  KTM (4-3)
4. Wil Hahn, Honda (5-4)
5. Malcolm Stewart,  KTM (7-6)
6. Ken Roczen,  KTM (6-7)
7. Eli Tomac,  Honda (2-14)
8. Blake Wharton, Suzuki (8-8)
9. Jeremy Martin, Yamaha (10-10)
10. Jessy Nelson, Honda (9-13)

2012 Final 250 Class Championship Standings
1. Blake Baggett,  Kawasaki, 519
2. Justin Barcia,  Honda, 499
3. Eli Tomac,  Honda, 487
4. Ken Roczen,  KTM, 456
5. Marvin Musquin, KTM, 406
6. Wil Hahn, Honda, 316
7. Blake Wharton, Suzuki, 265
8. Jason Anderson,  Suzuki, 238
9. Jessy Nelson,  Honda, 225
10. Travis Baker,  Honda, 193

2012 Lake Elsinore WMX Women’s Overall Results:
1. Chiara Fontanesi,  Yamaha (1-1)
2. Mariana Balbi,  Honda (3-2)
3. Ashley Fiolek,  Honda (2-3)
4. Tarah Gieger,  Honda (5-5)
5. Taylor Higgins,  Honda (8-4)
6. Jacqueline Strong,  KTM (6-6)
7. Alexah Pearson,  KTM (9-7)
8. Lindsey Palmer,  Kawasaki (12-8)
9. Sade Allender,  Honda (11-9)
10. Hailey Larson,  Honda (10-10)

2012 Final WMX Women’s Class Championship Standings
1. Ashley Fiolek, Honda, 317
2. Tarah Gieger,  Honda, 302
3. Jessica Patterson, Suzuki, 298
4. Mariana Balbi,  Honda, 269
5. Jacqueline Strong, KTM, 236
6. Sara Pettersson, KTM, 223
7. Alexah Pearson,  KTM, 175
8. Kasie Creson, Honda, 174
9. Sade Allender,  Honda, 170
10. Amanda Brown,  Honda, 142