Lakewood, Colorado — For the sixth consecutive year, the United States has taken its claim as the premier nation when it comes to motocross. Also this 2010 Motocross of Nations was filled with about 32,000 Motocross racing fans!

The U.S.A. team of Ryan Dungey, Trey Canard and Andrew Short captured the 2010 FIM Red Bull Motocross of Nations at Thunder Valley on Sunday, outperforming 19 other countries in the first time the 64-year-old event has taken place in the Western U.S., and only third time in this country.

Motocross Des Nations Starting Gate

It came down to the last of three finals when Dungey and Short finished Nos. 1 and 2 among 40 competitors to stave off Belgium and Germany and extend the USA’s Chamberlain Cup reign to six.

“Ryan just killed it (Sunday),” Canard said. “It was amazing to watch.”

Dungey, the veteran member of the U.S. squad, indeed was the key figure to the victory by finishing first in both of his events (each competitor races in two of the three finals). Dungey also was a central figure in the team’s win in Italy in 2009.

“It was a lot of effort and a lot of hard work,” said Dungey, a four-time AMA champion since turning pro in 2006.

“Our team had to get together and make a game plan, and it seemed like we all worked together, which helped a lot.”

Spectators from nearby and halfway around the world packed their way into the sun-drenched venue. They witnessed Canard turn in 12th- and seventh-place performances while Short managed a 13th-place tally before his runner-up finish. By rule, each country’s worst score is thrown out, so Short’s No. 13 finish — he collided early in Race 2 with eventual winner Ben Townley of New Zealand — was etched off the ledger.

“I didn’t know where we sat as far as points entering the last race,” said Short, who grew up in Colorado Springs but races out of Texas. “But I knew I had to hit the reset button.”

The U.S. has won the event an unprecedented 21 times since it was unearthed in 1947 and finished with a race-low 23 points, ahead of Belgium (30), Germany

Ryan Dungey, the veteran of the U.S. squad, keeps it tight around a corner Sunday en route to a victory in Race 3 on a Suzuki. He also won Race 1 to pace the Americans at Thunder Valley. (44) and Great Britain (45). Making this one perhaps a bit more special is it improved the U.S. to 3-0 on home soil — New Berlin, N.Y., in 1987 and Mechanicsville, Md., in 2007 were the other in-country sites — as the event went beyond the East Coast for the first time.

“It thought it was pretty good here,” Dungey said. “They did a fantastic job with the track layout, and the fans were awesome.”

In the B-final earlier in the day, Ireland nabbed first place to earn a spot in the finals. The B-final featured the 11 teams that did not qualify for the main event, with only the winner invited to move on.

Results from finals (composite total of placing with worst score thrown out): United States 23, Belgium 30, Germany 44, Great Britain 45, Italy 50, Australia 54, France 71, Canada, 86, New Zealand 90, Portugal 94, Puerto Rico 99, Switzerland 102, Austria 109. Spain 115, Finland 116, Estonia 118, Latvia 121, Brazil 123, Japan 128, Ireland 142.

B-final: Ireland 5, Ecuador 11, Sweden 14, Venezuela 16, Costa Rica 25, Ukraine 27, Guatemala 29, Mexico 42, Lithuania 50, Philippines 53, Iceland 54.

Motocross Nations Top Ten: USA, Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Australia, France, New Zealand, Portugal, Puerto Rico.

Congratulations to team USA (Dungey, Short, Canard)!

2010 RED BULL FIM MXoN - FUN FACTS
Circuit length: 1740 mt
Type of ground: intermediate hard pack
Temperature: 26° C
Weather conditions: sunny
Denver (Lakewood) crowd attendance during weekend: 32000

Aerial Photographs done by Colorado Sky Shots

Thunder Valley MXON

Motocross Of Nations

2010 MXON Freestyle Show