Sunday, October 4 - Autodromo di Franciarcorta, Italy

Team USA wins 2009 Motocross of Nations. Success. And there were so many 'successes' in so many areas.

This event was so successful in so many ways. Of course, Team USA was successful - they won the most prestigous motocross event in the world. But also, the country of Italy was successful - they put on one of the best, if not the best race - ever.

So many 'successes' in so many ways. The infrastructure of the facility, Youthstream as the promoter, DBO as the organizer, FIM as the sanctioning body, the condition & maintenance of the track, the press areas ... and the fans.

Absolutely the fans were 'successful'. They made this into a very special event - over 90,000 people on hand during the entire weekend. The Italian crowd made this a day to remember - forever. They were not just fans. They wanted to be part of the story. They wanted to be involved. They wanted to participate. They wanted to make a difference. And they did!

We hope the photos and the video help tell the story ...

Results 2009 Motocross of Nations

1. USA - Dungey, Weimer, Tedesco
   
2. FRANCE - Paulin, Frossard, Musquin
   
3. BELGIUM - Ramon, Desalle, Roelants
   
4. GERMANY - Nagel, Roczen, Siegl
   
5. GREAT BRITAIN - Searle, Simpson, Mackenzie
   
6. ITALY - Cairoli Philippaerts, Guarneri
   
7. AUSTRALIA - Reed, Metcalfe, Byrne
   
8. ESTONIA - A Leok, T Leok, Krestinov
   
9. SOUTH AFRICA - Swanepoel, Rattray, Bradshaw
   
10. SWITZERLAND - Bill, Tonus, Wicht
    

Today was Team USA's 20th time in winning the event, starting with their first victory back in 1981, at Lommel, Belgium.

Race 1 was the MX1 & MX2 classes. World FIM Motocross World Champion and home country hero Tony Cairoli dominated, pleasing the Italian crowd. He was chased closely by AMA Motocross Champian Chad Reed to the finish.

Race 2 was MX2 & OPEN classes. This race was won by French rider Gautier Paulin - on a 450. Ivan Tedesco ran second most of the race, but was passed by 2008 World Motocross Champion and Italian David Philippearts on the last lap.

Race 3 was the OPEN & MX1 classes. It would determine which country would come away with the coveted Chamberlain Trophy. But it was partially an outcome marred by crashes. Two of them at the start - taking out Tony Cairoli entirely, along with Gautier Paulin, and a Finnish rider. Also involved in falling down were Clement Desalle and Chad Reed. Ryan Dungey put in the ride of his life, riding the #1 450 Suzuki. He won the race, anchoring Team USA's win.

Scoring in the 'Nations' takes the five best finishes out of the six total for each team. That means each team is able to throw out it's worst finish of the day.

Click on the thumbnail to view the larger images. The huge Italian crowd. Ryan Dungey #1 on the 450 Suzuki. Tony Cairoli leads Chad Reed in Heat 1. Ryan Dungey #1. Ivan Tedesco over a jump on his number 3 Honda. Close up Ivan Tedesco. Jake Weimer number 2. Jonathan Barragan leads Ryan Dungey and Steve Ramon in the third race. Tony Cairoli rode with the number 13, won the first race, had a crash in his second race. One of a few podium shots - Americans on top, Team France on the left finished second, and Team Belgium on the left finished third. Team USA atop the podium. Josh Coppins rode for New Zealand. Some crazy Americans in the crowd! Just a small sample of the huge Italian crowd. Ryan Dungey speaks at the post event press conference, along with Jake Weimer and Ivan Tedesco. Ryan Dungey and Ivan Tedesco celebrate right after the final moto of the day. Country flags, with a backdrop of part of the massive crowd. FIM President Vito Ipolito awards the gold medals to Team USA. Number 3 on the start grid - Ivan Tedesco. Number 29 is Ken Roczen, riding for Germany - only 15 years old! Gotta give the race techs some love! Dungey and Weimer machines before moto 1. Brett Metcalfe, riding for Australia, right after one of his races. Would say more crazy Americans, except there is a Belgian in the group! The top three teams in the press conference area after the event. Same. Thanks Ryan! Gautier Paulin, from France, won his first moto - had a crash in the second. David Philippaerts of Team Italy. Team USA hoists the Chamberlain Trophy. Twice. Tyla Rattray, riding for South Africa, right before the start of the first heat. Ryan Dungey and Roger De Coster before the first moto. Close of of Great Britain's Tommy Searle. Team Belgium, l-r Clement Desalle, Steve Ramon, Joel Roelants, and team manager Joel Smets. Team France, with the jersey of Gautier Paulin, who crashed in the final heat. The entire American contingent on the podium. Ivan Tedesco right after the race is complete. Amanda did many things, including hosting the USA team's press conferences. USA! USA! USA!