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Jeff Ward proved once again that he's still got more than enough fight left in him to go toe-to-toe with the sport's young lions. In only his second AMA Red Bull Supermoto race, the 42-year-old former AMA Supercross and Motocross champion claimed his second victory.

• 70 Columbus photos online from 4 photographers! (photos by Ray Gundy, Brian J. Nelson, Jerid Davies and Larry Lawrence)

The triumph for the Troy Lee Designs Honda pilot at the Columbus Supermoto contest didn't come easy, however, as he was forced to fight his way up from a substandard start and capitalize on the mistakes of multi-time AMA Motocross Champion Doug Henry and Benjamin Carlson before ultimately taking the checkered flag.

The teenaged Carlson had been the star of the day up until the main event, setting the fastest time in qualifying, winning Superpole, and taking the win in the earlier Supermoto Unlimited class final. And for the majority of the 20-lap race, the Red Bull HMC KTM runner looked like he might be able to sweep the day's marquee events.

His race started off fortuitously enough, as he emerged from a first corner collision that also involved Ward, and Ward's teammate, Jeremy McGrath, in the lead, while the legends dropped to fifth and sixth, respectively. Carlson went on to lead the next 17 laps, despite a fascinating back and forth battle with supermoto newcomer Henry. The former triple AMA Motocross champ repeatedly closed on the youngster through the dirt, only to be left in his wake through the paved sections.

Henry's bid for the lead evaporated on lap 10, when he attempted to force the issue. "I felt pretty good out there," the Yamaha man commented. "Ben and I really got out there at the beginning and I was just trying to stick with him. I knew he had run the previous race, and I was hoping he would start to tire out towards the end there, but... I ended up going down. I was trying a little too hard in the dirt section. I got into some loose stuff and just washed out. Luckily my bike stayed running, and I was able to get back up and get going again."

By that time, McGrath and Ward had picked their way up to second and third. Ward quickly moved through into the runner-up spot and closed in on the leader. Pressuring Carlson in the dirt, Ward succeeded where Henry had failed, forcing the less experienced HMC pilot into a mistake.

"I closed up a lot on the dirt, and came alongside on the right side of him coming onto the pavement," Ward explained. "I was just going to go straight up into the bales and come straight into the corner, and I think he knew it. He grabbed a handful to try and stay in front of me and just highsided. I'm glad he wasn't hurt. He was riding extremely fast, and we've got to keep working hard to stay up with these young guys."

McGrath, cruised home a lonely second, while Henry remounted quickly enough to take third.

McGrath later said, "I got a great start, but we came into the first corner and Benny, Jeff, and I all kind of came together. I got stood up and went to the outside and went from right up front to fifth or sixth. We got a few presents along the way, a few guys went down, but overall, I'm glad to finish second. And how about this all motocross podium? I like that."

Honda-mounted Frenchman Alexandre Thiebault took fourth while Aussie Mark Avard guided his Suzuki DR-Z400 to fifth. Carlson soldiered on to sixth.

Despite missing the South Boston round, Ward is now tied for the season's points lead with Avard.

Supermoto Unlimited

Red Bull HMC KTM's Ben Carlson won the hectic Columbus KTM Supermoto Unlimited race on Sunday.

At the start, Carlson came together with his teammate (and polesitter) Doug Chandler heading into the first corner of the race. The two crossed bars and were sent sprawling onto the pavement, bringing out a red flag in the process. Chandler was ruled out for the rest of the day's activities with a suspected broken leg (still to be confirmed), while Carlson was pushed back to the fifth row at the restart, penalized for his involvement in the incident.

Impressively, Carlson regrouped to dice up through the pack, ultimately stealing the lead from Leonardo Bagnis on lap 16 of 24 after Bagnis crashed while trying to slip past a slower rider.

The Vertemati rider quickly remounted and reclaimed second, while another factory backed KTM teenager, Chris Fillmore, rounded out the podium.

Afterwards, Carlson spoke of his race. "I wheelied off the line, and I think Doug did the same thing, and we kind of got into each other. As soon as we touched we tangled bars and we both went down. It's a shame because Doug is such a great competitor.

"If you cause the crash you have to go back to the fifth row. I was a little shaken up and my mechanic Richard settled me down and told me, 'You know what you got to do. You've got to get a good start and just start pluggin', and that's what I did."

Honda Red Riders Jr. Supermoto Challenge

Carter Myers held off a determined challenge from Aaron King to take the Honda Red Riders Jr. Supermoto Challenge -- a class that features 12-15 year-old up-and comers on identically prepped Honda 150s.

King, son of top AMA dirt tracker Rich, fell several spots from his pole starting position at the green light but swiftly moved up to the runner-up spot. He could go forward no further, however, as Myers rode flawlessly to defend the position over the final several laps.

"I got off to a really good start, and then I saw Aaron coming," Myers remarked. "I started to get a little nervous and tired, but I was able to stay in front of him and win the race."

Notes

• The 15-turn PromoWest Pavilion Supermoto circuit was located in the new Arena District in downtown Columbus, Ohio, right in the heart of the city, with nearby skyscrapers overlooking the venue. The track itself was separated into two distinct, and nearly equal, sections. The pavement portion wound through a hay bale-lined parking lot, while the 'dirtier' half was constructed in an adjacent gravel lot, which was once the home to a downtown prison that no longer exists. A street that normally runs between the PromoWest Pavilion parking lot and the gravel lot served as two short straights, connecting the two haves. The layout might sound chaotic when described -- and it was definitely a lot to take in -- but the end result was quite spectacular when attacked by a number of the world's top motorcycle racers. The track featured a more extensive 'motocross' section than either of the season's two earlier venues Laguna Seca and South Boston Speedway. This fact allowed Supercross/Motocross heroes Jeff Ward, Jeremy McGrath and Doug Henry to adequately showcase their legendary skills.
  
  

• The pavement section at PromoWest was considerably tighter than the wide-open oval-based South Boston track the series last visited. As a result, the vast majority of riders choose to utilize hybrid flat track/motocross cornering techniques. Motobritalia Vecchione Yamaha's Mike Smith stayed true to his road racing roots, however, with the 'fringed one' routinely dragging his knee while power-sliding his way through the paved sections. Strangely enough, one of the only other riders to take the knee-down approach was ex-motocrosser Ward.
  
  

• Red Bull KTM HMC hotshot Ben Carlson was the fastest man in the morning Red Bull Supermoto qualifying session. Why? Even with a background primarily comprised of honing his skills on dirt, he was one the very best in the paved section. "I think my strongest area is on the pavement," Carlson admitted. "I seem to be pretty good in the middle of the corner."
  
  

• Carlson went on to prove his morning form was no fluke, claiming top honors in the single flying-lap Superpole contest with a time of 56.157. The lap earned him the front spot on the grid for the day's 24-lap final.
  
  

• Jeremy McGrath and Chuck Sun certainly had memorable weekends. On the eve of their Sunday racing, the two were inducted into Motorcycle Hall of Fame. "It's nice," McGrath said after taking his runner-up finish in the Supermoto main event. "Last night was really great. Being in the Hall of Fame with the guys that are already there, it's quite an accomplishment and I'm proud of that. It's something that's going to stay with me forever."
  
  

• Carlson, McGrath, Mark Burkhart and Doug Henry won their Supermoto heat races, qualifying for the finals in style. Henry's heat race victory was particularly impressive, as he just edged out Jeff Ward at the line following a race-long dogfight.
  
  

• Meanwhile, another one of KTM's rising stars, Chris Fillmore, had to fight his way up from a third row start in the semis, after falling -- literally -- out of the top four during his heat race. He won going away. Honda CRF450F-mounted Tim J Bemisderfer took the other semi.
  
  

• There was one big-name sports figure taking part this weekend that might have caught some people by surprise -- former top NBA coach George Karl, who helped promote the event. "It's a lot of fun," Karl said. "I enjoy seeing the competition, the confidence, and the guys get cocky a little bit. It's a good show."