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2010 AMA Supercross Season Comes to an End for CANIDAE Riders

The 2010 Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE All Natural Pet Foods Supercross team had a tremendous season, enjoying some major accomplishments during this year's grueling campaign.

Coming off such a great outdoor season in 2009, the bar was set high for 450 rider Tommy Hahn. Hahn would battle injuries from a pre season crash and would not be 100% until almost halfway through the season. Once healthy, Hahn looked more consistent and would finish inside the top 10 in 12 out of 17 starts. Hahn would break through in Seattle where he would earn a career best 2nd place finish. Tommy looks forward to a new start when the outdoor season begins in 2 weeks.

Hunter Hewitt rode the West Coast Lites class this year and made huge strides in his sophomore year of Lites racing. Hewitt would finish inside the top 10 twice this year and finish the year in 13th place in points.

East Coast Lites racer, Blake Baggett was racing in his very first Supercross season in 2010 and the rookie let everyone know that he is for real. Baggett would finish inside the top 10 in 5 out of the 8 rounds and captured his first career win in Dallas. Baggett finished his rookie season in 5th place in points and is looking forward to heading outdoors where he is considered a top 5 favorite even with his rookie status.

Ryan Morais raced the West Coast Lites series this year for the Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE team and came out of the gates blazing. With podium finishes in Anaheim 1 and Phoenix the future looked bright for the young rider until a horrific crash at A2 left the front runner sidelined until Seattle. It is great to see Morais back up and racing and we look forward to seeing him atop the podium during the MX Nationals.

Jake Moss signed with the team for the 2010 season and was supposed to be the consistent top 10 finisher in the East Coast Lites series while showing the ropes to Baggett. Moss would have a season that he hopes to soon forget with finishes well below his potential. With only 1 top 10 finish this year and missing the last 2 rounds with injuries, Moss will focus on getting healthy and making some noise outdoors during the Nationals.

All in all it was a great year for the CANIDAE All Natural Pet Foods sponsored team and everyone at CANIDAE could not be more proud. We look forward to dominating the Outdoor Nationals with this highly potent group of riders when the series starts in Sacramento, CA at the Hangtown Nationals on May 22nd. Make sure to come out and support the Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE team. See you there!

Tommy Hahn Breaks Through in Seattle, Takes Podium

Rockstar, Suzuki, CANIDAE All Natural Pet Foods 450 rider Tommy Hahn had his best performance of the season and climbed the podium for a well-earned second place finish at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington. It's been a tough season for #10 Hahn, but his results have been climbing steadily as he recovered from injuries sustained earlier in the year.

The track was by far the most difficult of the season as most riders crashed at least once with most hitting the ground several times during the day. Hahn remained steady throughout the day and went into the main event feeling great about his chances. As the gate dropped the carnage started in the first corner with several riders going down. Hahn finished lap one in 8th place. Clearly faster than those around him, Hahn began to move up every lap. By lap 8, Hahn was in third and catching Justin Brayton but the track was deteriorating rapidly. Hahn looked as though he would pace himself to survive for a hard-fought third place. As Hahn stayed true, he continued his gain on Brayton and worked through the loamy ruts and deep holes.

On lap 10 Hahn made his move and got around Brayton and into second place. By the time Hahn had passed Brayton, race leader Kevin Windham was way out and was not going to be caught. What a great finish for the young CANIDAE rider from Texas and an exciting night for race fans.

The CANIDAE riders head to Salt Lake City next week. We will see if Tommy Hahn can end the Supercross season as he did the Motocross season... with a win!

Blake Baggett Takes the Podium in Houston!

Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods rider #66 Blake Baggett proved once again that Suzuki makes holeshot machines. At Saturday’s Supercross race in Houston, the RM-Z250 chalked up another holeshot in the main event, and Blake went on to take a dramatic second place finish, giving him his second podium finish of the season and maintaining his position just inside the championship’s top five. “Those last few laps were mayhem when the lappers got involved,” said Blake. “My RM-Z was great in the corners though, and that really helped me stay ahead of the other guys.”

Team Manager Bill Keefe had nothing but praise for the young rider. “We’re so proud of Blake’s success. He has taken one win, a second place, and two additional top-five finishes in his first season as a professional. We expect great results from Blake in the future.” With just one event left to go in the Eastern Regional Lites Championship, Blake is looking to add another podium finish to his already spectacular rookie season at the final Eastern Regional event in St. Louis, MO.

The 14th round of the AMA/FIM Supercross championship and the final round of the Eastern Regional Lites Championship will take place on April 17th at Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, Missouri.

Rookie Baggett Wins First AMA Supercross Lites Class Race of his Career

Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods rider #66 Blake Baggett knows a lot about perseverance. As his night started in Irving, TX in the brand new Texas Stadium, the rookie rider could not catch a break as he went down hard in his heat race causing him to ride in the LCQ (Last Chance Qualifier) to try to make it into the main.

As the LCQ got started, Baggett got a great start and put himself in second place, the last transfer position. As Baggett crossed the start / finish line for the first lap, the red flags were waving, stopping the race. Because there was a rider down that required medical attention, the race was started over and Baggett was well outside a transfer position on the second restart. For most young riders, they would put their head down and try again at the next race but not CANIDAE’s Blake Baggett. Blake would move up to fourth and while putting pressure on the second and third place riders, Baggett would just barely avoid their collision and move into second place and secure the final spot for the Main Event.

With the last choice on the starting line, Baggett did not start from a great or even good position but that would come back to save him as the young rider was almost in last place down the start straight. With a great move to the inside, Baggett almost lost the front end as he avoided a huge first turn pileup that took out more than half of the field. Baggett and teammate Jake Moss would battle inside the top 5 as the lead riders pulled away from the riders involved in the first turn mess. Baggett would move into 4th as Moss would make a move for 2nd when Troy Adams would cut him off sending both riders to the ground in a violent crash. The crash would end Moss’ night with a hurt wrist but his misfortune would open up the door for Baggett who was now in second!

Baggett would begin his charge to the front as he seized his opportunity for a podium finish in this, only his 5th professional Supercross race. The run for the front would be tough as last week's winner, Justin Barcia would stick a wheel in on Baggett in almost every turn. Almost everyone expected Baggett to crack under the extreme pressure but the young rider from Grand Terrace, CA would shock everyone by pulling away from Barcia and closing in on race leader Ryan Sipes. With 2 laps to go, Baggett would pull to the back wheel of Sipes and the two would carve their way through lapped riders. Just after the tricky whoop section, Sipes would leave the smallest opening for Baggett and the rookie phenom would rocket to the inside and take the lead. Try as he might, Sipes would not be able to regain the top spot and Blake Baggett would win the Lites class!

What a great and gutsy performance of what should be a glimpse into the future of this fast young man. Baggett was overcome with emotion and broke down in tears as he came to a halt in the waiting arms of his mechanic, Steve Westfall and his proud father, a moment that will not soon be forgotten for anyone involved.

There is little time to revel in the great success as the series moves to Jacksonville, FL next weekend as Baggett tries to make it two in a row. For all the race action, log on to www.canidaeracing.com to see how the Canidae sponsored drivers, riders and teams are getting to the winners circle in a town near you.

CANIDAE All Natural Pet Foods 'Goes Pink' at Anaheim 3 Supercross Race to Raise Breast Cancer Awareness

Canidae CANIDAE Pet Foods and CANIDAE Racing are proud to have a rich tradition sponsoring charity events for both people and pets throughout North America. This Saturday, February 13, we will join Feld Motor Sports, Angels Baseball, and many other generous sponsors at Anaheim #3 in support of finding a cure for breast cancer.

Saturday also marks the return to Anaheim of Rockstar Energy Suzuki Canidae team riders Tommy Hahn on his 450 and West Coast Lites riders Ryan Morais and Hunter Hewitt. Team members will participate in the charity efforts signing special pink shirts to be auctioned off after the race at www.supercrossonline.com. CANIDAE will also supply shirts that will be signed by the winners of the Supercross Lites and Supercross Main Events to add to the auction.

CANIDAE Pet Foods has made special arrangements to support the event's "Pink" theme by launching pink CANIDAE Racing shirts into the stands for lucky fans to take home. Our standard green banners and tuff block covers will be replaced with a pink design to demonstrate added support for this important cause.

All proceeds from the auctioned merchandise will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation For the Cure.

Rockstar Energy Suzuki CANIDAE Pet Foods’ Ryan Morais Update

January 26, 2010 - Rockstar Energy Suzuki CANIDAE Pet Foods’ Ryan Morais, after seeing a specialist yesterday, is expected to return to the AMA Western Regional Lites class by Anaheim 3, on February 13th. Morais was injured during his heat race on Saturday night in Anaheim, when another rider landed on top of him after tripling part of a rhythm section. Morais was running second in the heat until the incident. According to Team Manager Bill Keefe the doctor concluded that Morais doesn’t have any broken bones. “Ryan will be put into an aggressive rehab program with the hopes of being on the gate for Anaheim 3 on February 13,” Keefe said. “He’ll probably be off the bike for 10 days. He’s getting better everyday, and his body is recovering, so it’s going the right way.” Doctors expect that Morais will respond well to therapy and make a full recovery.

After seeing a specialist on Monday, Morais got the full report on his injuries. “I got some X-rays and an MRI done on my back and hips. Everything looks pretty good, considering,” Morais said from his home where he’s resting. “They’re saying the reason my back hurts so much is because I bruised my kidneys, I have a lot of muscle bruising, I bruised my hip joints and the muscles in my hips, my lungs, and my bladder. I’m sore from all that. But I got lucky, it could’ve been a lot worse. I’ll be back on the bike soon enough and be back for Anaheim 3. For now, I’m going to take it day by day. I have to give it a few weeks to heal up.”

Morais was taken off the track Saturday night and put in the Asterisk Mobile Medical Unit and then later transferred to UCI Medical Center for further evaluation. He was released from the hospital by approximately 2:30 am and has been recovering at home since then. Rockstar Energy Suzuki CANIDAE Pet Foods would like to thank the Asterisk Medical Team for their expert care and treatment of Ryan at the track.

CANIDAE Rider Morais Makes it Two in a Row!

January 16th, 2010, Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ - As this 2010 season begins to unfold, it is clear that the Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods team is going to be a serious title contender. CANIDAE rider, Ryan Morais continues to impress as he made his second straight podium with a second place finish at Round 2 in Phoenix.

After heading into the first corner of the 15 lap Main Event in 5th place, the young Suzuki rider would work his way into 2nd place on lap 4. With every lap, Morais would pull closer to race leader Blake Wharton. On lap 13, Morais would make his move and head into the lead. Also getting around Wharton, was Anaheim 1 winner, Jake Weimer. As Morais and Weimer pulled away from the rest of the field, Weimer would try several times to get by Morais. With 2 laps left in the race, Weimer made the pass stick as the two battled back and forth. It was close at the finish but Morais just was not able to make up the lost ground and he would have to settle for a well earned, second place. A 3rd at round 1, 2nd at Round 2, maybe the 3rd round in Anaheim, CA next weekend will yield a win for the young phenom.

Rockstar Energy, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods rider Hunter Hewitt would just miss making into the “Lites” Main Event and Tommy Hahn would finish up 10th place in the Supercross Class for the night.

CANIDAE Pet Foods was founded out of love for pets, the importance of family, and the belief in having fun and enjoying life and CANIDAE is excited to be able to share with the passionate fans of Supercross and Motocross racing our philosophy of “Responsible Pet Ownership” through proper nutrition and care featured at www.canidae.com and on our racing site at www.canidaeracing.com.

CANIDAE Pet Food Riders Shine at Supercross Season Opener!

January 9th, 2010, Anaheim, CA - With new riders, new sponsors, new bikes, new riding gear and a new season, nobody knew what to expect of the Rockstar, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods team for the season opener at Angel Stadium. The weather was ideal as the racing got underway and the sold out crowd was treated to fantastic racing.

In the Lites Class, CANIDAE Pet Food riders Hunter Hewitt, and Ryan Morais [pictured right] would easily make it into the Main Event and when the gate dropped it was Morais that got out to a great start and in a position to fight for the win. Third, after the first lap Morais quickly went to work on Gautier Paulin to move into second place and begin his charge to the front. By the half way point in the race Morais was inching closer to the back wheel of race leader Jake Weimer and Trey Canard had closed in on Morais making it a three way fight for the win. With 5 laps to go, Canard would work inside of Morais and push the CANIDAE rider out for the position. Morais would regroup and keep Canard close but as time ran out, Morais would settle for a hard earned third place. This is an excellent ride to place the Rockstar, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods on the podium and to serve notice for the rest of the season. CANIDAE rider Hunter Hewitt would battle all race long and finish a respectable 11th place in this, his first West Coast Lites race.

As the gate dropped for the Main Event in the premier, Supercross class, CANIDAE Rider Tommy Hahn would jump out of the gate quickly but be forced to jump on the brakes to avoid the banging going on ahead of him. Due to his reaction, Hahn was able to avoid a crash but would head into the first corner at the back of the pack. If you know anything about this team, you know they work extremely hard and Hahn went to work on the rest of the field passing rider after rider. By lap 10, Hahn had passed almost half the field and was trying to work inside the top 10. Battling with front runner Nick Wey, Hahn would get around the Michigan rider and set his sights on former champ, Grant Langston in 10th. Lap after lap the two would exchange positions but in the end, it was Langston that would grab the 10th spot. A gutty ride for Hahn who looks forward to the next round to improve.

This was a good start to the 2010 season and we look forward to what is sure to be a great year for the Rockstar, Suzuki, CANIDAE Pet Foods team. Next up will be Round 2 in Phoenix, Arizona at Chase Field on January 16th.

CANIDAE Pet Foods was founded out of love for pets, the importance of family, and the belief in having fun and enjoying life and CANIDAE is excited to be able to share with the passionate fans of Supercross and Motocross racing our philosophy of “Responsible Pet Ownership” through proper nutrition and care featured at www.canidae.com and on our racing site at www.canidaeracing.com.

2009 Season: Tommy Hahn Bring Home First Professional Championship! CANIDAE Sponsored Team Tops All in Pennsylvania!

CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki’s Tommy Hahn brought home his first, and the team’s first 450 National overall victory by capturing his first win in Moto #1 and finishing a strong 4th in Moto #2 to grab the overall championship this past weekend at Steel City.

Tommy Hahn has performed extremely well this season but the young rider from Decatur, TX in his rookie season in the premier class, has been working so hard to take that next step in his career…a win! As the season closes out on the 2009 Motocross National Series, team CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki is fighting hard to improve on what has already been a fantastic season for the team.

As the gate dropped for Moto1, Hahn would round the first corner inside the top 5. He would quickly begin to move to the front as he picked off the riders, once again proving he belongs on that list. On lap 3, Hahn would get around Andrew Short and Jeff Alessi to grab the lead but that lead would be short lived as Short got back by the next lap as well as his teammate, Ivan Tedesco. Hahn would move up to 2nd when Tedesco had problems and began to pressure Short again for the lead. On lap 7, Hahn would grab the lead and this time, he would make the pass stick and quickly put distance on the rest of the field. When the checkered flags flew, Hahn rode an aggressive and smart race to take his very first Moto win by almost 6 seconds! This is a huge accomplishment for the young rider in his first year in the premier class. Great job Tommy!

Moto 1 for the 250 class would see CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki riders Kyle Cunningham and PJ Larsen on the line, ready to put an exclamation point on this 2009 season. As the 40 riders shot out of the gate, the CANIDAE boys would get off the line way back in the pack. Larsen would be in 22nd and Cunningham would be 38th as they rounded the first corner. Cunningham went on a charge and passed 20 riders before the moto was finished for a hard fought 18th place. Larsen would finish in 14th when the checkered flags flew.

Hahn Moto 2 for the 450 class Moto 2 for the 450 class would line up for the last time this year with the tension for the CANIDAE team at a fevered pitch. As the gate fell, Hahn would muscle his way into a 5th place start and in perfect position to finish on the podium for the day. As the riders began to string out, the CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki team began to do the math, it was clear that not only did Hahn have an opportunity to finish on the podium; he was in a position to win the overall for the day! Tommy would get into fourth place before the end of lap 1 and then begin to work on Andrew Short in 3rd place. By the end of the lap, Hahn was comfortably sitting in third place, and if the moto ended then, he would have the overall win for the day but there was still lots of racing left. With signals coming in from his mechanic, Jason Thomas, Hahn knew he just needed to maintain his position to take home the coveted win but Hahn found himself of the back tire of Jake Moss in 2nd place. As the battle grew more intense between the two riders, Hahn realized he did not need to risk a crash because Moss did not factor into the overall standings and he would back off just a bit to play it safe. Ivan Tedesco was moving up quickly and he was putting pressure on Hahn for his 3rd place position. On lap 11, Tedesco made a move on Tommy that would push the CANIDAE rider back to 4th place but the position did not matter as long as Tedesco did not win the moto and Tommy was still in the driver’s seat for the overall. Hahn was as cool as the other side of the pillow as he methodically made his way through the last few laps and crossed the finish line with a 4th place finish and 1st place overall! What a great win for this young man as well as the team, his mechanic, team manager Bill Keefe and team owner Bobby Hewitt. So few will reach this level of racing but even fewer will win at this, the pinnacle of the sport, and Tommy Hahn has done just that. Congratulations team CANIDAE Motosport.com Kawasaki rider Thomas Hahn!

Moto 2 for the 250 riders would be up next and be the last professional motocross race of the year. PJ Larsen would finish the first lap in 20th place and Kyle Cunningham in 25th, not the way these riders wanted to end their respective seasons. Both riders would put on a charge that would see them head towards the front. PJ would pass six riders as he finished lap 2 in 14th place and Kyle would keep the pressure on in the 20th spot. By lap 4, Larsen had worked his way to 12th and Cunningham was in 17th but closing the gap. At the half was point in the race, the CANIDAE teammates were side by side, and battling for position as Cunningham moved passed the rookie into 13th place. With two laps to go, Larsen would crash hard right after the finish line jump and that would put an end to the rider’s day and season. Kyle was still moving forward but was running out of time. He would only be able to pass one more rider to finish in the 12th position when the checkered flags flew. This was a great comeback ride from this Cunningham, after a tough start. These two riders are the future of the sport and will be the ones to watch next year.