Ryan Morais was focused, but made a small mistake.  photo: Steve Bruhn

If there was an overriding strategy to Ryan Morais’ attempt to win the East Region Supercross Lites Championship, it was “don’t make mistakes.” All season long, he played it slow and steady, and it worked. Somehow, Morais found himself in the points lead while actually not doing what should be the two most important things in the sport: getting good starts, and going fast. Instead, Morias stayed in the top five at each round and let it all come to him. Only in the last round did the game plan change. First, he got a good start. But then, he made a mistake.
     
Morais stalled his Boost Mobile/Yamaha of Troy bike on the second lap of the main while positioned in front of Townley. He restarted quickly, but by then the damage was done. Enough riders and enough time had passed, and the title was lost.
 
For Morais, the night ended in tears for him. But he proved quite a bit. First, the second Lites heat race showcased a spectacular battle between Ryan and his rival, Ben Townley. In that one, he showed that he had the speed to run with Townley. And in the main, he got a start, and even after he faltered, he put on a valiant charge, letting it hang out for once and showing, again, that he has speed when it’s needed.

Morais made a mistake and lost a title, but he gained plenty of respect.