Riding the Yoshimura-equipped Rockstar Energy Suzuki RM-Z450 instead of the RM-Z250 that he usually races in the Supercross Lites class, Martin Davalos carded an impressive fourth-place overall in the Open Class of the first-ever Monster Energy Cup at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Although Davalos struggled a bit in the first heat races, the Rockstar Energy Suzuki rider rallied and went on to win the Last Chance Qualifier to transfer to the three main events.

“My weekend was pretty good,” said Davalos. “We struggled a bit with traction during the day and I was feeling uncomfortable with the track. But the Rockstar Energy Suzuki guys worked really hard for me, trying to help me get more comfortable on the RM-Z450. We made some major changes after the first heat race and that made me feel a lot better for the rest of the night.”

Davalos rode three remarkable races, bringing home two seventh-place finishes and then a fifth-place result in the third main event. His final result for the night was a solid fourth-place overall.

“The Rockstar Energy Suzuki RM-Z450 was working great,” said Davalos. “I got good starts and put in consistent lap times and I finished seventh in the first and second main events. I had some energy left then and I got a good start in the third main event; I pushed hard and was able to get fifth in the race and fourth overall for the night. I feel like we did a good job for my first 450 race, but we couldn’t have done it without the whole Rockstar Energy Suzuki team effort. Now I’m looking forward to getting back on my Suzuki RM-Z250 and the start of the next Supercross Lites season.”

This new stand-alone Supercross race capped off the 2011 season and incorporated both Motocross and Supercross styles in the lengthy track as well as the racing format. The hybrid track was the longest Supercross track ever built and the night’s format included Supercross heat races and main events, but the scoring was all Motocross: Three 10-lap Open Class main events combined to provide riders with one overall best score.

The Rockstar Energy Suzuki team will return for the 2012 AMA Supercross season on Saturday January 7th, 2012, at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.