Ryan Villopoto clinched his third consecutive 450SX title in Salt Lake City. Image: Simon Cudby.

Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto secured his third consecutive Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, on Saturday night inside Salt Lake City’s Rice-Eccles Stadium.

But it was Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey who claimed the Nuclear Cowboyz Holeshot Award to kick off the 450SX main event, with Villopoto trailing closely alongside.

The defending champion wasted little time in making a pass on Dungey for the lead and then set a blistering pace during the opening laps of the 20-lap race.

Rockstar Energy Racing’s Davi Millsaps moved alongside Dungey on lap two and made the pass for second, setting his sights on Villopoto.

Eventually, Millsaps and Dungey closed the gap on Villopoto following the halfway point with all three riders sitting within a second of one another at one point.

Millsaps had an opportunity to make a move for the lead, but Villopoto withstood the pressure and the difficulty of getting through lapped traffic to lead all 20 laps and clinch the title on a high note.

Villopoto became the fifth rider in Monster Energy Supercross history to win three championships, joining Bob Hannah, Jeff Stanton, Jeremy McGrath, and Ricky Carmichael – he also joined Hannah, McGrath, and Carmichael as the only riders to win three titles consecutively.

Villopoto took his grand total of championship points to 346 after his round 16 win, sitting 28 points head of Millsaps who remained strong and finished up in second with Dungey in following closely in third.

Millsaps and Dungey sit second and third in the championship, respectively, and are separated by three points heading into the final race of the season next weekend.

Rounding out the top five in Salt Lake City was Honda Muscle Milks Trey Canard in fourth and his teammate Justin Barcia taking home fifth for the night.

Australia’s Chad Reed finished up with a 10th overall result after a rough night aboard his TwoTwo Motorsports Honda entry – Reed sits fifth overall in the 450SX standings with one round remaining.

The Western Regional 250SX class proved to be as exciting as the premier class in Salt Lake, with Red Bull KTM’s Ken Roczen missing out on the main event by just one place in the LCQ.

Roczen’s absence from the main event set up a season finale showdown between himself and GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac. The defending champion was sitting 20 points behind series leader Roczen heading into the penultimate round.

GEICO Honda’s Zach Osborne captured the Nuclear Cowboyz Holeshot Award with teammate Tomac and Rockstar Energy Racing’s Jason Anderson closely behind.

Anderson made a quick pass on Tomac prior to the conclusion of the opening lap and then passed Osborne for the lead on the following lap.

As Anderson started pulling away, Tomac began to go in the opposite direction. The winningest rider this season had the opportunity to take over the points lead. However, Tomac continued to lose positions, eventually dropping to ninth place at one point.

Anderson continued to string together a perfect 15 laps, winning his first-ever 250SX main event by over five seconds in dominating fashion.

Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil Honda’s Cole Seely put together a solid ride, taking out the runner-up spot while Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Martin Davalos overcame a start outside the top 10 to finish third.

Tomac rebounded from his early difficulties during the race to battle his way to a sixth place main event result – unable to claim the series lead.

Just five points separate Roczen and Tomac heading into Las Vegas’ final stop of the Western Regional 250SX championship where the title will be decided.

2013 Monster Energy Supercross, an FIM World Championship
Round 16 – Salt Lake City, UT
450SX Main Event Results:
1. Ryan Villopoto
2. Davi Millsaps
3. Ryan Dungey
4. Trey Canard
5. Justin Barcia
6. Justin Brayton
7. Josh Hill
8. Andrew Short
9. Weston Peick
10. Chad Reed

Western Regional 250SX Main Event Results:
1. Jason Anderson
2. Cole Seely
3. Martin Davalos
4. Malcolm Stewart
5. Christian Craig
6. Eli Tomac
7. Ryan Sipes
8. Tyla Rattray
9. Joey Savatgy
10. Travis Baker

Click here for detailed results