Image: Octopi Media.

Mountain Motorsports cbdMD CR22 Racing’s Chad Reed was forced to exit the main event of Sunday’s 11th round of Monster Energy Supercross in Utah after the fuel overheated and boiled in his KTM prior to the midway point.

The 38-year-old switched from Honda to KTM during the mid-season stoppage and he transferred directly through his heat into the 450SX final, but was forced out following 13 laps of the 29 completed.

Reed will conclude his career this month following near two decades at the top level of the sport, set to retire at the conclusion of the 2020 season. He said it was a ‘weird’ atmosphere to line-up without fans lining Rice-Eccles Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

“It felt good to be back racing yesterday,” Reed commented. “There is no comparison to racing in front of fans and the silence was weird. I felt like I had a decent day overall, nice to get back on a race track.

“I really love riding this new bike and checked off the box to race SX on all brands. That wasn’t intentional or planned, just happened to be the bikes of choice over the years. My starts feel better and more natural, so now I just need to remember how to use them.

“I made a bad call on fuel choice yesterday. I had taken altitude into consideration, but not heat. We boiled fuel pretty early in the main, so I chose the safe route – I pulled off because it wasn’t worth the risk. I was disappointed initially because I felt good on the bike, but there is more racing to come.

“Our team has worked hard to be here. I have one mechanic [Ben Schiermeyer], who handled a complete change in bike manufacturer and being ready in May instead of Sept/Oct, like originally predicted. He has learned to get it done no matter what I throw at him and mostly on his own.

“We have a small team, but I’m really proud and happy to be finishing this ride with my friends and the sponsors we have. Thanks to the fans supporting from home! And we’ll be better and ready for the next one.”