Racer X ReduX: Dallas
Wednesday, April 6, 2011 | 5:55 PM
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PrintChanging habits is the hardest challenge in life. In supercross, habitual dominance was the habit. The cravings have existed since Jeremy McGrath busted out 10 wins and a championship in his rookie year of 1993. Yes, there were occasional moments on the wagon. When MC switched to Suzuki in 1997, things got unpredictable, and it took a few rounds in 1998 on a Yamaha in for him to get the full mojo back. Then when Ricky Carmichael kicked the door down in 2001, he did it by winning 13 races in a row. Chad Reed’s 2004 title run included 10 wins, and James Stewart won 13 in 2007.
Just like your aunt who won’t stop smoking, or that annual resolution to finally lose weight, save money, or stop reading Observations, each year we hope the habitual domination habit gets kicked. And for a few rounds each season, it looks like it’s going to happen. Then the old habit kicks back in.
Well, I think that old habit has been kicked.
Supercross has changed. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but I believe the days of dominance are over—for real this time.
Are the days of dominance over?
Photo: Simon Cudby
Of course, we also have a habit of making such declarations. It’s easy to say this before round one or going into round three. We’ve been there before. But here we are 13 races into Monster Energy Supercross for 2011, and things have been so crazy, so consistently, that I think it’s about time we just permanently expect the unexpected. The era of dominance is over. Something has changed.
In the last three seasons, three new riders have been added to the “realistically could win on any weekend” roster. Ryan Villopoto, Ryan Dungey and Trey Canard headed to victory lane legitzville within their rookie seasons. Before that, most of the hot properties out of the lites class came in with high expectations but never became consistent winners. Riders like Huffman, Pastrana, Fonseca, Tedesco, Langston and Millsaps just couldn’t make The Leap to become a genuine title contender in the big class. And not from lack of trying! These were and are all solid, talented riders, but the climb was just too steep when faced with immortal talents like McGrath, Carmichael, Reed and Stewart. Now we have three rookies with wins in three consecutive seasons—each with multiple wins, even—and Pourcel and Weimer haven’t even gotten a shot.
Canard is the latest to make an impact in his rookie season.
Photo: Simon Cudby
This just opens the door for more. I’m sure Justin Barcia is just counting the days until he gets his shot on a 450, for example. For 15 years, you had to break through against probably the three fastest forces to ever hit a supercross track—McGrath, Carmichael and Stewart. We’re back to the point where the really good talents can compete for wins—you no longer need to be an alien to apply for a championship.
Yes, Reed and Stewart are still out there, but the fact that they don’t own this series like they used to just serves as more proof. One of them may win the championship this year, but it’s not a two-man show.
Things are super tight now. In baseball, they say momentum is only as good as the next day’s starting pitcher. In supercross this year, momentum is only as good as the next day’s start. Really, we can analyze and dig deep through opinions and polls and theories, but so much of this season has come down to starts. Trey Canard started in front of the rest of the contenders in two of the last three races, and he won two of the last three. Dungey started in front in one of the last three and won one of the last three. Villopoto got a start in Indy and won—his starts have sucked since and he hasn’t won since. Stewart hasn’t won in awhile, either, and during that string he’s been in the back at the start way more often than usual.
Is the field catching up to Reed and Stewart?
Photo: Simon Cudby
Before, the starts mattered, but they couldn’t always singularly determine the outcome of the race. MC didn’t get 14 holeshots when he won 14 races in 1996. Stewart didn’t get 13 in ‘07. With the aliens in the field, a top five start was all they needed to win. Now, starting fifth may just mean finishing fifth, unless someone crashes. The speed gap is just that close right now.
That was all on display again this weekend in Dallas, or Arlington, or whatever we’re supposed to call the location of this race. (And by the way, the Rangers were playing the Red Sox across the street on Saturday night and sold their game out, but the supercross drew 50,000 as well, which means a lot of people are pumped on this series. Well done by Arlington. How often do cities handle 50,000 people in both the football and baseball stadiums at the same time?)
Anyway, this is the way races go nowadays: In Dallas, Canard got the start. Stewart put his still-considerable speed on display by scrubbing past Dungey early and the getting past Reed in the whoops. If this were 2007, or 2009, Stewart would have then reeled Canard in and turned a top-five start into a win. In those days, it didn’t matter what anyone else did—you can get the holeshot, adjust settings, change your training, move to Florida, switch bike brands or take up a new religion, but Stewart’s speed was so great that you were not going to beat him if he didn’t crash. No one could stop the Carmichael or McGrath express when it was going, either. The race was his destiny and everyone else was just a part of it.
Stewart logged his best lap of the race on lap two. His 50.196 would stand as the fastest lap of anyone in the main. Don’t doubt for one moment that when it comes to reading the stopwatch on your best lap of the day, Stewart is still the fastest man on the planet. But then he couldn’t quite maintain it. Reed reeled off seven-straight laps in the 50s, while Stewart threw a 51 and a 52 in there. Reed repassed him. They closed ever-so-slightly on Canard, but even if they had not gotten together for the 763rd time, there’s no guarantee that they would have won the race. This is the way supercross works today.
Is Stewart's dominance over?
Photo: Simon Cudby
The usual double standards still apply in Stewart’s case. It’s still a story if he doesn’t win a race. It’s still a story if someone merely keeps up with him or passes him. He’s still the guy that most of the people were probably talking about when the race was over. But he’s not the guaranteed winner of the race or the title. Could he find his old mojo again and start utilizing that speed to dominate again? Maybe, but it’s starting to look more and more like missing last year with an injury has let the field close the gap up just enough. If anything is off even the slightest—and in Stewart’s case you can point to a myriad of things, from missing a year, to a pile of big crashes, to his team manager or arrest drama—as to why he may have come back down to earth and became merely one of the best, instead of the best.
Same for everyone else. Villopoto’s seat came unlatched early, which made it tough to grip the bike through the whoops—and that was more critical on this track than maybe any other this year. That was just enough to make him fifth fastest, but he got second since he didn’t crash. Dungey may have had the stuff to go after Canard, but he tangled with Michael Byrne. Any little thing can change everything.
This makes it nearly impossible to pick a winner during the stretch run. Reed has been fast the last few weeks. Canard and Dungey have gotten wins. Villopoto hasn’t had a chance to show what he has, and Stewart can still log unmatchable lap times. These are great qualities, but they’re only as good as next week’s start or next week’s mistake. It’s been a long time since the sport was like this, but after eight-straight weeks of it, I think it’s now the rule and not the exception.
Villopoto struggled off the start in Dallas.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The Lites class is the same. At one moment it looked like Blake Baggett was back and ready to win again. Then this was Ryan Sipes’ race. Then Justin Barcia’s. But eventually Dean Wilson overwhelmed them all to win it. Somehow, the same power of parity has swept through both classes.
If you’re like me you can’t help but laugh whenever Wilson and Barcia hook up. The instant they get close, they start fighting like an old married couple: They don’t move fast, they don’t really accomplish anything, and they probably won’t ever change. And this week Wilson even threw an “elusive peup” (that’s poop if you don’t speak Scottish) into his old-man repetior.
I respect the human element at work here. Stewart isn’t going to back it down after all of his big crashes this year, and Barcia isn’t going to let people go because he has a big points lead. Emotion plays a part, and when Stewart sees an opening on Reed in the whoops, he’s going to pin it to try to make something happen. If Barcia sees Wilson in front of him, he’s going to aim for a wheel.
As for Sipes, he admitted after the race that he lost focus once he made a bunch of mistakes and coughed up the lead. That’s what led to his crash on the next lap.
Mistakes cost Sipes in Dallas.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
Tommy Hahn had a good return to the races with seventh, but he did say he was torn on if he should have passed Reed on the last lap when Reed went down. No one wants to get in between the title contenders at this point! The only rider who I see truly trying to get into that mix is Kevin Windham, who rode about as well as he has all year and took fifth. If the chance to win or podium is there, KW will try to make the most of it. I think everyone else is in “get out of the way mode” as the championship intensity ramps up.
Oh, and Mike Alessi did try. He nailed the holeshot, and this was such a big deal that KTM had a press release out a mere three hours later with the headline “Alessi Holeshot at Arlington Supercross!” The PR also said, “After earning multiple holeshots this season on his 350 SX-F Alessi's bike was randomly chosen for a tear-down after the race. After careful evaluation the AMA concluded that Alessi's bike was legal and he has been pulling multiple holeshots on his appropriately bored 350cc KTM.”
Yes, that was an AMA certified official holeshot. Canard ate Mike up immediately, but Mike tried scrubbing the first triple hard to keep up. Then when Dungey made a pass, Alessi stuffed him right back. After the race, the Suzuki guys were kind of bummed Mike did that, because there was absolutely no chance he was going to hold off Dungey for 19 more laps, so he basically wrecked Dungey’s race for no real reason—if Dunge had gotten to second on the first lap it may have changed everything. Oh and about 20 seconds later, Mike hit the whoops and his run at the front was over.
Alessi would grab the holeshot in Dallas, but it would not last long.
Photo: Simon Cudby
Matthes and I felt bad seeing Mike struggle in the whoops, and his brother Jeff was sitting right in front of us. So we asked Jeff how Tony somehow missed out on teaching Mike the whoops back when he was teaching starts. According to Jeff, they have built full-scale supercross tracks with nothing but whoop sections—no jumps, just whoops. And yet it still didn’t work. Jeff also said he helped Mike after practice in Dallas, and if not for his advice, Mike wouldn’t have made the main event.
At the beginning of the season I predicted big things from Lites pro rookie Jason Anderson, but so far neither Jason (me or him) has looked very good based on that prediction. Seems like if anything can go wrong for Anderson, it does, including this weekend when he started decently and then “someone just slid into me in the turn after the finish” on the first lap. Dude has zero momentum going in this supercross thing and hopefully the outdoors lights the spark. He came from about last to 12th this week. On the other hand, Gannon Audette had his best race yet in his rookie season, with an eighth. And that other rookie who isn’t on the factory Suzuki or Yamaha lites team? Yeah, Malcolm Stewart took fourth for the second time this year.
I feel for Ivan Tedesco. Dude tries so hard, but he’s been through a lot of hurt in the last few years. His rib/lung injuries last season have been replaced with a torn ACL this year. Ivan has always been a fighter, but you have to wonder if all that desire isn’t getting him into some trouble this year—he’s been on the ground a lot.
Anderson has struggled through his first season.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
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...holeshot!
Double standard for stewart...rotflmao!! Will stewart totally disregard every rider out there and land on someone because he doesn't think? Will his off track antics have an impact on his mental ability to keep it on two wheels, or keep other riders safety and health intact?
In St. Louis anything seems to happen and in a season were anything is happening, I cant wait to see the race this weekend. The caption asks if the field has caught up to Stewie and Reed?? I think that is an astounding YES, the field has caught and passed them for several races. They both definately have the speed to win for sure. But it isnt a two man race, and that is making this season one of the best, and very talked about9look at the message boards) in a long time.
(quote) "...or that annual resolution to finally lose weight, save money, or stop reading Observations..."
Ha!
Here's a brief synopsis of a typical Matthes Observations column...
Dean Wilson... Bearclaw... Starbucks... Feeeeerrrrrryyyy... Bearclaw (again)... Starbucks (more)... Summercross... Ferry... Chanceability... Bearclaw... Hanson sucks... Poutine... Ferry... Hockey... Maple Leafs... Go hang yourself!
I have to wonder...does Stewart pay magazines a fee for each time they use the words "fastest man on the planet" to describe him? At $100 a pop, that's like Stewart buying a center spread every issue.
Forgeet all this, The big news here is i still cannot believe Matthess and Kenny claimed they would rather sit down and share a cup of Starbucks then go to drink alcohol. Ive been lost for days
"Are the days of dominance over?"...
We can only pray! Haven't seen this much bar bangin since, what?...early 80s or late 70s?? Let the fur fly boys!!!
All fans should review this interesting youtube entry and comment. Is it fact or fiction? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4wrmATblvc
God is great, beer is good and people are crazy.
Sums up the season doesn't it.
I like that song.
reed it, pretty compelling bit there!!!
Compelling is an understatement "bigtireguy." I would please ask "bigtireguy" and anyone/everyone else to discuss is why Villo does not "man up" and stand up to Stewie. Reedy is obviously not afraid Stewie. One fan pointed out recently how Reedy is a champion and Villo has not yet won the SX class. And I do agree to a point. However, I have to think that there could be more going on with Villo and what seems to be his fear of Stewie.
Hey Jason... why don't you just give the guy credit for nailing the holeshot and stop at that? You just have to be sure to smother some positivity with a ton of negativity. It's pathetic. First it was the 100cc diff would hinder him. And yes it does sometimes, but the guy is returning to his old ways. Any credit for that? You're quicker to jump to negativity on MA than he is after the gate drops. Suzuki can suck it, just because a competitor in front of them is no major threat doesn't mean they should just automatically pull over and get on their knees and suck Ryan's d*ck while he races by. It racing!! Don't like it, pull a better start. Seems like no matter what he does theres always some $h*t talking. He's a Supercross racer just like everyone else is that pins it after that gate drops. Lets all not be too quick to forget that MA was giving Bobbles a run for his money in that outdoor championship while he was on Suzuki. Kid has speed, as for the bike, I don't think its the best out there for him... as history w them has shown. I'm done ranting, let the $h*t fly!
-C
pretty stupid video, as are all you guys that try so hard to make Stewart seem like a bad guy. yeah, he's had a lot of mistakes this year, but he's done a lot of clean and smart racing too, this year and year's past. He is super competitive, and sometimes makes some rash decisions and yes, of course he races aggressively, as any pro should, but I've been watching him for years and he rarely crosses the line to what I'd say is dirty riding.
I have become somewhat critical of JS in that he seems to go down more than ever and has hurt others along with himself. I have and will defend him strongly when people say he rides dirty, HE DOESN'T. Every time he has taken someone out has been either "rubbin is racing" or he has lost control and hurt himself as well. I really wish he could keep focus better or gain racing wisdom or whatever his problem is for I feel the odds are stacking up to where he won't come out so lucky one time and really hurt himself or someone else bad.
In my book a strong block pass, or well timed brake check is good racing, a t-bone is dirty. I could't stand Eric Sorby because he was a extreme dirty rider. James has not been
* * Caesars Palace * *
* tag team match * No holds barred *
SmartypantS bmaw
and VS. and
Bobo BRAZIL Cowboy Bob ELLIS
_______________________________________________
the SHEIK VS. Wild Bull Curry
Anderson will get his mojo back at the nationals. Don't count him out he's got the talent to get some Ws.
Reed it ....that you tube was stupid and old news . The comment about RV was laughable as well. Why does RV need to man up to anyone ? isn't he leading the points ,finds his way around the track just fine , has had his share of wins and problems just like the rest of the field. Do you actually think coming back from a serious injury like that and racing and winning is part of his 'fear'. Have you ever seen him outdoors ? Man i'd love to ride with fear like that.
..Cage match update :
..Bobo Brazil has tied Cowboy Bob Ellis to the ropes with his own lassoo
..SmartypantS now has bmaw in a camel-clutch center ring
as Bobo prepares to give him a nice 'coco-butt'
..The crowd is now tossing debris into the ring and jeering loudly. . Chaos has ensued here in vegas ! ..
Stay tuned for more updates. . .
Hello Tonewall! Your response to my legitimate question about what is possibly the lack of ability of one pro to stand up to another racer appears to be logically unsound. To be specific, you seem to use the fallacies of ad hominem, begging the question and non sequitur. This could render your "argumentative" reply to be as ineffective as Villo when it comes to dealing with Stewie.
RV is scared of JS............. LMFAO!!!
Canard is becomming the new dominate figure......just watch.
REED IT, I watched that, it was pretty good. Of course the Stewtards wont watch it, if they do, they wont comment on it. The Stewie RV crash looked pretty telling to me..
And Reed It, I dont think RV is "afraid" of anyone.
LOL bd200 talking about people watching something!! bd200 I think you just got your azz handed to ya in the other thread by mofo when you finaly said you did not have the vid and did not care... Can ya say Hypocrite??
look it dont a genius to figure out this , hey has every picked it up crap, these guys are going the same speed they have always gone , stewart has slowed down , stewart was always 2 seconds faster than anybody except ricky , chad was always a tick off them , chad is sticking with bubba and so i everybody else , why is stewart going slower in a race and faster in qualifiers, 1 hes getting out in front and the track is better ealry by race time trakis chewed up, which leads to 2 the bike is handling like crap many reasons could cause this , no team manager , or bubba not getting imformation back correctley or the bike sucks, stewart is not going to crap on yamaha thats called craping where you eat. 3 and probley most important he has far to many things goin on , he can stand up there and bullcrap everyone , but his mind is not completley on racing , yours would not be and neither is his.he is still the fastest guy out there , but trying to show that to much instead of like the other guys not racing over your head and just waitng for someone to make a mistake can be come a very boring sport , stewart wheather good or bad fills those seats , last year they had a hard time selling out , so in short wheather you like him or not when hes gone you will be just looking at not boring but none convesational race.
Hey "BD"...you "Reedtard" and "Villotard"....i watched that video and i have to say what's the point?? So some dude who has it in for Stewart takes a little creative liberty with his i-movie application and makes a video linking things Stewart has said with video that supposedly contradicts that!!! Well, who should we make one of next? Villopoto?? Reed?? Carmichael?? McGrath??...you name it bud, and i'll find the sound bites and then lay it over the video that contradicts what they say!! Keep on hatin' haters....you are a desperate and sad bunch!!!! "TARDS"!!! HAHAHA
That video shold have Bubbles jumping on RC, Cleaning out MC. And the guy he jumped on two years ago. I have never seen another pro rider with such poor judgement.
Funny in the Vid Fro even said RV squared it up!! If RV did not do that they do not hit. The reason that happen IMO is Rv does not expect someone to be trying to pass him when he is way back in the pack, 99% of the time when a fast guy is coming thru from a bad start there in not someone trying to pass them, This time there was. No way that was a take out move in anyway.
I don't think JS7 looks comfortable on the Yamaha. I ride blue, but I think Stewie needs to be looking elsewhere. He is the fastest man.. just not over 20 laps.
I will be surprised if Barcia does well on a 450. I think he moves around too much and that won't translate to a 450. Pourcel will likely do well on the 450 if he can get in shape and last that many laps. I'd not bet on it.
BTW, the youtube thing needs auto tuned..
That youtube video with JS is LAME!!!
1. The JS7 & RV incident isnt even comparable to the Reed and JS7 Atlanta fiasco. Reed pretty much dove in front of James blocking the entire track whereas James came in under RV and RV squared the corner off and they colided. JS7 did not park himself in front of RV giving him no where to go. The only comparison is that they went down.....
2. I have watched the JS7 pass on Reed at Atlanta many times and there was hardly any contact if any at all. Regal was basically another tough block and Reed was going high anyway, his mistake and James block passed him cleanly. Did either one of them come close to falling??? nope...For Reed to say James hit him hard is LAME.....Reed just did the same thing to James (minus Regal) in Dallas and he says it was a clean block pass.....
Bottom line, Reed hates losing to James or getting passed by James. Reed can do no wrong and anytime James passes Reed, he must have done something dirty..How about Indy, when James scrubbed that triple and passed Reed like he was a beginner..no comments from Reed on that one???
Barcia will do perfectly fine on the 450. He went out and won the freaking Bercy Supercross!! I know I know its a different story for US Supercross but he'll do just fine @FirstGearPinned, Im sure someone is on that right now hahahaha
I can't believe I'm agreeing (partially) with "Charlie Sheen" but, Weege, he's got a point. The guy (#800) is mucho talented and WILL be a factor in the Nats. Yeah, he's got a past....ever been arrested? Nope. Bitten anyone's ears off? Nope. All his mistakes have been made on the track, while racing for a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP and he has been crucified for it. Time to move on. As far as the bike goes, I don't buy it at all. The KTM's are dominant in G.P. racing and that translates over to MX very well. In a matter of weeks the peeps will be seeing & believing. How anyone can bet against Roger DeCoster and a company as dedicated to our sport as KTM, with support ($$$$$$) from Red Bull, well, I would love to have the coin to cover every one of those bets......easy money.
Yes it deos seem that ST Louis has a history of thinks happening. It would also be great if the old St Peters track was still there for a National.It Some srange things happened there for the Nationals and Trans ama's was one of the best outdoor tracks in its time and with the hils it had might be good nowdays.The supercros season is gonna go down to the wire. The Dallas race just needs to be call the race a Jerry Wourld.
I find it entertaining when people say Reed can do no wrong when the media do nothing but talk up and sugarcoat anything JS does from riding like a squid and hurting people to getting arrested. If anything I find James is the one who gets all the forgiveness and benefit of the doubt when he makes mistakes. Noone can deny that on TV the guy can't do anything wrong. They just wait constantly for another reason to talk JS up on the broadcast regardless of what's happening in the race. James has a past of dangerous moves and unfortunate crashes with other riders like noone else in the sport, yet every time it happens it's just "bad luck" again and usually gets pinned on the other rider making the mistake or going too slow. Recent example, the collision with Reed on the weekend which was a plain and simple loss of control and accident but there are people saying Reed slowed up and it's his fault James had to chop the throttle and lose control.....give your head a shake. He lost it in a set of tough whoops and Reed just happened to be there. Who knows where he planned on going if the crash didn't happen because he had Reed lined up and was coming in pretty hot. And people are criticizing Reed for being pissed/commenting about the incident. He just got cleaned out, thrown on to the concrete and took a footpeg to the back of course he's going to say something. I'd be fired up too. Every rider has fans who will defend them no matter what, but it's not just Reed like some people make it sound that's for sure. Interesting.......I expect to get chirped by JS fans now and called a hater but I really don't think anything I just said is that out of line or unusual.
think having two 10lap races would negate the starts&esp; lappers from having too much(seemingly) influence on the sx results.i
Anyone of the top guys can be the fastest man on the planet for one lap(or two) and that is what JS seems to be. I agree that the rest of the riders have caught up and now JS is having to ride faster and more wreckless and we are seeing the results. All of the top 5 have been guilty of this during the season which I admire as it shows you how much they want it. But JS more than the others. If he was the fastest man on the planet(for 20 laps), he would have more wins.
ptazzz,, I have to disagree with you. JS rode much harder when he was batteling with RC .. JS is just not using his head this year. I dont know whats going on with him, but I cant beleive he has went this long without winning a SX. When JS and RC were in SX,, they left Reed in the weeds...
Reed passed Stewi clean then Stewi cleaned him out. Completely outta control to the point he ghost rode his bike in22. Anyone know where I can buy that jersey Trey wore in that main ? I ride Honda , tho I cant find it
@mxmofo
Completely agree. Stewart's a mess this year and only he knows why. The speed is still there, but he lacks the consistency that made him so dangerous in years past.
I'll agree that Stewart doesn't necessarily deserve his "fastest man" status this year, but he is still capable. There's a lot more competition this year, but I find it hard to believe that Stewart was afraid of any of them coming in to 2011 (maaaybe Dungey).
Reed rode amazingly in '09, much closer to Stewart's pace than ever before. I believe he's riding about that good this year, but only since his win at San Diego. If he had been riding that well ALL year, he'd be dominating this championship. Since Stewart dominated Reed in '09, it shows how far he (Stewart) has fallen.
Stewie will get it back together....maybe too late this year....started out great but since Atlanta it has gone down hill.....Dont forget however , if not the first turn fiasco and DNF at Jacksonville and he got top 3, Stewart would be the points leader right now (or really close)......so go figure....he would be leading in pts, but not dominating.....
@Trend Killer
Stewart's crash in Jacksonville was definitely MY most shocking moment award winner. Just shows how whacked out '11 has been for him. NOBODY gets handed something like that, and the worst possible thing that could have happened to him happened (at little fault of his own).
RV's heat crash wasn't his fault either, but he owns it because he chose (I believe) not to get up and try to qualify.
All Stewart's other crashes didn't stop him from finishing the race, but that one did. Bad luck.
By the way, not to toot my own horn, but the post I made below Trucker's just might be the best Stewart defense I've ever produced.
I'm so proud!
How does that make me a hypocrite BILLDO, I didnt DVR the race because I watched it when it was shown, so what?? You are an idiot that really needs to get a life. Mofo says he "knows" that the loose seat didnt cause Reeds crash. Like you say "how do you know" right?? And I said I dont really care what caused the crash, so how am I a hypocrite, and you really need to let it go. It is obvious you are kinda obsessed with me somehow. I can see I need to call my lawyer again to re-up the restraining order. Let it go Billdo, really..
Billdo, now that's funny!
DeCoster turned Suzuki from nothing to winning both 250 and 450 classes. Anyone that thinks he can't do the same thing at KTM is crazy, especially with all the coin KTM has and is willing to spend.
"Carlsbad" is correct. KTM has dominated in Europe while competing against all the same Japanese manufacturers. KTM just needs to sign one of the top 5 big dogs in 450 class.
Just wait JonR290! Dungey will move to KTM when his contract is up (end of this season) and with 450 power, they will be a force in MX this season!
Hopefully Musquin will make a good showing against the PC/GEICO axis of evil in 250's as well.
Carlsbad. That is what I heard. I bring my bikes to a pro mechanic who works on a few private bikes on the side at his house where he has a shop. When I recently picked up my bikes he said the "industry rumor" is Dungey is headed to KTM for 2012. As they say, until he signs on the dotted line who knows?
I also heard Stewart is negotiating with KTM and Honda for 2012. Again, "heard" is the word.
Tom Zwinger has a different concept there...maybe if the moto was 10 laps long Stewart would stand a better chance of staying on his bike the entire 10 laps.
Stewart hasn't gotten slower...the rest have caught up.Now he has to ride over his head to pass or get the lead / win because if he rides at just 100% the rest will pass him. He is done...no more titles. I am shocked that the powers that be have not stepped in and suspended him for the wreckless riding over the years...he has injured more riders than any singlr rider that I can think of and I have been racing / watching MX since 1971.
Steward mave have "dominated" reed in the past but simply with some wins in certain series...He didn't win the championship over Reed by many points...Reed knows that fast AND on the ground doesn't win championships.
Reed will win the SX championship this year. Villo will have at least 1 more poor race, Dungey won't beat Reed, Canard won't catch up to Reed in points and Bubba will continued to injure others and auger himself into the ground.
All of this from a guy who was ready to retire this year!....think how fast Reed could be if he was the others age!
"Stewart hasn't gotten slower...the rest have caught up." --jim adams
No they haven't. Your obvious bias is preventing you from seeing this objectively. The current crop of young guns (Dungey, Villopoto, Canard, Weimer, Pourcel, etc.) may continue to improve beyond Stewart and Reed, but they're not quite on-par with them yet, says me.
Like I said above, Reed is riding really good this year. Obviously you agree, since you predict a title win for him. But do you really think he's better than in '09, when he was the reigning champ, two years younger, on possibly the best bike on the track and with the best mechanic? Maybe close, but I don't think so.
Regardless, Stewart handled him easily that year. I certainly don't think he's slowed down (after all, I'm always defending him as the fastest), but he lacks the consistency that he used to win in '09. Even when he wasn't winning titles he was still incredible.
Hello bd200! Thank you for your replies. After reading your response (and a few others) about my question regarding why Villo seems to be afraid of Stewie, I wanted to clarify that I am really asking the Racer X readers why Villo appears to lack the aggressiveness of a former champion like Reedy when it comes to dealing with Stewie. Is it the fact that Stewie and Reedy have championships? Or is there more to it? Does Stewie have Villo psyched out?
On additional way JS has hurt himself is by taking out so many people and his off track antics he is no longer the darling of the sport which means all the guys on the track feel they can come in hard on him in a corner without fan reaction. That's a lot to give up in this sport, a subtle shift that JS could hardly afford to give up with all the riders virtually matching his speed this year.
@Reed It
I don't know why you're pushing this question. What have you seen this year that proves Villopoto is afraid of Stewart? They collided once, which appeared to be nothing more than a racing incident. Besides that, they've only raced each other--what, once at LA for about five seconds before Dungey interrupted? They've hardly battled. Please explain.
Whoops_Blitzer,
Reed is faster this year than before...look at the results. Everytime that Budda Stewpert has knocked him down, he gets back up and has proven himself to be the most consistant in this years series...on less of a bike! He has the talent, he has the right mind set, he knows how to win championships....he will be hard to beat this year for the title if Budda stops taking him out.
So typical that now the tide is turning towards Stewart's bike not handling right, something is in his head, he is off etc. How about giving credit to the guys that are going good? Stewart has more competition than he ever had in his life now and he doesn't know how to handle it. So far his way has been to ride over his head and crash. Time for a new plan.
just read more of the responses... lol...fighting?....LOL....Reed would clean Bubba's clock!
SmartypantS.......You are a bright little human!! WHATEVER, keep working on those avatar's so we know its really you being that dumb!! See you nerds sunday!
RV is a dip @#$%, he talks like he has won a couple championships already! He makes Stewart look bright!!
"Reed is faster this year than before...look at the results." --jim adams
What results am I supposed to be looking at? He has one win and a bunch of podiums. Same old Chad Reed who's shown up every year since '05. Reed of '09 kept pace with James almost every round. He was godly, but Stewart was godlier. Just look at how lame the battle between the Ryans in 2010 was in comparison.
@BK-R: How is "more competition" not something that's in his head? But like I said, I don't know why a rookie, a privateer, a guy with a shattered leg who's never completed a full season, and an unproven champ should have bothered him mentally. Apparently they did.
Does anyone else besides Jim Adams think Reed's better this year than in 2009? Nobody was even sure he would podium this year, let alone win a race. Two podiums in the first six rounds? Does that sound indicative of someone who's faster than EVER BEFORE?
"B-KR wrote: about 9 hours ago
So typical that now the tide is turning towards Stewart's bike not handling right, something is in his head, he is off etc. How about giving credit to the guys that are going good? Stewart has more competition than he ever had in his life now and he doesn't know how to handle it. So far his way has been to ride over his head and crash. Time for a new plan."
BINGO! It's called progression, it happens constantly and isn't going to stop to keep JS and his fans happy.
Retardcross,,, You think he has more comp now than when RC was riding ?? C'mon, no way.. RC was by far his toughest comp so far. There may be a few faster guys right now, but for pure speed, RC was his toughest.. Just ask Reed.. When JS and RC were racing together, Reed was usually far behind those two..
mxmofo, I don't think we'll ever see JS pushed to the speed him and RC used to go (outdoors specifically) ever again to be totally honest. Those two when battling drove eachother to speeds they probably didn't realize they were capable of. But the difference now is the talent pool is way deeper and there are 5 guys on pace to capitalize on any mistake made by whoever the leader is at the time. There's not a one minute buffer between JS, RC and the rest of the field now. If JS or RC made a mistake before they still got second with their eyes closed. If JS makes a mistake now, it's a struggle for him just to make the podium (in SX anyways). We'll see what the outdoors brings, hopefully a couple more contenders on top of what we have now.
Retardcross,, I agree,, the talent is deeper now.. But I do still think that JS has the speed to screw up and be able to catch up like he did in years past.. He's just not riding as good right now.. Look at Daytona,, he made those guys look like C riders,, until he took another dirt sample. Most of SX tracks ar extremely hard to make time on becaus eeveryone is doing the same thing ( no seperation ).. Thats why at Daytona, his talent came out.. I do hope he rides the Nationals.. I think he almost has to, or else his career my come to an end.
When JS7 is firing on all 4 cylinders,like at A2 for example, I still think he will seperate himself from the rest. Daytona like Emig said, " he is putting on a clinic"...his crash was not from riding over his head.... Question is, can he fire on all 4 again....all racers go through slumps, strings of bad luck and mistakes.....so we'll see what JS7 do....I personally would like to see him jump back on the Kawasaki....or maybe try the Honda...the new yamies are piles of shit
.... You have to wonder....as the L&M was "supercross only"...the contract with Yamaha was probably SX only....could there be a bike switch in the making?...in 2009 Stewart killed them, but then they changed the bike and its been down hill since...
trend killer,, I agree... I would like to see him get off those Yammys also.
Whoops_Blitzer,
Yes look at the results! 1 win and some podiums...well it was good enough to take the points lead until Budda took him out. He IS the most consistant rider out there and as DeCoster has stated since I first watched him in '71, "consistancy wins championships". Reed knows exactly what he is doing. If Budda stops taking him out...he will be the new champion.
jim adams,, I cant wait until Bubba puts Reed in the bleachers..
Stewie has the ability to win every race he is in. But he is and has been very reckless. I think he is in panick mode right now, and doesnt have a calm collective voice of readon out there to calm him. Like Dungey had last year in Decoster, and RV has in Aldon. It is telling the way Stewie has been this season, he is kinda overwelmed it seems to me. I think he ha been riding past his skill level on some of thetracks, and pushing too hard to get the win. He has never gone this long in a full season of racing without a win, and isnt dealing with it very well.
bd200,,, Yes, there is no dought he's a little reckless. I dont think he's been riding past his skill level though.. There is no dought, he does have some issues this season... I'm not making excuses for him, but the truth he hasnt looked as good on those Yammys as he did his Kaws. Just maybe,,, he's not smart enough to figure out the suspension..
I don't really see how it could be a bike problem. At the beginning of the season everyone was talking about how his bike looks better than ever--and of course in '09 his bike wasn't holding him back one bit, judging by how he was riding.
I guess they could be having trouble with the bike in the later rounds now that the team is shaken. Hmm.
I think the 2009 SX season really impressed upon me just how great Stewart and Reed are. I'm inclined to say no one else has ridden that well since, maybe even before (in the past decade or so, with the possible exception of RC). Again, if Reed had been riding this whole season as well as he is now, he'd be running away with this thing.
mxmofo,
Yep, Reed, in the bleechers, after winning, watching Budda still racing to the checkers!....wrecklessness will never beat talent!...22 is headed to #1.
mxmofo....funny how if Reed was not in that berm, stewart would have been in the bleachers! I enjoy people saying it was payback, uhhhhhh he didn't mean to do that..Idiots. Even if he was going on the inside and would have stayed on, it wouldn't have happened because he would have to brake just like Reed did..Reed would already be out of the berm. Reed is smart and patient, and knows when there is a deep field of very talented riders. Stewart has horse blinders on and cant see past the next lap. He has the speed and talent but a rookie mentality!