by Andy Bowyer
450 Words: The Chase
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PrintIt is hard to imagine that we’re already 10 laps away from the series being halfway over. Steve Matthes made this point during his Pulp MX practice report podcast from Atlanta (thanks for letting me join in, Steve!), declaring that, “you can’t divide 17 in half,” so when the flagger in St. Louis holds out the cross flags on lap 10, maybe he should hold out two sets? Anyways, there is a lot of racing remaining. That noted, if your name isn’t Davi Millsaps you’re probably wishing you could start over.
In Atlanta, Millsaps (Rockstar Energy Racing) extended his point lead for the fifth week in a row. His 22-point lead reminds me of another #22 that made a career out of performances which Davi has produced in 2013, but that two-two has yet to get going. One of the most popular phrases racers make now a days is the declaration of, “Just taking it one race at a time.” You can expect to hear that from Millsaps until Las Vegas, but even as strong and consistent as he has been, he is only one bad race away from a hornet’s nest.
Millsaps holds a comfortable 22-point lead over Villopoto through eight rounds.
Simon Cudby photo
Ryan Villopoto (Monster Energy Kawasaki) has now moved into second in series points for the first time in 2013. Pre-season, many would have expected him to be leading by now. So nobody saw this, or the half dozen trips to the mat he's taken, coming out of the two-time defending champion. But, with a win and a steady second place outing in the last two rounds, he is already on a path to make it interesting come round 17. Yesterday, Jason Thomas' The Moment centered around a single obstacle making the difference between Villopoto and James Stewart (Yoshimura Suzuki). You have to ask yourself if Ryan would have held back like that earlier in the season. He was quoted in Dallas about being cognizant that if he felt that he was a second or a third place guy, he needed to accept it, be happy, and stay steady. Again, it’s been a quick turn around in the past two weeks and you can actually look at Villopoto's second place in Atlanta being a victory.
This reminds of Ryan Villopoto’s 2008 East Coast 250 effort. That year in Atlanta, he got cannon-balled by Josh Grant and didn’t finish the opener. Took him a few races to get going, but then he clicked off wins and was, “just waiting for a mistake,” from point leader Trey Canard. RV patiently stalked the rookie until he finally got that mistake, when Canard stumbled at the next to the last round. Villopoto finally got back into striking distance, setting up a mano y mano brawl between the two. The championship climax was Ryan slamming into the finish line structure - and Canard winning the title. Still, RV proved he could make up ground with the best of them.
Can RV pick up more ground in St. Louis?
Simon Cudby photo
The next two races on the board (St. Louis and especially Daytona) have historically been some of the wildest of the series. Looking at the points, Villopoto is 22 behind Millsaps, then Ryan Dungey (Red Bull KTM) is merely four more back, and Trey Canard (Muscle Milk Honda) is quietly sitting in fourth place only 13 points behind Dungey. Like I said at the top of the page, it’s going to take one very bad race, or several mediocre ones from Millsaps for them to catch him, but if they do we could see a four-way dog fight in Las Vegas.
How about this for a kicker to close 450 words out; imagine a Chase format. What if they reset the points with six rounds remaining and awarded bonus points for wins and/or fastest qualifying times? Certainly James Stewart would smile at this. Do we need something like that to make our sport more interesting? Or, is it enough to see the guys race through 17 rounds healthy and, “may the best man win?” Definitely something to think about.
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Cool idea.. At the first round I thought Davi was lucky. Second round,lucky. Third round.. Pretty solid. Fourth and fifth rounds, I started to think "wow", but now I realize Milsaps has this series by the balls. He has earned every part of his lead and shown he is an awesome rider. The only thing I wonder, as the series wears on.. Will Davi start to feel pressure and choke like Bradshaw did? Remember canard with two laps left, he switched his thinking and crashed. MILLSAPS needs to keep thinking win, not lay up.
I wonder, seriously, has the Suzuki helped Davi? Or is it all mental and physical conditioning? I would like to hear him answer that honestly.
Lastly, if Davi wants to be a hero, he needs to make up with his parents when the season is all over. He is where he is because of them, and while they both made mistakes.. Be a man like RV and bring that family back together. I would be very proud of him and I think everyone else would too..
This isn't NASCAR. Being consistant is all part of the game. It is way more exciting when every race counts because the racers try every race instead of just using it as a warm up race for the championship hunt. Arenacross maybe needed it because the tracks are tiny and needed more excitement with 20 second lap times but don't change supercross to this.
Millsaps in control of the championship with everyone in it at the halfway mark. Still shaking my head. Good for #18 but clearly nobody saw this one coming. With the total dominance of the two Ryans the last 3 years, Millsaps winning would be a nice change. Not on the bandwagon......but I am raising my glass as it passes.
"In Atlanta, Millsaps (Rockstar Energy Racing) extended his point lead for the fifth week in a row."....just questioning how he extended his points lead? Didn't he actually lose 2 points to RV and 3 points to JS7?
@rickamatuzio, first time you and I disagree. I completely disagree with you over the parents. His parents made the decision to have children and create the family dynamic/dysfunction. To put that on Davi at 50% is absurd. Like a marriage, there are things going on behind the scenes nobody knows about. His personal life and family decisions need to be off limits. I suspect his current personal life is successful because he has cuts ties with dysfunctional parent(s), which unfortunately just needs to be done at times.
@lucky_7
That's a good question. Davi's overall point lead increased from 21 to 22 after Atlanta. Meanwhile, RV got closer to Davi and moved into 2nd place by finishing ahead of him. While Ryan drew closer to Davi, the championship point lead (owned by DM18) increased over 2nd place for the 5th week in a row beginning in Oakland...which RV won.
Still with me?
Points reset is so dumb, I don't understand how the idea ever went further than a stoned discussion that started with "hey, you know what'd be cool....". If SX/MX is too boring, just give them flame throwers/rocket launchers and we'll go full blown Idiocracy. People want that 'bottom of the 9th' and 'last ten seconds of the 4th' type of entertainment...every.single.time...it's ridiculous.
JonR145 Good call !
Plus Brittney is a better piece than ol'e mom anyhow ! lol !
im just waiting for his bad race, its got to happen right? and how he will perform after that bad race. it would be awesome for him to win
The Chase is a bad idea for NASCAR and it would be a bad idea here. No One completely understands the NASCAR points unless you are hardcore and from the outside looking in it comes across as rigged for ratings anyway. Make every race count, it is exciting the way it is.
A points reset is the worst idea ever. Why would we want to reward the inconsistent riders? Might as well not even have a series and points, just a bunch of one-off races guys can go bonzai in and crash their brains out because the next race means nothing.
Davi's personal life should be personal folks. None of my business.... its a shame it came up here
Just my opinion here but I would hate to see a "chase" style format. It's the big reason I quit watching NASCAR. Racing should not have any "playoff" type on anything because you race the same people every weekend. It's not like other sports where you only play one other team...
He had to have put the Chase format out there just to get this comment section to light up. I'd be surprised if anyone thinks that its a good idea. You look at the point standings for AX, and think "Why does the guy in 11th have more points than the guy in first?" or "What happened to the big point lead Bowers worked so hard for?"
Sap's does not really need a bad race, just a 7th would be huge if RV wins. and a 7th is easy to get this year!! All Sap's needs is a bad start for once this year and things will be more fun to watch!! an RV win and a Sap's 7th this weekend and the points lead is 12 and things get interesting with 7 to go.
"chase" one more reason i never have watched NASCAR. never seen one race.
@Hattica77-- We all know your brother is a top NASCAR guy--but a reset and a "chase " for supercross??? NO WAY...... Not even close to being a good idea.. I know you are just kind of getting a debate started, but this IS NOT NASCAR--we dont want to be NASCAR....
And DAvis personnel life is his business--him making up with his Mom has NOTHING to do with him "being a hero" or anything else.. Its his business--nobody elses...
@BillC--Yes, good point, that is all it takes, and can easily happen if Millsaps just starts mid-pack.. With all the guys with top speed now it wouldnt take much for a 7th place finish.. It would get real interesting..
We want real Supercross racing not this east tracks, one lined stack them all up in a close line good for TV ratings like NASCAR.
McGrath had a comment in a recent interview that I think really plays in here. He sad something along the lines on how he wishes supercross would be more fun again since everyone now attacks it like a crazy workhorse. While I get his point I think this workhorse mentality is playing a large part in what we see out there. No longer can a guy like Jimmy Stewart hammer the throttle and pull a win from way back. You need to have all aspects dialed, from the holeshot, to the suspension, right down to the specific tire you run along with the countless hours of training. All these top guys know this and its the smallest of margins that separates them. We did however see this last week how the track can challenge them slightly. Its far to early to tell but I think the less cookie cutter you make the tracks the better racing we will have. I really want the wall and jumps into a sand corner back. The harder and more difficult the track I think the more we will see these guys start to separate out. But really who knows, all these top guys are champions at the pro level for a reason...
Another thing. Points race reset: Yuck. May the best man win, straight up.
davi didnt get that great of a start this weekend he was 7th or 8th and made it too 3rd. I think its about time that people realize that he is for real and belongs right where he is at. I'll admit I had him barely inside the top ten coming into the season
If they are gonna do anything to points the only thing that would be fair (I think) is maybe a point or two for heat race wins thats it
but if you do that than milsaps is gone by a longshot because im pretty sure he has won like 90% of his heat races
@jeremey--I dont like the idea of a heat race win giving points either.. Its just an 8 lap sprint anyway.... I think the point system is fine, it has worked forever..
Milsaps has been a man for a long time. He had to be in order to survive.
NASCAR controls every aspect of their sport. No one has any influence in the outcome of supercross. Keep it that way.
@therealmofo
Instead of CHASE, insert "playoffs." But my intent was "The Point Chase." No worries on the obvious ties to bro. Haha. I don't want Supercross to be NASCAR, OR the NHRA who also adopted a similar playoff format, but I do want it to grow and am open minded to possible changes/improvements.
@billC
"1st and a 7th is all it takes to make things exciting again! agreed!" Then imagine if Barcia and Stewart jumped back into the title mix? ;)
This has been my favorite series ever, so I don't disagree with the traditionalists either. Nothing wrong with a little debating though! Good stuff.
Hey Andy, just because your brother's racing sport is lame, doesn't mean you have to bring the lameness over to our sport
In motocross and supercross we have a championship series and it's awesome the way it is
@Hattica--Playoffs and Chase sounds kind of the same to me.. It still sounds like a guy who bust his tail for 8 or 9 races loses whatever lead he worked to build.. A guy can flounder most of the early rounds, win one race, and then get a title, not right in my opinion..
Just to let you guys know, who say your start position is where you finish. Go watch A3 Millsaps started 8th and finished 2nd. I hope he wins the title just to stick it to the media and all the people who wrote him off. FINISH STRONG DM18
@the real mofo okay than what about making sx just like MX where their are two mains so one loss,crash or whatever is not so devastating?
I mean hell with 40 sec lap times you cant tell me they cant sqeeze in another 250/450 main
but on the other hand it could be twice as devastating if they wad it up in the heat race and miss both mains than they are 50 points down
That 'CHASE" stuff is all marketing by the good ole boys in Nascar. Gotta keep the hillbillies favorite LEFT TURN DRIVERS tee's coming off the merchandise shelf and keep em glued to the TV chugging some Ronnie Mac PBR's ! Having the CHASE gives all the yokels a opportunity to keep on buy'n/watch'n !
@SpottedMarley
You're one of the more vocal comment guys...but, you seem intelligent. Come on man, I started writing moto back in 2002 when bro was working in a body shop. I was lame before he was lame...screw him..wait..haha
You like it the way it is. Cool, its the best series i've ever watched in 25 years so far.
@therealmofo
Heard ya. They don't typically work out that way though, but your opinion has merit for sure.
Its kind of weird how people overlook the cool fact that Davi is still pulling away. NOT losing any ground at all.
Can we stop with the "he increased his lead" stuff. RV is 2nd now and unless Davi BEATS RV or any other guy in with a chance of winning the series he did not INCREASE his lead or the gap.......illogical...
Chase - Madness. I agree, the sport is fine how it is, why do we need to change it? Has making it better for the masses made it a BETTER sport.....debateable....has making it more viable made for better payouts to the riders.....not that I have seen.....
We are selling the soul of the sport for what reason......?
Mostly so the promotor makes more! (?)......is THAT for the better of the sport....?
Sorry for the rant. A pet subject of mine.....single day events, can't even wait 3 seconds for a rider to PUT on his helmet....etc..
Happening down in NZ too......Haven't seen any more commercial take up of the sport than prior to the main stream "improvements" here either......
Back in the dark ages when the Boss was having the Kids she got into NASCAR and we always followed NHRA. Well since this chase fiasco started I've not watched one race...............for years everyone complained about someone running away with the series, R Johnson, JMB, McGrath, RC...etc Now the person in the lead is someone NO One expected. Isn't this parity what everyone claimed they wanted ?? Oh I get it let's restric the motors or make the leader start backwards....
We have two 'chase' / 'playoff' series every year . . . they start at A1 and Hangtown.
MASCAR is contrived. The WWE of motorsport.
DM is far from having the title wrapped up. My guess is over the course of the next 9 races things will tighten up and be plenty exciting. What if his motor locks up in the main rather than a heat race? What if he gets taken out by Reed at the start or he gets banged around by the Honda boys? Like BillC said a 6th or 7th place finish is likely at some point.
Put it this way Racer X: If supercross and motocross ever went to a Chase format like nascar, I would no longer watch it. Thats how dumb the chase format is.
Started out as a dirt track fan in the 60`s because my father, who I love and miss dearly,was a fan. I loved the outlaws and that would be my choice if I raced cars. Nascar came along and I grew with it and became a "rabid" fan. then introduced to MOTOCROSS and it has consumed my life in one way or another. I am from the eat, sleep, drink, breath era. Lost interest in nascar because of the "growth" of the sport which became too comercialized , lost all integrity, killed it for me. I see similarities with supercross. The Chase concept would be the "nail in the coffin" for me. Lets keep moto pure, nothing else comes close.
@Hattica77-- I think its awesome what Millsaps is doing.. I have been a Millsaps fan for a while.. And have gotten grief for it ( Right BillC--HAHA) and I am loving having another top guy in the mix.. The more that can win the better, and I always liked Millsaps, he is a great guy.. I've met him a few times..
Please don't try to make the sport any more 'interesting', the points system works. The chase format is ridiculous, let's take all your hard work and throw it all away....might as well shorten the series to those last 'reset' rounds because you're wasting the time, money, and effort of the teams involved right up to that point.
I love the idea of a "playoffs" if possible .. Every top sport has it and the main benefit is fans. I would love a Vegas show down with 5 guys lining up for a title .. Obviously some with more advantage but it would take guys like Barcia and Stewart and give them something to hope for.. Stewart said live on speed " obviously the season is over for us at this point but well take it"... How about a NASCAR type ending. ... I bet villo wouldn't think I better lay up and not go down riding in 2nd place vs go for the win all out.. But he could throw the season away with one bad race.. There is 7 guys and any one of them who avoid a bad night will win it.. Creates a different racing mind
Lets leave the "playoffs" to team sports. There is nothing wrong with the current points system. I agree, that this has been one of the most unpredictable seasons so far and is only gonna get more exciting over the next few weeks. If theres people that think the series needs more excitement or a way to make the racing closer... Look at the tracks!! Where did the split starts go!? ( am I the only one that thought those were awesome!?) and how about taking a page out of the history books, look at some of the old tracks where not every section of the track was exactly the same width. Supercross tracks have evolved into jump packed tracks... maybe its time to open it back up.
I'm going have to throw in a dip to calm down after reading two articles back to back talking about a chase in Supercross. I haven't been this angry since, well Sunday when all Fox could talk about was Danica Patrick.
There is nothing wrong with the format.. it's the TRACKS that need to be fixed
..and the BIKES too if you ask me.. but it seems we're stuck with these 4 strokes now
@ Spotted
agreed...make the Monster Cup 2stroke only as a trial run......bet the racing would be epic.
AS I suggested on the other stupid post, maybe the 250 4stroke should be the biggest bike in either class. The 250's have been giving us better racing for the most part anyway.
JonR, I really dont know what happened with David or his mother.. but I am speaking from a brokenn family. I have watched first hand how our family was torn apart, and its very sad. I like happy endings, and I think Davis would be the bigger man either way if he stepped up and patched up regardless of who is at fault.
His mother raised him and made him who he is. I wish everyday I had a normal functioning family, but ego and pride will not take a back seat. Such a waste when life is so short..
Maybe I am way off base, but I like how RV tried to patch his feelings. I bet it feels good inside, but I dont know the degree of damage with David. I know he wasn't a picture perfect son like Dungey, not an angel like myself, so he has to accept some blame.
Have you all not noticed that they are testing this in Arenacross right now.They took the top 10 and reset the points to zero for something like the last six races.
If you want to make MX or SX more exciting, make the tracks more exciting and challenging for these "pros." Any Ricardo-Weed can hit 3 and 4 foot jumps. The tracks these "pros" ride should strike fear in the heart of "amateurs." These little 12" whoops are just not that exciting, the jumps are teeny bicycle jumps. Get with the times. People on SKATEBOARDS are jumping 20' jumps these days, and they have little 3" wheels with NO SUSPENSION. It's time everybody grow the hell up and expect more out of "pro" motocross and "supercross" racers. There's nothing "super" about it any more. Maybe they should call it Blasé-cross.
@speedshifter...lol ...good comedy Its not freestyle....if its not 'exciting' enough go watch bull riders or somebody flipping something...its RACING...man vs man ....as long as the tracks offer room and obstacles to RACE on they need to NOT be striking fear into anyone anymore than they already do.. you don't ride or race do you...kinda easy to tell..........I would pay hard cold american cash to see you wail (just ride an actual bike) around these 'easy' tracks and sell the house to see you pin a 450 Yamaha through a full set of those little whoops ...and when you come to maybe you'd get it. What all these guys do off track is none of our business...please don't do anything Neckcar does...its a different animal and really can just tune in for the last ten laps ending on caution and you've seen the whole deal....its WAAAAAAAAAAAYYY to early to call anything...the blink of an eye boys. in the blink of an eye it can ALL change...
I'm glad to see most people here agreeing that a chase format in SX would be terrible. Nascar's season is 9 months and 36 races long, so it makes a little more sense to have a points reset there to keep the last 3 or 4 months from being (even more) boring.
How is the SX pro drug testing going?
AMA SX points scoring system is perfect as-is .
AMA - Don't even think about turning SX into WWE.
@rickamatuzio. Well said fella. One day Davi will bawl his eyes out if he does't make up with his mamma and pappa.
I fell out with my old man, and when he passed away I would have given everything I had just to tell him I loved him and that I was sorry my foolish pride stopped me from sharing his last few years on this planet. It's too late now of course, but it's something I will regret till my dying day. Don't make the same mistake Davi.
Wow, I hate where this thread went. This personal stuff is way off base.
Whatever Davi is doing is working beautifully. His head and body are as good as they have ever been. He is easily keeping himself in the points lead and I still dont think we've seen his best. If for some reason he is down 2 in Vegas I have a feeling he could track down anyone right now.... if needed.
His starts, his corner speed, he may even be the fastest guy in the whoops. I dont see any flaws at this point and if for some reason he has a bad moto I think he can reel it back in.
'Chase' format, resetting points, and/or bonus points for this or that? No, no, and hell no!