Photo: Supercross.com

The 2012 Monster Energy Supercross, an FIM World Championship, heads to Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas for round number thirteen of the Supercross Class and round number eight of the Eastern Regional Lites Championship. Houston is one of the oldest stops on the AMA SX schedule and has been hosting SX races since 1974. From 1974 to 2002, the Astrodome—the eighth wonder of the world—played host, but in 2003, the race moved across the parking lot to the beautiful indoor home of the Houston Texans: Reliant Stadium.

What a difference a year makes. Last year, when the Monster Energy Supercross series pulled into Houston, we had five Supercross Class riders in a full on war for podiums, wins and the Championship. In 2012, three of those five riders are out injured as we head into Houston and one of them, Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto, has a chance to clinch the Championship with four rounds left to race.  Ryan heads into Houston with a ninety-four point lead over JGR/Yamaha’s James Stewart, who is technically still in third behind Red Bull/KTM’s injured rider Ryan Dungey.  For the defending champ to clinch his second straight Championship, he must lead by an even one-hundred points or more when the series leaves Houston. What this means is that if Ryan wins the Houston Main Event, he needs James to finish fourth or worse to begin the celebrating, and yes, James announced earlier that he will be in Houston to race this weekend.

Can James keep RV from clinching in Houston? If so, there is always the anything can happen scenario in Supercross. Photo: Chad DeRosa

Will James be in good enough physical shape to challenge RV1 for the win? We would love to tell you either yes or no, but over the last couple of weeks, the updates from the Stewart camp have been vague at best. The secrecy has left many speculating as to whether or not we would even see James back for Supercross, so the news that he will be in Houston came as a pleasant surprise. Whether you like James or not, we all know the sport is more exciting with him on the line.

Three riders that may help the #1 clinch the 2012 title in Houston and become the sports fifth ever repeat Champion are GEICO Powersports/Honda’s Kevin Windham, Muscle Milk/Honda’s Justin Brayton and James’ JGR/Yamaha teammate Davi Millsaps. For Ryan to clinch, he needs help, and those three are his most likely allies in this scenario. All three have gained a ton of confidence over the last two weeks with solid podium appearances. Justin, in particular, has stepped his game ,up and anyone that has followed the sport closely knows that K’dub is always on another level in Houston. Houston is close to Kevin’s home in Mississippi so you know he will be looking for redemption after last year’s crash while seeming to be in control of the Main Event.

K'dub led the first ten laps of the 2011 Houston SX before relinquishing solid control of the Main Event with a big crash. Can Kevin finish the job in 2012? Photo: Matt Rice

Whether or not RV1 clinches the 2012 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship in Houston, the title is as close to a lock as it has ever been.  Sure, we like to talk about RV1 clinching it this weekend, but in reality, he can lose eighteen points to JS7 over the next two rounds and conservatively lock it down in New Orleans with three rounds left. While the option of riding conservative may seem like the smart play for some, for a champion like RV, we are not sure it will be his play.

Supercross Class – After 12 Rounds  – 2012 Championship Points
 1 1 Ryan Villopoto Seattle, WA, USA 271
 2 5 Ryan Dungey Belle Plaine, MN, USA 192
 3 7 James Stewart Haines City, FL, USA 177
 4 18 David Millsaps Murrieta, CA, USA 169
 5 14 Kevin Windham Centreville, MS, USA 166
 6 10 Justin Brayton Murrieta, CA, USA 165
 7 21 Jake Weimer Wildomar, ID, USA 150
 8 24 Brett Metcalfe Lake Elsinore, CA, USA 145
 9 800 Mike Alessi Hilliard, FL, USA 136
 10 22 Chad Reed Dade City, FL, USA 128
The start has been Barcia's secret weapon in 2012. Barcia has been money off the line all year long. Photo: Supercross.com

In the 2012 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Lites Eastern Regional Championship, it has been all about the #1. GEICO Powersports/Honda’s Justin Barcia has been a machine in 2012, and other than a slight hiccup in Indianapolis, he has been unstoppable. Heading into Houston, Justin has won five of the six 2012 Main Events and has a cushy twenty-eight point lead in the series. With only three rounds left and Justin Barcia’s consistency—that has him on a seventeen race East Lites podium streak—he is going to be hard to stop.

The only rider able to come between Bam Bam and a perfect season so far has been Rockstar/Suzuki’s Blake Wharton. The flamboyant Texan grabbed his first win in three years just two weeks ago in Indianapolis, backing it up with a podium last weekend in Canada. It is awesome to see Slash back on the box consistently and near the front in the Championship points. Blake comes into Reliant Stadium second in the points and just three points in front of Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Darryn Durham.

Darryn Durham - Photo: Matt Rice
Durham has shown he has the speed to run up front, but he has lacked the consistency that is needed to win. Will the #35 put it all together this weekend? Photo: Matt Rice

Hanging on to fourth in the points—a massive forty-three points behind Barcia—is the Red Bull/KTM rider Ken Roczen. At this point, the pre-season Championship hopeful looks well out of the Championship, so we expect him to lay it all on the line to grab a win or two before the season’s end. Overall, the 2012 Supercross season has been a disappointing one for the German, but a couple of wins could certainly make the pain go away.

One rider who is probably on almost everyone’s list of biggest surprises of 2012 is MotoConcepts’ Jake Canada. The Californian has been phenomenal in 2012, having not once finished outside of the top ten. Even more impressively, Jake has now begun his push toward the podium with two straight top five finishes. In Indianapolis, he finished fifth, and he backed that up with a fourth in Toronto, moving up to fifth in the points. This from a guy that could not crack the top ten—as a full blown privateer—in 2011. If you are looking for most improved rider of 2012, look no further than Mr. Canada.

Blake Wharton looks like a different rider in 2012. The once inconsistent rider looks more consistent than ever. photo: Suzuki racing

 

Lites East Region – After 6 Rounds  – 2012 Championship Points
 1 1 Justin Barcia Ochlocknee, GA, USA 145
 2 956 Blake Wharton Pilot Point, TX, USA 117
 3 35 Darryn Durham Butler, PA, USA 114
 4 70 Ken Roczen Murrieta, USA 102
 5 57 Jake Canada Sun City, CA, USA 90
 6 12 Blake Baggett Grand Terrace, CA, USA 86
 7 49 Justin Bogle Cushing, OK, USA 74
 8 37 Malcolm Stewart Haines City, FL, USA 50
 9 30 Alex Martin Millville, MN, USA 50
Author

Dan Lamb is a 12+ year journalist and the owner of MotoXAddicts.