Photo: Courtesy of KTM – Hoppenworld
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, heads south and back to California for the first of four straight California supercross rounds in a row. This Saturday marks only the second time the series stops in Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium, and if the inaugural event there in 2011 was any indication, we should be treated to some incredible racing. In 2011, we saw a five-man freight train at the front with the eventual 2011 Monster Energy Supercross Champion, Ryan Villopoto, coming away with a hard fought win. Can the Monster Energy/Kawasaki rider become the first man to win two events at Dodger Stadium, or will somebody else step up and win their first?
The man coming in with the momentum after a history-making win at the Phoenix Supercross is Red Bull/KTM’s Ryan Dungey. Last weekend, Ryan did what many thought was impossible—win a premier class Supercross race on the KTM—and he made it look easy. The number five grabbed the holeshot and simply walked away from the field with consistent laps, recording his first win of the young 2012 season and KTM’s first win ever. Coming into 2011, many thought Ryan was committing career suicide by signing with the Austrian dirt bike maker, but after two races, two podiums and one win RD5 and KTM share the Championship points lead and the coveted red plate with Ryan Villopoto as we head into round three. The move to KTM is quickly beginning to look like a perfect fit for the former 2010 Monster Energy Supercross Champ. The Red Bull/KTM team and everyone involved with their push into the U.S. market is most definitely carrying an ear to ear grin.
After Ryan Villopoto’s dominant performance at the opener in Anaheim, some were ready to give the 2011 Champion the 2012 trophy and call it a year. RV1 showed in Anaheim that he is a tick ahead of everyone in terms of speed, but as we so often see in supercross, the fastest man does not always win. In Phoenix last Saturday, RV1 started just outside the top five but was moving up fast before running into the downed JGR/Yamaha of Davi Millsaps and going down himself. RV1 remounted in eighteenth and put on what may go down in the books as the ride of the year to land on the third step of the podium. Most Supercross fans and riders know that you win your Championships by how you ride on your worst nights, not your best. Well, RV1 showed in Phoenix that, even on his worst nights, he can come from way back to salvage a podium. While a third was not what the defending champ wanted, the way he blitzed through the field may just have been the confidence boost that he needed.
The man that finished between the two Ryans at round two and is now tied with Chad Reed for third in the points was a new face to the Supercross Class podium: Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer. After an injury-riddled rookie 450 Supercross season in 2011 and a very mediocre rookie 450 AMA Outdoor National Motocross season, many wondered how the quiet assassin from Rupert, Idaho would respond in 2012. Well, after the first two rounds of Supercross, we would say he has responded with the Jake Weimer heart and determination that earned him the 2010 Western Region Lites Supercross Championship. People should not discount the fact that Jake straight up beat Trey Canard for the 2010 Western Regional Lites Championship and was narrowly beaten by Ryan Dungey in 2010. Jake is an incredible supercross talent, and with him knowing he can beat the top guys, you should expect his first-ever podium from last weekend to not be his last. Jake sits tied for third after in the 2012 Championship points with a fifth and a second in the first two rounds, and is just seven points behind the Ryans heading into round three.
Sitting tied with Jake Weimer for third in the Championship after a very hard fought fifth last weekend in Phoenix is the Australian Chad Reed. The Two-Two Motorsports/Honda rider has looked a bit off the pace during the first two rounds, but in the past, he has shown that he gets stronger as the series wears on. At round two, Reedy got a bad start and struggled to come through the pack. While RV1 was able to carve his way from eighteenth to third with ballistic speed, Reedy used his consistency to make his way up to score a solid sixteen points for a fifth. Reed’s motto has always been that you have to be in it to win it, and that motto has carried him to two Supercross Championships and a narrowly missed third title after an even slower start in 2011. Reed fans know not to put too much weight in how Chad looks at the early rounds and can count on him pressing it more as we get deeper into 2012. Reedy finished a very uninspiring seventh at the inaugural 2011 Dodger Stadium event, but you can be sure he won’t settle for that this Saturday.
Sitting in fifth and sixth in the 2012 Monster Energy Supercross series point race are two of the most loved riders in the sport: GEICO Powersports/Honda’s Kevin Windham and Supercross.com/Honda’s Andrew Short. Both Andrew and K’dub are loved for their true passion for the sport and both showed in Phoenix that they are far from done playing. Both men rode inspired main events in Phoenix with K’dub missing the podium by one lap and Shorty managing to improve on his Anaheim 1 seventh place finish with a sixth in the Main Event. One thing we have grown to expect over the years from both these men is an all out effort, and before long, we expect that effort to carry one or both onto the box.
While a guy like Jake Weimer has exceeded all expectations, there’s one man who has not quite lived up to the hype in 2012. The Joe Gibbs Racing/Yamaha team went way out on a limb this off-season and spent enough money for ten Jake Weimers on James Stewart. So far, they have not gotten much of a return on that investment. In two rounds of racing, James has not even gotten a glimpse of the lead—other than in heat races—and if he cannot figure out how to keep the rubber side down, he will not be seeing the lead any time soon. We have heard all of the excuses from too much pressure to a faulty bike or tires, but the bottom line is James is not getting it done. There is no doubt in my mind that the former two-time champ can and will win some Main Events, but that price tag was meant to buy Championships. Whether or not James can deliver has never been questioned more than it is right now. If there was ever a race James desperately needed to win, it would be this weekend’s in Los Angeles. We are pulling for James to turn it around because right now it looks like he is the only one that can battle RV1 straight up speed-wise—and that is something we very much would like to see.
The last man we will talk about is not near the top of points standings yet, but that may only be because he missed round one due to injury. Muscle Milk Honda’s Trey Canard jumped back into the series at round two and debuted with a solid points scoring night with a seventh. With only three weeks of recovery after having his collar bone surgically plated, there were not many expectations going into Phoenix, but with another week of riding and recovery time in the bank, we should begin to see what Trey brings to the table at Dodger Stadium this weekend. We are still not expecting Trey to light the world on fire at round three in Los Angeles, but we would not be the least bit surprised to see the likable kid from Oklahoma smiling on the podium.
As the series now heads to Los Angeles, the fans are definitely smiling. We may legitimately have six guys that can win and any of ten or more riders that could surprise us with a podium appearance. Outside of the top seven, there are names like H&H/Kawasaki’s Josh Hansen—who, after two horrible starts at the first two rounds, managed two top tens—Yoshimura/Suzuki’s Brett Metcalfe who has yet to find his 450 Supercross groove but could at any time, and Muscle Milk/Honda’s Justin Brayton. There has never been a better time to be a fan of the greatest sport in the world.
You can watch the 450 Main event on CBS Sunday morning. Click here for the TV schedule, but make sure to check your local listings for times.
450/Supercross Class Points
For full points standings click here>>>
1 5 Ryan Dungey Belle Plaine, MN, USA 45 2 1 Ryan Villopoto Seattle, WA, USA 45 3 21 Jake Weimer Wildomar, ID, USA 38 4 22 Chad Reed Dade City, FL, USA 38 5 14 Kevin Windham Centreville, MS, USA 31 6 29 Andrew Short Smithville, TX, USA 29 7 7 James Stewart Haines City, FL, USA 28 8 10 Justin Brayton Murrieta, NC, USA 25 9 24 Brett Metcalfe Lake Elsinore, CA, USA 22 10 100 Joshua Hansen Elbert, CO, USA 22
