Photo: Hoppenworld – KTM Images
Week number eleven of the 2012 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, heads to the Racing Capital Indianapolis, Indiana for the twenty-first annual Indianapolis Supercross. While this weekend will mark the twenty-first time a gate has dropped for AMA Supercross in the Racing Capital, it is only the fifth time in the new, beautiful, climate-controlled Lucas Oil Stadium. After last weekend’s brutal mud bath in Daytona Beach, Florida, riders will be pumped to see a ceiling this Saturday night.
In the Supercross Class last Saturday night, it was the two-time Supercross Champion James Stewart’s night to shine. Heading into Daytona, James had a fifty-three point deficit in the championship, and with Red Bull/KTM’s Ryan Dungey out due to a broken collarbone, it was now or never if he wanted any chance at the title. On the incredibly sloppy, rain-soaked circuit of Daytona, the #7 was perfect en route to his second win of the 2012 season. With the points leader, Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto, only scoring fifth place points, James was able to cut the deficit by nine points but is still facing a fourty-four point mountain he will have to climb. For James to win this title, he is going to need a lot of help, but if he can make it two in a row in Indy, it will be a huge step in the right direction.
Ryan Villopoto has had some really tough starts in Main Events in 2012, but the defending Supercross Champion has held on to the points lead due to his ability to rally from the back. In Phoenix, Ryan rallied from dead last to third, in Los Angeles he went from last to fourth, and last weekend in the slop, he rallied from dead last to salvage a fifth. It is said that it is not what you do on your best day but what you do on your worst that determines a Champion. So far, RV has come through on the worst days, and that is why he leads by forty-four points with just seven rounds left to race.
With Ryan Dungey, Trey Canard and Chad Reed all at home nursing themselves back to health, the door has been left wide open for everyone else to step it up and score some podiums. Last weekend, it was JGR/Yamaha’s Davi Millsaps—with a second—and GEICO Powersports/Honda’s Kevin Windham—with a third—that scored their first podiums of the 2012, but the list of new podium contenders is far deeper than just these two. Look for guys like Red Bull/KTM’s Marvin Musquin, Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Jake Weimer, MotoConcepts’ Mike Alessi, Hart and Huntington/Dodge’s Josh Hansen and the Muscle Milk/Honda duo of Justin Brayton and Cole Seely to all be battling for a spot on the box in Indy. With only two Championship contenders left in the field, the podium is wide open, and with the off chance that both the #1 and the #7 have a bad night, a new winner could come at any time.
The newest developments in the Supercross Class is the return of Jeff Ward/Racing/Kawasaki’s Josh Grant from injury and Kyle Regal—who returned last week in Daytona following an injury—getting signed to fill-in at Hart and Huntinton. While Regal has a solid performance in Daytona under his belt to build upon, the #33 has been out since the Los Angeles Supercross rehabbing a shoulder injury and is said to be near 100% entering Indy this weekend. We expect both Josh and Kyle to be battling inside the top ten and to begin to make their way towards the top five as the series moves on.
Supercross Class – After 10 Rounds – 2012 Championship Points
1 1 Ryan Villopoto Seattle, WA, USA 221 2 5 Ryan Dungey Belle Plaine, MN, USA 192 3 7 James Stewart Haines City, FL, USA 177 4 14 Kevin Windham Centreville, MS, USA 143 5 21 Jake Weimer Wildomar, ID, USA 134 6 18 David Millsaps Murrieta, CA, USA 131 7 22 Chad Reed Dade City, FL, USA 128 8 24 Brett Metcalfe Lake Elsinore, CA, USA 124 9 10 Justin Brayton Murrieta, CA, USA 121 10 800 Mike Alessi Hilliard, FL, USA 113
In the 2012 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Eastern Lites Regional Championship, it has been the Justin Barcia show thus far. The GEICO Powersports/Honda superstar has been flawless in 2012 with four straight Main Event wins. In the mud of Daytona last Saturday night, the #1 was finally challenged by the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki of Blake Baggett, but in the end, he held on for the win and kept his perfect season intact. With Barcia’s toughest challenge now behind him after leaving Daytona Beach, a perfect season may actually be feasible for the kid they call Bam Bam.
With Barcia now carrying a perfect record into the second half of the season, the question is will the #1 ever make a mistake, and if not, can anyone stop him from running the table? The top candidates to put an end to Barcia’s run are the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki duo of Darryn Durham and Blake Baggett, Red Bull/KTM’s Ken Roczen, Rockstar/Suzuki’s Blake Wharton and Barcia’s GEICO Powersports/Honda teammate Justin Bogle. All of these riders have shown the speed to run with the defending champ, but none have shown the consistency needed to do it for fifteen laps in 2012. While Barcia has been flawless, everyone else has struggled with mistakes.
With Barcia now carrying a twenty-four point lead into the last five rounds of the series, it is going to take more than someone beating him to derail his championship run, but that is definitely the place to start. To create the mistake needed to get back into the Championship, someone is going to need to rattle the Lites veteran. At this point, we are not sure that is possible.
On to Indianapolis!
Lites East Region – After 4 Rounds – 2012 Championship Points
1 1 Justin Barcia Ochlocknee, GA, USA 100 2 35 Darryn Durham Butler, PA, USA 76 3 70 Ken Roczen Murrieta, USA 75 4 956 Blake Wharton Beaumont, TX, USA 72 5 12 Blake Baggett Grand Terrace, CA, USA 62 6 57 Jake Canada Sun City, CA, USA 56 7 49 Justin Bogle Cushing, OK, USA 46 8 37 Malcolm Stewart Haines City, FL, USA 42 9 19 Kyle Cunningham Aledo, TX, USA 42 10 160 Cole Thompson Brigden, ON, Canada 32
