Weekend Wrap-Up is a weekly series by MotoXAddicts’ Dan Lamb and Nolan MacDonald wrapping up the highlights and lowlights from the weekend’s racing action.
This past weekend, we had the 12th round of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series, an FIM World Championship, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This stop at Rogers Centre is our only international round of the year and was the most exciting nights of supercross this entire year. Oh Canada threw down a night that will be remembered for years to come.
Is Justin Barcia Back?
– Dan Lamb
After finishing with two 450SX main event wins in his 2013 rookie season, everyone had lofty expectations for MuscleMilk/Honda’s Justin Barcia for 2014. Over the first eleven rounds of the season, though, the #51 only had one podium—a third in Dallas. With rumors out there that Barcia was not happy with the factory Honda and looking for a new team, some wondered if we would see much more out of Bam Bam, but in Toronto, he went for it. After getting a second place start, Justin dogged Red Bull/KTM’s Ken Roczen, made the pass and tried checking out. The only problem was that James Stewart was having one of the best races of his life and came from 15th to catch and pass Justin with five laps to go. Justin hung on for his best finish of the year in second and now carries some solid confidence with him to St. Louis this weekend.
Broc Tickle Breaks His Back
– Dan Lamb
After going 5-4-6 in his last three main events and finally showing some promise on the 450, RCH/Suzuki’s Broc Tickle had a devastating crash in Toronto. For the most part, the RCH squad has been pretty hush-hush on the severity of Tickle’s injury, but they did put out a press release that stated that Broc underwent a successful surgery to repair a fracture to his T-7. It is an unfortunate injury to the #20 who was hoping to impress before entering negotiations for a solid ride in 2015. The good thing is that Broc definitely showed a lot of improvement before his crash, and hopefully, he’ll be back before the end of the 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship to show even more. Check out the press release from RCH on Broc’s injury in Toronto »
Ryan Villopoto – The Most Consistent Man on The Planet
– Nolan MacDonald
In motocross and supercross, Red Bull/KTM rider Ryan Dungey is known for his consistency, but I would argue that Ryan Villopoto is actually the most consistent rider on the planet. After skipping practice and spending most of the day in the hospital due to food poisoning, it seemed Monster Energy/Kawasaki rider Ryan Villopoto was going to have a rough night. Villopoto, not feeling well and having no practice on the track, used the heat race as practice and was faced with having to compete in his first semi of the season. RV went on to qualify with a 2nd in his semi qualifier and, incredibly, pulled a 6th in the twelfth main event of the year. He may have not clinched just yet, but with a solid 6th place in Toronto, a 25-point lead over Dungey and 39 points over Stewart, it seems as if Villopoto may be unstoppable.
The Return of James Bubba Stewart in Toronto
– Dan Lamb
Throughout the first seven years of Yoshimura/Suzuki’s James Stewart‘s SX career, the only thing that could stop James was James. Up until 2010, the #7 had a perfect record if he kept it on two wheels and with that came the nickname “Fastest Man on the Planet”. Since 2011—and three Ryan Villopoto 450SX Championships later—the “Fastest Man on the Planet” moniker has been used less and less when referring to James. Well, on Saturday night in Toronto, there was no other way to describe the #7.
After rounding turn one in around 15th, Stewart used raw speed and an untouchable rhythm on the technical Toronto circuit to catch and blow by the entire field. Back in the day, when James would get a bad start, there was no doubt he was either going to win or crash trying, but on Saturday night you just knew he was going to win. Yes, others were doing some of the insane rhythm section lines that James was doing, but only James was doing them with perfect consistency. It was a reminder to anyone that forgot how good the #7 really is. In the end, James won his second-straight main event—his fourth on the year and the 49th of his “Hall of Fame” career. His 49th win moves him into sole possession of second place on the all-time main event wins list. Twenty-three behind Jeremy McGrath’s record of 72 wins.
Adam Cianciarulo Suffers A Devastating Blow
– Nolan MacDonald
This past weekend, the former points leader in the 250SX Eastern Regional Championship, Adam Cianciarulo, had a rough outing in practice. In qualifying, the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider crashed, injuring his shoulder. It appeared that he would be okay as he qualified through his heat race and ran second in the main event, but out of nowhere, Adam was forced to pull off the track. Once off the track, he called on the medics to pop his shoulder back in. Cianciarulo tried to tough it out, but it just was too much pain for him, and fans watched first hand as Adam was in the tunnel wincing in pain. We’re not sure if it was more from the physical or the emotional pain of realizing his season was over, but either way, it was a sad scene. Later on this week it was determined that ‘AC’ was out for the Championship because he was getting shoulder surgery that would put him on the couch for 3-4 months. Read more about Cianciarulo’s injury here »
Justin Bogle Grabs First Supercross Win:
– Nolan MacDonald
It appears that 2014 is the year of first-time winners for the 250 class. In San Diego, Justin Hill won his first out west. In Dallas, Adam Cianciarulo nabbed his first. In Atlanta, Martin Davalos scored his first after nine years, and last weekend the 2010 Horizon Award winner, Justin Bogle, got the first of his career. The GEICO Honda rider not only won his first race, but with that, is now only a mere 5 points behind Davalos for the Championship. The only question is can he carry his momentum into St. Louis before the East Coast is put to a halt until the end of April?
Martin Davalos Grabs Points Lead
– Nolan MacDonald
Pro Circuit/Monster Energy/Kawasaki rider Martin Davalos finished second this weekend in Toronto, and grabbed the points lead— due to the injury sustained by his teammate Adam Cianciarulo. With his second place finish, Davalos will have the red plate for the first time in his career and carry a five point lead over Bogle in St. Louis. With Davalos having a magical season and finishing on the box in five out of six rounds, will he be able to put it all together and win a Championship with eight years under his belt?
Matt Lemoine Grabs First Podium of Career
– Nolan MacDonald
Yet another first this year for a 250 rider, JAB Motorsports rider Matt Lemoine grabbed his first ever podium Saturday night after winning his heat race earlier in the program. With such lightning speed shown all year, it’s great to see Lemoine is finally putting it all together and having the best season of his career. Congratulations go out to Lemoine for putting on a show and grabbing his first ever podium with a third place.
Check out the 2014 Toronto SX results and the updated 450SX and 250SX Eastern Regional points below:
450SX Class Results: Toronto
- James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki
- Justin Barcia, Pinetta, Fla., Honda
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
- Justin Brayton, Cornelius, N.C., Yamaha
- Ken Roczen, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki
- Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki
- Dean Wilson, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Kawasaki
- Josh Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Suzuki
- Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., KTM
450SX Class Season Standings
- Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki, 246
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 221
- James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Suzuki, 207
- Ken Roczen, Murrieta, Calif., KTM, 197
- Justin Brayton, Cornelius, N.C., Yamaha, 185
- Justin Barcia, Pinetta, Fla., Honda, 156
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM, 153
- Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki, 126
- Wil Hahn, Menifee, Calif., Honda, 122
- Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Kawasaki, 111
Eastern Regional 250SX Class Results: Toronto
- Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda
- Martin Davalos, Cairo, Ga., Kawasaki
- Matthew Lemoine, Pilot Point, Texas, Kawasaki
- Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
- Cole Thompson, Brigden, Ontario, KTM
- Vince Friese, Cape Girardeau, Mo., Honda
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
- Kyle Cunningham, Aledo, Texas, Honda
- AJ Catanzaro, Portland, Conn., Honda
10. James Decotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda
Eastern Regional 250SX Class Season Standings
- Martin Davalos, Cairo, Ga., Kawasaki, 124
- Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki, 120
- Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Honda, 119
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Kawasaki, 100
- Vince Friese, Cape Girardeau, Mo., Honda, 90
- Kyle Cunningham, Aledo, Texas, Honda, 76
- Cole Thompson, Brigden, Ontario, KTM, 74
- Matthew Lemoine, Pilot Point, Texas, Kawasaki, 73
- James Decotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda, 65
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 60
