We expect Malcolm to possibly play the spoiler role in Houston. Photo by: Hoppenworld
The Dark Horse is a weekly column by MotoXAddicts contributor Nolan MacDonald that elaborates on the riders who can surprise you and emerge to prominence when you least expect it. Some may be well known while others have never been heard of. To be recognized as a dark horse, a rider doesn’t have to win but rather perform above expectations.
The AMA Monster Energy Supercross Series, an FIM World Championship, travels back to Texas for the 14th round of the chase. This time, we head to the southern areas of Texas, the NRG Stadium to be exact, in Houston. This round brings back some old memories, though; the West Coast 250 riders are back for one of their final three rounds.
Let me give you a refresher of the last time we saw the West Coast guys. We last saw this half of the 250 series in San Diego, California. Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Justin Hill had grabbed his first win of his young career while Rockstar Energy Racing/KTM’s Jason Anderson finished second and extended his points lead over rival Cole Seely by four points.
For the 450 class last week, all the riders lined up for the thirteenth round in St. Louis. After another crazy night at Edward Jones Dome, James Stewart finished on top yet again. After winning three in a row, the Yoshimura/Suzuki rider has cut his deficit to points leader Ryan Villopoto down to 36, while Ryan Dungey is just 35 points behind. Heading into Houston, we have three riders competing for the Championship. While Villopoto had clinched the Championship in this round back 2012, it’s not going to happen this Saturday night. Crazy things can happen Saturday night, but if Stewart keeps winning, we may be watching the Championship chase all the way until the final round in Las Vegas.
Last week’s Dark Horses were pretty close to what we thought they could achieve. In the premiere 450 class, Josh Hill looked to be a big performer, and while we predicted top 5, Hill finished 7th place. Although he didn’t make the top 5, Hill continues to charge through the standings. In the 250s, Privateer Jackson Richardson was coming off a strong 11th place and followed it up in St. Louis with a 13th. Richardson didn’t near the top 10 as much as we thought he would, but it certainly is better than most of his rounds and can be something he will build on coming into Metlife Stadium in New Jersey at the end of April.
For the first of this week’s Dark Horses, we dig back into the bag of West Coast 250 riders. I personally want to go big in this week’s Dark Horse and choose Troy Lee Designs/Honda’s rider Malcolm Stewart straight up for a win. After seeing Malcolm’s potential on a 450 in Daytona, this kid never fails to show his true talent and raw speed. Regardless of his incident with Justin Barcia, Stewart looks quick and can put it all together in Houston. This author expects a big win from Malcolm, which may be a big risk, but Malcolm certainly is a Dark Horse to be on top of the podium.
In the 450 class, we enter our 14th consecutive round which means we still have the same field of riders and are looking for someone to impress. With the return of some riders off of injury lately, I can only return to Cycle Trader/Rock River/Yamaha’s Ben Lamay as he is fresh off the injury he suffered just days before Anaheim 1. With his first ride back, Ben finished 16th in a deep 450 field, which some consider to be the deepest of it’s time. Ben looks to keep on building as he finally gets some seat time back with his team. This author sees Ben easily in 12th position or better this weekend in Houston. Hopefully Ben builds on this throughout our last few rounds.
Houston is full of exciting racing in a small stadium, which means more 180-degree turns and some tight technical racing. In years past, we have seen nothing but great nights of racing, and Saturday will not disappoint.
