Observations: Atlanta
Tuesday, March 1, 2011 | 4:20 PM
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Ahhhh, the dirty south. Atlanta is where we were this week in the ongoing circus that is the AMA Supercross series. This was the first race of the series that was on the east side of the country and the first one in the eastern time zone. The ATL is always one of the crown jewels of the series and this year was no different, although it did seem that the attendance was down a bit from past years.
Whatever happened to the tacky, rutty Atlanta dirt from my childhood? For a few years now it’s been gone and the track is very hard packed and slick. It’s the Georgia red clay mixed with some concrete hardener or something like that. The same thing in Houston, that dirt was also tacky and rutty when I first started going there and has now turned into the same thing as Atlanta. One of the riders informed me that in Houston, there was a Monster Truck event so the base was left in there and the jumps were built with the newer dirt. Which explains the jumps rutting up a bit but the corners being slick.
This was just the beginning of what would be a crazy night in Atlanta.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The track in Atlanta was pretty basic, not a lot of things to be done different out there. The 250 riders really didn’t have many options, and in reality, there were two spots to pass in (more on that later). I think that due to the limited track, there was more battles and bunched up packs because one guy could really inflict some damage (in the form of seconds lost/gained) to some other riders. The riders may not have been that happy but the track allowed us all to see a great race. If this form of easy track = great racing, look for a circle track with two pylons by Vegas!
Ryan Villopoto won the race and good for him. I have a grand tradition of putting the 450 winner as the top story in this column so let’s start with him. He hadn’t won in a while and got a bit of a gift in ripping by a downed Chad Reed and James Stewart with a lap remaining to win his third race of the series and open up his points lead. Full credit to RV for being able to keep charging the whole race even when he lost touch with the two guys in front of him because if he had slacked off a bit, he would not have won this race.
A laugh out loud funny moment for me on Sunday when I got this text from Mike Williamson, RV’s mechanic, who wrote, “Don’t go writing that RV got a gift. We planned on attacking on lap 19 so they couldn’t see our lines. It worked, they felt the pressure and cracked!”
Then one minute later it’s a text from RV saying, “Mike’s text is 100% true. Planned all along.”
So with apologies to RV, let’s get to the really big brouhaha from Atlanta.
Villopoto got an early Christmas present in Atlanta.
Photo: Matt Pavelek
The big story last week was Chad Reed winning San Diego and completing his comeback from the dead (otherwise known as I-want-to-ride-a-Honda-and-there’s-no-one-willing-to-pay-me-enough-ville. It’s like Whoville but a lot less friendly). It was a great ride for sure but it was raining, sloppy and there definitely were people who kind of just thought it was a bit of a fluke. Not a Ricky-Ryan-winning-Daytona-1987 kind of deal, but similar.
Well, those people that thought that were wrong. In Atlanta, the old Reed was back in a big way and I think that’s the story here. He didn’t win, but he caught old rival James Stewart, passed him and pulled out a lead. Stewie rallied the troops, caught the 22 again and made a big mistake which allowed Reed to gap him again. That lead disappeared when Chad tangled with a lapper (twice actually and one of them was Stewie’s teammate and we all had Salt Lake City flashbacks) and James struck quickly. Then, with less than one lap to go, Reed dive-bombed to the inside of the Stewie and there was a collision heard round the moto message boards. Both men went down and all 70,000 of us in the Georgia Dome pooped our pants.
Reed and Stewart both got up at the same time with Ryan Dungey (the guy in fourth) right on them and they all raced to the finish. Stewie was so incensed with the move Reed pulled on him that he spent his last lap looking back, weaving and trying to take Reed down. This allowed Dungey to pass by into second and then in the same turn that he was passed in a lap earlier, Reed got by James and grabbed the last podium spot. It was just an insane end of the race and one we’ll be talking about and analyzing for years.
The battle.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
First let’s talk about the pass by Reed on Stewie. It was very aggressive to be sure. I’ve been on here criticizing the Dean Wilson/Justin Barcia ram-a-thon from Houston because those guys weren’t moving forward. They were in effect screwing each other over and more worried about each other than actually winning the race. In this case, it’s the last lap and Reed was already pissed from James getting him when he had to check up a bit when lapping Kyle Regal. And quite simply, James left the door open for a move like this.
I was talking to one of the big-time 450 guys on Sunday (he was in the main event) and he told me that there were two places to pass on the track. And they were the corner where Reed got James and the right hander before the finish. He watched the race and commented that he couldn’t believe James went out there in that turn, it was the only place where a desperate Reed could make a move. But yet, he went outside and wham! Reed came in hot, Stewart t-boned Reed when he was exiting the turn and we have history.
To me, it’s almost all fair when it’s a last lap thing. I don’t have a big problem with what Reed did to be honest. It was a little gnarly and in the end, it cost both guys a shot at the win. Earlier in the 250 heat race in that exact same corner, GEICO Honda’s Blake Wharton came over the triple, looked over at Star Racing’s Ryan Sipes and when he went into the turn he braked and tried to cut inside of Sipes who was coming into the turn similar to Reed.
What I didn’t think was very smart (and James reads this column so I may never speak to him again after this paragraph) was Stewie weaving back and forth on the track and looking back for Reed in order to take him out for the pass. Yes, I’m sure he was super/mega pissed but you can’t let your emotions get the better of you, RV was gone and James needed to concentrate on salvaging enough points but he was out for revenge. It cost him two positions in the end which was four points. Remember those four points when it comes down to the end, people!
The aftermath.
Photo: Matt Pavelek
Before all this happened, the big news coming out of Stewie’s camp was the disappearance of long-time team manager Larry Brooks. Rumors spread like wild fires through-out the pits on what the real story was and truthfully, as I write this I don’t know for sure what’s up either. I do know that Larry missed his first supercross in 16 years this weekend and I’m pretty sure that he’s not going to manage the team that he helped build way back in 2006.
After a few texts and calls, Brooks did finally get back to me (can you imagine how much his phone was blowing up?) but requested that what was shared between us remain private for now but he added that he will come out and give us his take on what went down soon. The question of the L&M team has been whispered in the pits all year when the team showed up at Anaheim without the L&M logos on the truck, and a prominent JSE logo. I spoke to Brooks about this but he didn’t want to comment, I spoke to James about this and he didn’t want to comment. It’s all a very strange situation for sure and if I had to guess, it would be that James bought either the whole team or a controlling interest and once the deal finally went through (these things do take a while) Stewart made some moves he felt were necessary. I know that a suspension guy was let go a few weeks ago and now, either Brooks was let go or moved over to a new department.
Stay tuned for much more on this.
Is Larry Brooks out at San Manuel?
Photo: Simon Cudby
One more Stewart note: After the track walk he came over to Jason Thomas and apologized for their Houston crash. JT accepted Stewart's apology and admitted, like he said after the race, that it was just a racing incident, and he wasn't mad about it.
It was only a matter of time really before Dean Wilson won his first 250 Lites race…hold on. Wait--one more thing on Reed. Do you guys realize how hard it is for a guy to gain speed the way that Reed has the last little bit? He was not on the leaders’ pace in the early season races but he has truly gotten better and it now seems that he’s ready to start being one of the guys that can win this whole thing. I know Honda has done some testing with him with clamps, Bones at Pro Circuit with suspension (his motor has stayed the same since Phoenix) and it’s clearly paid off. He’s a real threat now where he was not a month ago, and that, to me, is simply amazing.
Okay, now back to your regular column. It was only a matter of time before Pro Circuit’s Dean Wilson won his first race and I bet a lot of people already thought he had won one last year. If you have to picture how the first supercross win is going to go down, coming from fifth and passing all the toughest competition in your class on the way to the front sounds about right. Dean got a horrible start in his heat when he spun on the plastic and was pretty much dead last going into the first turn. He worked hard on a track that isn’t easy to pass on to get into qualifying position. Then in the main, again he didn’t get the ideal start.
Wilson en route to his first career SX Lites victory.
Photo: Matt Pavelek
From there he got by Ryan Sipes, Blake Bagget and his buddy Justin Barcia, passed a fallen Blake Wharton and went on for the win. It was his first, but his team’s 200th combined sx/mx win. Yep, that’s right: Mitch Payton’s powerhouse team has managed 200 wins since 1991, that’s an average of 10 wins a year!
Blake Wharton is going to definitely be kicking himself when he watches the tape because this was his race to lose, no doubt about it. Blake got caught up with some lappers, which allowed the pack of Wilson, Barcia and Bagget to catch up. It didn’t look good for him. But then the moto gods allowed the other guys to get jacked by some lappers, too, and he pulled the lead back out. This was his to take, but it all came crashing down when he lost his front end. In two races he’s held 3rd and 1st late in the race only to have poopy luck.
Wharton has had his share of bad luck this year.
Photo: Matt Pavelek
There were a few angry emails to me about last week’s column saying that Ryan Dungey isn’t quite on the level that the other four guys (Stewart, Reed, Villopoto and Canard). I’m not saying he’s terrible or whatever, but Reed has made a move up in speed and passed Dungey in my opinion. This weekend, Dungey was the fifth place guy with the big four right in front of him (then the big three when Canard went down). It was time to make a move and reestablish himself as someone in the mix to win races. Sadly, he couldn’t. He did not make up time on anyone, but the good news was with Trey’s crash and the Reed/Stewie “incident”, Dungey slipped into second by the end. He lost some points to Villopoto, but he gained on everyone else.
Don’t look now but Andrew Short is back! After some results that he wasn’t happy with, the ever smiling one has now gone 6-5-6-6 on the KTM 350 in the last four races. He’s figuring the bike out more as he tells me in THIS podcast. He’s basically holding the bike wide open everywhere and using his momentum more. It shows as he’s been the leader of “the next pack” the last four races and would have had a fifth this weekend but Canard got him with half a lap remaining.
Metcalfe overcame a terrible crash in his heat to get second in the LCQ and take home 10th in the main.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The 450 LCQ is sponsored by DC Shoes but this week in Atlanta, it should have been called “The Steve Matthes Race Between Some of his Favorite Riders” as Nick Wey, Michael Byrne, Brett Metcalfe and Jason Thomas all went at it for two spots into the main. Sadly, Thomas and Byrne didn’t make it but Wey and Metty did. I was very conflicted in this race and was hoping that somehow they were going to change the rules and take four to the main.
Let’s take a look at the results shall we?
250
1. D Wilson. If you’re dreaming of your first win, coming from fifth to first and passing all the good guys in your class to win is a pretty nice scenario.
2. J Barcia. Bam-Bam went down right in front of me in practice and it was a nice crash. Strangely in the main event, he lacked his usual fight when getting passed. I heard that he could have some broken bones in his hand from the crash.
3. B Baggett.
4 B Wharton.
5. R Sipes. Sipes was fastest in practice but went down in the main when he was in the lead pack.
6. H Hewitt. Hewitt had a great race! Isn’t it weird that his dad owns the Rockstar/Suzuki team but he doesn’t ride for his dad anymore?
7. P Larsen. Larsen rebounded with a good race for the JDR KTM team.
8. M Stewart. Mookie was once again pretty good but went down in the first turn and was last to start the race. So considering that, he rode great in coming from the back. He’s got top five speed but hasn’t been able to show it yet. I’ve got a fever and the only cure is more Mookie!
9. J Anderson. Anderson is not quite on the level of the top guys but he’s right there in the second pack. His rookie teammate Ian Trettel couldn’t line up due to injury.
10. M Lemoine. Lemoine had to make it through the LCQ.
11. L Vincent. The surprise of Houston continued his roll in Atlanta with another solid result.
12. A. Martin.
13. J. Sipes. Great ride for Pooh in the heat.
14. L Kilbarger.
15. B. Ripple.
16. M Akaydin.
17. S. Lipanovich. He caused some problems for the leaders when getting lapped but it wasn’t all his fault if you watch the race. He made approximately 492 errors in a lap with it all cumulating with him shooting off the track.
18. N Myers.
19. V. McKiddie.
20. K Rusk.
Brayton salvaged a 7th place finish in Atlanta.
Photo: Matt Pavelek
450
1. Ryan Villopoto.
2. Ryan Dungey.
3. Chad Reed.
4. James Stewart.
5. Trey Canard. Canard was right there in the mix until going down.
6. Andrew Short.
7. Justin Brayton. Brayton went over the bars in practice and walked off shaken up. He was a little jacked up so his seventh is probably pretty good.
8. Kevin Windham. I think KW is still battling his Houston crash and the effects it had on him.
9. Ivan Tedesco. IT hit the gate at the start and had to do the whole pull back and then the gate dropped thing. I spoke with him earlier in the night and he’s definitely frustrated with his lack of results lately.
10. Brett Metcalfe. Metty went down in the whoops in the heat and it wasn’t a good night for him. The good news is he didn’t get eighth! The bad news is he got tenth.
11. Davi Millsaps. Davi lost his mechanic this week when JGR’s Alex Ewing and the team parted ways unexpectedly.
12. Nick Wey. Wey told me that Atlanta was his best ride of the year because he was so far back off the start.
13. Kyle Regal.
14. Chris Blose.
15. Tye Simmonds.
16. Matt Boni. Boni is working on being in the main event each and every week. Once that happens, he can start to build some momentum and work towards the top ten.
17. Fabien Izoird.
18. Mike Alessi. Honesty, I’m sure what happened to Mike, he didn’t seem to be up there at any point and after the race, he was out of there ASAP.
19. Antonio Balbi. Balbi got a Motoconcepts Yamaha ride until Chisholm gets back and he did pretty well by just making the main event, in my opinion.
20. Kyle Partridge.
I’m down in Florida this week hanging out so I apologize for the shortness of this column. I’ll be here all week staying at the 1999 Summercross Winner (beating Jeremy McGrath) and visiting some of the real fast guys in the sport. Email me at [email protected] and we can chat!
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perfect unbiased summary: "Stewie led, but had trouble with a step-off lip and corkscrewed it. Reed took over the lead, but had trouble with lappers. Stewart capitalized on Reed's lapper troubles and passed Reed, with Regal making up an L&M sandwich. In desperation, Reed cut across the inside to block Stewart at all costs. Bubba might as well have yelled,”Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead” because he ignored Reed's block pass and rode right over both of Reed's diamond earrings—with all going down (Stewart, Reed and the diamonds)".- mxa
Of course Reed's move was all good with you Steve since you're going to his house this week. So much for objective journalism.
Good to see another rider from that night felt like stewart going wide was a bad move on the last lap, and not just another loser with a keyboard. Nice write up.
I wonder how long its gonna take for people to start complaining on this page about an amazing race? Go ahead guys, let your *****in begin...
Idk how RV can be that confident that he had all that planned, he had nothing for them that race why cant he admit he got lucky?
Really good article. I liked it. And its hilarious what RV and his mechanic sent to Matthes, thats a riot. And I really hope Stewie bought out L&M and Brooks is gone. I really believe the change is Stewies personality over the last several years can be attributed to Brooks. the guy is the biggest crybaby whiner out there. Look at what has changed in Reed since he got away from him, its a total transformation. And it was very cool of Stewie to go and talk to Jason thomas. very cool. even if Stewie does or soes not think he was at fault, to go over and talk to the other rider about it is cool.
I like what this guy said about Supercross.please... the pass that Stewart made on Reed was clean. He ran them both high and I could not see any contact at all. The pass that Reed made on Stewart was a complete take out. Yes, he did take the line, but then he completely parked it. Even if Stewart let off, he had know where to go but into Reed. Kudos to Stewart for being reserved and professional. Reed should be ashamed...Hahahahaha i pitty all you guys that stick up for Reed, its unbelievable. Stewart could of cleaned Chad out a dozen times throughout that race, You tube all stewart/ reed battle... Reedy alway goes for the take out move everytime james passes him clean. Reeds a big cheese ball
whats w/ matthes " I-want-to-ride-a-Honda-and-there’s-no-one-willing-to-pay-me-enough-ville". what an A'hole. Reed has been doing good. Him and Trey are always up front. He ought to get some dough and factory support. He diserves to get paid tuff for those last couple rides. Yea he got 3rd but he had Millions of people standing in their living rooms cheering like savage beasts
Skippy's the first to complain and moan about an exciting race. Who's next?
BD200_______ Jason Thomas practically lives at James pad in florida. They ride together every week. Jason Is always at the stewey pad. Whether putting in laps or chilling. Those guys have been buddies for years now, they live close to each other in florida. Of course he's gonna say sorry to his homeboy. He wouldn't have the huevos to apologize if he landed on J'law
LickinDiamond,, I guess your idea of an " exciting race " and my idea are a little different..
this article sucked... why don't you and reed get a room Matthes.... hard to take any kind of trash that you write serious anymore
and yes Matthes, I forgot... Regal and Stewie in the pre-race meeting said "let's ***** Reed right in that corner there at that exact moment"... knowing the stars would align perfectly for that to happen
Reed even said Regal did nothing wrong, Reed said he pick a bad line and payed the price.
Hey Matthes,,, just make sure you say the same thing when JS does that to Reed !!!
J-law? What's a J-law?
Great article Steve, these guys read so much in to things, your staying at Reeds house so your on his side etc.
Bull Puckey.
I like both riders but in ANY form of motorsprot, if you leave the door open like that someone is going to have a go at it. NO QUESTION.
Chuck in the last lap and you have a recipe for a lunge.
Quite honestly, as much i admire both these guys i just don't think James has had enough experience racing people of equal speed as him, every so often he does things that a d grade rider knows not too. I would always cover my inside line on the last lap. If CHOSE not to ( hed oes think ahead right?) i wouldn't be moaning about it.
I think secretly James will be upset with himself for not.....
But i wish them both all the best, this is a fantastic season. Props to all the riders involved. Even the last 10.
Sometimes people forget it takes 20 riders to make a race.....
@Pinned927 - What you said is pure and utter bullshit!!!! You don't have any idea what you're talking about!!
The only thing true about what you said is that they live in florida, that's it.
I would say "attendance was down a bit" was because people were afraid to have their cars stolen from the parking lot.
I think this article was great! I personally think that Reed was extremely aggressive but did nothing wrong. I wish more races would be as exciting as Atlanta was.
Pinned927.. I always believed JT was a good buddy of Reed.. He does live in Florida... As does Reed.... And JT does spend some time on the private track of Reed.. I reckon I must have missed something here...
I agree, great race, great article! On the final lap... any one who has ever raced is gonna put that same move on Stewart or who ever you are racin, it's for the win!
there is a difference between leaving the door open and having someone stuff you.... and someone intentionally trying to take you out. No doubt regardless of what Stewart would have done Reed was have done what he did. He has a history of doing things like that (ask RC ) and it's just a sad part of his makeup.
It was a BS move. He was not trying to make a pass. He was point blank trying to take JS out as there was no way he was making that corner regardless of if JS had backed off or not. Matthes you making excuses for it simply because it was a last lap move for a win is pretty sad. Anyone hack to cheat his way into a win. You did see JS trying to take RC in Vegas 07 even though the title was on the line. He won the race and let things play out like they play out. Unlike Reed in 08 who clearing tried to take JS out so that he can win the title.
Reed is a great rider and was usually is someone to look at for setting good examples, but when he pulls BS like that I really wish the AMA would revoke his license
What I have learned about SX this season is that it, as usual, takes James and Chad to give the fans something to talk about, a lot of excitement and good old fashion racing that we have been dying to see all season and I hope they keep racing hard as I have never had as much fun as watching the Atlanta race.
But I think the big news is that James probably owns his own team now, calls all the shots and can do what Chad has been doing to make him have no obstacles in making his bike exactly the way it needs to be to win races. These two guys are just great for the sport and whoever wins in the end, I still salute Chad and James for giving their all in every race.
should have been "you didn't see JS trying to take RC out in Vegas....."
ITS REEDS ONLY AMO....................TAKE HIM OUT. HE DID TO RC AND HES DOING IT TO STEWIE................THE LAP TIMES SAY IT ALL REED SIMPLY WAS JUST NOT FAST ENOUGH TO BEAT HIM ...........STRAIGHT UP......!!!!
I'm sure RV knows he got a big break, but ya gotta admit that not long ago, third and forth place were barely on the same lap. So I have to hand it to RV and Dungey for hanging in there. Also on the topic of protecting the inside line; it does seem reasonable that the guy out front should shortcut all the corners when 2nd place is on your tail. I can't recall ever seeing the leader ever taking that line, but it would seem to be the smart thing to do.
I am in the "just racing" camp regarding Reed's "pass" on the last lap. I enjoy your podcasts and recall many a comment from you on the subject of aggressive passing. Nearly every time the subject comes up, you state that you are o.k. with aggressive riding, including the block pass, as long as the pass does not soley involve blocking an opponents progress after he has exited the turn. For example, your take on Barcia's move on Wilson early in the Houston race. I looked for a similar take on the Reed/Stewart incident, but didn't see it. I was nearly certain it would come up at the end of the paragraph pointing out how difficult it was for Reed to gain speed this far into the season. Oh well. Have a good time at Reed's place this week. Fine journalism.
mrb186, you have to hand it too RV for hanging in there?? Really?? You do know RV2 is the points leader right?? And has been the fastest guy at the track a a few races this year right? He is more than "hanging in there" he is winning at the moment. Where have you been all season.
what plan? attacking on lap 19 so that JS7 and CR22 cannot see his lines? Oh common...The two guys are up front...how come
Why isnt Blake bagget on the new Online Poll????
Shut up! Who gives a shit if Reeds pass was too aggresive. These guys risk their lives for a living and are not obligated to give it away to anyone no matter who "deserves" to win. It's like complaning after a boxing match because the other guy wouldn't stay down. Sometimes it comes down to heart and Reed has proved many times that nothing can keep him down.
Also don't listen to these guys Steve you are by far the most real and interesting moto journalist around. Keep doing what you do.
@Hondawings17: We were referring to first time winners. Baggett had a win last year.
Thanks for reading
the caption on metcalfes pic is wrong,Metcalfe didnt win the LCQ, he got second to Wey
Matthes, this is weak........."Stewart t-boned Reed when he was exiting the turn"......really STeve?? Really?? Reed was nowhere near actually "exiting" that turn........you do have some sort of mancrush on Reedy dont you??? You say whatever you have to say tho get your ass through the next 5 minutes of your life......you must have some sort of engagement with Reed coming up soon!! Lame dude.....really lame!! Go eat something!!
...you actually have to turn your handlebars down the track to complete a turn........
yea kip they risk there life every time they ride a bike... They don't need some A hole taking them out every time he goes for a pass... And 2 years ago when it happen to Reed,.. he cried like a big baby... Just go out & race him straight up without a take out move & road block... This weekend is gonna Rock @ daytona... This tracks more like an outdoor track & stewart has a perfect season outdoors... Lets get it on
GD201 - diamonds...love it. Funny out of the 2, Reed is the one with the brotha bling....he looks like a kook with those "Look at me" earings.....I am over the take out block pass...kind of like diarhea, its over....Let's go racing at Daytona and see what happens....GO RV!
Great article Matthes!
One thing, why are all of the JS7 fans the biggest cry babies of the sport?
He didn't cry like a baby he gave it back. Stewart cut over on him in the air ala jeff alessi, block passing is way less risky. Also you may want to change your name, skippy is what reed went by for most of his career. It most definately is on for daytona!
Oh...and if anyone knows RV, he was joking about the last lap strategy.....some folks seem to think he was serious......RV was the same distance behind the leaders the whole race after the first few laps..its not like he got smoked....he would have hung with them if he started with them.....
Good take on ATL..
RC said on the Speed wrap up that it wasn't dirty..the GOAT'S opinion is good enough for me.
JS on Wind Tunnel saying the AMA needs to get involved tells you everything about the guy..
I think a lot of you are forgetting something-Stewart has never HAD to protect his line, no one has ever been close enough to matter. That's why this year is so good, there are 3-4 guys that can at least stay close to him and wait for a mistake. to ride defensively is totally new to him-and he's not very good at it!
Mr.Matthes , thank you very much for a well written, thoughtful and I feel very accurate account of the Atlanta supercross. You touched on all the points that seemed to have been missing from the other reports I have read. From last lap aggresive passing, James Stewart losing it the last half lap, and Reed somehow dropping 2 seconds a lap in the last 3 weeks. Well done, thanks again
Stewart needs to jump back on a Kawasaki if he is running the show....he doesn't look the same on the Yamaha.....maybe a Honda? Is JS7 a privateer now ? (Joke)
Steve: Great article as always.
Kids: The Summercross winner who will be hosting Matthes this week is not named Chad Reed. Guess again.
Or- as Mr Know It All would say- "You really should have known."
JS will do a magic trick at daytona, he did loose it big time by messin around with chad. its cool to see that they both know it was a mistake. RV really???? ya planned it....huh
4 days and counting..bet the butterflies will be flyin on the gate. great article stevo.
I think Pops probably jerked a knot in Bubba's ass after Atlanta. He knows 22's history (and predictability)...and so does Bubba. He has to remain composed and think about winning the war...not just a lot of the battles. RV2 has his head screwed on straight for sure. This championship could be determined by (1) point in Las Vegas! That would really suck for a few riders who are making bad (emotional) decisions on the track the past few weeks.
Wow, that Steve Mathers guy makes complete sense to me!
I ordered extra cheese puffs to munch on for Daytona. I think it may be an epic battle if they both start out at the front of the pact. I may be wrong, but I think Daytona is more suited for Reed's style, but James may have a word or two to say about that. Just hope they don't slow each other down executing endless block passes. Chad, I'm a fan of both you and James and didn't mind your pass on James at the end, but you could have done better and flat out raced him to the finish. You were both so on it at Atlanta that it wouldn't have mattered who won at the end because the fans would have been cheering both of you as winners.
There are no complaints on my end. SX is interesting this year. The sport needs it. I hope that there is even more controversy and several racers have a shot at the title going into the last round. DAYTONA!!!
Has Reed ever won a championship when either JS7 or RC raced the entire series?.....not that it matters but Reed seems to be in their shadows....RC has "GOAT" , JS7 has "the fastest man on the planet" , MC was the "KING"....Reed has never received a "nickname" from the racers or media that labels him the best of his era....he always has a bag of excuses on why he loses
pure trash.... matthes is the worst reporter out there.... keep in mind folks this is the same moron that developed some formula for determining the best SX racers of the decade. The result was Reed and Windham, yes Windham, ranked ahead of bubba.
good luck with your team JS7!!!
Great article Steve. Although I do like most of yours. Seems to be very real points.
I am still laughing. But cannot believe people on this story don't understand the RV and Mechanic thing was a joke?? And a good one at that. Damn some people have nothing better to do than ***** and moan.
@jake your comment about Ask RC? err go on his twitter. He was asked his opinion on the move. His words were that he would of done the same thing. But not crashed.
Can't wait to see these Vets go at it in Daytona. Though i think RV will have something to say about being beat there.
Oh also I would love to see Wharton get a win. Such a quiet achiever. Go Wharton!
Reed is the worst sport in motocross!
Great work Steve, always look forward to these articles and your...observations!
What else does a MAN have besides repect . I think CHADS lucky ass hell not to have the next race indoors!! Hope speed. and c.b.s show the opening cerimony in the future . Hope it was worth it... Ellie don't forget the kleenex
also @ Skippy - you said "Kudos to Stewart for being reserved and professional"
however, "What I didn’t think was very smart ~ was Stewie weaving back and forth on the track and looking back for Reed in order to take him out for the pass." u clearly didnt read this tidbit didya sweetie?
Keep this in mind JS7 fanboys... keep this in mind
Steve I usaully agree with your take on things, but this shows you still want that mechanics job at 22 motorsports. Reed pulled the same dirty move that took him and JS7 out for last season. I like good hard racing but if the AMA is going to let Reed ride like that he will just injure anyone he can't beat. If Stewart would have done that to Reed he would have filed charges against him. I was starting to think Reed was becoming a better sport this season with owning his own team and he once again proved that he is the dirtiest rider racing. The racing this season has been the best ever but if you let Reed and Barcia T-bone everybody at will we won't have any top guys left for outdoors. If you could race like that without any injuries then it would't be so bad but when these sponsors spend millions and have their riders season shut down over a dirty pass (Reed@Phoenix) everyone loses. Thats the way I see it!
What makes a great race? According to so many fans, it must be a close race with only clean passing, and in the end everyone must respect their opponent. I guess in a way I agree, but as a fan of Nascar too, that is exactly what that sport is delivering and it is boring as hell. Don't think so, check the ratings over the past 5 years.. What makes this sport great is not only the level of the athletes ability and there professional demeanor, but lets not forget the raw emotion that drives them to hang it all out for the win. Say what you will about Reed and Stewart, but they are exciting to watch, weather it is clean or down and out blood and guts dirty. I only hope the racing stays this close threw to Vegas. Nice job Mathis keep it coming.
Hey did anyone notice how chad reed took james stewart to the ground on the last lap of the main event?
In a perfect world; people would not take personal shots at people they do not know just because their opinion is different. Some remember me, I'm a Stewie fan. But I will say no matter what that race was incredible, and Reeds move wasn't dirty, it was an opportunity he had to take. Cant wait till Daytona!
Call me ignorant but when you gap someone late in a race your faster.Improving results speak for themselves and not only will Reed win more this year, he has got as good a shot as anyone. I've heard RC say at least three times a confident Reed is a very bad man. but what does the GAOT know ? Looks to me like Reed has the mojo and the momentum.
Dirt
Wasn't Stewie's suspension guy one of those things people were pointing to as being a huge improvement this year....in bike setup? Now he's gone, apparently at the order of James? A bit weird. How stupidly ridiculous that there is no comment on why Brooks is home, why the semi has JSE on it and not L&M....even as it continues to be called L&M! Throw us a freaking bone, will you?
The fans are all waiting to see the pro riders tear it up in the Daytona, Florida sunshine. The weather is PERFECT this time of year in Florida for some excellent (OUTDOOR) SX racing. Just hope for no rain!
really did anyone look at the pics from racerx shows reed in front of stewy on the last corner where they wrecked if i was stewy a little brake and a ppass done deal.. as for villopoto good job fastest overall lap times overalll........do research before jumping reed or stews bones there great go honda. they deserve a champ these days..villopoto has the most heart he should win it do you remember his pro debut heart is all that maters hate seeing band wagon racers like dungey train last year sx is lame wait till the outdoors come around real rider talent then not some joke 20 rider class...lol....
Doesn't reed have 3 daytona wins to stewarts 1? i'm too lazy to spend 2 hours researching it. I know stewie did not win it in 2010 2009 2008 2007 or 2005. its 2006 im not sure of. reed should have a mental advantage at daytona, over stewart. I know stewart won there on the kx125, but not sure if he got one on the 450 yet. whatever happens it should be GOOD. If only j-law was coming too.
Reedy's a real threat now. Who would have guessed that riding a Honda could cure Epstein Barr virus ...?
Trick, JS Beat RC at daytona I believe.
Not sure why some people are saying Reed took Stewart out.. Clearly didn't make contact with him until Stewart T-boned him!! There is a reason why the move is called a block pass people, may be you should think about it a little before ranting about things you clearly don't have a clue about!! Take note of the word BLOCK...
Actually quite a good article!!
@ Big perm. Villipoto and his mechanic were joking, sometimes these guys actually have a personality. @ everyone else. If you are still mad about the move you're probably a Bubba fan. Would you rather see a parade? I wouldn't care who won I'm just glad we have some real drama going on. It always takes a few days for everything to come out, I've watched the race about 20 times now and I agree with what the other riders are saying, there was only a couple of places with a chance to pass. Anyone who wouldn't run it in on the last lap in the last real good spot to make a pass doesn't deserve to be in the title chase. If you watch it in super slo-mo it looks like James had a choice and just ran into him, but I don't think so things were happening fast and I think Bubba's throttle hand was already commited. So Chad ran it in on his last good chance and Bubba couldn't help but run into him, Racing Incident!
@ Bill C Bubba won in 07'
dastec don't bother, they close their eyes to anything that may be a fault for # 7. Reed was in plain sight to # 7 before he got on the gas, a couple photo sequences have shown this. It's also retarded to say Reed wouldn't have made the corner, you can see him catch the outside line right as they hit. JS and any JS fan wishing penalties to be imposed by the AMA better be careful what they wish for, because # 7 will put himself on top of the hit list again at some point if his history means anything.
One of JS7 best crashes was at Daytona...pinned it over the berm....knarly
GO CANARD!! and when you said "everyone pooped their pants" i literally laughed out loud. and im in school so everyone looked at me weird
Yes , Hey Steve good article and I think most of the above comments covered it all. From the total asinine comments to some that were good and made sense. I wishh ilt were still the old daytime/outdoor supercross of old from when the real mr motocross would show up and the track could hold the full gate. LETS KEEP ON RACIN and my the best, luckiest, smartest person win the championship.
Mathes nailed it. It was a clean race but on the last lap, all bets are off and you do what you gotta do. I wasn't liking the Stewart/Reed hate fest in the past and was glad to see them showing each other some respect. I hope this doesn't mess them up. If they start a ramfest, RV will take another gift, the SX title.
Great frickin race. I would have loved to have seen the last lap drama between Stewart and Reed but the damn director focused on RV riding all by himself. DUMB !!!!
QUOTE
To me, it’s almost all fair when it’s a last lap thing. I don’t have a big problem with what Reed did to be honest. It was a little gnarly and in the end, it cost both guys a shot at the win.
END QUOTE
So you are ok with REED pulling the same move that he did last year to ruin both their seasons, you are ok with someone making a move that often leads to injury? you obviously are an effen idiot...
LAST LAP STEWART, you said he was 'searching for a takeout', hmmmm i saw ahead of reed(it is pretty hard to take someone out that is behind you) swerving all over trying to keep 22 from t-boning him again...he wasn't chasing him looking for a takeout, was he preoccupied, YES, but rightfully so because DIRTY RAT REED will injure someone to win...
no one can say 7 was at fault, that is insane, he had 3 bike lengths going into the corner until reed went backwards on the track to make contact...REED can never again say the guy 'disrespects me' and 'always has to hit me'...7 played nice the whole race...showed class and respect...
and MATTHES, I am beginning to see why people on here think you are stupid, you are...
Halfe, Skippy and Mitch are all laying in James' bed right now. The "fastest man on the planet" got owned and it's just giving him a taste of his own medicine. Funny how everyone forgets what a dirty tool he was. Watch the aftermath of the race...Watch how Big James tells his kid that he's being a D rider like his little brother. Not a reed fan, but Bubba's world just got it's world rocked.
I dont think Stewie ever beat RC in Daytona, Stewie didnt win the event in the big bikes until 2007.
Bill C and Nikola Tesla, I though it must have been 2006, if he got a win there, since it is 'widely known' that r/c stomped stewart in every one of his part time 2007 races (according to the message board experts). Thats why I thought it had to be 2006. Stewart beat r/c straight up at daytona 2007. In 2006 he crashed and finished 6th. I remember that crash, it was very violent, stewart hit the ground HARD. I mean HARD !. he got up and rode with butterflies in his head after that one.
Here is an incredible web site, that explains in detail, everything that happened between r/c and stewart in 2006, the only full season that they raced each other, in sx.
http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/616/Motorcycle-Photo-Gallery/2006-AMA-Supercross.aspx
The quality of posts on these boards will jump up dramatically, if everyone would read about it. R/c mopped up the floor with stewart, cant carry his nutsack, stewart would just crash trying to race r/c, blah blah blah.
Shut up and read the article, then post, to all you 'know it alls' out there.
('Im not talking to you bill or nikola)
(Or you bd200). But i just checked, and stewart DID beat r/c in 2007 at daytona.
All of you morons that think this move was in any way similar to Phoenix last year need to go back and actually watch that race again. Reed did everything in his power to stay low in the bowl turn after the whoops, and Stewart went high and squared off the turn because Millsaps (I think it was him) was in front of him. Stewart was trying to get underneath Millsaps or whoever was there, and didn't see that Reed was in the inside line already. I would classify that one as a racing incident, nothing more, nothing less. The crash at Atlanta was a move that needed to happen if Reed had any chance at winning that race. If Stewart had been more aware of where Reed was, he probably would have, but by the time he saw Reed, I am sure he didnt have time to react. It made for a hell of a race and made Daytona that much more exciting. I love seeing all these comments, but some people need to check the facts before spouting all this BS.
I meant to say that if Stewart had seen Reed go to the inside, he would have squared him up and blasted past him into the whoops and won the race. Obviously he didnt see him until it was too late.
@half316 thank you, finally someone with some common sense. We have all these web pros out there that want dirty racing because its so exciting. These are the same dumb a$$es that that hated last season because it was a snooze fest. The season sucked because of Reeds T-bone pass for 11tth place that ended the season for the top 2 riders. Reed didn't care because he sat at home getting paid 200,000 per month sitting on the couch! Then in outdoors he quit as soon as he finished out of the top 5. Now he was still getting paid and not racing because he had EBV, what a joke. Then he was testing PC Hondas while the outdoors were still racing. It makes total sense that the factories don't want anything to do with him. Last season showed just how much integrity that Reed truly has.
FloRida......you hate Reed, we get it. We also understand how upset the # 7 die hards are that he is no longer cake walking around and people actually have game for him. It's time to get over it, and it's time to accept that the fastest lap time man on the planet at this point isn't backing his nickname up. And before you jump on the Reed t-boning people bandwagon watch a video or two. Last weekend and that Phoenix race Reed was not even remotely pointed at # 7 in either corner! In Phoenix Reed was on the inside line for the entire whoop section before that corner and never went higher in the turn than the low inside line. Stewart squared up from the outside early in the corner and Reed was already completing his turn. And regarding this past weekend, for F sakes even RC said he would have done what Reed did. It was an overly aggressive block pass that didn't work out, so what. The die hard Stewart fans love crapping on everyone else and people who aren't on his nuts because that's the only way to justify his injury/mistake riddled career in the premier class. 2 championships out of 12 he was eligible for since 2005, wahhhh. Now tell me all about how he was too cool for outdoors so sat out and the other ones he was injured like that isn't part of this sport. Sick of hearing the crying because Reed went for the W and it didn't end well for the media darling JS. Now everyone slam me for not riding JS's sack. Go RV!
***3 / 12 championships.... my bad
I said in a previous post, that 2010 phoenix was the same move as atlanta, but it was different, in that reed wasn't going off the track with his excessive speed. The 2 riders in front of stewart are on the main line, same as stewart. Reeds position looks destined for trouble, going in, as he just parks it in front of stewart, who is coming down off a 6 ft high berm, and even shutting off wont help (gravity is a bitcx). Like atlanta, it looked like a move, that had no chance of working out. It was on lap 6, and they were battling over tenth place. I was there, and i saw it right in front of me. We were all wondering why reed was following stewart for so many laps, when stewart was riding slow (injured) in tenth place, it looked like he was setting him up for something devious. At A1, the weekend before, reed DNF'ed because of stroupe, and got NO points, which makes sense that he would need to prevent stewart from gaining any points, if he wanted to have a shot at the title.
In the LCQ, stewart almost lost to tommy hahn (no disrespect to tommy, too much bad luck for one guy, IMO) which shows you how f'ed up stewart was, after partridge landed on him (thats right partridge landed on HIM, all stewarts fault, but at least I know what really happened, unlike some of these other posters), so that is why reeds motives were suspect at phoenix, when you put all the pieces together.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJuigAe2EzQ
Love the article Matthes. Ignore the haters on here.
Is it Saturday yet? I cannot wait for Daytona.
Also, Stewart asking the AMA to look into Reed's pass is just silly. Stewart is the undisputed dive-bombing take-out king of the series. I don't even need to list the incidents, everyone knows what they are.
Go RV!
Thanks Chase, I thought it ment for the year.
TRICK, RC's part time races were during the outdoor season, not supercross..
Just watched Supercross' Legends:show and saw at least 8 passes/attempted passes that were similar or worse than Reed's attempted pass on Stewie. Including two by Stewie on Dungey THIS year in L.A. The big difference there being Dungey checked up and avoided going down,both times.
Stewie should of expected it and checked up and then tried to pass him back.Stewie lost 2nd all on his own trying to mess with Reed instead of racing forward. Like Bailey said in Supercross Legends:,"You wanna win then you do what it takes.If you gotta clobber a guy...you clobber him."
On another note. Steve,you state" it did seem that the attendance was down a bit from past years.", Yet 2 Stroke Action Mag(MXA) states"The Atlanta faithful should be given two Supercross races. The place was sold out, plus some!" Just wondering.
bd200 i cut this from wiki:
As planned, Carmichael raced only a partial schedule in 2007. He would only race select events for Team Makita Suzuki while pursuing his new stock car career. Again, Carmichael continued to amaze and looked faster than ever, with three Supercross wins and six Outdoor National Championship wins (every race he entered).
But, im also reading that stewart beat carmichael at daytona 2007, so i dont think everything on wiki is correct. But he finished 8th so he couldn't have run the whole sx series.