Toronto Practice Report
Saturday, March 26, 2011 | 5:25 PM
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It was international time for the Monster Energy Supercross series as the gang all headed north to Canada for round twelve of the series held in Toronto, Ontario at the Rogers Centre. The temperatures were frigid outside but things were heating up on the track today in practice to borrow a well-used cliché. The crowd here in Canada has embraced supercross and ticket sales have increased every year the series has come here.
Rogers Centre plays host to Monster Energy AMA Supercross.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The track itself is much more like a traditional supercross now and after a few years of having the dirt mixed in with the snow and rain, Feld has been storing the dirt indoors and so the layout is a little soft with some rocks but nowhere near the rutty conditions of years past. There is a long start straight into a left hand turn followed immediately by a right hand corner which shot you right into a sand section that got pretty rough during today’s practices. There are three rhythm lanes that the guys had figured out (although only the top 250 riders were able to triple/triple through), a whoop section that promised to get gnarly and then an off-camber turn which seems primed for some good block passes tonight!
The first 250 seeded practice hit the track and immediately the guys set a pretty good pace. GEICO Honda’s Justin Barcia has the points lead over Monster Energy Pro Circuit’s Dean Wilson and DNA/Star Racing Yamaha’s Ryan Sipes. The Pro Circuit teammates Wilson and Blake Baggett got out right in front and started setting some fast laps. Once everyone got settled, it was the man who has been the fastest in many practices, Ryan Sipes, who sat atop the leaderboard for most of the first practice. Wilson would hold snatch it away briefly but it was Sipes atop at the end. After Wilson it was ARMA Energy Snacks Malcolm Stewart with a last lap attack, then Barcia and Wilson’s teammate Baggett rounded out the top five.
In the first set of practices, Sipes was the only rider in the 53 second range and the gap between him and third was almost two seconds! Clearly, early on Ryan Sipes was feeling it.
Ryan Sipes sits atop the leader boards in practice with a 53.0 second lap.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
Next up were the 450 seeded riders and Muscle Milk/JGR Yamaha’s Justin Brayton got out front and started sprinting. It was JB10 on top of the board for a little bit with Team Two-Two’s Chad Reed on him. The 450 riders had everything down early and there wasn’t much to separate them. The guys all seemed to be on their game and were flying through the whoops as well. Honda’s Trey Canard grabbed the lead from Brayton and was the quickest for a little while before San Manuel Yamaha’s James Stewart set the fast time in a blistering lap. The very same lap that Stewart set that time in, Canard was on a flyer and grabbed it back.
The game of cat and mouse began from there as Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey (your defending supercross champion) then set his best lap of the session and now he stood as the winner of the pole position. That’s the way practice would end with the top three (Dungey, Canard and Stewart) were the only riders in the 53-second range and those three were only separated by hundredths of a second!
After that it was series points leader Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto and Brayton rounding out the top five.
After some track work, the second timed (third overall) practices began.
The 250 riders were once again led in the second timed practice by Ryan Sipes, the kid from Kentucky was clearly feeling at home in the Great White North and was almost a second faster than anyone else early on. Malcolm Stewart went down in the sand as did Matt Lemoine. More riders got a hang of the triple/triple rhythm section before the finish line but at the top of the board, it was the familiar number 25 of Ryan Sipes. The Star Racing Yamaha rider has one win this year and judging by his practices, seems on point to get another tonight here in Toronto.
Here are the final combined times for the top ten in the 250 class:
1-Ryan Sipes 53.0
2-Dean Wilson 53.2
3-Justin Barcia 54.0
4-Blake Baggett 54.6
5-Matt Lemoine 54.6
6-Malcolm Stewart 55.2
7-Gannon Audette 56.0
8-Blake Wharton 56.1
9-Jason Anderson 56.4
10-PJ Larsen 56.4
The seeded 450’s were next out of the box and the riders got busy right away with race pace. They all knew that this was to be the final time out before tonight’s heat races and they had to make it count. The riders were pushing hard and Honda’s Trey Canard had the fastest time at the start but soon he was surpassed by de-facto teammate Chad Reed.
Reed stood atop the board until about halfway when James Stewart set a blistering lap that was, at that point, almost two seconds better than anyone else. That was it, the gauntlet had been tossed down by the number seven and although the other riders got closer, Stewart would remain on top of the board when it was all said and done.
James Stewart gets under the 52 second mark with a 51.8, sitting in first in quallifying.
Photo: Andrew Fredrickson
The one section that there had been a few different ways through was a rhythm lane at the end going across the back of the track, Dodge Motorsports/H&H rider Ivan Tedesco, Brayton and Stewart had tripled in and then quaded out. Their momentum seemed to take them to the outside exiting the turn and in this practice, everyone that I saw was jumping onto the table and then off whilst sticking to the inside. The race line had been made it seemed.
So going into tonight James Stewart, as he had done so many times before, stood as the fastest qualifier going into tonight but with the #7 going so long in between wins, is tonight going to be the night when the slump ends?
Here are the final combined times for the top ten in the 450 class:
1- James Stewart 51.8
2- Trey Canard 52.9
3- Chad Reed 53.0
4- Ryan Dungey 53.3
5- Ryan Villopoto 53.5
6- Kevin Windham 53.661
7-Justin Brayton 53.664
8- Davi Millsaps 54.2
9- Ivan Tedesco 54.3
10- Austin Stroupe 54.4
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Ok, maybe not the winningest, maybe not the luckiest, maybe not the most consistent........but FASTEST?? Yep, JS7!!!!!!
Go f*ck yourself whatever, what makes you think that you can insult ping?
HaHa...thats pretty funny "Hillco".......ME insult "ping"?? I don't think so bub!! You'll be alright buddy!!!
No doubt the fastest man on the planet. Unfortunately not the most consistent, he just pushes the limit so hard.
can js riide a bike! hope he can do it all night
i agree with ya dude, no one can throw down a lap like JS7. Lets see if he can put 20 togeva. I hope malcolm does good tonight, I think he's already earned his Pro Circuit / Geico ride for next year. Even if he don't do as well outdoors. The dude obviously has a shed load of talent. Just like his dad.
yep, JS7 WILL ONLY LOSE IF HE BEATS HIMSELF ,HE IS THE MAN!!!!
i cant believe people still praise js7 after the season he is having/had. Stop living in 2003 there is other kids that are better.
Maybe he should start calling himself the fastest "practice" man on the planet....lol. What a fraud.
Well put tuckanroll....the JS7 being the "fastest man on the planet" argument is a funny one...its the same as when people make comments about Dungey and the super RD fans fire back with " so, he still the champ"...well, JS7 crashes yes, but only JS7 has beat himself this year and he is the fastest guy every week....nobody saying he is the champ, but he is the fastest....full second faster and my friends in Toronto say smooth as glass today, so we'll see
OK..here we go again,,no live coverage,,man we was gittin spoiled,,,WTF...hillco you like a bipolar one ehh? sure would be cool to see the dung pull one off,,,HOLESHOT
For all the haters, Stewart had nothing to do with with that crash last week except the painful fall. Watch this view of Byrne totally nailing Stewart.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz9hqTbKiW8&feature=player_detailpage#t=2006s
Of course I'm wasting my time, because all the haters know how to do, is hate.
RV2 old news, but watched the JAX race again last night and I noticed that after the LCQ in the tunnel, Boni actually came up behind RV and rammed into him, causing Villomoto to start talking smack.....anyone else notice that?...RV probably slammed him in the LCQ....and looking at his bike after the heat race, his throttle side of his bars were tweaked pretty bad.....just bad luck for RV
Malcolm has a Yamaha ride lined up team JS 7 !! L&M is no more
wow, the fastest lap time with nobody challenging him and no pressure...big deal, the fastest lap time in practice obviously means squat when it comes to main event time...it means stewart will get a good gate pick for his heat race which he will win and then blow his load all over the canadian dirt in the main and then blame it on everyone but himself...stop me if you've heard this before
I'm ashamed to have a guy like you attach your name to "ktm"......"tomktm"!!!!
hey Melon, i have a feeling you were the smartest kid on the short bus
Yes js7 can throw down the fastest lap, but I believe the others could do it to if they wanted to take the risks that he does. I dont think they want to though cause they see what happens to him. Fastest man on the planet for a lap... Thats not how you win races obviously. "Whatever" seems pretty cool. Not only does she say stupid sh!t, but she comes back to check on the comments. Get a life.
Anyone breaking a 54sec lap on that track is flying...some talent out there but 51 second range WOW... it doesnt matter tho unless your in front of everyone after 20 laps thats all that matters..GO DUNGEY
"jehu776"....so true, good link...it clearly shows Byrne (yet another "Aussie") cut right over into Stewart........way to go mate.....i wonder how many times Skippy thanked his fellow "AUSSIE" for the help?? Plenty i'm sure!!
Kevin... 2003... Are you serious? One full second faster than the next guy and not all of his misfortunes this year are from riding like an idiot....A2 ring a bell?..that is what happens when JS7 is on his best and no crashes, he still smokes them, including my boy RV.....I raced for a long time an although JS7 hits the dirt a lot....he still the most talented guy out there overall.
"Tyler"....where ya been all year honey??
Ronnie...no sir.....second smartest behind you man. Practice is practice.....racing is racing....being fast is being fast...that is all i am saying.
The JS7 and Byrne crash was simply two guys coming together out of a turn...no fault of either guy...it happens.
Stewie is definetly the fastest.But for how much longer? He is getting older and all those hard crashes can really add up.
I believe some of the riders are not Happy That James is having some bad luck , And Probably Will do The NATIONALS... Some as in Everyone...24 moto wins ???? Easy Repeat...
Reed is 29 ...just turned 29 last week and he still up there...JS7 just turned 25 , so he has some years left, but true, the crashes will be his demise if cant put an end to them...I say he needs to jump on a Honda.....As much as I think Reed is an ASSCLOWN, he looks better on that Honda than anything else he has raced and I think he has mentioned that...he should have made the switch long ago.
I can't wait to see you bone heads try to back reel tonite after STEWIE WHIPS them all. I just can't wait to hear your reactions! You will all sound like a bunch of lawyers trying to get your foot out of your mouths. Over coming denial is the first step in recovery! (yes bone heads)
MX
How bout that sipes boy? Looking good early again. Lets hope he can hold it together all night.
What do you guys think of having the 450's do 25 lap mains and the 250's 20 lap mains? It seems some of these lap times are so fast the race is over before you know it.
Just a thought!
Looking forward to some good racing tonight!!!!!
omfg js7 is astonishing!!! he had a fast, clean lap in practice!!! f yes!!! it's so exciting. i can't f'ing believe it. oh my can he be beaten, in practice at least?!
ha you guys are tools.
GUYS AT RX,,,CAN YOU DO BETTER AND ATLEAST GIVE US SOME KINDA COVERAGE,,MAYBE LIKE THE HALFAST WEBCRASH,,YA YA I KNOW SOS.
Stewart WILL NOT WIN A SINGLE OVERALL OUTDOORS as long as he's on that yamaha!! The new yamahas are under developed for outdoor motocross, esspecially for a rider with his speed! He would be better off on a JGR yamaha, but ultimately he should be on a kawi, honda or suzuki as these bikes have WAY more development outdoors!!! And yes, we are seeing a changing of the gaurd indoors!!
In my opinion, I do not think we are seeing a changing of the guard in doors KALOS, Reed is threatening to win, RV is still working on consistency but has the speed ans what it takes to do it, but the same can still be said for Stewart too!! I think it is impossible to say any one of these guys is taking over the reigns right now!
...indoors.....oops.
Too bad winning practice doesn't pay points. Stewart would have run away with this championship.
Stewart certainly can complete 1, 8, or 20 laps faster than anyone. But will he?
Stranger things have happened, I suppose. I don't think anyone's expecting a title from him at this point, so just BACK IT DOWN, DAWG.
I noticed not a whole lotta people mentioning Trey "The Goon Specialist" Canard on here. He's been the most surprising in my opinion. Rookie season and 2 wins with all the talent on the gate. Props TC!!
Should be a good Heat #1 to watch tomorrow......Dungey And Canard go at it with Canard making the pass on the last lap!!
This time I got to say Matthes was wrong. James is the fastest man on the planet because he goes faster than any other man on the planet. What more do you need?
HOLY!! Stewart by 20 seconds over Reed in Heat #2!!!!!
Is the race on CBS tomorrow?
WOW...everyone went down almost except JS7......20 second lead in Heat race....
Race is on SPEED tomorrow
Why can't they just stream these races live like the nationals?
yes,stewart is the fastest rider(in practice)haha!go RV go!!!
James is a complete lawndart and WHATEVER is his buttdart. With so many crashes/ concussions/ and broken bones why doesn't this IDIOT wear a leatt brace. Hope u get smoked stew. stew might be fast for one lap but REED and POTO are champions who keep their bikes on 2 wheels AND go fast all season. I heard a rumor that alessi was gay/bi. tony's gotta love that, so does danielle
@ Mr. Melon, I was wondering what you're thought process was re: All JS7 needs to do is ride a Honda? Honda hasn't won squat since the days of RC, if JS7 wants his mojo back then it's got to be Team Green.
And don't bring up TC, RV2 wins more races in a season than team Honda can in five. IMO
@Grawz - Well, we have seen JS7 on the Kawi and I don't know what the relationship is between the two camps...However, Honda I think has the best bike year and year out as they have only lacked the right riders the past few years since RC left. I think JS7 would look good on a Honda....Remember when Lusk was starting to slide then Honda gave him a ride, he was insanely fast on the Red machine.......The Yamahahahaha doesn't seem to suit Stewart.....I dont think Suzuki would be a Stewart choice..
what ever happened to broc hepler?
Please go back to heat and semis for qualifying, I could care less about fast laps during practice...does anyone feel the same way?
@ dz958....Hepler had a few head concusions the last one left him out, he's going to college etc...from my understanding he still has not been released from the doc's to race, please correct if I am wrong anyone... I've always been a huge fan of Hepler........
I'm a big hepler fan too......go quakers!
"I noticed not a whole lotta people mentioning Trey "The Goon Specialist" Canard on here."
I thought my avatar was enough.
What happened to Josh Hill?
Dungey flat out handed to all the big boys tonight. Now please give the kid some credit. Lap times have been there all year. Darn chain he would have been champ again. Stewy was so fast in practice, why not in the race? Rv2, somebody give him the heimlick please.
Wow ORGANDONOR.....you are a complete imbecile!!! Your attempts at wit are quite lame!!
anyone have trouble following on twitter? WTH??
fast practice time didnt relate to a race win again... good on dungey finally got a win ... what happened to RV2 9th ??? 22 should be leading now... points are tight now its like the start of the season all over WOW what a year
the new leader is cr22 236 and rv2 233. rv fans give your boy the heimlick.
appears like there was some carnage of some kind based on the timing.....Dungey FINALLY wins one ......22 , 41 and 7 were behind...I'm guessing first turn pileup and Dungey got the hole shot??? the internet is all messed up....
whatever you must be one of those, you know an rv fan. well your the imbecile cause your boy is toast.
Poto will not be the champ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Not sure what happened dave, but Im happy with the results so doesnt matter.
Grawz137 & Rick Melon.. Problem is with Stewie.. It's the $$.. yamaha is apparantly willing to cough up these ludicrous high base salary to keep a Stewie...
Honda on the other hand is investing in new blood... Canard is one... Barcia is another one... So I doubt Honda is willing to pay as much is yamaha is.
Suzuki has been cutting cost..
Kawi has RV as their star rider for the coming yrs and he is way cheaper than a stewie.. And Mike Fischer is a dickhead and a lousy manager.
Only team eventually crazy enough to pay a lot is KTM.
I reckon Stewie is stupid enough to stick with Yamaha.
so the fastest man on the planet posted the fourth fastest lap time in the main event...how can that be, he is the "fastest man on the planet"??? and dont give me that crap that he was in the back of the pack...once he got into fourth he was behind canard a good 15 seconds which would give him plenty of room to put down fast laps and he didnt...lets just call him what he is, the "fastest man in practice"...oh by the way, his stupid wreckless brainfade riding took both him and RV down in the main...if reed did that he is the vilian, if stewart does it it's because he is "riding so hard" and yes, I am a hater!!
To All, thanks for the entertaiment on the comments. We can do without the name calling and such this should be a comment place to say what you think about the guys racing not for arguments. I ave been into the motocros and all of the dirt bicking since 68, I think? thngs start getting fuzzy afer all of the crashes ad racing I have done. I retired from racing in 94? My body kinda gave out. Lets keep this comment board polite and use it for what it is for.
Thanks
Hey Welker, I have two words for you....spell check! GO REED!!!
well maybe dungey needed this to come back for his second championship.reeds not gonna stay there long,watch..hes washed up