10 Things to Watch For at SLC
Friday, April 29, 2011 | 12:05 PM
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10. Weather or Not: The altitude of SLC means strange weather is always a possibility, and this is an outdoor stadium. Last year’s race featured rain that actually turned to snow! Kevin Windham then established himself as not only a great mudder, but a snower as well, when he won the race. This year’s forecast calls for cool temps but little or no precipitation—sorry, K-Dub fans.
9. K-Roc is Back: Ken Roczen is back in the U.S. and racing supercross again, but this time he’s packing the points lead in the MX2 class in the GPs. It won’t change the way he races. And even with the long supercross layoff for him, he’ll probably be up to pace as soon as he hits the track. Spoiler, anyone?
He's back.
Photo: Simon Cudby
8. The Pressure Cooker: Good news if it’s cold: the heat is on in both classes. At least the 450 SX Class contenders are versed in winning championships. The three tussling for the Lites Title (Tickle, Hansen, Tomac) have never won a big one in this country and at this level. Whoever keeps the coolest head will probably turn out best.
7. Spoiler Alert: We covered the wild card in Roczen. But there’s lots of other talent in the Lites class. Cole Seely won in a romp the last time they raced, and Ryan Morias, Martin Davalos and Kyle Cunningham are all capable of scoring podiums. It would not be surprising at all to see someone in there stealing points from the title contenders. And don’t forget those plates in Hanny’s Hand—they may be a huge championship factor as well.
6. Weimer Sighting: Talk about a bad start—Jake has taken five months to finally get off the gate for Anaheim 1! At least he’s coming back at all, a lot of riders in his situation would just wait until the nationals start after coming back from a badly broken arm. Weimer wants to get the racing rust off at what amounts to his home race. Will he challenge the points leaders? Probably no yet, but it’s always cool to add some new blood to the series.
Weimer makes his season debut this weekend at Salt Lake City.
Photo: Courtesy Monster Energy
5. Dungey Rebuilds: For a few weeks, Ryan Dungey was building serious momentum and making up serious points. But Seattle went wrong due to an early crash. The Dunge would really benefit from a win at this point, he’s seven points back and he may run out of time if he only keeps chipping away.
4. Stewart Keeps It Up: Well, technically he’s on a two-race win streak. But is this just part of a bigger streak? Can he win out? If so he’s putting a lot of pressure on Ryan Villopoto to be perfect and not hand over anymore points. If Stewie wins Salt Lake, it’s on for Vegas. But if he makes a mistake of his own, the title drive may be officially over.
3. Reedy’s New Toys: With Trey Canard (and Josh Grant) out, American Honda’s trick parts have drifted over to Chad Reed’s bike. He’s got a new hydraulic clutch, lighter wheels and a few other trick parts under the same TwoTwo Motorsports livery. Will the difference make him better or will it just be different? This is a critical time to try something new.
Can RV get a win this weekend at Salt Lake City?
Photo: Garth Milan
2. The Weekend Off: It will have a different impact on different people. Stewart went on vacation. Reed tested new parts. Others went outdoor testing. Some may have rested. Who played it best?
1. RV: Been over a month since Villopoto has won a race, and it seems like everyone has noticed. Has he really lost that edge over the field he had early, or have circumstances prevented him from getting to victory lane? If he (finally) gets a start, we’ll know.
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I can't wait!! Is it live as well!
Reed is getting full support from Factory Honda.... Hopefully that puts to rest that whole "privateer" thing
Salt Lake Results. Don't shoot the messenger, please: 1. Stewart (going for broke) 2. Villopoto (playing it safe and smart) 3. Reed (fighting for his life, and title) 4. Dungey (after a bad start) 5. Weimer (because, really, who else is there after one through four?)
Stewie is going to crash.. Has to.. Only way to keep his winnig vs crash's percentage intact...
RV will win.. He seems hungry and has the uber trainer at his sides.. Aldon Baker...
Dunge will be consistent as always and say they made the millionth changes on the bike..
Reed is a question mark...
It's gonna be a great show!!
By the way.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ken Rock 194!!
Top 3 finish for Windham! Can't wait to watch it in person tomorrow night! Last years was epic when Windham lapped Dungy (points leader) and the stadium erupted in cheer...something the TV broadcast refused to highlight to save face for the points leader...in person it was much different than on TV. It may only be 40 degrees in SLC tomorrow night but the race is going to be HOT!! Cheers to the best SX season EVER!!
All I can say is this has been an outstanding season for fans. Something for everyone, regardless of which rider is your favorite. Only 9 points separating the 4 top guys in the class with 2 races left.
What a great time to be a fan and way to go SPEED with all the live coverage this season!
"Stewart went on vacation"
That right there should tell everyone the kind of racer Bubba is. The kid has zero heart. Last time I checked he still has a shot at this thing and him going on vacation instead of riding isn't going to help his chances. What a total fraud.
K-Dub is there! Hopefully he'll mix it up this weekend!
Come on Vegas... Winner take all!!!
SLC results 1 Stewie 2 Reed 3 Villapoto 4 Dungy 5 Windham
1.reed
2.villo
3. stewie
4. RD
WOW....TOMKTM, if you think training 24-7 is the right thing for everyone than you are sorely mistaken. Most guys take vacation, to rest...but I am sure he takes his cause he cares nothing for this championship...really?
all you ever do is hate on the guy and make up stuff to bash him...
I heard RV went hunting, CR22 changed diapers, RD5 combed his hair, and TC41 played an advanced copy of Mx vs atv alive with JH75...
care to make any judgements about them?
Last round it seemed like CR, rumored to have some new parts due to TC’s accident, was really off his game. I’m looking to see if the week off helped him the most. He had time to test the new hardware, and maybe EFI software, as well as mend those bruises he received in Seattle. Maybe we’ll see a rekindled Double Douche for SLT!
Didierlotsyeng said the same over generalized statement that many have been highlighting for sixteen weeks (Not intended to be a knock against you). RV is going to win….but hasn’t even almost won in over a month. Stew is going to crash out…he’s won two straight and kept his grips clean. CR is an unknown…every week he’s the epitome of random probability of racing. This is why the racing has been so great this season, because no one knows what’ll happen.
TOMKTM I am going to guess JS knows a little bit more about what he is doing than some Keyboard jocky!! No heart either?? Did you see Daytona?? LMAO man if you don't like the guy man up and just say it!!! Why say dumb stuff that makes you look ... well ya know.
I was hoping RV won this week but now I hope JS does just to make tomktm look like a bigger fool!!
Stewart won't win because he's my screen saver right now.. RV didn't win while he was my screen saver, TC broke his collarbone while being my screen saver.. It's a curse, and I'm using it to stop that number 7 winning. My prediction 1st RV, 2nd CR, 3rd K.Dub. I can wish can't I... As for 250's I'd absolutly love K.Roc to win and Tomac to gain some points, but I think that's a long shot.. Basically I want RV and K.Roc to win..
And it's not that I don't like JS7 because I'd much rather him win than Dunge (that dude I don't like) I just like RV and CR more. Just for the record.
I agree gbs417, Last 2 races, JS- 2 wins "0" crashes, RV- 0 wins and 1 crash, Reed- 0 wins and a few crashes. RD - 0 wins and 2 crashes. All I know is I CAN'T F IN WAIT!!! Wish it was live!!!
1- Stewart (dominate); 2- Dungey (strong but can't keep bubba's pace); 3- Reed (good start); 4- RV (will feel the pressure after a bad start); 5- K-Dub
Anything can happen if we get RAIN AND SNOW and will make it a spoiler race!!! Shuffle the deck for a new hand.
Hey Bill C keep me going on my lol's like your comments! I still say may the best lukiest fastest man win it all out there for the taking!
to all if you like my posts???? I am just catching up been of puter for a day or so. Go back ans check if you want to?
it said little or no precipitation, whitch is good IMO, I would hate for any of these guys to lose a title cuz of a mud race. So much can go bad in a mud race. Let them settle this the best way, on a dry track.
PS: I never said I could type worth a toot lol.....
WELCOME HOME WELKER!!!! ready for the battle to be setteld??
RV2 all the way.... and heres to hoping weimer will be up there to take points away from dungey and the rest. its gonna be a cold one but i got my poncho ready just incase.. RV2 SX2011 CHAMP!!
I`m pullin for Dungy........I guess just to piss off everyone since it seems like nobody likes the dude. Granted, the guys got to step it up in the personality department, but I`m not one of the "he just got lucky last year" people, I was at A1 last year when he out paced Bubba till the lappers, and almost passed him back with 3 turns to go, great race. He`s for real, but RV or Reed winnin would be cool too.
I agree with the BAMF RV2 will come out of his slump and get the start he needs to close this deal . He will redeem himself from last year. After all, he is the only one of the top 4 without a 450 SX title. I say he has earned it...
tomktm, that is the by far the most ignorant comment on this entire post, congratulations dumbass, you're #1
So TomKTM tell us what its like to be #1!!! Did u train EVERYDAY or did you take a vacation?? or are you just that good??
Wish SLC was LIVE ON SPEED!!!!!!! JS7 will win this race I think and Vegas too... He has returned to his form that obviously disappeared for some time there and he is clearly a notch above the other guys right now...I hope RV can pull off a second or a win if Bubba does not....3rd and 4th will be Reed and Dungey, not sure what order and I dont think Weimer will have much to offer.... I really want to see how RV handles the pressure, same for RD and Reed as they have just as much pressure to earn points as tight as things are....I think RV has been playing it safe and had a bad start last few races....Hopefully he worked on starts over the break....
Why is Roczen racing SX while leading the MX2 class.....seems like a unworthy risk to me with the amount of crashing he has done in SX to date.....
Hey Jason Weigandt,
K-DUB lives in Mississippi, not far from where tornados touched down yesterday. Was his property & were his loved ones spared in the latest round of tornados that ripped through nearby Smithsville, MS? Hope so & Godspeed to those less fortunate.
Hey BillC - get a life homo. Plenty agree with me when it comes to Bubba. Vacation time is for after the series is over! He had plenty of time to chill with his homeboys last year. Besides, Bubba will most likely take most of the summer off anyways. If he was serious about this championship he wouldn't have gone away for a week of fun and sun... FACT NOT OPINION!!
Anyone else who thinks otherwise is a footy pajama wearing Bubba hugger. Good for you.
If Stewie is on his game and stays away from the yard sales, there will be only one question. Who will finish in second?
TomKtm - Bubba "said" he was going on vacation.....but who knows for sure what he was really doing..These guys all play head games..Look at Reed for example.." Hey James, I want to be your Pal" So Bubba let his guard down a little and Reed took it to him....Many riders take a "break" from the scene and in many cases it works for the best...Just ask Dungey...he went to the beach after Hangtown last year....laid in the sun, got a B-J from his lady and came back and smoked everyone.....
I wouldnt question his heart or any of these guys in the top 5, that kid has proved he has heart in many ways and Im not his biggest fan either....Heart is what has put him 9 points out after some crazy shstufff......
Tomktm, U are high! dude has been doing this his whole life and a loser C rider like yourself is going to make assnine statements about how, when and where the guy should be training - are you serious - hes decimated the feild the past 2 races and showing the old stewie we know and you come on here with your C- class experience and wisdom - Come on - Put down the Bing man and get in reality!
Honda should have been giving Reed factory parts two months ago; there's two races left and now Honda is giving Chad Reed parts? Too little too late IMO...
Honda I think is showing some class in all this. Their factory guys are out and Reed is the only guy on a Honda in the running. They have been "helping" Reed all year in some way or another....Remember, Reed wanted his own "TEAM"...so Honda said, OK.....We didnt want to pay him that much to be on the factory team...so now Reed has a chance at it on a HONDA and its costing Honda some grip warmers and clutch plates....Win Win for Honda.....Reed is kind of a kook...But Honda's RULE!!!
Since he stirred the pot:
TomKTM said, "If he was serious about this championship he wouldn't have gone away for a week of fun and sun... FACT NOT OPINION!!"
Nothing about that theory substantiates a fact.
"Plenty agree with me when it comes to Bubba..." You and the other fifth graders huh? What is this some kind of Tosh.O episode? This guy can’t be a serious. Let this be a lesson to all, you are not supposed to wear the same helmet after you received a concussion!
Time for Dungey to get aggressive, throw down a block pass or two.
YUP TOMKTM looks like lots of people agree with ya, So tell me how many people are in your head anyway?? LMFAO!!!!
I'm worried about Villopoto in that right-hand first turn. It did not work out too good for him in jaxonville.
I'm glad bubba took some time off, reed is getting parts, and dunge is combing his hair :). What a season, who cares who wins, all these guys have given it everything they had; we ought not be complaining.
its still snowing here in UT, nothing really sticking yet, just in case anybody wanted to know. just really light
My prediction: (1) Tucker Hibbert (2) James Stewart (3) Ryan Dungey (4) Ryan Villopoto (5) Chad Reed
1. Reed
2. Windam
3. Villopoto
4. Dungey
5. Stewart (after crash)
Who ever wins this title is going to deserve it! The 2011 SX title is going to be a special one. I would just like to thank all the 250/450 racers this year for all the incredible racing and the show they have put on. Thanks guys, well done.
NONSENSE !! By the time Diana, the Twins, and half a dozen other girls get done riding Roczen around the hotel, he will be just a puddle. He'll probably have to be dumped into the KTM truck from a stretcher on Saturday morning.
Asterisk medical crew is standing by with electrolytes, oxygen, blood transfusions, and other medical necessities.
Miguel...you got it! I was about to write almost the same thing but I think JS7 will be on the ground at least twice and end up 7th...I think Roczen will be 5th battling with Dungy.
For those out there who like to "accuse" people of not liking this rider or that rider let me settle things for you about me. NO, I do not like JS7. He is the most dangerous rider out there and should be warned by the AMA about penalties. There are 19 other riders out there hoping that he doesn't injure them.
Roczen will be lining up with the Lites (250cc) class on Saturday night, not the 450's...
Yeah TOMKTM, lots of frauds have perfect motocross seasons under their belts, and are inside the top five in one of the most competitive supercross seasons ever. Does it hurt to be that dumb, or are you in fact to dumb to perceive pain?
@ Jim
I would say, as a racer myself, I'm always hoping not to be taken out or imjured.. by anyone..I suppose you could really say the same thing about Barcia to for that matter. Whenever he's around another rider(except maybe Dean-o whose used to Barcia's style by now) they tense up a bit too. Fact is Js7 took Reed out on accident one time(strictly only accident) on arguably the toughest whoop section in the series, I don't know if you recall The year Reed was on Suzuki and plowed James from behind in the whoops in '09? Or How about Villopoto Crashing a couple weeks ago because he jumped on Blose.. or any countless number of times people have been jumped on or ran into etc. The point is.. when you race you take that risk.
@ Jim
I would say, as a racer myself, I'm always hoping not to be taken out or imjured.. by anyone..I suppose you could really say the same thing about Barcia to for that matter. Whenever he's around another rider(except maybe Dean-o whose used to Barcia's style by now) they tense up a bit too. Fact is Js7 took Reed out on accident one time(strictly only accident) on arguably the toughest whoop section in the series, I don't know if you recall The year Reed was on Suzuki and plowed James from behind in the whoops in '09? Or How about Villopoto Crashing a couple weeks ago because he jumped on Blose.. or any countless number of times people have been jumped on or ran into etc. The point is.. when you race you take that risk.
GO RV.... If RV can get a 2nd or 1st tonight things are looking good for him at Vegas...JS7 can win the last 2 rounds and pull into a close 2nd in points for the title which in some ways considering some of the nonsense he has had will be a victory in itself...it will also teach him a lesson....when Reed takes you out...just get up finish the race and return the favor some other time......instead of loosin' your cool..which James has admitted....I think the take out was a surprise to James since Reed wanted to jump on his nuts for a few weeks there......but racing is racing and even in a recent interview with JS& by Steve Cox, Cox mentioned Reed driving James up high in the start at Seattle...James reply " I'll remember that"...so Reed has one coming to him!!