Observations: Motocross of Nations
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 | 1:30 PM
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The annual Olympics of Motocross otherwise known as the Motocross des Nations (I’m not putting the “of” in there. Can’t do it. Refuse to do it. So there) took place this past weekend in St. Jean D’Angely, which is located in the southwest corner of France. It’s always an exciting race with lots of intrigue and questions going into it.
It’s always a little weird for me at this race. As most of you know, I’m a born-and-raised Canadian citizen and proud of my homeland (have I told you guys about Ross “Rollerball” Pederson at all?). But at the same time, I’m married to an American girl, and as of 2011 I’ve almost lived and worked in the United States as long as I lived in Canada. The USA riders, staff, and sponsors are all friends of mine. I see the guys every weekend, and I do want them to win. I also find that when I speak to different people about the MXDN, I’m saying, “They look fast” meaning the USA or sometimes I say, “We killed it today in Saturday qualifying.” It’s weird—I’m in some sort of netherworld of Americana and never quite sure what to say when talking about Team USA.
Villopoto put in a clutch ride to help Team USA capture its seventh consecutive MXDN title.
Photo: Ray Archer
And I think part of the fact that I do feel part of Team USA is that I was a mechanic for Tim Ferry at the MXDN in 2003. Or otherwise known as “The last year Team USA lost an MXDN.” Yes, I do have this record hanging over me. But anyway, I consider it a career achievement to be there working for the team, and it was cool. Not winning sucked, but still, I worked for Team USA and have the pit shirt to prove it.
And this was before they gave out pit shirts to approximately 382 people that come over for the race. In Zolder there were about fifteen of us representing USA for three riders.
Canada sometimes sends a team, sometimes not. Sometimes we borrow bikes and suck; most times we never send our best riders. Other times, like this year, we simply don’t go. It’s a whole bunch of political bullshit, egos, and poor management year after year and nothing seems to change. I truly believe that a Canada team of Colton Facciotti, Dusty Klatt, and Tyler Medaglia would be inside the top ten, but it’s just not going to happen anytime soon. I will now hit myself in the head with a snow shovel.
Okay, back to the race! The USA won the race thirteen straight years and then lost the next four out of six before winning in 2000 at this very track. Although the rouge-blanc-et-bleu is favored going in every year, the last two years (all USA wins) the team has been trailing going into the last moto.
Dungey was also spectacular in France.
Photo: Ray Archer
And that’s exactly where they found themselves this year going into the last moto, and to be honest, I didn’t think they were going to do it. France was killing it on the slippery weird hillside track. Sure, USA was coming into the third moto with its big guns of Ryan Villopoto and Ryan Dungey, and if they went 1-2 they would win based on the five best moto results (out of six), but I didn’t think they were going to do that.
After Dungey, Villopoto, and Blake Baggett won their Saturday qualifying races pretty easily and got great starts, the start gods seemed to be angry on Sunday when it really counted. Team USA elected to give its 250 rider, Baggett, the inside pick on the gate but he wasn’t getting off the line like he needed to (especially considering that other countries eschewed the typical strategy of giving the inside gate to the smaller bikes—Australia and France, to name a couple) and Blake’s day was a struggle with said bad starts and crashes. Dungey got a good jump in the first moto of the day to finish third in his moto, but Villopoto had to come from the back in his first moto to finish third. Baggett was buried every time.
So as I was saying, Team USA had finishes of 3-3-17-17 going into the third and decisive moto of the day. With Gauthier Paulin winning his MX3 moto over RV, Marvin Musquin dominating Baggett in MX2, and Christophe Pourcel (who by the way is going to stay in Europe for next season with the CLS Kawasaki team) hanging in there, I didn’t think the third moto of the day was going to go well for the stars and stripes. I’ve been to every one of these things in the last five years, and this was by far the most worried I was for us. Or them. Whatever.
But then a funny thing happened when the gate dropped: Ryan Villopoto and Ryan Dungey came through big time and rounded the first turn two and four, and I knew this thing was over. RV got the jump every rider dreams about from the outside, Dungey did his thing from the inside, and Captain America was reborn again! RV quickly got into the lead with Dungey settling into third, and with the Russian Evgeny Bobryshev between them, it wasn’t going to be long before the guys cruised home for the win. Even an early fall by RV (Dungey did a smart thing and basically waited for RV to pick up his bike to fend off Pourcel) didn’t stop the freight train.
Gautier Paulin took home the surprise victory in moto two.
Photo: Ray Archer
France was still in it somewhat until Pourcel’s rear tire came off the rim about halfway through the moto and he DNF’d. That was it. I was watching on the hillside with the fans and the air horns suddenly went silent as they realized it was going to be USA once again. Still, Paulin straight up won a moto and France ended up second to the USA. It was a good result for the French, no doubt about it.
I’ve often wondered about Gautier Paulin and his insistence to stay in the MX2 class in the GPs. He’s simply too big, and the French team put him on a 450 for this race, which was the right move. He won the second moto and showed promise, as he’s taking his skills and giant hands to the 450 class next year on a Kawasaki. And to think that some French people wanted him off the team in favor of Pourcel because of CP’s recent surge in the GPs. Luckily for those people, 450 MX1 rider Steven Frossard hurt himself and couldn’t race, opening the door for Pourcel. I say Frossard would’ve done better than Pourcel, so lucky for USA, methinks.
RV and Dungey were clutch with a capital C, and both guys deserve full credit for the win. They knew they had to go 1-2 in the last moto to do it, and that’s what they did. Neither guy was exactly performing up to expectations in their first motos of the day on the tricky track—they weren’t on their top of the game by any means, so it was interesting to see them both rise up and come through when the pressure was on.
A lot of bench racers would have come down on Blake Baggett had USA lost, and maybe rightfully so. He wasn’t the Baggett I saw this past summer, but he’s really only in his second year of being a pro. He’s never been to Europe before, and maybe it overwhelmed him, I’m not sure. Like I said, he never got the starts, the track was tough to pass on (especially when the rains came), and it wasn’t the best of days for BB Gun. But the USA needed one of his scores to count, and in both motos, at one point, Blake was outside the top twenty before working his way up to seventeenth. He showed heart and determination in getting his scores.
Team Australia celebrates its first-ever MXDN podium appearance.
Photo: Ray Archer
But that streak ended this year as Reed, Metcalfe, and Matt Moss took third and just about secured second with Pourcel’s DNF in the third moto. Reed won the opening moto of the day in convincing fashion (which was good to see, as his second half of the summer wasn’t pretty) and in the third moto they were second for a long time. Reed had fallen and was sixth or seventh and Metty was briefly in fourth. It was looking good for them to get second, but then Brett fell with only a few laps left, which allowed France back into second. To watch the scoreboard and see the countries jump over each other for a few consecutive laps was exciting. The team got a nineteenth out of Moss along with a DNF, so third was a solid result.
A few other riders who really impressed were Great Britain’s Tommy Searle and South Africa’s Tyla Rattray, who both rode the MX1 class and normally are thought of as 250 riders. Searle went 4-4 and Rattray 5-3 to end up in a tie for second (along with Reed) in the prestigious MX1 class. Both riders were right there and in the mix on their new-sized bikes. I know Rattray wants badly to race a 450 in the outdoors next year and was preparing for this race to show his skills to Mitch Payton, and I think he may just have done that.
Let’s talk about the track. No one liked it. It looked like it sucked to race on, it was badly one-lined in some sections, and a Motocross des Nations track having a minute-and-a-half lap times is not cool. I can’t believe someone felt it was worth holding the most prestigious motocross race in the world. The less said about it, the better.
It was a tough weekend for Antonio Cairoli in France.
Photo: Ray Archer
One thing I really don’t get is the FIM’s insistence on an age limit in the MX2 class. It doesn’t make much sense to me—the MX2 class is just as gnarly and intense as MX1. The money made by the riders is just as much, and with an age limit in there, it’s treated as more of a feeder class, which to me is wrong. Some riders can’t ride a 450 as well as a 250, and when I watch the 250 class at the GPs (or in America for that matter) I’m just as excited and it’s just as “real” as the 450s.
Having said that, it blows me away that they would insist on this rule at the MXDN. The race’s whole premise is the three best riders a country has, not the two best riders and someone who’s under 24. It’s ridiculous and hurts the event. Part of the allure for many years is a big-bike rider dropping down to the smaller bike and how he would do. We’d never have seen Johnny O’Mara whip the world on a 125 or Jeff Ward step up in ’88 on the small bike if this rule was in place back then. I know a few countries can’t field the team they want to because of the rule. C’mon, Youthstream, change this. At least for this race.
Speaking of kids, Germany’s Ken Roczen whipped everyone in the MX2 class with some incredible rides. The kid was racing for the lead in both of his motos against 450s. His scores of 2-4 were awesome and he was on it for sure. The kid has the world in his palm right now and will be in America full-time next year to do some real damage to the guys in the 250 class.
Roczen shined in France, but it was not enough to put Germany into a podium position.
Photo: Ray Archer
My wife was with me the whole weekend, and she’s basically like late-career McGrath: supercross-only. Motocross means hot, long, dirty days. She already thought Roczen was cute, so he was number one in her book. After watching him ride both motos and hearing me explain how hard he was riding to beat the 450 guys, she immediately became a Roczen superfan and wants me to get her a Fox Kenny Rocz shirt. How’s that for impacting someone’s life?
Canada’s Great Britain’s Dean Wilson came into the race with a sore wrist from the week before at the conclusion of the AMA series at Pala (and while I’m complaining about stuff, can we get a least a week in between the last AMA race and the MXDN?) and figured he could gut it out at the MXDN for the Union Jack. Well, he sort of did but there was no doubt that the 2011 AMA 250 champion wasn’t on top of his game. After the race it was confirmed that Dean broke his scaphoid bone in his wrist, and he’ll be out for a while healing up from that.
The MXDN was an absolute disaster for the newly crowned five-time World Champion Antonio Cairoli. After a strong showing in Saturday qualifying where he hounded Dungey the entire race, much was expected of AC222 in the race. Well, all those hopes and dreams were dashed in the first turn of the first race when he went down and hurt his hand. He got up after a while, crashed again, and broke his handlebar mounts. He got a shot in his hand for the next moto but pulled out early when the pain became too much. I was excited to see the Cairoli-Dungey-Villopoto showdown in the third moto of the day but it was not to be.
It was reveled in France that Dean Wilson has a broken scaphoid bone in his wrist.
Photo: Ray Archer
Antonio’s teammates were hurt by his double DNF because, well, one guy did decent (David Guarani) but the other guy (Lupino) rides a Husqvarna. Let’s face it, most countries only have two riders who are strong and they need a Paul-Malin-in-’94 ride to beat the Americans. When two-time World Champion David Philippaerts went out with injuries, it was curtains for Italy’s chances. I think they finished so poorly, their numbers should be about 239, 240, and 241 next year.
Another guy hurt by his country’s lack of speed is Holland’s Jeffrey Herlings. Herlings is KTM’s next World Champion without a doubt, and he jumped to the 450 for this race. And he was impressive—generally Dutch riders are better in the softer dirt, but this weekend Jeffrey was dicing with Paulin for the lead in the second moto (and ahead of RV) before bending his shift shaft and being forced to ride the track in third gear. So his second is that much more impressive.
Belgium can send three solid riders year after year. This year their best rider (Clement Desalle, the MX Panda) couldn’t race, so they sent a promising up-and-comer (Joel Roelants), a crafty vet whose best days are behind him (Kevin Strjibos), and some dude I’ve never heard of (Marvin Van Daele). So they weren’t going to win. But what did they do? They got fifth ahead of South Africa and its two name riders (Rattray and Swanepoel), Germany and its Roczen power, and many others. That’s what Team Belgium does. You can never, ever count them out.
By the way, allow me to pat myself on the back for correctly predicting the top five over on Pulpmx.com. We had a little MXDN MX Fantasy pool going and I nailed it. Yes, I’m a genius. And you know why I’m a genius? Because all those other dorks who submitted entries forgot about the Belgians!
Good to see RV and Dungey apparently getting along and working together the entire week. In the history of motocross, two guys fighting for championships (not to mention millions of dollars) rarely get along. Carmichael never really had any rivals, but he also never really had any friends among the other top riders. Then of course RC and James Stewart, Chad Reed and RC, Reed and Stewart, etc. But basically they kept it clean on the track and with each other publicly the entire 2011 season. That’s not easy to do and they both deserve credit for that.
Team USA celebrates yet another victory at the MXDN.
Photo: Ray Archer
Team Puerto Rico was in the house and had a tough time at the race. It was American-based riders Jimmy Albertson and Tommy Weeck teamed up with a real-live Puerto Rican racer named Luis Grana. They were hoping to get into the A-final and go from there. Those hopes were dashed when Albertson, their best rider, crashed in the first turn of his qualifier on Saturday and could only work up to fourteenth. Weeck crashed all weekend and Grana, well, he’s not really on pace. So that was it for PR. They were off to the B-Main on Sunday morning where the winner gets into the A-final for the day. Top Jimmy again crashed in the first turn, and although he put in a spirited ride to the front to get third, it wasn’t enough to get the guys through.
Ireland won the B-Main and got into the A-final later that day. It seems to me that Ireland’s Martin Barr might be the king of these B-Main things, because he’s come through a few times for the laddies.
One of the secrets of the MXDN is that there are some incredibly bad riders from some far-off countries that show up. Did I mention that Canada wasn’t able to send a team yet? Ok, good. Just checking. Anyways, countries like China, Thailand and a new entry for worst motocross country ever Kuwait all entered riders and they were out there on the same track as the world’s best riders, which was a bit funny to see. For example of how slow they are, going off Saturday’s practice:
USA- Ryan Villopoto- 1:37.9
Kuwait- Faisal Ben-Awadah 2:32.4
So our buddy Faisal was approximately 55 seconds off of RV’s time. That’s not at the end of the race. That’s one lap! Seriously, right now in my obese state and on that track, I’m pretty sure I could stay within 55 seconds of RV and that’s brutal. Just in case you think Ben-Awadah was not showing everything he had in practice, he was lapped four times in the qualifier on Saturday by RV.
But the cool thing was seeing someone from Kuwait in full sheik robes in the pit boxes. That was awesome and I kept looking for Sargent Slaughter to come in and fix him up real good. Hey at least the guys from Iceland weren’t last anymore, they put a hurting on China, Kuwait, Greece and Thailand this year in the quali races.
That’s all I’ve got from the MXDN. I had a good time with some good people the entire trip. It’s fun to see everyone loosen up after the race, and a good time was had by all. If you guys have anything to say, shoot me an email at [email protected].
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HOLESHOT !!!! Deano didnt ride like he had a broken wrist at Pala.. He was haulin'.
Very easy to rag on Baggett for his non-performance, but remember he's 20 (?) and has more pressure on his shoulders than most of us can fathom. Maybe the 5 or 6 dominating rounds in the US made people think he's a Roczen, but Blake is basically a first-year pro having spent most of last year on the mend.
When I was 20 the performance anxiety on a date was too much to handle at times. I can't imagine trying to get the money shot with the whole world watching.
I agree with Mathes. Frossard would have been better for France than Pourcel. After Pourcel pulled out to get goggles when it started raining he lost positions. Reed and Dungey simply tossed the goggles and gutted it out. Pourcel acts like a girl and if everything isnt perfect he wont ride.
Xavier Arnaud deeply looked into whether or not Pourcel should be taking the heat that he is for pulling in for the goggles, and after actually looking at the facts, people should probably get off CP's back on this one.
Well dungey and reed didnt come back from the pack. They didnt need their googles as much as pourcel.
Here is a link to the translated articles. French fans are absolutely killing Pourcel unfairly about this so Xavier actually asked around and did some reporting on it. The google translate is a little rough but I think it's understandable.
http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?hl=en&prev;=/search?q=mx2k+forum&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=RXn&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=imvns&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=fr&u=http://leblogdedirtd.blogs.motoverte.com/&usg=ALkJrhhWYyanlZjOedDfauWmhB-VpMoJ9g
Here is his post on vital about it
http://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Moto-Related,20/What-sets-Team-USA-apart-Luck-Not-even-close,1224832?page=2
Mate, you don't understand team Kuwait technique. It's all about cruising for the ladies! Jumping is just so lame...
I always call it the Motocross des Nations, too. I figure France has become so insignificant in today's world, I can at least throw them that bone. Hey, can't Canada sneak their bikes and riders into the U.S.'s shipping container?
I wonder if DW15 wrist injury came from coming up short on that gap jump he and Reed were jumping on press day at Pala and occassionally during the race
MX1 - Dungey was all over Reed...then the rain came down....then all the sudden Roczen was in front of Dungey....what happened???
I should change my citizenship and go race for Kuwait...
Looking at the picture of RV,I can see why he was the only one to get a kiss from the monster girl.He must have been looking at her when the pic was taken.
Quote.
"One thing I really don’t get is the FIM’s insistence on an age limit in the MX2 class. It doesn’t make much sense to me—the MX2 class is just as gnarly and intense as MX1. The money made by the riders is just as much, and with an age limit in there, it’s treated as more of a feeder class, which to me is wrong. Some riders can’t ride a 450 as well as a 250, and when I watch the 250 class at the GPs (or in America for that matter) I’m just as excited and it’s just as “real” as the 450s."
Absolutely. I agree 100%.
Euromike- too late. no one cares what you think. dont even bother trying to post something intelligent.
Baggett still got 4th overall in the MX2....so not too bad....but when you have the MX1 or MX3 guys in your race, it certainly adds to the negative....Why not let the classes race independantly....Roczen for example could be the fastest MX2 guy, but he could have 4 or 5 MX1 dudes in front of him...so he may be the first MX2 guy across the line...but he scores 5th place points...
Tren Killer,, I agree, but it all works out equal..
I'd love to see the event go back to MX and Trophee des Nations format of 4 man teams and 2 weekends - one for 250s and one for 450s
Matthes, as a Pourcel fan (the fast pilot not the man) I cannot pass without comments, it looks like we were in a different St Jean d"Angely !
"Pourcel’s rear tire came off the rim about halfway through the moto", his tire came off in the 3rd lap, after he flyed over Dungey and was chasing Vilo, at this time he was 2sec faster than the Ryans (Youthstream.com results). Unfortunately we will never know if he could have handle this speed the full moto.
When Vilo fall, Pourcel was already in the pit.
Now as a French fan, even if Paulin did win the 2nd moto and even if I love his riding and I am sure he will be great next year, he showed in qualification and in the 3rd moto that he was not at the level on the hard soil. On both he has been caught and passed by Guarneri who is far for now from a top gun ! Even with Pourcel win (let me dream !) his 8th place would have made France 2nd.
To have a chance to beat USA team we needed Pourcel, Frossard, Musquin.
The google issue : a rock broke his google than the rain began, I had only 1 side of me wet, the rain was horizontal ! At this time everybody did still have his google, he was already catch by 2 pilots and couldn't fight. I was pissed off when he stopped to the pits but now I think it was smart.
That's it about my comments for Matthes.
About Roczen...in 1st moto he did catch and passed Dungey for 2nd place. In 2nd moto, Vilo, who was 9th in lap 1 by the way, passed him for 3rd than 2 laps later Roczen passed him again and stayed in front 2 more laps...with a 250 in his 2nd moto in the row (30 mn to breath), just awesome !
In conclusion, it was a beautiful MXDN where the best team did win...AGAIN !!!
There shouldn't be age limits or restrictions in any class in my opinion. I'd rather see the best 250F and best 450 riders riding what they are better on. When did the 250F class become a "development" class for kids only? I like to watch both classes just as much as the other and to have the best riders of each size bike competing would be awesome. The deeper the field in each class the better.
Roczen can't really be considered a surprise, he was a stud last year too. How come nobody is calling for a "teardown" to see what's under the hood? He has to be running the same "bigbore" as AC, right?
great pic for the euros-fanatics, their number one tony cairoli at the mxon 2011
http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/74742/Motorcycle-Photo-Gallery-Photo/2011-Motocross-des-Nations.aspx
Nice pic Bill!
@Kjansson I disagree that Dungey and Reed didnt need their goggles as much. When it started raining the lappers were everywhere. Face it Reedy and Dungey have heart and fought like men. CP is a P###sy
I agree with Mustard Dog. You said you'd leave Euromike, so go already. Be a man of your word or you're not a man at all.
Thats funny you mentioned Sargent Slaughter I played a charity golf tourney with him!!! he was in the 4some right behind me!!! he had the camo bag and the American flag pants on!! we got pics with him doing wrestling moves and signed golf balls!!!! when we play again this year i will ask him to go to next year MXDN to help the guys out!!!
No mention of Tommy Searle's ride from about 18th to 4th? I'm a little biassed but that was the best ride of the weekend for me.
I normally read observations 'cause don't get to watch US nationals over here (europe) but if this is how inaccurate it is everyweek, i don't think i'll bother!
NikolaTesla wrote:
I agree with Mustard Dog. You said you'd leave Euromike, so go already. Be a man of your word or you're not a man at all.
Hahaha NT, you and mustard dog can lick my weenie. I´m here to stay suckers. Get used to it. I´ll probably get banned sooner or later because you babies will cry to moma, but WTH, it´ll be a fun ride until then.
Matthes, Philippaerts just won one title, not two, 2008 MX1.
TEXASTHIERRY: it's not true that when Villo fell Pourcel was already in the pits: he was right behind Villo and Dungey. It's true that he was faster than both of them at the moment.
DUMBOBILL: you are such a dumb, you choose the right nickname, no mistake there. Keep on eating roots and get a job lazy ass.
@Euromike.. I doubt they can ban you.. By either tracking your IP address, and blocking it.
Or what some french websites do, is just deleting your comments.. Or altering it.. But that necessitates, is one motivated individual to track such comments... I think you will use the individual for better purposes.
And even if they do... You can always add comments from various IP address... Now, unless racer x have a bunch of talented pogrammers who have the desire to track you down, not only IP address and other data (Which will be bordering to a hacker's capabilities)... And then what?
These guys will be better off working for the pentagon or private companies who will no doubt pay 10x the salary you will earn at racer x... ha,ha
@jairtime... Some athletes do this... One way to extend your career... Maybe something for JS? Ha,ha
Mr Matthas sir, thats probably (is) the best write up i've ever read. Starting with why the h$%# can't Canada send a decent team? I feel a kin ship not only motocross, but i'm getting married to a canadian gal in 15 days and a wake up. :) Ive watched the canadian nats for quite a few yrs, even when I lived in the states (5 yr ago) and cant understand why canada doesn't do well in the de nations. Having lived here a while now, I think I know, the veiw reminds me of the smokey mtns,,,the roads remind me of Tijuana.... something with the powers that be I have decided. And your american wife is right, Roczens gonna take the lites sx title... and god only knows what else....he's ready this yr, after gettting his feet wet a bit last yr. Thanks for the great read, was beauty ehh ;o....(i know Gd american)
They should ban DUMBOBILL, who has been posting insulting comments about the riders, a "person" who continously refuses to say where he is from, for some reason, showing how coward he is. Can somebody tell me the meaning of insulting the riders who make our sport? I don't think this is the reason why this web site was created, isn't it?
P.s I was at a few SX's back in the day when Ross would usually be top 10 heheh Was hoping we could nikname wilson "rollerblade" but guess he's from brittan now?
I dont think this has been repeated enough. Roczen beat Dungey on a fu&%$#@ 250f!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Herlings, a first time 450 rider beat Villopoto! Even though we won, I would call that a sad day for American MX.
Euromike: You made the statement that you were so sure the USA wouldn't win that you'd make the ultimate sacrifice and quit posting here. (as if that is some sort of huge sacrifice) Yet a few short days later you are here? You can stay here as long as you want. I thought it was ridiculous that leaving here is what you were backing up your bold statement with then and now it shows that it was hollow conviction at that. So...very....lame.
@ MXPete450 you have to consider all the factors involved, shitty track, rainy conditions, foreign teritory and altogether a constant struggle for the American guys, that being said to still walk away with the win is a HUGE triumph!! Like the GOAT always said its easy to win when everything just comes easily but to walk away with the win after such hardships is truely amazing! For me that really shows no matter what the circumstances USA is #1!!! Im sure all the other teams are left scratching there heads thinking man we cant even beat these guys on there worst of days! Thanks for reading, BONES.
@ MXPete450
Are you serious? First off, as suggested by others it is quite possible that the 250 was a better bike for those conditions in Moto 1. Secondly.......do you really believe RV couldn't have beat Herlings had he started up front with him? How did Herlings do in Moto 3 against RV? Like I said before.....it's easy to go fast when you're not worried about team points. The US team had all the pressure and couldn't afford mistakes or to let their EGO's get the better of them.
The weather conditions and lack of experience the US had with the track are the only reasons it was close. When it was dry on Saturday qualifying there was no question who the fastest where!
@Manes, my bad you are right, Vilo fall in lap 2 and it explains why he was 3 sec slower in this lap.
@dgizzy1, Dungey and Reed had their googles during the hard rain, they removed them after when the sun came back. CP had broken googles during the rain, difficult to keep eyes open when the rain is whipping your face.
B-KR.. A few short days?? NO he was on here that day and every day sence!! He is a hyprocrite!!
.
MXPete450... Come on dude, RV started 26th on a slick track, He rode smart. What heppen the next time?? RV beat him by over 1 min. RD... Same thing rode smart on a VERY slick track. Not to take anything from what Roczen did but don't forget Roczens team had "0" chance to win so he could go balls out all day wile the USA guys have there eye's on the BIG prize and that got it.
Fully agree BONES...after motos 1 and 2 the Ryans were kind of disappointed watching the win going away. Instead of giving up, they came for the last moto over motivated, started in front and did the job for their country ! I want believe they get lucky with Cairoli and Pourcel DNF but luck never happen if you don't work hard to make it happen.
Good job team USA, and even if Baggett didn't score as expected he did fight really hard and never gave up on a track he didn't like at all.
Yeah...its a sad day for MX when the mud and rain come into play and just about anyone who knows how to ride a bike has a chance at winning.... Reed is lucky he didnt take a mud nap....he was all over the track before it rained and Roczen somehow made up close to 10 seconds in one lap during the MX1/MX2 ?????? Watch the tape....he wasnt even in the frame...Dungey was behind Reed, they cut to Pourcel for like 5 seconds, then all the sudden Roczen was right on Reeds tale.....someone went off the track and cut back on I think.....and skipped some track while doing so....
All i know is US dug deep as usual and won. again. and mike is a whining excuse making euro eunuch
@MXPete450. Pete, good call dude. Don´t make no difference to these guys though. They live their lives behind excuses. The reality is too hard for them to face.
The best one though was from the clown who suggested a 250 was at an advantage. Hahahahaha. Yeah right.
don't forget the tony c quote before the 2010 mxon, cairoli: "Dungey? huh! he's not even close to the level of our mx2 gp riders"
antonio, Dungey? three time MX Des Nations winner, 3 motos win at the MXoN, 4 time AMA Champion
and 10 MX1 gp titles are not even close to only one AMA 450 SUPERCROSS title!!!!!! you disagree? go to america and ride the 450 SX Series!!!!!!
sorry for my bad English
That was some bullshit raised by somebody who doesn't know how to translate.
That's your opinion, as long as you don't unsult the riders you can write whatever you want.
I wanna point out that I read and saw my interviews of Cairoli in Italian: he has never talked bad about any US rider, instead he has always showed a lot of admiration for all of them, especially Villopoto, RC and McGrath. When Barcia came to Genova last year, he was very impressed by him.
Tony Cairoli with Geoff Mayer on mxlarge intevriew, 08th September 2010
Cairoli: "in MX2 there are a lot of guys better than him (Dungey) I think. I don’t think the Motocross class in America is at a good level."
Steve Matthes I have a question....
What kind of bike was the second moto winner, Gautier Paulin, riding? I thought that bike wasn't capable of winning motos? Maybe I am jumping a gate here, but if you can lead for 20 minutes you can lead for 35 minutes right? well if you can win one moto on that bike.... ;)
common, facts people. stop being lame. use the lapchart on youthstreams website. RV 9th on the 1st lap, not 26th. I was there, great to see the big hitters, the same time dissapointed. AC222 out(as usual) Philipartes, Desalle and Frossard not there. Followed the Ryans and Reed for the whole season. They have been outstanding, thought that they would lap up to ten place but not. In that weak field they should have killed it, they didn´t. The depth in the us isn´t as deep as I thought. I mean Metcalfe isn´t a better than the europen 2nd factory rider.The Ryans might be the fastest riders at the moment, but the national series is by no means better than the GP´s.
sorry for my bad English.
padre manes: "as long as you don't Insult the riders you can write whatever you want", you are the owner of racer x now? :), stop living into your false world old boy! you have two different kinds of persons, the honest people and the liars, we are tottally different you and me manes because you are THE liar! :)
Euros Losers !!! Mafia, Totalitarianism & Co. !
Euros Fanatics: Jealous, Hypocrit, & Liar !
THE KING OF EUROPE HERE: http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/74742/Motorcycle-Photo-Gallery-Photo/2011-Motocross-des-Nations.aspx
Amen
American MX! Love it! Obsessed with it! But now that I have gotten into tIhe GPs as well, its double the fun. Motocross is motocross and I cant wait to hit up a euro round next year! I hear the fans go mental!
Can anyone tell me the Attendce at the MXON? I heard it was 50 000 plus. Is that right? CRAZY!!!!
Dumb, there is no hope for you, you are a failure. When somebody keeps and keeps talking crap about something or somebody, he must have a real problem. All the foreigners on this forum said from which country they are from except you, you are ashamed to say it, what a coward. Did you know that a rider can fall? No? Yes, they are not on rails. Go to school if you have one in your country of retards. I see you don't get the real life, that' s what happens when you do nothing all day, DUMB O BILL.
MXPETE450: yes, there were more than 50000 people, same as in 2009 in Italy, it was crazy. Next year in Lommel it will be even more crowded for sure.
Crowd attendance was 60+k, what I heard...
And as for next year... The crowd should be higher... If herlings wins the MX2GP... And the the Belges are healthy... And Roczen is doing well...
Besides the Belges, The Dutch and Germans will be there en force...
@dumbobill, "the king of Europe", you are talking about Pourcel, not the one on the ground showing his ass to the pack right ?
It's a team race. Roczen had no team so he was free go for it. Dungey had to ride smart as a team player. As long as the rest of the world keeps racing as individuals, the US will keep winning as a team. DeCoster keeps the guys heads and ego's in the right place. Years from now nobody will remember Reed or Paulin's single moto wins, just whitch team won the race.