Racer X Race Report: Anaheim 2
Sunday, February 5, 2012 | 6:00 AM
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The ranks of Monster Energy AMA Supercross an FIM World Championship now feature a two-time winner, and that winner is the rider who also won the first race of the season, which also took place in the same building, Angel Stadium of Anaheim. So at this rate, we’ll be looking for three other riders to step up and grab wins of their own over the next three weeks, just like they did after round one.
But then again, just like round one, it’s hard to watch Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto ride like this and not think he’s due for a win streak soon. The defending SX Champion had the race handled the whole way, fighting for the lead with TwoTwo Motorsports Bel-Ray Racing Honda’s Chad Reed on the first lap before securing the spot and beginning to stretch his advantage. Villopoto didn’t pull away at quite the same rate as he did at the first Anaheim race, but still, he had the lead on lockdown.
Reed and Villopoto went after each other early in the main event, with Villopoto securing the top spot.
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Villopoto really found a groove near the halfway mark and showed no signs of slowing down.
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Behind Reed came JGR/Toyota Yamaha’s James Stewart, who had crashed hard in his heat race and had to qualify through the LCQ. Stewart didn’t have a great gate pick in the main event, but even with a bad start he quickly moved his way into the top five. He then made a move on Muscle Milk Honda’s Justin Brayton and began to work Reed for second. When Stewart made the move, he sat about four seconds behind Villopoto, but Stewart was not able to make up any ground—in fact Villopoto pulled away. Stewart then seemed content to take second after his tough night, but Reed mounted one last charged to try to get him back late. Stewart weathered the storm and held on for second.
But just like Anaheim 1, no one had an answer or a serious challenge for Villopoto.
Another rough night for James Stewart, who crashed hard while leading his heat race. he bounced back to collect second in the main event.
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Chad Reed had been sick in the days leading up to the race, and even threw up again during the day. He still rode well and took third.
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Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey didn’t get a good start and was not able to make up ground as quickly as Stewart. He eventually moved ahead of Brayton to get fourth, his second-straight fourth-place finish. Brayton rounded out the top five ahead on a solid night--he had actually logged the fastest qualifying time of the night, and also battled Villopoto pretty hard in his heat race. In sixth came GEICO Honda’s Kevin Windham, then JGR’s Davi Millsaps, MotoConcept’s Mike Alessi, Yoshimura Suzuki’s Brett Metcalfe, and Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Broc Tickle.
With the win, Villopoto regains the points lead in the series by three over Reed.
In Lites West, GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac had won two races in a row coming in and had already opened up a big points lead thanks to some mistakes from his chief competitors. Who could stop him? Lucas Oil/Troy Lee Honda’s Cole Seely, also the winner of the previous Anaheim race, looked ready to try it when he battled for the holeshot with Tomac. Seely ended up with the early lead and he and Tomac started putting in hard laps and stretching their gap from the other riders. But before a battle between them could materialize, Seely lost traction with his back tire and crashed on a sweeper turn, opening the door for Tomac to cruise through. Make it three straight wins for Eli, while Seely recovered for second and Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin outdueled Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson for third. Wilson was fourth after starting just outside of the top five. Rockstar Energy Star Valli Yamaha’s Nico Izzi had a strong showing and ended up fifth.
Eli Tomac is on one heck of a role in West Lites.
Cole Seely was leading and ready to battle Tomac for it until he washed out.
Marvin Musquin (left) joined Tomac and Seely on the Lites podium.
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The series stays out west for one more weekend with the San Diego Supercross, before heading east with the Dallas SX in two weeks.
SX Main Event1. R. Villopoto
2. J. Stewart
3. C. Reed
4. R. Dungey
5. J. Brayton
6. K. Windham
7. D. Millsaps
8. M. Alessi
9. B. Metcalfe
10. B. Tickle
11. J. Weimer
12. K. Chisholm
13. N. Wey
14. A. Short
15. W. Peick
16. K. Partridge
17. J. Sipes
18. J. Albertson
19. J. Alessi
20. J. Hansen
Lites Main Event
1. E. Tomac
2. C. Seely
3. M. Musquin
4. D. Wilson
5. N. Izzi
6. M. Leib
7. M. Moss
8. V. Friese
9. T. Baker
10. M. Davalos
11. R. Sipes
12. K. Rusk
13. B. Laninovich
14. B. Rutherford
15. G. Swanepoel
16. J. Ramos
17. R. Marmont
18. T. Ingalls
19. G. Faith
20. J. Anderson
It wasn't officially Pink Night, but Cole Seely and the TLD team ran pink plastic anyway.
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Western Regional Supercross Lites Class Season Standings
1. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda – 113
2. Dean Wilson, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki – 91
3. Marvin Musquin, Murrieta, Calif., KTM – 84
4. Cole Seely, Murrieta, Calif., Honda – 79
5. Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Yamaha – 67
6. Nico Izzi, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha – 62
7. Tyla Rattray, Wildomar, Calif., Kawasaki – 60
8. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Suzuki – 54
9. Ryan Sipes, Ekron, Ky., Yamaha – 53
10. Matt Moss, Sussex Inlet, NS, KTM
Supercross Class Season Standings
1. Ryan Villopoto, Poulsbo, Wash., Kawasaki – 108
2. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Honda – 105
3. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM – 103
4. James Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Yamaha – 95
5. Kevin Windham, Centreville, Miss., Honda – 73
6. Jake Weimer, Rupert, Idaho, Kawasaki – 71
7. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, Honda – 59
8. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Suzuki – 57
9. Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha – 56
10. Justin Brayton, Murrieta, Calif., Honda – 53
Ryan Sipes and Nico Izzi topped the Lites qualifying times on their Rockstar Star Valli Yamahas.
California SX fans get one more look at Supercross next weekend in San Diego.
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KW 5th in points. Go get em old man!
Cant wait to watch the race! Might be better than the Big game! Better to DVR the race an fast foward those repeative insurance commercials.
RV gets the win, JS gets the save!!
Looking forward to a race with a 1-2 start from RV and JS!!
RV so darn quick and smooth
JS fast and better shape then I thought
CR surprises with his main speed
RD looks all but over of this guy
I have to laugh at all the bone heads last week who really do not understand championship racing vs. local event races.
Last week all this criticism of RV not able to pass JS early, or CR late. yada yada yada.
It pains me to think this, but I do believe that there are a lot of NASCAR loving folks that are fans of SX. They are only interested in the win or crash scenarios. Hence JS's large fan base. Oh well.
RV cam back and did what RV does, and has always shown that he can do. Reach into the space for the something effort. Some will just assume it is speed but it is far more than that. To get that last little and know you can reach in and grab it when you need it. Absolute focus and being very very present in the situation.
I liken it to what Jordan used to say about those night, "... vision was 360 degrees and the hoop looked like the opening of a garbage can."
RV is at that level. I can only imagine what the track must look like for him when he is in the zone like this.
Spoken like a true blue RVTARD Open Class!! Who the hell do you think you are to come on here and claim that last night we saw the true RV?? RV won last night and everybody else got beat...FACT....a week ago RV was beaten by two other riders in the field....FACT!! I'm not a Stew freak, BUT i agree with whatever, i want to see RV and JS start side by side and see what happens as i think he is truly the only guy who has a shot at RV when RV is "ON" like hw was last night.........rV had a hell of a lead last night, and he's good enough that somebody starting ninth is not gonna catch him!! A week ago, RV was on JS's rear wheel for nearly the whole damn race and couldn't get by. You are an idiot for criticizing the JS "fan base" you fool...listen to yourself and what you are saying!! These guys are all good, and you will have to come back down off of your RV cloud again in the coming weeks because we are going to continue to see different winners, and that is a good thing!! You are clearly a VILLOTARD!! What an idiotic post!!
It is time to start acknowledging the fact that Stewie is a very tough Mother F&€ker. Way to pick yourself up and ride hard, James.
Weege- typo in the Tomac caption, it should be roll not role.
Like I said, Dungey will not win unless the other three crash or have a bad start. Its on now, Stewarts got his grove back and Villopoto is hauling. I predict Villopoto will ride over his head and crash leaving this championship to Reed and Stewart.
REF-man, where have you been ???? We HAVE seen RV and JS start side by side for the last 29 SX races and we have seen the TRUE RV and the TRUE JS, NOW I am a SX, MX fan really what more can be said ???
So far this year RV has had 2 races with bad luck not caused by him and JS has had all good luck and his mistakes were caused by himself only.
I'm so confused, somebody help me !!!! Doesn't everybody start at the same time and race the same track and the guy thats ahead at the end of 17 races is called the champion ???? Is this called straight up racing ???? or am I confused ???
By the way do NOT count RD out just yet !!!
Now I know and understand kids get on here and get worked up and call each other names, but really most of us are just good old fans arent we ??
GO RV !!!!
Open class I think you may be on to something, I think maybe you are right !
@ ctrefz.......Good prediction except you mixed up the names lol. Anything can happen but you think RV will crash out and JS is back in his groove? JS won't be on the starting gate if he starts punishing himself like his heat race this weekend and last weekend. You can only auger yourself so many times and walk away before you run out of luck.
Anybody on here who predicts an injury to any rider is not a moto fan but a huge piece of sh*t.
Ok, so Stew lost one point to Villo, no big deal. There is a ton of racing left. He's catching little by little and anything can happen.
Looks like it was some good racing last night, sure wished I was there. I looks as thought the the top 4 may have been cut down to the top 3. Good to see Bubbles still have some fire in him. But that Tomac, 3 in a roll, I guess he is showing everyone who the new "Sheriff " is in the lites class. As for Open class thinking people are associating nascar car with supercross, what the #$@%, I agree spoken like a true tard!
Seriously davidl?? ......so you are saying that RV and JS have gotten the start 1-2 for the last 29 races huh?? Nothing more needs to be said to you i guess!! You are speaking like a true Villotard also!!
YAY Go Bubba! Until you drop yourself on your head again that is. Bubbles didnt gain any points on Villopoto this race did he? It doesnt seem to matter what he wins, he will negate it with a drop on his head somewhere in the future. I dont want anyone to get hurt but Bubba isnt in RV's class right now. He may be tough, heck, Id be pretty tough too if I had to pick myself up off the dirt that much. Hey Mikey, remember all those amateur championships you kept away from Villopoto? How are they working out for you!?
great race! RV1 looked great. Stewart bounced back after a bone jarring heat wreck, Reed battled the flu bug to salvage points. RD5 brought up 4th. KW is a machine! Season is really getting interesting. Glad Stewart didn't get hurt. Congrats to Eli!
@ REF-man........ you sound really disappointed about last night lol.
Just whached the race. Great race. Props to Stewart for doing so well after that crash. RD looked a little off. RV fast and smooth, and I couldn't believe my ears, I had to rewind and listen again. Reed said the two guys in front of him beat him. With out making a excuse. OMG, maybe he IS growing up.
@Whatever-- "JS gets the save?? What did he save?? He didnt win, I dont understand the comment there.., He made the main no problem. So he came through the LCQ, so what?? Its been done before. Hes not the first one to do it.
Great season so far. RV has gotten the lead back--3 points over Reed, and 5 over Dungey. The top 3 are the same as last season, RV--Reed and Dungey, It looks like it will be that way for a while..Those 3 or fast for sure, and steady..
@johnny6-- I figured some hater would say that. I dont know where Reed has ever made excuses to the point were the haters say he does. I hear Stewert making way more excuses than Reed ever has. Stewart even said last year he had the title won and threw it away..You guys would have crucified Reed for those same remarks. Reed said the two in front of him were faster and stronger, so give the guy props--And answer honestly, When has Stewart EVER said that about an opponet?? NEVER
@REF-man--"Villotard?? Really, stealing from the guys who call you a "Stewtard"?? You arent smart enough to think of a nickname yourself--you have to use the "tard"? be creative and think of your own, you sound like a fool stealing that..
I just read an article that stated they will be officially switching the name from Monster energy Supercross to Monster Energy Stewartcross following the amount of air time and pole swinging Emig, RC and Shaheen did for Stewart during yesterdays event.
Refman I guess you struggle with reading?? I said JS and RV have started at the same gate on the same track at the same time for the last 28 SX races and you tell us all what the results are swweet man, , , , ,
Ps. . dear Stew fan, JS lost 3 points to RV last night- the score works like this- the winner gets 25 points and second place gets 22 points and 3rd place gets 20 ....
It was a good ride by JS after the riding over his head heat race he had...
I think Eli Tomac has one of the best support groups you can ask for. His father John is a legend in the cycling industry and an inductee into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. I look for Eli to someday join the ranks of Reed, Stewart, RV, and Dungey.
What's with that JT racing gear? I wore that same bland junk 25yrs ago. I laugh every time I see one of the Allessi brothers getting lapped.
Just watched the race and my picks from earlier in the week 1,7,5,22 were pretty close! Stewart " I think I broke a rib" what a bunch of BS!" Dude is full of excuses as he simply couldn't catch RV!
@ Throttletwister: AMEN.
All hats off to Ryan V. the first repeat winner this year. As most of us should know it is a lot easier when you make it to the front by the end of the first lap, The holeshot is even better. It just feels good to win! Going from last to the front is great but somehow it seams easy when you lead the whole race and at the lever they are at both are a big deal.
@mbmoto, have you ever broken a rib? I did more than once in the 125 A, Expert or Pro class whatever they wanted to call it back then in the 70's and finished still pushing and somtimes winning and could not breath after the race was over cause I had tangled and did break a rib. It is not that bad till the adrenilin wears off.
As an RV fan I am here to brag and you JS fans cannot do much about it can you? The TV showed the superiority he has over all the other riders and more important he is smarter then the others also. RV has the desire and temperment of RC which makes him a threat that won't be beaten in this years championship.
Without a doubt RV's biggest threat is JS because the others do not possess the speed or passing ability to even be considered. The only place I think JS is better then RV is his coming through the pack passing is just incredible. However RV is great enough at it to salvage 4th from last so does not seem to impose any problems.
Like JS said on his interview, after Anaheim 2 its time to put up or shut up!
@ OpenClass, yes you said it right when you are in the zone as I meant in my other post it seams so easy? It is a feeling that makes you feel like you are in slow motion.
Dungey needs a start or he's going to be riding by himself in fourth a lot this year.
@davidl - I know, like I said "so Stew lost one point to Villo, no big deal." Believe me, I know how the point system works. He is catching all the rest, little by little. Plenty of races left. Sorry for the confusion!
Red44,, I don't know what you watched, but if a rider crashes that hard, and comes back to get 2nd in the main, that's considered a save. That comment tells me who you really are...
Man this sport is entertaining! Man this season is all out moto warfare! I am not smashin on any riders, they are all workin too damn hard. "RD..Looks all but over for this guy"????????????? Did you really just type that? Dude , you suck at being human!
Welker-
Been racing for about 30 years and I can't say for sure, but I dont think I have ever broken a rib or confirmed that I have.... certainly knocked the wind out of myself on more than a few occassions and that is what looked like happend to JS.. however, your point about adreniline is a good -although he didnt look to be in too much pain, or gasping for air in his interview.... but you never know and if he did, next week he might be in a bit more pain.
Was a great race, congrats to Vilipoto on a great ride!
Happy to see James come back after that crash. But his statement after the race sounds like a crock to me. If he had a broken rib would he really run the risk of poking that broken rib through a lung? I am pretty sure a 3 time Superbowl winning team owner had his rider checked out pretty well after the heat race crash. It only hurts when you breath when you break or bruise a rib, unless they used extreme measures (local anesthetics) you would have seen him make a pained look with every breath in the interview.
I like the fact that Reed didn't even mention he was sick all week.
And to those of you who are counting RD out, it is way to early in the season to crown the champ!
Im pretty sure stewart will get an MRI today to see if he broke a rib and if ones broken or a couple will the doc keep him off the bike either way it goes it was a nasty get off and when i go down that hard i load up the bike in the truck and head home and soak in the ice tub lol
I wouldn't be so quick to count Dungey out. I expect this championship race to ebb and flow throughout the year. RV has definitely been strongest thus far but every week and every track is different and these guys will all have on and off weeks. They are so close and us fans are soooooo lucky to have such great racing. Eat your heart out NASCAR!
As for JS7's ribs. he won't really feel them until today. Hopefully none are really broken. If he truely has a broken rib he will be riding in a lot of pain for weeks to come. He would be better off to sit out some races and heal.
Poor Ref..
Anyone remember who laid down the fast lap in the main last night? The racer before? the one before that?
Oh wait! I remember :-) RV has set the fastest lap in every main event this season.
Holy unbelievable talent batman! That's right Robin, RV did that in two main events while working his way from last to podium.
And Robin, it is important to remember that championships are hard to win if you are riding beyond your abilities. I sure hope RV's competitors remember that Batman! Me too Robin, and remember to hydrate. Like SX, fighting crime can deplete your resources.
Whats with all these "FACT" A-HOLES popping up .....
RV has beaten Stew ALOT more times than Stew has beaten RV.... FATCCCCTTTTTTT!
Now ...... asfar as the "beaten straight up" crap goes..... Your boy cant by a start to save his life and as far as i can remember him saying on his show.... "i never practice starts" which leads me to believe he doesnt need to start good to win.... this is a retards ego and we are seeing the result with RV kicking his Ace weekend-week-out.
Yea stews going to get some wins this year... but a title? no....
To quote a guy who knows a little about Supercross: "Luck? There is no luck! Well, maybe a little bit of luck" - Jeremy McGrath
Dungey will be factor- don't write him off just yet.
@mxmofo, Yes. Stewart crashed hard on top of a tuff block, ooohhh!!. Thats rough. Those tuff blocks are pretty soft. We all know how Stewart exaggerates everything. Like he rolled around AFTER the race when he pulled in front of Preston, then finished the race and crossed the finish and fell on the ground like he was hurt. The ONLY thing he hurt Saturday was his pride, he landed on the tuff block. Last year Reed was speared by his own bike in the bike, and the Stewtards on here acted like he was a pus$y, so Stewart is fine.
And we know what kind of guy you are without comments "MOFO" --HAHAHA, how childish that name isLOL!!
JS7 owes a lot to those tuff blocks, remember the tuff block that saved his life at Daytona a couple years ago?
@red44. No hater here. I respect them all. But I'm also not in a bromance like you on any of them. If you never heard CR wine, this MUST be your first year watching the sport. Does Stewart use excuses? Yup, but NOBODY wines like Reed. So, like I said, it was nice to hear him say the other riders beat him. Thats all.
Tough track hard soil with loose rocks !! Good job Ryan v he took care of business last night James looks to me to gain traction more and more each week coming back after a hard hit and putting in a solid ride look out more to come from this guy Chad reed solid and consistent .. Ryan dungey some how every year he ends up being a major factor at the end rides smarter not harder at some point and time every rider is going to have the all star night and there holy crap i just blew my season night a lot more to come ... Good job Ryan v js keep it up and we can get back to full steam
When RD even gets close to qualifying in the number one positon then I will give him a chance for the championship. Right now he is fourth place speed wise in the main events so it looks like the only way he can win is get a hole shot and have the other 3 buried deep into the pack. I did notice he mentioned how they were still dialing in his suspension before the main, that in itself does not sound good to me.
I be RV does not touch a clicker after practice, they got it dialed.
There is a BIG diff between Broken ribs and fractured or bruised ribs. Usually for macho reasons guys will just say broken for all 3. True broken rib(s) is dagerous to continue with because the broken jagged edge could do damage to internal organs. I have bruised ribs and maybe even cracked ribs before doing hand to hand combat training. It sucked but it didn't stop me. But I never said they were broken because I knew they were not.
The biggest thing I am glad for was JS did not get hurt. The tuff block saved him big time. I don't believe for a minute he broke his rib, maybe cracked one but hopefully just bruised. I've been through seven broken ribs and you are not going to ride like that with a broken rib unless you have drugs I don't know about. Not a JS fan but dude can you take a chill pill before you use up all your luck? WAY to good of a rider to be sucking dirt that much !!!
Reed rode incredible for being sick, WOW talk about desire to win !!!
RD is FAR from out of this championship, this man is solid guys and here to stay.
Brayton is gettin the hang of things and KW still has it but was WAAAAY to nice getting around Milsaps. Suprised at Weimer, I've been expecting more from him.
@davidl, I agree, dont think for a second Stewie busted a rib. He would not have been able to move around on a bike like that with a broken rib. He likes the drama when he goes down. Great race though, glad to see RV hit that top step again. Who will take the next one?? Hope its RV again. Get a big cushion before the races head East. Stewie likes that East coast dirt..
If you line up at the starting gate at the same time as the other guys and don't win, you got beat straight up! No excuses!!!!!!!!
I really don't think JS broke his rib, but you never know. Even though he is one of my least favorite riders, I am glad he is OK, never like to see a fellow rider go down that hard no matter who it is. RV rode good and I am glad he got another win. Why are people counting RD out? Did we forget he won a main event? Yeah, I understand JS and RV were back in the pack to capitalize in Phoenix.
@retardcross...not disappointed at all my man!! After that crash, riding the LCQ, and having a crappy gate pick, i'll take a second any day!! @Red44, who made you the know-it-all of SX?? FYI mister, Stewart has on many occasions said other guys were riding great and/or better than he was......get your info straight dude!! And you must have a problem with VILLOTARD because you just proved yourself to be one....wow man, could you have your nose any further up his hind end?? Also, watch the crash again "RED44", he lands on the dirt, so STFU about how much pain he is or isn't in cuz' u don't know s h i t about it!! Such an RVTARD you are!! @ManiacsXstrem...2 out of the five races RV finished BEHIND James...not quite "RV kicking his Ace weekend-week-out." as you said!! Brilliant statement by the way.."weekend-week-out"?? Did you really write that?? You must be a genius!! RVTARDS all of ya......especially you "Open"!! Ha ha!!
I've bruised if not broken my ribs riding. You pretty much know right away! The adenaline thing lasts until you crawl over and hit the kill button on your bike that's layin on it's side ideling at about 12 grand. I was toast for weeks. As far as all these whiney name calling posts? geeze! We will all know when we know and bad mouthing or propping anyone won't effect the results. According to what I've seen though I guess I'm an RVtard..........
@Ref-girl hahahaha!!! get over yourself,, I am not a huge fan of RV, its just funny that the "STEWTARD" nickname kills you so bad you have to call anyone who doest lick Stewart as$ like yourself is a RV "tard" , and you arent even smart enough to come up with your own nickname.. Poor dumb boy.. And Stewart has NEVER given anyone credit for whipping his as$, its always, "Yea, he ran well, but I gave it away" He's an egomaniac who cant stand giving someone credit. He has the biggest ego of any 4th place guy I have ever seen..
You are an idiot Red!! I use the "tard" thing because i'm poking fun at the idiots who came up with Stewtard in the first place you dumba-s!! I'm beginning to question your intelligence a little bit!! Oh well, you probably can't help it!!
.....and "Ref-girl"?? Is that the best you can do?? LAME dude!!
@Red44....the "save" comment applies to HIS results only, ok?? He "saved" his night by first of all making it to the main after crashing out of the heat, and then by finishing a solid second....i call that a "save"......GOT IT??