Racer X ReduX: Dallas
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 | 12:00 PM
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PrintWhen the Red Bull KTM team finally made the signing of Ryan Dungey official, they held a big press event at their California headquarters. A few weeks later, the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota/Yamaha team did the same thing at their North Carolina shop to tout the signing of James Stewart.
Teams should follow this model. Both press events were a hit. The moto media covered the Dungey deal to death because this was the off-season. It was the biggest news at the time, and there wasn’t any clutter—everyone was thinking about Dungey and KTM that week. We lapped it up. In fact, the hits on this website show that the initial Dungey to KTM stories were some of the biggest we had all year. Not a single story from an actual race in 2011 drew more hits than the first photos and videos of Dungey on his new bike.
The Stewart presser was not only a hit with the moto media, but NASCAR people were all over it, including ESPN’s car shows. Red Bull, KTM, Yamaha, Toyota, JGR and any other brands associated with the riders got a huge push out of these events. And that push was 100 percent positive. The teams and their new riders got to frame the message and put together their own sound bites. When Dungey and Stewart signed, they were months away from racing against the truth serum that is the results column. It’s situations like this that breed classic lines like, “I was immediately two seconds a lap faster on my new bike than my old one.” Although credit to both Dungey and Stewart for not going that far.
Can Dungey and KTM pick up their second win of the season in Atlanta?
Photo: Simon Cudby
Every team can do this. If Kawasaki held a press event in October just to reintroduce Ryan Villopoto and Jake Weimer during the off-season, we would have covered it, and the riders would have been teed up to say awesome things about their brand and bike. When Chad Reed finally announced the details of his 2012 TwoTwo Motorsports program, it was filled with awesomeness as well—a closer relationship with the factory Honda squad, and some key new hires. There is nothing bad said during the off-season, and teams should be holding press events and pushing the heck out of it, because a solid three months can pass with buyers purchasing bikes and gear and products based on all the positive stuff said before the first race.
Through all the positives, though, one team manager told me something interesting: “Everything is always great when you first sign,” he said.
It’s true. You’ll never hear a rider say he’s bummed with his new team, or a team say they’re bummed with their new rider. In the off-season, everyone is happy. In the off-season, it’s all good.
But that’s not possible when the races start, because each week only one rider wins and only three get on the podium. Some people are going to reach their goals and others aren’t, and everyone that watches is extremely impatient. How impatient? Most of us try to make judgments based on single races. I’ve covered the tendency of all of us to do that—media, fans, and team/industry people alike—a few times in this column this year.
I’ll give you an example. Dungey forever wiped out the, “KTM can’t win supercross races” stigma in one fell swoop just seven days into the season. Done. Stamp it. New standard set.
So guess what happens next? A few weeks later Dungey racks up a couple of fourth-place finishes, followed by two podium finishes where he’s not on pace with the race winner. And just like that, a friend of mine—a friend, not an industry guy, just a fan—sends me a text asking, “Is KTM freaking out about Dungey?”
Stewart and JGR have failed to meet pre-season expectations thus far.
Photo: Simon Cudby
See, KTM winning a race early, but then not being in contention to win races since, now seems like a let down. That’s the harsh reality of racing—Ryan Villopoto is now taking control and that makes everything else pale in comparison. This weekend, I think Dungey was taking steps to temper expectations. Dungey told me that he and his new team still want to win and expect to win, and that’s what they’re working toward. They’re not giving up or resetting their goals at all—but, they know you shouldn’t grab a second-place finish on a brand new bike and hang your head. They’re accomplished quite a bit this year and they need to be happy about that.
It’s not going James Stewart’s way, either. The finishes just aren’t coming, and while typical racing problems (bad starts and crashes) can take the blame for the some of the really bad results, the bottom line is James just doesn’t seem to be riding the way we expect James Stewart to ride. He just doesn’t seem as dangerous as the old days.
As always, when it comes to Stewart, everyone will have an opinion and few will agree. The team is definitely still working on the bike, and a lot of people think what they’ve learned at James’ house in Florida will really start paying off now that we’re into the eastern swing of the series (dirt like we’ll see in Atlanta and St. Louis, for example). Also, Dallas was an exceptionally bad race for James last year, and while his result wasn’t so good this time (due to a freak incident where he stalled his bike after getting stopped by his downed teammate), his setup at least seemed like a step forward.
That said, Stewart’s team last year couldn’t get the setup right, and JGR was supposed to fix that, and here we are seven races deep talking about the same thing again. Ah, so you know where this is going—the talk is either going to focus on the Yamaha, the team, or James himself, but none of it is going to positive right now. It’s a stark contrast to the happy days of that press event a few months back.
Racing is absolutely the cruelest game of all. It’s a test that’s so fair, it actually becomes unfair at times. Only three people get trophies, and even at that, if these guys finish second, they aren’t even happy.
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Reed and TwoTwo Motorsports title hopes came to an end in Dallas.
Photo: Simon Cudby
But it can get worse. Chad Reed’s TwoTwo effort has stalled now in the cruelest and most sudden manner possible. Moments before the crash, the vibes and thoughts surrounding that team couldn’t not have been better. Chad was riding incredibly well. It was all gelling, and now it’s all over. Will they have a replacement? You’d have to know the business plan for the team to know the answer to that, and I have no idea how the team is structured financially. And really, what difference does a replacement rider even make at this point? The good vibes came not just from the mix of personalities over there, but because they were succeeding on the track. They were in contention to win the races and win the championship, and that’s what makes people really happy in this environment.
On Friday I interviewed Broc Tickle, and he said he was not happy with his results so far this year. Broc believes he should be in the top five, and his team thinks the same. But to be in the top five, Broc would have to be running with or beating the likes of Kevin Windham, for example. We all know Windham is a bad dude! Top five sure sounds like a nice goal, but if Broc is leaving the races bummed because he’s not getting there, well, it’s just another example of how hard it is to keep your chin up in supercross.
Meanwhile, one man gets to write the perfect story. For as long as Ryan Villopoto remains the ass-kicking, race-winning machine that he is, everything is positive. And really, there is no end in sight to these race wins and positive vibes. The word is: he’s awesome, his bike is awesome, his team is awesome, his trainer, his friends, everything. It’s the only program that got to start with positive messages and actually still has them going this far into the year. Championships deliver a big reward alongside the fame and riches—the elimination of second guesses. Winning races can pay up to a million bucks at a time, but right now, the feeling that Villopoto and company have is priceless.
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i bet mitch cant wait to drop bt25 like a bad habbit what a d
JS7 has a legit shot in Atlanta. It's dirt he's used to. In addition RV1 wont touch JS7 with a 10 foot pole. What's the point. JS7 is to far behind in points and he's out of control and will end up taking both of them out. If JS7 gets the holeshot look for RV1 to ride around in 2nd close enough to watch JS7 implode (90% chance) or win. If RV1 gets ahead of JS7 and JS7 is on him then look for RV1 to pull it over, look for RD5 and just stay ahead of him. Reed out. Championship over. Hope the outdoors are good and Reed is back.
top 5 lmfao
I hope James turns it around. But Villopoto is looking unstoppable. And Tickle with a top 5 is insane.
Good article Weege!! Here come all the opinions and bashing of whomever, but this story was well done.....and very true!! Now, step it up RD!!
JS7's bank account is full but his heart and drive are empty. Stop with the bike, the setup, etc. JS7 thought he was going to continue his stupid show, train occassionally and still come out and kick ass. Reality is hitting that these guys want it more, work harder, focus and have simply gotten faster and are in better shape than him. I havent heard him talk about McGrath's record anymore. Funny how 7 races changes everything. I wish he would have gone to Suzuki just so the bike was not part of the equation. He'd be right where he is now just with yellow plastic. He went for the money boys and girls, smart move for him because he isnt what he used to be but JGR fell for it. JGR thought they were hiring the 07' JS7, they got the new and unimproved 12' version. I predict he will retire at the end of this year or half way through next if he isnt setting the world on fire. I cant wait for him to announce he wont be racing outdoors either. It will be his typical line "The team and I just aren't ready. We've obviously struggled in Supercross and we need the off-season to work on being ready to go for 2013. Im sorry to my fans but I cant go out there unless I feel I can put in 100%" translation = I'm going to get smoked so I'd rather same myself, and you the fans, the embarrassment and work on Bubba's World 3 where I showcase I have no game and I still act like a 15 year old kid that's never been laid.
Weege, I think that might be your best article yet. A very well written piece. Keep up the great work.
@snakebyte181... Pretty much perfect. I have nothing to add. Except I wish RV and RC could have raced at their peak together INDOORS. They would have pushed each other harder than anyone in history. Outdoors RC would smoke him of course.
Lets give JS a break, first he has not hurt anyone yet this year, and that is better than the last seven years. Second he is riding well, better than weimer,KW etc...Third when he is up he is passing and faster than 90% of the riders out there. In dallas he didn't wreck and when milsaps stalled him he was calm and really came back and passed a lot of riders. Lets all hope he finds his confidence and pressures the heck out of RD and RV... Can't wait for Atlanta. . . go RV !!!
js7 will dry hump errbody in hotlanta
@ snakebyte181
good post! Hope he can turn it around, man up and come back outdoors. But that's more of a pipe dream with every passing week. The guy looks like hes got no fight left, at least thats how he looked last week.
As for tickle. not sure who i feel for more mitch or coach gibs.
Hansen has a better chance at being top 5, at least he is more consistent week to week and building on something.
Great article, really enjoyed it. And Snakebyte, I agree, if Stewart takes the lead and RV is in 2nd, he wont push to get him. If he reels him in, he will go for the win. Its just RV's nature, but he will not hang it out to catch him. That wouldnt be smart anyway. Stewart will get some wins I think. He is too good a rider not to. But I think the challenge to the title is gone. Thanks to Reed crashing out, he will probably get a gift 3rd for the season..
Dungey will win it this year- RV still has a few crashes in him yet.
davidl- how did Millsaps stall Stews bike? Stewart stalled his own bike because he doesnt keep his finger on the clutch like the other pros do. which would have also probably saved many of his crashes over the years.
Wow. I'm no fan of Bubba's but you guys are pretty harsh. Think about how you felt about that arrogant SOB from down under 3 short years ago. Cashing checks from Suzuki and Kawi and just mailing it in. Now look at what he accomplished pushing 30 years old! I still dont know how he did it! He won over fans and rode at least as well if not better than he ever has in his career. I will never count a rider with his talents out again.
Maybe James becomes the hardest working, most humble rider to ever throw a boot over a saddle. Stranger things have happened. I just saw it.
Didn't James say his clutch was broken via #14 contact right before the Millsaps incident?
All RD needs is a holeshot and a bad start or a crash from RV and RD will be OK again. Would that mean the Bike is diled in or things worked out??
I think most people are puzzled with JS7.....I think he needs just one night where everything goes right to get him back into form.....With the SX series pretty much out of grasp for JS7 ( butanything can still happen like we saw last year) JS7 and JGR should just start testing for outdoors.....with as much trouble they are having with "set up" in SX this year and the issues he had with Yamaha last year,they need to get a head start.....I was suprised he stayed with Yamaha's, but when a rider says the bike was better than what they road last year, you take their word for it....but like mentioned above, no rider is going to say " yeah, well this bike is a piece of crap too"....the JGR "team" is a good fit for JS7....now the bike issue may need to be looked into further...but I beleive JGR and Yamaha are signed for a few years....so JS7 is S.O.L I guess....
"really, what difference does a replacement rider even make at this point"
.Well for the people that payed a LOT of money to have there name on the track it should mean a lot...NO?
@yamalink - I never heard that story....would explain a lot....i think he just stalled after hitting Saps.....then later in the race while lapping Saps, you didnt see Saps move out of the way for his teammate....wonder how the teammate thing is working for him...
JC970 .. JS pushed RC pretty hard in SX, RC was not as good at SX as he was outdoors. He even said so, I give the speed edge to JS in SX but RC for sure outdoors... Now RC and RV outdoors...That would be EPIC!!! RV did beat RC at the MXD in 07, RV was on fire that day, Fastest I have ever seen anyone ride a bike. but over the hole season man that would be great, Man I don't know who i would put my money on...hard to bet agenst RC but RV does not give up either, WOW that would be great racing.
Yes, as fans, we want our rider to win every week, only one group of fans get their wish. We sit here and give our opinion of why our guy lost or this guy won or defend our rider when other person writes something bad about him by attacking that persons charactor sayin negitive things. We are all entitled to have our favorite rider, support him and give our opinion on mx. I do hope that we as fans dont judge each other by who we root for, I think we are all smarter than that.... After reading some ot the comments the last few days .....Lets all play nice ...lol ...
speaking of Saps.. What is his deal?? It sounded like he trained real hard, lost like 30 pounds and still not doing well.
davi in the back seat
I have always like the outdoors (real motocross) much better. I think RD can challenge RV better outdoors than in the stadiums. If JS7 does compete in nationals he better break out the "Nordatrac" I think he's challenged with 20 laps (even with periodic dirt naps) 30 + 2 is not where he appears to be fitness wise. Although with the higher speeds we see in outdoors the dirt naps might be a little longer and thus more refreshing.... (damn I fell into the bashing trap) sorry about that.
Bill C - I think a lot of these guys just dont have the drive to want to win....maybe they get paid too much to care these days.....Its weird....maybe its the bike??? HAHAHAA
Hey if JS7 puts it together this weekend he should slide right into thrid place in the sandings!
snakebyte.. well said. And i totally agree.
@ snakebyte..........You're crazy, it's the bike's fault, he'd be undefeated if he was on another brand that he chose the Yamaha over. Haha you hit the nail on the head, good post.
@BILLC, I will say this on the RV and RC comparisions. Yes, RV beat RC at the Des Nations, but dont forget RC gave RV his gate pick to help him because he was on the 250, and RC of course the 450. And RC was caught in a first turn big crash. And still caught all the way back to 3rd behind RV andReed.. Otherwise, RC wins that race, RC was thinking of the team there giving away his gate pick..
Anmd yes. Stewie pushed RC hard in supercross, but in my opinion no more than Reed. Reed is the one who took 6 races in a row from RC, something nobody else has done.
RC and RV at thier prime outdoors. Anyone would be stupid to bet against RC, he is the GOAT. RV is fast, but RC was on a whole other level. It wasnt IF he was going to win, but by how many seconds would he win by..When RV gets to that level and keeps it for 10 years, then I will compare the two..
RV and RC battles would indeed be epic! Yes, RV was definitely faster at the 2007 MXoN but What about RC's last couple outdoor races? A quick check shows RV's lap times within one second of RC's at RC's last two races ( Millville and Redbud), on a 250F! RC had the fastest lap in 3 moto's and RV had the fastest lap in 1.
bd200, soo true my friend. Let's also not forget RC was riding his Swan Song MXDN and in the final races of his motocross career.
When you beat guys week in and week out by 30, 45 and even 60+ seconds a moto, moto in and moto out, that is next level riding.
He went 24-0 twice and his win percentage for those 3 years (bookended by perfect seasons) will never be matched. The amount of laps led over those 3 years was ridiculous. I think the infamous lapped up to 2nd place also took place during that run.
I think those are feats that will NEVER be replicated. I am an old dog and have been watching, riding and racing moto a long time. I am a huge RV fan now. For two reasons, he reminds me of RC and I saw him race Glen Helen his rookie season as a pro and he was throwing it down.
That said, I am not ready to compare RV to RC by any stretch and to say he would beat him in MX, well that is just crazy!
Red54 Your right you really can't compare two riders when one is starting a career and one is retiring. RV and RC they are both great riders.
RC and CR can be compared in that CR beat him a couple of times and tried to keep him honest.
Now with CR down, its time for JS7 or RD5 to get a holeshot RV isn't going to try and pass unless someone from behind is trying to pass him. I don't think he's going to take any unnecessary chances.
Retard ~if~.my aunt had nuts she,ld be my uncle. Its not right.that metty & hanson
get to ride the two fifties for it seems a decade & Tickle after what 4yrs
isn,t even allowed to defend his championship. He,s been penalized
for taking the title. That point system is ignant. He,s not ready to race
against the incredable talent that line up @the gate in the 450 class. &somewon; mentioned Cr was taking checks from Suzuke & mailing it in??? Im sure that Cr
took an insurance policy,all or nothing & won the MX Championship on a Suzuke thats haulin in the mail not sending it in. Stewi the ALL TIME sx crasher. Million $ talent & a ten cent brain. My hope is that stewi doing this awefull motivates him to give it all he has ,x &sx; to prove to himself hes another title to put in the books. Im glad Chad has let. It all out. Im not glad he,s hurt. Cr&Cp; are my faves
JS7 has not raced a full season in the last 3 years due to injuries. If you think about it he is doing fairly well. His problem is the top guys have cought up to and passed his speed and he is crashing tring to run the new pace. In time baring injury JS7 will be competing for wins again. Like David Baily said some times you need to slow down to go faster. You can not win crashing.
Maybe if Stewart runs the whole supercross season and makes it through the outdoors healthy, he will be in better riding shape come supercross. Who knows. But he is in the downhill portion of his career. Not everyone can keep a supercross title until they were 30 like Mcgrath did.
The good news is that Stewart will be doing the Nationals, as Red Bull is a sponsor of it this year and I doubt they will have their A#1 guy not there. The bad news is that he is not going to be any sort of factor and I hope he doesn't hurt himself.
James has definitely had some bad mojo going, but when on the bike he is not terrible. I know some are thinking RV will somehow crash his way back to Dungey, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that James will turn it around and maybe even catch Dungey.
Dungey.....all this talk about getting the bike right and how they'll keep at it until they do but.......is this what he signed on for? You have to believe that he signed thinking the bike would be right there from the get-go because I can't believe a guy right in his prime like Dungey would consider taking on a challenge of bike development. That is for a guy winding down like K-Dub or when Broc Glover rode for KTM in his final year. I think the thoughts of this being a mistake have to cross his mind. But the real test will be outdoors and my prediction is that the struggle will continue....that is the struggle to stay with RV. Obviously 2nd isn't bad, but he isn't looking for an off the pace 2nd or 3rd every week.
@B-KR....I don't know about you, but I heard many times that what KTM is REALLY counting on is Dungey's bike being ready for 2013. They're putting all the effort they can into 2012, but they know there's no substitute for time. They'll of course put up a better fight this summer--might even surprise us--but I think the real title hunts begin next year.
It's possible Dungey's a little frustrated, but he really has no reason to be. He's about the same speed-wise in relation to RV as he was last year--often .5 to 1 second off the pace--but RV's going quite a bit faster this year. That's good news, yes?