Afternoon report from Houston
Saturday, March 31, 2012 | 3:30 PM
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PrintThe news from Monster Energy Supercross in Houston is pretty good: the weather is nice, Reliant Stadium is one of the biggest and nicest venues on the circuit, and the dirt inside is awesome.
And, the fans will really have something to cheer about if Kevin Windham rolls strong in tonight's main event. KW was fastest in the first 450 timed A qualifying sesson today, topping Ryan Villopoto by a tenth of a second. Windham is always popular, but things are even bigger for him in Texas, as Houston is considered his second home race besides New Orleans.
The times read: Windham 46.1 to Villopoto's 46.2, then Weimer 47.7 Stewart 48.00 and Brayton 48.09. Nico Izzi topped the B session with a 47.9, making him 4th fastest overall, however there was some track work between sessions so it makes it hard to compare times.
The view from the Houston press box.
Weege pic.
In Lites, Blake Baggett told us this morning that he "changed something with himself" this week, and it showed in the first timed practice when he took the fastest time. Points lead Justin Barcia was next, then came Darryn Durham, Malcolm Stewart and Ken Roczen. Roczen told us he is still feeling the effects of the flu, and didn't ride and train this week. He is feeling better than last weekend, though.
The times after that first A session read: Baggett 48.3 Barcia 48.6 Durham 48.8 Stewart 48.9 Roczen 49.1
In other news, Josh Hill was scheduled to return to racing this weekend for Dodge Motorsports/Hart and Huntington, but he hurt his arm this week and is back out. Privateer Mike Horban got the call to sub in for him. And Josh Hansen also returned to action for H&H after missing Toronto with ankle problems.
Nick Wey is not here, still recovering from a crash at Indy, but he will be back for New Orleans.
Windham is fastest! 46.1 to Villopoto's 46.2, Weimer 47.7 Stewart 48.00 Brayton 48.09
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If it's one of the biggest venues, why are we seeing ~46 second lap times?
Good point. They should stretch it to 25 laps!
EVERYTHING is bigger in TX .... Except SX tracks..... 46sec.... VERY SAD!!!
I still think 30 min +2 laps would be fun to watch... :)
Holy crap I am SOO tired of hearing people complain about lap times. Seriously, WHO CARES if the lap times are a little shorter? Bikes are faster and riders are better these days, lap times are going to be shorter. So what? Is it a huge deal if the main event is two minutes shorter? Moto fans complain about everything, get over it and enjoy.
@pinball.......I CARE. 6 minute heats, 15 minute 450 main, 12 minute 250 main. This is the main reason I didnt attend the Indy SX this year. First one I missed in 11 years. I cannot justify spending 100 bucks to watch less than an hour of total actual racing.
For people who like to see racing, AMA SX is in need of some work.
@pinball you are so correct, i think that the pajama like riding gear contains a whining emzyme the converts what were once tuff motorcycle racing men into spoiled endlessly whining babys. Its SX not the outdoors. It makes me so mad that If i was Bogle i'd throw my hands up in the air say WTF dude and slap someone.
Looks like the red arrow is going to take it tonight! I timed it doing 43's!
25 lap mains for 450's, 20 laps for 250's seems completely reasonable to me. More racing means more opportunities for different outcomes and places more emphasis on physical fitness. I think it is a great idea.
i personally all sx races should be more like daytona and monster energy cup. gnarly and with longer lap times. not a smooth bmx track on steroids with low lap times. mx/sx has become so watered down. fast lap times, smoothing out tracks in between motos...come on! design tracks so there is more than one line so there is more room for passing. give fans (especially the longtime core fans) what the paid money to see...RACING!!! stop worrying about making mx/sx more apealing to the masses with its circus like atmosphere.
Just because the stadium is bigger, doesnt mean anything, the football field is the same size everywhere...
I think the 25 laps for the 450s and 20 for the 250s is a great idea. That way at least we can get our moneys worth. Part of the reason they don't do that is that they want to make the show more TV friendly so they can fit it into a 2 hour time slot or less.
They did away with the semis- and the ktm juniors. Now if you wanna go take a whizzz you have to decide which LCQ to miss- and you better hurry or you'll miss both of them. The whole show takes about 2 1/2 hrs instead of the original four. The races are too short- they should go 30 laps on the smoothed out tracks. A 15 minute main event after driving 130 miles? The opening ceremonies take more time than the main event- I felt a little dissapointed and ripped off at the last few that I attended.
the 2 day format for that nationals and 45 min motos for the nationals would be awesome. would separate the men from the boys. of course they will make up countless excuses why that cant happen. the whole time thing and being tv friendly probably one of them. if they would ditch the wma and skip the intermission fluff with with freestylers doing backflips while they smooth out the track making it easier there would be more time for longer motos. again, give the core fans what they drove long distances and paid a lot of money to see.
You guys are forgetting about one thing, those lappers are already rolling around after 8 laps creating hazards because they are tired. With longer motos they better run pavement tires or have intermissions to put the dirt back in. Supercross is not worth going to anymore so I don't, the outdoors is what motocross racing is all about. The AMA took a lot of criticism but the tracks were a lot better when they ran it. Finally, yes indeed the fans are being short changed because it is just big time arena cross now.
relax everybody,it doesnt matter our sport is on life support and is near death. ! all the hype about how great racing is? manufactures,aftermarket co. etc.they all race to sell bikes and parts! 1000$ pipes 9000$ bikes w.t.f.i will remind every one this aint car racing (a rich mans sport) it is a red neck sport. maening doctors&lawers; dont let thier kids race dirt bikes! the average guy cant buy his kids&himself; a few dirt bikes and go racing any more its too much.i dont know about all of you but at my local track you see kids on two stroke mini bikes(still affordable to buy&maintain;) and vet riders who can buy a bike. i see very few new bikes.anyway i am getting fu%$ing pissed off now.
youre getting pissed off? ive been pissed off for years now...well, more like sad and dissappointed than pissed off. mx and dirtbikes (not so much circuscross as i call it these days) has been an obsession of mine since childhood but now i lose more and more interest by the day. things just arent the same. the vibe has changed so dramitically and there is more inflated egos now than ever (in pro and amateur mx). i think a lot of this has to do with media coverage on tv, on the internet, and in magazines. its all about the image and whos got what. its all about showing up to the track with a toy hauler or tricked out truck. whos got the latest gear and newest bike with flashy graphics and $5k invested in motor and suspension work but theyre a mid pack c class racer. theres no doubt this sport is on life support. with the current state of the economy a lot of people including myself have sold their bikes and new bike sales have gone down the toilet. again, the mx and off road industry can blame themselves for that. $9k for a motorcycle that you ride in dirt and beat the snot out of is ridiculous. and buying a used four stroke is like playing russian roulette. time will tell what the future will bring but its not looking good. as for me, i think its time for me to just maybe let go and move on.