by Davey Coombs
450 Words: Freestone
Monday, May 28, 2012 | 11:10 AMYamalube oils, lubricants and care products have been proven to enhance performance, lower ownership costs and lengthen the lives of Yamaha motors. Give our entire line a test drive, and we think you’ll find you’ve changed more than your oil; you’ve changed your entire experience.
Advertisement | Advertise with Us
Share
Comment
Email
PrintWhat to make of Freestone and the amazing two-man race we saw at the front of the 450 pack? From the moment the starting gate dropped in both motos on the fairly mild day (it wasn't nearly as hot as everyone was guessing it might be) James Stewart and Ryan Dungey were literally wheel-to-wheel. Unfortunately for the Red Bull KTM-mounted Dungey, the order was Stewart's back wheel to his front wheel! In one of the most impressive rides we've ever seen from James, the Yoshimura Suzuki rider was able to fend off every single challenge that Dungey threw his way, never once buckling, fumbling, fading or any other action verb once thrust upon the normally “______-ing” Stewart.
But what does it all mean? What does this new and improved—maybe not faster, but certainly smoother, more confident and seemingly much happier, and thus improved—James Stewart mean in the whole big scheme of things?
Stewart was able to hold off all of Dungey's advances at Freestone.
Simon Cudby photo
I believe the jury is still out: four motos does not make a championship. It takes twenty-four motos of solid, catastrophe-free riding, and the Yoshimura Suzuki rider still has a long ways to go. Dungey has seemingly gotten faster with each moto of this championship, as he too is on a new motorcycle for the summer—his first-ever outdoor rides on the KTM 450. Of course he's been with the bike and team for much longer than the newly-rebranded Stewart has with Suzuki, but the orange bike is still new for a man who rode RMs ever since he was on 80s. Dungey did not seem too put off by his frustrating defeat in Texas because he knew he was almost there. It would be interesting to ask him (or even his boss Roger DeCoster) if he thought Stewart would hold up to such pressure, because it was a masterful defense...
And maybe that's the real question: Is this as fast as James Stewart can go? Was Stewart doing all he could to stay just in front of Dungey, or was he doing just enough? We'll know soon enough.
One more note: Mike Alessi missed his gate pick for the start of the first moto when his bike came to the staging area late. Tony, his dad, took full responsibility. So Mike went to the far outside, got an okay start, put his head down and raced his way up through to fifth.
Will Alessi be there to pick up the pieces if Dungey and Stewart shall falter?
Simon Cudby photo
The MotoConcepts rider got a much better spot for moto two and went out and rode as fast as the front duo early in the moto, then backed it down a little to hold third for his second straight podium. Alessi may not be as fast or flashy as Stewart and Dungey, but he's proven to be a steady, solid presence this season. He made it through SX unscathed, and now he's picking up his faster outdoor pace. If he keeps plugging along, he will be right there if and when mistakes start happening ahead of him.
And that's a pretty big “if” right now.
Did you like this article?
Check out ON TOUR
in our Latest issue of Racer X available now.
The Monster Energy Supercross tour is staffed by an intensely dedicated group of sponsors and support staffers. Here’s what life is like on the SX road. Page 136.
Look for the verified symbol 
Impulse Studios
Stewart is running at a very fast, but comfortable pace right now. He is trying to do all the right things; including not ending up lawn darting. I think he has more speed left in his tank than Dungey, but at the risk of major get offs. He is clearly a more mature rider now. Stewart has certainly gained my respect over the past four races.
Dude if uve got more in the tank the second moto than you hammer a solid faster pace, not let a guy literally be inside of a second with you for a full 30+2. Every race Ryan has gotten noticibly faster and Colorado is where he got his first overall last year and I believe he can do it again this year. Besides its how u finish, Chad dominated the 1st part of the season, Dungey the middle part, and finally Villopoto the last part. And guess whos got the #1 plate RV
Except for the braking bumps that KTM looked much smoother than at anytime this year. Hopefully they get it dialed in so RD can get off the bullride.
Stewart does have more left in the tank! You dont hand out all of your cards in the beginning. Yes, Dungey was right on him the whole way but.. Stewart was the one that passed Dungey at the start of three of the last four motos. Dungey has not been able to pass him! When Dungey came close, Stewart always had an answer to pull back ahead! James knows what he is doing out there, believe me! He is no rookie. He doesnt need to beat Dungey by a mile to win. Just as long as Dungey is behing him. Thats all he needs. Nuff said! Long season to go. It will be interesting!
Based on the past 4 motos, my two cents worth says that Stewart and Dungey have the same speed. The difference is 1) Stewarts ability to go 100% out of the gate, whereas Dungey needs at least 1 full lap to get up to racing speeds, and 2) Stewarts ability to make an immediate pass when needed, whereas Dungey must measure, then pass.
This championship will come down to 1) starts, and 2) mistakes. He who gets the most up front starts will get max points....He who stays on two wheels will win this championship.
These two racers are at a speed which is alien to all except themselves. Argue / talk about Villopoto, Reed, Canard all you want, but, the fact is THEY ARE NOT HERE, RACING right now, so they are not in this conversation. Shoulda, coulda, woulda are not facts. Leave the facts to WHAT IS.............
Anybody else notice that NBSSN coverage showcases the backrunners more than the front runners? Both classes had good duels going all the way to the finish, and all the announcers were talking about (and NBCSN showing) are places 4-18....... and howabout as soon as the winner crosses the line, they break away for commercial when there is great racing for position still taking place........ Somebody within the broadcst network has to be a racer, right??!! Its nice to have network coverage, but these guys need some expert guidence in order to ensure a quality broadcast for us race fans and network viewers.
Golfyoda, the coverage HAS improved last few years, but yes, there are things like that to be improved on. I realize they need to show other riders, but the 2nd motos (which are not live) have time to be tweaked to show things better.
Any thoughts on anyone else winning had to go down the drain in Freestone. Alessi behind by a minute! We all know how fast he is too, but his dad having him miss his gate should tell Motoconcepts that "x amount of time before the moto" Tony needs to hit the road!
lolol @ Kawi567. guess he doesnt know it takes 0.01 of a second to win a race . and why do what reed did last year and go all out ? he was riding so fast , he couldnt handle his own pace. its a war not a battle. funny that people talk like stewart just started riding motocross yesterday. they forget he use to go bar to bar with the Goat. Dungey is lite work if u ask me.
Haha Dungey is light work ToFast2Stop? Ur an idiot! he lost by 1 second both motos. All that needs to happen is for Dungey to get a top 3 start and Stewy gets a start like Ryan got in the 1st moto of Hangtown and Dunget is freakin gone. Heck if he had just held James up for a second than I think Ryan could get him. Dungey will NEVER give up and I respect him and Villopoto more than anyone for that
I was watching "the wire" during the second moto. Those guys were pushing hard at the end. They both had their fastest lap on 15, and then Dungey improved his the next lap. They put 30 seconds on Alessi in about 6 laps. I really doubt either were holding anything back.
I don't know what race you guys were watching, but the one I saw was an all out battle, neither one was holding anything back. That said it will be interesting to see what happens to JS7 when he has a get off.
On an unrelated note, did anyone else think they looked like teammates with their gear?
I have watched Stewart race at many nationals over the years and this is the smoothest and most comfortable that I have seen him on a bike. Some of this can likely be attributed to his Suzuki. I am not saying that he wasn't running an aggressive pace at Freestone, but you can tell when he is really pushing it. He didn't need to go any faster to win and even though it was close, he had Dungey covered. Maybe he was at 98% and had 2% more, but there is more there. BTW - I am not biased towards Stewart either as I have always been a huge Dungey fan.
Stewart knows he has Dungey covered. Its going to take a bonsai move by Dungey to make Stewart feel pressured. Dungey is fast as hell but Stewart knows he's not going to give him a wheel every chance he gets, like RC, Reed or RV would. I also think that they are both going to step it up alot more mid-season.
In the past, Stewart didn't hold back. He wanted to win by the biggest margin. But it must be nice hopping on a bike that was developed by RC4, RD5 and The Man. Was it the bike? 4 moto wins. Is Yamaha turning the backwards bike forward for 2013? How bad will sales be if Stewart wins the title? Will anyone want the backwards Yamaha?
Im gonna solve all this right now.....This track is not James track, this track was suppose to be dominated by Dungey because at hangtown everyone said "Dungey always dominates freestone" so. Freestone is a track where he has the upper hand. And James said this is NOT his favorite track and proves this buy not doing so well in the 12 pack......my main point is, the race was so close because Ryan was going 100% on a track he's good at and James was going 100% on a track he's not good at, thus making Ryan almost as fast as stew bug. So ryan is only as fast as Stewart on a bad day......damn I'm good
I gotta admit I didn't expect the Stewart - Dungey battle to be as good as it is. I swear I saw Dungey even get aggressive for a few of those pass attempts. Wonders never cease!
Don't write off Dungey yet, I figured people would have learned that much over the past couple years. RD will not quit and always takes it to the wire (barring 2012 SX). I don't believe for a second either of them were holding back, you can't tell me JS would have allowed that orange fender to be that close, that late if he could have gotten away. Any faster for either of them this weekend would have been the red zone. Props to both.
If James could gap Dungey he would, 1 second gaps allow for zero mistakes.
Even when Dungey passes JS will he gap him ? I think no.
Looks like this deal may come down to who best manages the inevitable mistake.
JimM
Pala374
The lites class is interesting ....
all Dungey needs is a little more intensity on the opening laps. he's got stewey speed, he's physically fit, and determined. I just wish chad reed ,poto, and trey C, were there to battle amongst them
Great racing, and good clean racing as well. And James is making a lot more mature/respectful/good comments these days, as is Alessi, for that matter (and probably RD - I just haven't read what he's said lately). It already is - and is going to continue to be - an awesome season. The 250's are insane as well!
Great racing,whatz up wit JS7 and RD sporting the 5 hr energy colors gear?
i would not be surprised if alessi wins this championship. of course that would mean stewart wrecks himself for a single moto (who would ever see that coming)and dropping points. and dungey may have another strange bike failure from his new scooter. no i am not wishing injury or anything on any of the field; just saying i would not be surprised if strange circumstances hand it to alessi in the end.
Both Stewart and Dungey were giving it their all at Freestone. Stewart is now mature enough to know not to exceed his limit, and it shows. If he had another "half gear" he would have used it to gap Dungey, but he didn't, so he didn't.
The rest of this season will be awesome. Red Bud, Southwick, and Budds Creek are stops that will prove to the world that these are the two fastest 450 riders racing right now. I don't know of any Euros who could go balls out for all 35 minutes, twice, in heat like Texas, AND, as rough as that track got........just sayin'
Kelly Stavast>Erin Bates
Good acquisition !!
Great job JS7. 4 wins 0 lawn darts.
this track was tight with lots of turns and jumps itll be interesting to see if dungey can stay on his fender for 35 with a more open up track with long straight aways
all the attention seems to be on JS7 and RD5 but one guy that impresses me is Alessi, you may or may not like the Alessi clan but we must respect that they always put their best effort in trying to win althrough many people put them down, two podium in a row is pretty good in my book. He's not my favorite rider but he's my ''this week'' star rider
Stavast is a minor change. Wait until Georgia gets her paperwork in order to work the US broadcasts. She knows the sport, asks smart questions, and is smokin
Team 5 Hour Energy. Lololololol. You hit the nail on the head with that one!
Excellent racing by both JS and RD. Can't believe RD ate roost for about 70 min and never gave up. He will make the pass and then use his lines rather than dodging roost to do the same to JS. I think that if RD can start ahead of JS again it will harder for James to get by. He has to know that by being passed in the 2nd or 3rd corner and eating roost for 35 min is not the fun way to race.
I don't believe that was the same Freestone Dungey is great at, People saying "oh dungey loss on his best track", might want to look at past events at the circuit.
I dunno I might be wrong. But I don't believe the circuit was in any favour to Dungey,
@ Golfyoda-yeah, I hate it when they follow the "other" racers when there is a battle up front. Why don't they at least use the split screen? That would be better. If I can think of it, why can't they? And I'm definately patiently waiting for the return of "Gorgeous Georgia" And I am not talking about the state! Besides being drop dead gorgeous, she does seem quite knowledgable, and no-one complains about her.
REALITY: the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined.Reality is often contrasted with what is imaginary, delusional, (only) in the mind, dreams, what is abstract, what is false, or what is fictional. The truth refers to what is real, while falsity refers to what is not. Fictions are considered not real.
It does not matter that Reed, Canard, and Villopoto were absent at the first two nationals. The reality is that James Stewart has defeated Ryan Dungey in 4 motos. Everything else is just fiction, hopes and dreams, and the effluence from the anus of a bull.
Having watched both moto's (twice) it doesn't seem like either rider held anything back, they were both hauling for 30 + 2! In fact it seemed like late in the 2nd moto when Dungey got really aggressive, Bubba didn't have anything to rely on, no reserve of speed, or no "turn it up" left in the tank.......but you know what. He turned it up anyway, went faster than he could (safely) to keep Dungey behind him, I would even go so far as to say that at that point had Dungey gotten around Bubba, the only way Bubba could/would have gotten him back would have been to compromise himself, and his season, and I think Bubba knew that, so did Ryan. Seriously, that was one of the best efforts by both riders I have seen in a long time. They both left it all out there, and clearly both men wanted to win! And yeah, MX Mike, nice job!
Has anyone else had trouble with recording from NBCSN ? Last week I had a bicycle race go over and didn't get the end of the second race . This week when went to watch I got the 250 moto and 1 hour of a poker tourney never got to see the 450 race at all ?? WTF ???
Again I'm forced to tip my hat to the 7. James is going great right now. To be able to ride like that after coming off the couch is insane. Dude can really ride a dirt bike. The 5 is the EXACT same speed. It's a long season and Ryan will not go away. I said it last week and I will say it again. This is far from over. Great job Alessi too.
Go Dungey!
I think they both will keep improving and getting faster as the season goes on, i think that the R&D over the fast 5-10 years for the Suzuki will help Bubba the most- I mean look at the next race-it's in Colorado- high horsepower-robbing elevation and the KTM is a brand new bike with a different fuel injection system- i think that might be the key to the race
Alessi has always been a front runner outdoors- but he's so bad at supercross it's easy to forget.
And in all fairnes to Erin- we haven't seen her reporting at an outdoor event- and we haven't seen Stavast or Georgia reporting at a supercross. It's not the person- it's the venue.
I still think the yamaha is fine..I obviously own one and absolutley love it.. The only 2 riders to ever bash it are Pourcell and Stewart...Both are kind of high maintenance personalitites...I have friends on a 2012 Kx450 a Rmz 450 and a Crf 450...All are very good bikes but my favorite is the YZ then the RMZ.both are very easy bikes to ride IMO....The KX to my surprise was my least favorite... I really wanted to try it watching Villo ride so fast on it..and the test shootouts rated it so HIGH....But I would say it was my least favorite bike of the 4...once again just my opinion....The point is there is a seat for every ASS out there...good thing cuz there is alot on this site...
My yamaha has never done anything out of the ordinary or just throw me off on lap 12 out of no where like JS7 has done over and over again...especially why not leading a moto or setting the fastest lap times of my respected class... again just like JS7...If I did crash I would pick myself up and only blame myself (if anyone actually cared LOL)..
My take on JS7 at Freestone is this..He still goes fast over the front of the bike leaving the back end light...He does it better than anyone ever,,but every once in awhile the rear tire looks like it wants to pass the front and he gets squirly...It happened on the RMZ in moto 2 a couple times...It will surely happen again and he will taste some dirt samples....Dungey will win those motos by a mile..This time I suggest saying it was my fault..anyways Hope to see another great race between those 2 riders...
Is it my imagination or is Sloan being real quiet right now ???
RD did VERY well, got passed both moto's but then kept great pressure on JS til the end, just couldn't pass him back- which is NOTHING to be ashamed of. The only one's I've seen pass him are RC, RV and CR.
RC is the only one you seen pass him outdoors- Unless he was on a 250.
Some one please tell me who the #400 is. I was impressed. up to 22nd, then something happened in heat 1 and finished 26 in moto 2. Rookie? Rode well