Once again the 250F class in Canada became a testing ground for new riders or riders on new teams. New Sobe/Samsung Honda rider
Ryan Sipes showed great speed in his debut for the team, but most of all, he looked steady, which has not been his specialty. Sipes has been injured a bunch over the last two years, but he thinks that might have been a blessing: Last year he spent four months off the racetrack with a broken foot, and he says that meant four months on a spin-bike, which helped build his fitness base. Now he appears to be matching his speed with consistency.
We just said that last week about Red Bull KTM’s
Martin Davalos, but this weekend he was making mistakes all over the place. One rhythm section on the track was very difficult even for 450 riders like
Chad Reed, so it really threw the 250F guys off. Davalos made the most errors there. He ended up losing podium spots to Makita Suzuki rookie
Ryan Dungey and his own KTM teammate Zach Osborne.
Dungey is also a newcomer, but he didn’t ride like it. He was the only 250F rider to triple through the center of that tough rhythm section. Osborne got stronger down the stretch this time instead of fading. For all of these 250F hopefuls—the ones who are brand-new or the ones who are rebuilding their careers—these Canadian races provide a big boost. But remember, big sharks like Villopoto, Grant, Hepler, Alessi and Metcalfe are waiting for them once the points races begin.
