“For those regarded as warriors... when engaged in combat... the vanquishing of thine enemy can be the warrior’s only concern. This truth lies at the heart of the art of combat.”
Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Rev Up. Can it get any better folks? I told you last week that St. Louis was going to bring the noise, and if you listen carefully you can still hear the echo from the roar of the Edward Jones Dome. And before I get rolling here I want to offer my take on that incident in the Lites class. Read the quote up top again. I’ve heard some back and forth banter about
Trey Canard’s move on
Ryan Villopoto being dirty.
Look, save it. That exchange for the lead [Ed Note: I’m calling it that, because it wasn’t exactly a legit pass] was a pure display of awesome determination. When is the last time anybody lost the lead to Ryan Villopoto, and was able to regain it? Hell, I don’t know either. Canard had a chance to seize victory and he went for it. He really, really went for it! There is no way he tried to knock Ryan into that metal structure. And for that matter, what the heck is a metal structure doing on the side of a jump? I’ve seen a couple guys hit those things hard! But that’s not the point. The point is, you can always separate the real racers from simple participants. Those two kids going for the championship last weekend are two of the most fierce competitors we have in our sport right now and the only thing going through their head when that gate fell was that quote above. Good show, boys. We all look forward to the next one.
Now on to Seattle, where we have the potential to see an even bigger clash. What is going to happen when Ryan Dungey and Jason Lawrence lock horns for the last time in SX 2008? Oh, boy! And how much of a chance does Kevin Windham have to cut that thirteen-point lead in half, or more? The weather man says it’s going to rain today and tomorrow while they build the track, then be ideal for Saturday night. I see a rutty, mistake producing, race course headed our way. All the better to pour some butter on the popcorn and enjoy the show, right, boys? So let’s get it up in this joint and get a re-grip on the throttle. It’s never been a better time to be revved up for the Seattle supercross!
Lites
It’s been a coon’s age since we’ve seen the West Coast Lites division compete, but nobody has forgotten the trashing-talking-distaste that Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s
Ryan Dungey and Boost Mobile/Yamaha of Troy’s
Jason Lawrence have for one another. When you look at how the last two months have treated the two championship contenders, the chances for victory this weekend look interesting. “The Golden Boy” has kept busy riding the Supercross class in the east rounds, grabbing a couple top-fives and a podium. Meanwhile “
J-Law” has suffered trouble with the real law, crashed out of the Moto X Championships, and lost his trainer, Ryan Hughes. More than that, not seeing the gate drop on a weekly basis and not being in a race situation isn’t the best preparation for the biggest night of supercross in your life. Not to pile on Jason, and even so, a rider that is as naturally talented as he is doesn’t get affected by those things like normal riders. Lawrence dug deep to earn the six-point lead he takes into the final round and you can bet your ass he is going to do anything in his power to keep it. Who is it going to be?
Supercross
Chad Reed is the hardest rider to figure out in the history of supercross. Three weeks ago he was hurt so bad he took a provisional, and limped to a lucky 12th place in the main event. Seven days later he was faster than everyone, except
Kevin Windham, and I think that if he really wanted to he could have put up a serious challenge to him. Don’t ask me man, I have a sore neck and shoulders from shrugging trying to guess. If Kevin wins these last two races and Chad comes in second, Reed will win by seven points. Kevin did what he had to last weekend, but he needs some extra help if he is going to win this title. I don’t want to be a bummer here, but if I was a betting man, I’d move my chips to #22 when they spin the roulette wheel for these last two races.
…but there is a chance. We all need to be stoked to have the opportunity to stand in our seats and scream for the title fight in both classes. The series is riding a tsunami of drama and surprise. Why should this weekend be any different. Get ready for battle.
Thanks for reading, see you next week.
