Uh oh, now he’s even figured out how to get starts!
“It was a first tonight, too, a holeshot and lead about five laps in the main event, which is totally awesome for me and the team,” said Weston Peick on Saturday night. “The starts are awesome and the bikes are working great. I’m stoked to be able to get out there and lead a race for a few laps.”
Thus another rung on the ladder for Peick’s unprecedented climb up the ranks. We’ve been talking about this a lot lately, because it’s just amazing. Peick has gone from borderline main event privateer, to a lapped rider battling in the 15–20 range, to a rider with top-five speed. In the last two years, he’s literally gained an entire lap of speed, and he’s still climbing.
Starts have been one of the last things to come around for Peick, a heavier rider who has spent most of his career on privateer equipment. Now armed with the Autotrader.com/Toyota/JGR Yamaha, and after thousands of practice starts with his coach Buddy Antunez, Peick is now a threat from the beginning. That’s especially big for him. Some riders get intimidated or nervous the first time they lead against the big names. Weston can take full advantage of a good start though, because he’s not intimidated by anyone.
So when Chad Reed, who has won forty-four supercross main events, including one just last weekend, made a pass on Peick for the lead, you know what Peick did? He came right back after the two-time champion, scrubbed it harder, and took the lead back!
“Last weekend I got third on the start and had to get by somebody. This weekend it was kind of the same thing, but I holeshotted,” says Peick. “He [Reed] got me back and I was like, ‘No, not this weekend.’ I had to get back by real quick and just started putting a little pace on a few people and ran my own race. Just stepping stones.”
Nearly all the pieces are there now. Peick has speed, equipment, and starts. He’s on the verge of yet another big breakthrough, but missed time with injuries this year has cost him some fitness.
“It’s kind of a bummer that I got hurt and I wasn’t able to be riding that whole time which I could be capitalizing on, but everything happens for a reason,” he says. “I’m just building my fitness back up and working for that podium spot. I think within the next few weeks I’ll be on the podium for sure.”
Peick missed time with a broken foot and returned two weeks ago in Dallas, only to get caught in a huge first-turn crash and tear the MCL in his knee. He stayed east with his team between the two Atlanta rounds, but had no chance to ride since the JGR track was literally snowed under.
“It wasn’t the best week,” he explained. “If I haven’t ridden in five weeks and then I stayed back here to try to ride and it ends up snowing. I didn’t get to ride once this whole week, which is kind of a bummer. I head home tomorrow and I’ll be able to ride back home and get some more riding under my belt.”
With more time, what can he do? Podiums seem realistic, but the way Peick keeps making gains, it’s not out of the question that someday we could be talking about main event wins. Honestly, at this point, there appear to be no real limits. He didn’t hesitate to take the lead back from Reed, and he didn’t hesitate when we asked him about winning races.
“Definitely I’ll be winning races soon,” he says. “I haven’t peaked yet. Just biding more time with the team and being more comfortable on the bike week in, week out. Winning races is definitely in the future. It’ll be coming soon.”
