McThoughts: Phoenix SX
By Jeff McConkey
Round 2 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series went off this past Saturday night. The track allowed for better racing than what we had at round 1. It also gave us 2 first-time winners in their respected classes. Let’s have a look at the results and see my thoughts:
250 West
1st Cooper Webb: Cooper looked great. I truly believe he saved his title hopes with last weeks ride. In my eyes, he is the guy to beat. This whole Starr Racing team is starting to look like a powerhouse.
2nd Malcolm Stewart: It’s great to see Malcolm bounce back like this. His whoop speed was incredible. He should be battling for podiums all season.
3rd Jesse Nelson: Jesse looked good, but I still feel he is a little ‘spazzy’ in traffic. I feel he’s going to land on someone in traffic and throw away his title hopes.
4th Tyler Bowers: Tyler squeaked by Aaron Plessinger to steal 4th at the end – good ride for the big man.
5th Aaron Plessinger: Wow, I wasn’t completely sold on Aaron last week, but after this week’s performance, I truly believe he will be a title threat next season on either coast.
6th Justin Hill: Hill has the speed, but he needs to start up front. He won’t win the title with poor starts. It would be nice to see Hill start with Webb and see if he can match Cooper’s speed.
7th Zach Osbourne: Solid ride for Zach, but with that thumb injury, I don’t see any wins in him. My bet is he sits out the remainder and gets the thumb fixed for outdoors.
8th Shane McElrath: Shane came from way back. With a start he will earn a podium real soon!
9th Zach Bell: Bell came from way back as well. Glad to see him on 2 wheels and finishing races. This kid has serious speed and will shock a lot of people at one of these very soon.
10th Tommy Hahn: Glad to see Tommy in the top 10 after a brief retirement. He is doing well, but I think he’d be better in the 450 class. The guy still has serious talent.
Biggest Stud: Webb for sure is my stud. He, in my mind, is the fastest and most complete racer in the West.
Biggest Dud: Chris Alldredge is my dud. You are riding for PC, bro. You need to qualify for every round, and not go backwards that hard!
Biggest Surprise: Plessinger is my surprise. The kid is that good!
Canadian Connections: Former Canadian MX2 Champ Austin Politelli finished 22nd, Nico Izzi and his Canadian wrench Luc “Frenchie” Caouette finished 21st.
450 Class
1st Eli Tomac: Eli looked really good on his way to the first of many wins. It’s just a shame about last week’s finish. It is possible to claw back, but he will have to be flawless.
2nd Ken Roczen: Kenny was good, as always, and leaves with the red plate. I don’t see him giving it away anytime soon. I like how clean the top 2 raced each other; it was fun to watch.
3rd Ryan Dungey: RD5 was good and he never gave up on 3rd. Nice to see him pull the trigger late in the race. He will be there every week.
4th Weston Peick: Weston almost had his first podium. I personally didn’t think he’d be this good. He looks really at home on that JGR Yamaha.
5th Davi Millsaps: Davi was about 10 seconds back of the top 4. He wasn’t bad by any means, but I don’t think he had anything for the leaders.
6th Jason Anderson: This kid is good!He showed last week was no fluke. He got a crappy start and moved forward all race long. If he can start with the leaders, he will get a bunch of podiums and maybe a win or 2.
7th Andrew Short: ‘Shorty’ has been super-solid in both rounds. Most people would have expected teammate Justin Brayton to be putting in the rides that Short is. He just needs to pick either 2 yellow boots or 2 orange boots.
8th: Trey Canard: Damage control for Trey. He fought hard after being way back. Let’s hope he can start up front and reel off some wins soon.
9th Jake Weimer: Good ride from Jake. He seems to be doing well with what he has.
10th Chad Reed: Reed was solid. He will be back on the box before the East. I don’t see a win yet, but you can never count out ‘the Deuce Deuce.’
Biggest Stud: My stud is Eli Tomac. He rode great, and if he can stay off the ground and get good starts he will claw his way back into the championship fight.
Biggest Dud: My dud once again is the FIM and their handling of the James Stewart suspension. Free Bubba, already! He has sat out enough and learned his lesson. Give the fans what they want and cut the suspension short.
Biggest Surprise: Weston Peick is my surprise. He was oh so close to a podium. He tweeted after the race that he rolled his ankle and broke a bone in his foot. I was very surprised with his career high 4th place with such a stacked class.
Canadian Connection: Dean Wilson finished a distant 17th. ‘Deano’ is a former National Champion and has won numerous 250 SX mains. He has the speed and fitness, don’t give up on him yet! He will figure it out.
See you at A2…
