By Billy Rainford
Welcome to the Monday we’ve all been waiting for for quite some time – the one after Round 1 of Monster Energy AMA Supercross! How good did that feel to be watching Supercross again?! That was a rhetorical question – I know exactly how it felt…GREAT!
Although it really sucks that I’m not going to be at the races, physically, at least we’re going racing and I’m not going to complain…too much.
Where to start? I know, let’s start at the top. #51 Justin Barcia just took a new team and a new bike to the #1 spot for Troy Lee Red Bull Gas Gas. Not only that but it also made it a three-pete for Justin at opening rounds! I couldn’t help but wonder if the team looked back at that pretend 3rd A1 win they did last week and regretted the $$$ spent on the campaign. If they were 100% sure he was going to win again at H1, I have to think they would have rethought that idea. Oh well, like the worst year in recent memory and hindsight, it’s 2020.
We had a contest where the people who chose the winner of H1 correctly all had their names put into a bowl and one lucky entrant was going to win a TLD SE4 Carbon helmet.
And the winner was……. * drum roll * ……. DARCY SONNENBERG!
Congratulations to Darcy and thank you to everyone who played along. Let’s see what else we can talk Cody Swansborough and the gang over at TLD Canada into giving away, shall we?! Cody?
Round 1 Results:
What can you say about that win by Christian Craig? Everyone knew he had speed and style, but I’m not sure most thought he was still going to be in the game…except Greg Poisson! Greg picked him in the Frid’Eh Update. Well done, Greg. By the way, Christian was the only rider to dip into the 43’s all day, in either class! Not bad.
It was an emotional win, and it will be interesting to see what he does for an encore tomorrow night. On the podium, he said, “If only people knew what I’ve been going through the past two years!” He said he’d been to the “lowest of the lows” and that “so many people wrote me off.”
He’s obviously got something to prove, and that’s a strong motivator for someone who feels he’s been forgotten about.
Watch for #38 Austin Forkner to have something to say about it, if he can get off to a better start. He had to make a few passes to get into second and by that time Craig was already gone.
#18 Jett Lawrence is fun to watch but fell victim to inexperience, I’d say. I also get the feeling the other riders enjoy seeing him on the ground, so he should be careful with that. He’s young and popular. Other riders hate that!
#64 Colt Nichols is solid and will also need to work on his starts. I like seeing him on the podium because the dude is super smooth on the microphone. I said it on Twitter Saturday night and I’ll say it again: he’s got a future in the industry when he’s done racing, if he wants it.
We forgot about Dre! Dre being #25 Marvin Musquin.
#51 Justin Barcia took the opening night win for the 3rd time in a row. He didn’t win another main event in 2020, so will he sputter again after this win or is he a rejuvenated rider? It was pretty wild to see the “new” brand take the win in its first outing.
#94 Ken Roczen was 2nd and looked like he was trying everything he could think of behind Barcia. You could watch him try different approaches, corner ruts, and jump rhythms to see if anything was faster. In the end, he would just take the lines Justin was taking because they were the best. We have definitely not seen the last of Kenny on the top step.
#25 Marvin Musquin is back and I’m not sure why I didn’t pick him to be on the podium . He got the holeshot but then got pushed up and out by #9 Adam Cianciarulo and both AC and Roczen went by him. Marvin would finish in 3rd place after a very solid comeback ride.
AC will keep getting faster as he gets himself back into top racing form.
#1 Eli Tomac had one of those first rounds everyone sort of fears. When you have the red #1 plate, you’re not supposed to be on the ground with #40 Vince Friese…twice. He didn’t go down the second time, but still, that’s not where he’s supposed to be.
The defending champion crossed the line in 13th place! It’s not the end of the world, but it’s a really deep hole to have dug out of the gate.
Speaking of holes, #2 Cooper Webb also suffered a sub-par ride to finish back in 9th. He’s not one who takes bad finishes lightly, and I expect him to be on the podium Tuesday.
#7 Aaron Plessinger looked like a new man on Saturday! He was battling with guys I didn’t think he’d ever be battling with again, and he proved my writing him off to be premature. He slipped back to 8th by the end, but it was still a really good start to the new season.
#23 Chase Sexton was the top qualifier in the 450 class. He’s a rookie in the 450 class. Unfortunately for him, he was down early with #36 Martin Davalos and had to fight for scraps the entire main event, finishing 14th, one position ahead of #21 Jason Anderson…huh?!
It was a bizarre night that saw SLC#7 winner #16 Zach Osborne down on the first lap and set out in last place. He charged his way to 10th, but is likely looking for some revenge tomorrow night.
#27 Malcolm Stewart looked good on his new ride. Again, he’s fast but I didn’t really expect to see him pressuring some of the rider he was pressuring. There are a few riders who look really good on their new bikes, and he’s definitely one of them.
It was a wacky night, and we’ll have to see if peace returns to the delta on Tuesday, or if we’re going to have a different rider on the top step for the first few rounds before things “normalize.”
What did you guys think of the new announcer team? Leigh Diffey has been around a long time in the sport, but it makes me wonder what the attraction is for always having at least 1 Australian accent calling races these days…in ALL action sports.
I thought Ricky Carmichael did a good job, and you can tell he’s not taking this position lightly. He looks fit and had good things to say.
I think they need to work on the play-by-play/colour commentator relationship a little bit, however. Sometimes, it seemed they weren’t sure which one was doing which. They’ll get better, for sure.
Canadian Watch
We all had high hopes for #134 Jess Pettis on Saturday, but Motocross can be fickle. I guess that’s why we all like and appreciate it so much. For everything to go right on a single night is something. For it to go right for an entire season is something even more impressive.
In the first timed qualifier, a rider knocked a tough block out in front of Jess and he clipped it and tweaked the knee he’s already had fixed. He rode off the track and then came out to try to ride the final session only to decide it was no use. He headed off the track after one lap and his night was finished.
We had planned to do podcast interviews the following day after each round, but he was obviously too upset to have a chat with me. We did, however get in touch with him later in the day on Sunday and he gave us this information:
Jess Pettis Injury Update
After a very successful pre-season training in Florida at the famed Baker’s Factory, Canadian Red Bull Thor KTM rider #134 Jess Pettis headed into Round 1 of the 2021 Monster Energy AMA Supercross series with high hopes in the 250 East class in Houston, Texas.
After the first 250 A qualifier, Pettis sat in 11th position, just 2 seconds off the best time, but there was a catch:
“In first qualifier, a tough block got put out in front of me. I caught my foot on it and really twisted my bad knee,” he told us.
He went out for the second-and-final qualifier but soon realized it was no use trying to ride and race the way it was feeling. He added, “I tried to ride second qualifier but I couldn’t ride.”
He was forced off the track after just one lap and rode back to the NRG Stadium pits to talk things over with his mechanic, Matt Deroy.
So, what’s the next step for the Prince George, BC rider?
“I’m hoping it’s nothing serious and get a good result from the doctor soon.”
Here’s hoping he gets the result he wants when he visits the doctor and gets that previously-injured knee checked out. Whether he’s on the track on Tuesday or not remains to be seen, but he should know he’s got the support of a nation back home.
We’ll be sure to post more information as we receive news on the condition of that knee.
#551 Guillaume St Cyr was riding with a sore back from a practice crash last week. He’s been doing whatever he can to loosen it up and says he’s feeling better every day.
We’ll continue to check in with Quebec racer #551 Guillaume St Cyr as he races 250 East in the 2021 Monster Energy AMA Supercross series. Here’s our conversation after Round 1.
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iTunes:
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#11 Connor Stevenson is from Milton, Ontario, but now lives in Littleton, Colorado, outside of Denver. He’s been racing the Kicker Arenacross series. He started racing Schoolboy and Collegeboy and then moved to the Intermediate classes for the second weekend in Lubbock, Texas, over the weekend.
Unfortunately, he crashed pretty hard in the whoops and was out for the night.
We’ll be sure to check in with him to see how he’s doing this week.
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This weekend, the tour heads to Oklahoma for rounds 5 -6.
Hoosier Arenacross was in Missouri on the weekend.
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R8 Hoosier Tire Arenacross Nationals – 1/16/2021
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Next Round: Jan 29-30 in Mesquite, TX.
Amsoil Snow Bike Results
From Dubuque, Iowa
OVERALL
| # | Name | Hometown | Sled | Bib |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jesse Kirchmeyer | Arcade, NY | Polaris | 42 |
| 2 | Keaton Ward | Bozeman, MT | Other | 195 |
| 3 | Nick Kraeger | Constableville, NY | Honda | 296 |
| 4 | Troy Weakley | Cold brook, AK | Other | 142 |
| 5 | TROY HORBATY | TYNDALL, MB | Other | 57 |
| 6 | Jacqueline Riess | Eden Prairie, MN | Other | 27 |
| 7 | Robert (Bobby) Pagel | Eau Claire, WI | Yamaha | 891 |
| 8 | jorgen dahl | brookings, SD | Other | 94 |
| 9 | Austin Radinzel | Houlton, WI | Yamaha | 408 |
| Rider | Hometown | Sled | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jesse Kirchmeyer | Arcade, NY | Polaris | 200 |
| 2 | Keaton Ward | Bozeman, MT | Other | 172 |
| 3 | Troy Horbaty | TYNDALL, MB | Other | 156 |
| 4 | Troy Weakley | Cold brook, AK | Other | 138 |
| 5 | Nick Kraeger | Constableville, NY | Honda | 127 |
| 6 | Jacqueline Riess | Eden Prairie, MN | Other | 119 |
| 7 | Robert (bobby) Pagel | Eau Claire, WI | Yamaha | 110 |
| 8 | Austin Radinzel | Houlton, WI | Yamaha | 91 |
| 9 | Jorgen Dahl | brookings, SD | Other | 53 |
Next round: January 29-30 in Deadwood, South Dakota. (Aces and Eights!)
OK, we’re back in action for more Supercross Tuesday night! Thanks for reading, and have a great week.
