 |
Click the following link for a 55-photo gallery of action from Day 1 of the ESPN Navy Moto X World Championships. |
Traditionally, the moto events are among the biggest draws every year at the X Games, but a whole event dedicated to these disciplines? That’s just crazy, right? Well, maybe not. ESPN picked Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego as the venue for their first Moto X World Championships, and day one featured Supermoto, as well as Best Trick, Step Up, and a new event called Speed and Style.
How’d it go? Well, in a nutshell, it went like this…
in the Supermoto, Graves Yamaha’s Mark Burkhart came from deep in the 12-rider field to take the gold, passing Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Honda’s Jeff Ward (bronze), and KTM’s Troy Herfoss (silver).
In the Best Trick, it quickly became a showdown between Scott Murray, who was back to give the double backflip another try; going head-to-head with the progression of Kyle Loza’s new trick, the Electric Death. Scott stuck the landing this time around, and grabbed the gold. Kyle pulled his trick both times, but the landing proved to be his undoing, as he slid out both times.
In Step Up, Ricky Carmichael was making his first appearance in the event, and he and his Makita Suzuki appear to be untouchable, though we still have to wait for Sunday’s final. RC was clearing the bar easily, even at 29 feet. Watching him, you have to wonder how high he can go.
And finally, there was Speed and Style. Two riders would run head-to-head two-lap heats. For most of the lap, they were racing together, but on each lap, each one would alternate between a rhythm section, and a freestyle section. Who advanced in each heat was based not only on their finishing position, but also the style points, which could (and frequently did) outweigh the time gap. Nate Adams proved to be the ruler in this one, edging out Ronnie Renner.
Qualcomm is a huge stadium, and while spectator turnout for the inaugural event was light, the event was also on live TV. The sun was also blistering hot in the stadium, which kept many spectators ducking for cover in the shaded areas.
For more, be sure to check out the photo gallery, where we have 54 photos covering the action from Saturday. If you’re worried about click fatigue after that many photos, you can click the links below to jump to the individual events.
MX Racing Practice (See Hepler, Lawrence, Hansen, and more).
Results
Supermoto
1. Mark Burkhart / Pataskala, Ohio
2. Troy Herfoss / Goulburn, Ohio
3. Jeff Ward / Newport Beach, Calif.
4. Cassidy Anderson / Provo, Utah
5. Benny Carlson / West Bend, Wisc.
6. Jason Conlon / Mt. Airy, Maryland
7. Chris Fillmore / Oxford, Mich.
8. Kurt Nicoll / Cambridge, United Kingdom
9. Brandon Currie / Anaheim, Calif.
10. David Pingree / Temecula, Calif.
11. John Chisum / Salinas, Calif.
12. Matt Burton / Ottumwa, Iowa
Best Trick
1. Scott Murray / Helps, Mich. / 95.80
2. Thomas Pages / Biarritz, France / 92.60
3. Todd Potter / Temecula, Calif. / 91.80
4. Mat Rebeaud / Payerne, Switzerland / 91.00
5. Blake Williams / Baxter, Victoria, Australia / 90.40
6. Jeremy Lusk / San Diego, Calif. / 90.00
7. Nate Adams / Glendale, Ariz. / 89.20
8. Niki Danielson / Phoenix, Ariz. / 87.60
9. Robbie Maddison / Temecula, Calif. / 81.20
10. Brian Deegan / Temecula, Calif. / 79.60
11. Kyle Loza / Trabuco Canyon, Calif. / 77.00
12. Adam Jones / Minden, Nevada / 71.00
Step Up (Part 1)
1. Ricky Carmichael / 29’ / Havana, Florida
2. Jeremy Stenberg / 28’ (two attempts) / Winchester, Calif.
3. Todd Potter / 28’ (three attempts) / Temecula, Calif.
4. Robbie Maddison / 28’ (three attempts) / Temecula, Calif.
5. Brian Deegan / 26’ / Temecula, Calif.
*Top two riders advance to Step Up Final Part 2
Speed and Style
1. Nate Adams / Glendale, Ariz.
2. Ronnie Renner / Fallbrook, Calif.
3. Jeremy Stenberg / Winchester, Calif.
4. Kevin Johnson / Albuquerque, N.M.
5. Mat Rebeaud / Payerne, Switzerland
6. Kenny Bartram / Stillwater, Okla.
7. Travis Pastrana / Annapolis, Maryland
8. Mike Mason / Carson City, Nevada
