Blog Post

Anaheim Deux Pre-Race Report




1/17/2007 4:04:56 PM




No more GOAT. Photo courtesy of VitalMX.com
   This is it. This race will be the final nail in the coffin for Ricky Carmichael’s career. It’s difficult for many of us fans to come to terms with the fact that our hero is not going to be competing in entire series. In fact, some of us (including me) have been quite skeptical about his publicly stated plan to not race the entire series. I have been fantasizing about how cool it would be if he just went ahead and raced the entire series anyways. It could happen, of course, with him being at Anaheim this weekend. I feel like a grieving widower or something right now. I’m in complete denial and refuse to admit that RC’s done. Once the gate drops this weekend, reality will (hopefully) set in for me and I’ll finally be able to admit to myself that the GOAT is really, truly, genuinely . . . semi-retired.

   Assuming RC doesn’t race, it’s not really even a question as to who will win the Supercross class this weekend. James Stewart has already shown he is the fastest guy at round one and two this year (even with RC there), and this weekend should not be any different. With the only other guy who poses any real threat to him riding injured (Chad Reed), Stewart should be able to ride a relaxed and mistake-free race all alone out front. It’s bound to be quite boring.

   In fact, even the “battles” for positions two through six have the potential to be unusually predictable this season. Let me clarify. While we have witnessed some decent racing so far this season, the order of the riders at the checkered flag for rounds one and two were EXACTLY the same for positions one through five: 1.) James Stewart, 2.) Ricky Carmichael, 3.) Chad Reed, 4.) Travis Preston, and 5.) Tim Ferry. With other fast guys such as Ivan Tedesco and David Vuillemin riding with various degrees of injuries, that order is not likely to change much. Therefore, it is highly likely that Preston will actually PODIUM this weekend! How cool would THAT be?




Travis Preston has been proving you don't need a Factory Ride to be in the mix. Photo courtesy of VitalMX.com
   After losing his factory Honda ride and moving “down” (sort of) to the Sobe-Samsung Mobile-Rockford Fosgate, No Fear, Dunlop, Sunstar, Showa, Renthal, Factory Connection Honda team, Travis Preston has been riding INSPIRED. I personally want “Mr. T” to podium just so I can listen to more interviews with him. He is about as genuine and honest as a guy can be while trying to represent his sponsors well and is always funny at the same time. However, he’s gonna have to continue to ride well to keep Ferry behind him.

   The biggest question mark going into this weekend is David Vuillemin. After an extremely violent crash in the main event at Phoenix, it is unknown how healthy he will be this weekend. If that crash doesn’t slow him down any, he has a shot at the podium this weekend as well. He has consistently shown that he has the raw speed in the timed qualifying at both races this season (fourth fastest at round one and third fastest at round two). All he needs to do is get a good start and ride that way for 20 laps (easier said than done). Again, however, is the question about his physical health. If he is in pain this weekend, he may not be able to perform to his maximum potential. Here’s hoping he does.

   In the Lites class, Ryan Villopoto has shown he is the guy to beat. However, he has some serious competition coming from his “part-time” team-mate Christophe Pourcel. The two of them have split wins in the first two rounds with the other one finishing in second. They are currently tied in points and this weekend is the tie-breaker. The question of the month is “will Pourcel stick around and race the entire West region series before heading back to Europe to defend his World title”? It really is an interesting question. He already has an obligation to the team he rides for in Europe, but he has a legitimate shot at the supercross lites championship in the states. Very interesting dilemma indeed.

   Behind them, the riders are lot less consistent. Currently, there is a three-way tie for third in points between Chris Gosselaar, Jason Lawrence, and Josh Hansen! They each got there differently though. Gosselaar went 7-3, Lawrence went 3-7, and Hansen went 4-6. Then, only one point behind that trio is Star Racing/Bobby J’s Yamaha rider Matt Lemoine. Who? You ask. This hired gun has really surprised a lot of people with his skills on a supercross track. Keep it up dude!

   The biggest question mark right now is Josh Grant. People expect him to have the speed, but he has not been able to show it yet this season. He was injured at round one, but it is not clear whether he will still be injured this weekend. In fact, he may not even be racing. If you’re willing to gamble on him, keep an eye out and make sure he is riding this weekend before picking him. A lot of team managers have lost faith in this speedster so it could pay off huge for you if he can finally put it all together. Good luck Grant!

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