So Close: Dungey & Musquin Discuss the Atlanta SX

The teammates hash out the controversial race that Musquin relinquished to Dungey on the last lap.

By Eli Moore on 1 March 2016

Marvin Musquin, a 450 class rookie, took the white flag in the 450 main event at the Atlanta Supercross with the lead, his Red Bull KTM teammate and reigning champ Ryan Dungey less than a second behind him. After a perfect start in the main event, Musquin had clicked off lap after perfect lap. By lap 10, people were impressed he’d held the lead that long. By lap 15, people were wondering when Dungey would pass. By lap 19, people were saying “I think Musquin’s got it.”

Marvin Musquin: "I led over 19 laps. I had a great start, and right away I was feeling really aggressive. It felt great to lead some laps finally. I just said to myself 'Lead as many laps as possible'.

Even though his teammate Dungey has won more than half of the races of 2016, Musquin was confident being out in front of the champ, taking comfort in the fact that he knew Dungey wouldn't do anything stupid trying to take the lead.

Musquin: "When I saw Ryan, I was obviously not surprised; he’s won a lot of races. I knew he was going to be fast and was going to try to pass me, but at the same time, I knew he’s a really clean rider and wasn’t going to take me out. He would have passed me clean. I was just trying to hit my lines. I haven’t been leading any laps in the 450 class, and at one point I was thinking of Ryan catching me. But then I saw 6 laps to go and that gave me a boost."

Musquin: "I was leading early, so I said to myself, 'Try to lead as much as you can.' At that point, 6 laps to go, it kind of changed my mindset. I didn’t expect that; I expected to lead about halfway into the main, that would have been good. I knew Dungey was close, I could see him in the last few laps from my inside line before the wall. He was coming fast. I just tried to hit my lines and give 100%."

I was leading early, so I said to myself, 'Try to lead as much as you can.' At that point, 6 laps to go, it kind of changed my mindset.

Marvin Musquin

Unfortunately, in the first rhythm section of that last lap, a fumble while trying to get around James Stewart, who was a lap down due to some complications throughout the race, put Musquin way out of shape, allowing Dungey to pass. Dungey would go on to win his fifth race of the season, while Musquin could only manage a second place.

Musquin: "I [tripled in] 19 times before that. When I saw James in front of me, it put a lot of pressure on me. I slowed down too much going around him. I felt like I had no choice but to try the triple. I went for it, and made a mistake. James was still next to me [in the rhythm section], and I thought he was going to land on me, so I leaned the bike to get out of his way, which messed me up even more. When I look back at it, I feel like I should have gone double in, but that wasn’t the way I was doing it, and I didn’t want to change my line on the last lap. But it is a race till the end, and you have to deal with anything on the race track."

It was a bitter sweet win for the Red Bull KTM squad. Both riders had finished first and second, and Marvin Musquin had his best 450 Supercross result ever. But when a rider is that close to the top, to winning a Supercross on the world’s most challenging stage, having it ripped away at the last second is heart-breaking, no matter what the circumstances. Ryan Dungey cited the mixed emotions having a role in his low-key celebration after winning the race:

Ryan Dungey: "I felt for Marvin. I know what it’s like, putting in 19 hard laps to get passed on the last lap. You go that far for that long.  I see during the week how hard he works. There’s a lot of respect between the two of us. I’m not going to sit there and celebrate right in front of his face, because I thought that would be a little disrespectful."

After the race, Dungey and Musquin shook hands. There was no yelling, no clenched fists, and no blame game:

Dungey: "I think you can learn a lot about a rider with how he handles situations like that. [Marvin] handled it like a champion. He didn’t lose his cool. He was frustrated, but he kept his cool. When you lose yourself and flip out, that shows a lot of weakness."

He’s got a champion’s mentality, and he sees himself at the front. But that’s the cool thing about Marvin – he could win his first race and still be the same humble guy.

Ryan Dungey

Even having come so tantalizingly close to his first win, Musquin took away the positives from the race: he had ridden a near perfect race, and is one of "the guys" now:

Musquin: "It’s a big step in the right direction. Obviously, in Supercross, even if you’re the best, you’re not necessarily going to win. You need the start, you need those 20 laps. There’s so many things to put together. I did everything on Saturday. I felt like I put it all together."

For Dungey, it was the first time Musquin had posed a serious threat to him in a race. But the champ has no plans of changing up his training routine, as he mentors Red Bull KTM's 450 rookie:

Dungey: "He’s a pretty humble guy, and always so respectful. I don’t think this is anything new for him; he’s a champion. He won last year in the 250 class, and came pretty close to winning the outdoors, too. He’s got a champion’s mentality, and he sees himself at the front. But that’s the cool thing about Marvin – he could win his first race and still be the same humble guy; he’s one of a kind. That’s why I have a lot of respect for him.”