Reed on Rivals - Comment

Reed on Rivals - Comment

Australian veteran Chad Reed has caused a bit of a stir in America with this comment in racerX. I tend to agree with him at some point, and for sure the last seven years of MXoN results prove that.

"I just think that the reason why I can still be here and still be competitive is because I love it and whatever, but beside that, there's no greatness out there, in my opinion. There's no Ricky, James, Jeremy, RV, Dunge, these kinds of guys. People are going to love and hate that answer, but I just don't see greatness. I really don't. I think that's why I want to come back.” 

While guys like Eli Tomac, Marvin Musquin and Ken Roczen are brilliant riders, none of them have dominated an MXoN like Carmichael, Villopoto or even Ryan Dungey have done. I think had Roczen not been injured so badly, he would be easily legend status, but since that horrible arm injury he hasn’t been half the rider he was or was going to be.

As for Reed, while he won his major championship off the back of others being injured, his stats show that he was on many occasions on the same level as RC and Stewart, and has won a couple of MXoN motos in 2001 and 2011. To move to America and race the Americans on home soil is something not many can do, and his two AMA SX titles and AMA MX title show he did pretty well. Not to mention finishing second in the World in 2001 in Europe.

Love him or hate he, he talked the talk and walked to walk on many occasions.

Spreading the Motocross wealth

The 2019 450 season has been dominated by Eli Tomac and Ken Roczen, but in the past few weeks other riders have been making a considerable amount of noise.

Roczen drew first blood by winning at Hangtown and for the next three races those two riders alternated wins and dominated the Moto victories. Between them, they have now won eight of the first 10 Motos.

But the last two weeks have witnessed fresh faces on the top step of the podium.

Last week’s victory by Marvin Musquin marked the first time someone other than Tomac or Roczen broke into Victory Lane. Musquin won Moto 1 – becoming only the fourth different rider to win a Moto this year. He finished third in Moto 2 to secure his overall victory.

Musquin winning was not exactly a surprise, however. He is one of the seven riders so far this season who swept the top 10. And with a second-place finish at Pala and a worst of sixth at Hangtown and High Point, he has never been very far back from the leaders.

Zach Osborne, Jason Anderson, Cooper Webb and Justin Barcia are the other riders with perfect records of top-10s and they occupy the top seven positions in the standings.

While there have been seven riders who have swept the top 10, that has left the door open for seven others to make their mark.

The assault on Tomac and Roczen actually began at High Point in Round 4. Blake Baggett became the first rider other than Tomac or Roczen to win a Moto. He fell in Moto 2 and dropped to 15th, but that was enough to give him a seventh-place overall finish.

With the exception of the mistake at High Point that cost him an opportunity to score a top-five, Baggett’s consistency is what has allowed him keep the leaders in sight. Baggett has finished between seventh and 10th four times this year and that places him eighth in the standings.

A disastrous Moto 1 at Pala in Round 2 kept Baggett from joining the seven riders who’ve swept the top 10.

Rounding out the top 10 in points are Dean Ferris and Justin Bogle and like Baggett, they secured their spot among the elite with a majority of strong runs.

Justin Bogle finished ninth at High Point. Jeff Kardas, ProMotocross

On the strength of top-10s at Hangtown, Thunder Valley, and WW Ranch last week, Ferris sits ninth in the standings. Consistency has been one of Ferris’ hallmarks this season with all five of his efforts landing between eighth and 11th.

Bogle’s three top-10s came at Hangtown, Thunder Valley, and High Point – but he has been unable to finish better than ninth this season and is a relatively distant 10th in the points – 15 markers behind Ferris. Bogle’s consistency rivaled Ferris until last week. In the first four rounds of the season, he finished between ninth and 12th; last week he fell to 15th with a pair of modest Motos in the sandy soil of Florida.

Fredrik Noren is the only other rider with a pair of top-10s. He finished ninth at Pala and WW Ranch and those two strong runs played a role in securing him a ride with the JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing Team this week in Southwick.

Justin Hill (seventh at Pala), Joey Savatgy (eighth at High Point) and Cole Seely (10th at Pala) round out the riders with top-10 finishes this season.

MORE THAN JUST MOTO...Atlas Brace

Atlas is about more than just dirt bikes and it is important for us to highlight the importance of neck protection in all extreme sports. 
As long as the sport you are performing requires you to wear a full face helmet,
the Atlas Brace™ will work for you. 

Our History

Learn about where Atlas came from,
how we got there, and where we’re going.

The Atlas Brace is racer designed, racer tested, and has been developed around the necks of championship winning professionals. With the development team lead by former Supercross and Motocross racer Brady Sheren, team Atlas was able to create a revolutionary new device that aims to solve many of the problematic criteria that exists with neck protection today. Using advanced materials and breakthroughs in safety, the Atlas challenges the traditional methods of neck protection. By creating an innovative design that is stronger, safer, flexible, more adjustable, more comfortable, and extremely simplistic, the Atlas provides advanced protection with none of the bulky trapped feeling, all at a great price.

Mammoth Mountain Vet Day

Jeremy McGrath was the big attraction at this years Vet Day at Mammoth and of course "Showtime" never disappoints. He won 3 of 4 motos to sweep victory for the weekend. However, the stars are not what brings hundreds of amature riders from all over to this iconic track in the high Sierras. They come once a year to ride one of the most beautiful, challenging tracks in the world. This year twenty one riders lined up to ride the 60+ class. Think about that "60+"  riding one of the most demanding tracks in the world. A trophy from Mammoth Mountain is a trophy worth showing off. Yes even the most mature racers want a Mammoth trophy.

Mike Harper shows off his weekend overall trophy. Mike swept three of four motos to capture the overall win in the 60+ class.  Many think the 60+ is made up of a bunch of retired guys that have nothing to do but practice. Not so...Mike owns and runs Halls Furniture of Citrus Heights, CA. Of course Mike's idea of training is demonstrating Barcalounger recliners to beat up old moto guys. Obivously Mike rides his 450 Husky a lot faster than he does a lounger. Nice job Mike!

Red Bud Moto Beer!

BUCHANAN, Mich. (June 21, 2019) – It just doesn’t get much more American than standing along a fence with a can of beer at a motorsports event. And when you combine Michigan’s premier motorcycle event with the white-hot Troy Lee “Whiskey Throttle Show,” featuring Ping & GL, and a well-known local brewer the result becomes nothing short of “RrrrreeddBuuddd” legend.

Introducing LaRocco’s Leap Light Beer. Born from America’s passion for high speeds, big air and brews. A pretty simple formula that lends itself to an American golden ale, brewed full flavor, but not too heavy or hoppy, and served up ice cold trackside at America’s Motocross Track – RedBud.
“So we brewed up a new concept for the race track and Round Barn - LaRocco’s Leap Light, which at 4-percent alcohol by volume, is perfect for a long day at the track,” said Matt Moersch, CEO of Moersch Hospitality Group (parent company of Round Barn).
The brainchild of Round Barn’s Jordan Roberts, a racer and former motocross media member, LaRocco’s Leap Light also has the stamp of approval from the Leap’s namesake - Mike LaRocco himself.

Said LaRocco: “I think it’s a fun idea. Having LaRocco’s Leap has already been a cool thing for me. And like they say: ‘Everything’s better with beer!’”

LaRocco’s Leap Light by Round Barn will be available on Friday at the Whiskey Throttle Show, at all the beer stands on Saturday, and again at the Beer Tent Saturday night.
For all the information on RedBud’s July 6th Circle K MX National – including tickets, camping, parking, amateur racing and anything/everything else, please hit up our website at www.redbudmx.com
More on RedBud MX:
Rising up amongst the fertile rolling hills of picturesque southwestern Michigan, RedBud stands as a cornerstone in the storied history of motocross in the United States. Hosting for 45 years what’s consistently become the highest-attended motocross race in the USA, and always on the country’s birthday (4th of July) weekend, RedBud proudly carries the flag throughout the MX industry as America’s Motocross Track. High on pro racers’ lists of favorite tracks, from both coasts in the United States to Europe and points all over the globe, RedBud’s dirt – dark/organic loam, a truly rich soil suitable for growing grapes on either side of the expansive RedBud property – is the stuff of legend. This, coupled with beach-quality sand mined from the property and incorporated into key areas of the undulating track, and RedBud’s racing surface was seemingly ordained by the motocross gods to host the prestigious 2018 Motocross of Nations.

Cairoli And Herlings to Miss MXGP of Germany

KTM announced this morning that both Red Bull KTM MXGP riders Jeffrey Herlings and Tony Cairoli will miss this weekend’s tenth round (of 18) of the 2019 FIM Motocross World Championship in Germany. Herlings crashed during the sighting lap before the first moto at last weekend’s MXGP of Latvia and suffered a broken ankle on his right foot—the foot he had broken in January that kept him out of the first seven rounds of the championship—after another rider ran over his ankle. Herlings went on to win the first moto before pulling to the team truck and having to retire from the competition due to the pain. He did not start the second moto.

According to the team statement, Herlings suffered a “hairline fracture at the base of his tibia bone” and underwent a surgery to have a small reparatory screw inserted to fix this issue. The statement continued to say that Herlings will “remain in a cast and airboot for almost two weeks before he can again go through the physio, rehab and training process.”

Once the second MXGP moto started, the team had more bad news as Cairoli suffered an injury of his own early in the race when he went down hard over a roller and dislocated his shoulder. Cairoli was unable to return to the race and left the weekend with 20 points after his 3-28 moto scores. The team stated that he will miss the race this weekend and will be evaluated in two weeks. 

Cairoli posted on his Instagram story this morning:

"Of course, we are very disappointed because we want to be in Germany this weekend for the race,” he said in the video. “Really disappointed about this because, of course, with the shoulder dislocation last week, I expected it to be a little less painful but with further investigation we see that there is something else in the shoulder and in such a short time we cannot have a comeback so we need to skip this race. Doing some therapy, trying to heal up. We have ten days of time now. We will see the shoulder in ten days and make a decision. Of course, I hope I can send good news. But this is the motocross and sometimes it gives us bad news, but I’ll stay positive and try to heal up as soon as possible."

Cairoli, who once had a double digit lead of his own, sits 33 points behind points leader Tim Gajser of Honda HRC through nine rounds.

“We had some amazing success in the last two years in the MXGP class and that has so much to do with our riders, our excellent team and all the support we have in place,” VP of Offroad Robert Jonas said. “Now we are experiencing the hard part of motocross but we know this is part of sport unfortunately. We don’t like it but we have to accept it and do our best to help Jeffrey and Tony get better and soon be in a position to be fighting at the front again.”

The FIM Motocross World Championship takes a break following the MXGP of Germany but will return to action on July 7 for the MXGP of Indonesia.

Latvia - When Motocross Sucks

It was a day we don’t really enjoy, a day when two of the greats of the sport suffer injuries. It is in fact hard to put into words how the GP paddock feels as we leave Kegum in Latvia. Jeffrey Herlings, back to winning after just a handful or MXGP races. A broken ankle from an unfortunate accident in the warm-up lap of the MXGP race. Antonio Cairoli, a big crash in the second MXGP race, and a damaged shoulder, which came out and looks like he might keep him out for some time.

When Jeffrey Herlings won the MXGP qualification race, and Antonio Cairoli came back from a poor Saturday and looked strong on Sunday, we all felt that we might be able to enjoy more of their 2018 battles. The two guys with around 200 GP wins between them and 13 World motocross championship. I would find it hard to think of a day I have enjoyed less than this Sunday in June.

Sure, the celebrations of two of the new breed in Tim Gajser and Jorge Prado. Themselves three World championships and possible five as this season ends. Also, around 40 GP wins between them, and the motocross World at their feet.

But still, I sit here in Latvia with a bad feeling. We already saw Clement Desalle and others injured in Russia a week ago, so we should be used to all these injuries. It is hard of the sport, but for sure it is the part we all hate.

At least we will see both Herlings and Cairoli back sooner rather than later, hopefully winning quickly again, and showing off the fact MXGP is the toughest motocross series in the World, and the most intense.

Unfortunately, with these high speeds and high intensity, you get injuries, and for another weekend, the sport has suffered.

Ray Archer image

Billy Bolt onboard Husqvarna’s new TE 150i

Take a two-stroke music lesson with Billy Bolt giving the new, Husqvarna TE 150i a rip through the woods at the MY2020 world press launch in Finland.

Tough Day for KTM...Cairoli, Herlings Hurt

Tony Cairoli has talked about his injury he picked up at the Grand Prix of Latvia today. Also some words from Davide De Carli about Cairoli and Dirk Gruebel about Jeffrey Herlings.

“On Saturday I had the Flu and a fever, and my arm was not as strong as I wanted after the crash in Russia. I could battle with the guys for first position in the first moto but then I got a bit tired and settled for third, which was good for the championship. In the second moto I was fourth and trying to follow [Arnaud] Tonus. I had quite a big crash and when I stood up I felt my shoulder was out. My hope is to be ready to at least start next week in Germany. I don't want to give up at all and I want to be there as much as possible for the championship.”

Davide De Carli, Assistant Team Manager: “Tony was struggling at the beginning of the weekend because of the crash in Russia. He had a problem with the nerve in the bottom of the shoulder, which affected the feeling in his right hand. He started great in the first moto and had to slow down a little bit with some pain but third was a really good result that we didn't expect. In the second race he was gaining some positions but missed power in his arm and the crash caused his shoulder to pop put. There is no damage to the bone or the ligament so we will see if he can try to ride in Germany. We will make some checks this week. Everything is going really well for Jorge and I think he has the best momentum of his career so far. This weekend was the best level of consistency I have seen from him. He is at a really high level.”

Dirk Gruebel, MX2 Team Manager and Technical Co-ordinator: “The MX2 boys did outstanding today but MXGP started very weirdly with Jeffrey’s crash on the Sighting Lap. We had to straighten the bike and he then rode great and won the race: this was also outstanding. Afterwards we found out he had another small fracture in his leg and he was unfit to continue, so we had to call it a day. Tony went down hard in the second race and dislocated his shoulder so it was a hard ending to the day.”

2019 Sierra OT International MX

A good crowd was there for this years race, The Hangtown national track was in good shape. Clear skies, mild temps but the wind did blow and boy did it blow! Here are a few pictures from a good weekend of racing.