MOTOCROSS ACTION’S MID-WEEK REPORT BY JOHN BASHER

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Photoweek

There were a lot of great sights to see this weekend in Las Vegas, and I’m not just talking about at Sam Boyd Stadium. There’s a crazy huge ferris wheel that was put in on the Strip. Although I didn’t get a chance to go on it, it’s still a sight to behold. Really though, one of my favorite parts of any race weekend is watching Feld Motor Sports blow off thousands of dollars worth of pyrotechnics (just as long as it’s in an open air stadium). Sam Boyd had a nice fireworks display. I was bummed that the fighter jets didn’t scream overhead at the culmination of the Star Spangled Banner, because that’s usually a staple for Vegas. Even so, the fireworks were a fitting end to a great Supercross series.

RYAN VILLOPOTO OUT FOR THE NATIONALS

Photos by Scott Mallonee

Villopoto

If you’ve heard it here first, right now, then you should probably direct more time to our website. Even though it was one of the worst kept secrets in motocross, Ryan Villopoto will undergo the knife instead of a gate drop this summer. Rumors circulated a month ago that Villopoto would miss the Nationals. RV avoided the topic until last week when he stated that he would race the outdoors. Then the official word finally came on Monday afternoon that Villopoto is out.

I’m a member of the media. Do I deserve to be provided with fair and credible information that I can report on to MXA’s readership? Absolutely. Kawasaki provided that on Monday afternoon when they released a press release. Was it wrong of Villopoto to try a rope-a-dope on the media and his legion of fans by lying? Ehhhh, not really.

I’ve played the rumor mill game before, and it has burned me. Remember when Ricky Carmichael got hurt at the Glen Helen finale in 2006 and was supposed to race the Motocross des Nations a few weeks later? I called a reliable source and was told that Carmichael would be gearing up for Matterly Basin despite suffering a shoulder injury. I posted it on the website and the news caused a big uproar. Fast forward to a week later when the news broke that Carmichael was in fact OUT for the MXDN. I had egg on my face. I learned a valuable lesson that day–don’t trust rumors unless you hear them directly from the source. So when Villopoto wasn’t talking about his knee problems I wasn’t too concerned. The gate is going to drop at Glen Helen on May 24th whether Ryan Villopoto is there or not.

I’m not hurt that Villopoto lied. That’s human nature. Besides, it’s not like RV and I are best buddies. We don’t go hunting together or text one another goodnight. I’m fine with that. Ryan is a racer, and he has to protect his product–himself. The idea that he avoided the firestorm until after Las Vegas seems fitting to me. He had a title to wrap up and a lucrative Las Vegas race to win. He didn’t need any distractions.

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People talked about Villopoto’s issue, but Ryan wasn’t ready to spill the beans. Does this have any effect on how he should be perceived? If you ask me that question, I’ll tell you that I don’t look at him any differently. He’s a four-time Supercross Champion, two-time 450 National Champ and he doesn’t owe anyone any explanations.

Heal up, Ryan, and though you won’t get a Get Well Soon card from me (remember, we’re not best friends, so I don’t have his address), you should expect gifts from the guys you were probably going to wax this summer–Ryan Dungey, James Stewart, Ken Roczen, Chad Reed and anyone else in the 450 class.

MXA VIDEO: CATCHING UP WITH ANTHONY RODRIGUEZ

Stand up wheelie at 1:55!

SUPERCROSS FUN STATS

Want to know a few interesting tidbits from this year’s Supercross series? Amaze your moto buddies by dishing out this information:

Villopoto_winnings

1. Ryan Villopoto earned $227,790 in purse money. This includes the $100,000 series-end bonus from Feld Motor Sports for winning the title. This is purse money alone and doesn’t include base salary from Kawasaki and Villopoto’s sponsors or win bonuses. However, guesstimating the average bonus package, Villopoto made roughly $700,000 in win bonuses and at least $1 million for winning the title. That equates to around $1,927,790.

2. Villopoto’s teammate, Jake Weimer, earned $25,760. This includes a $8780 series-end bonus for finishing inside the top 20 in points. This is purse money alone and doesn’t include base salary from Kawasaki and Weimer’s sponsors or placement bonuses. Jake Weimer missed ten races during the series.

3. The difference in purse winnings between teammates Ryan Villopoto and Jake Weimer is $202,030.

Atlanta
The Atlanta round was so well attended that ATL is getting two Supercross races in 2015. Photo by Scott Mallonee

 

4. The most attended race in the series was Atlanta, at 69,785 spectators. East Rutherford was second, at 62,217 people. St. Louis was third at 60,213 fans. The least attended race? Las Vegas, at 35,509.

5. The cumulative number of spectators for the 17-round Supercross series was 872,370.

RIDE ENGINEERING YAMAHA STABILIZER BRACKET KIT

RideEng

[Press Release]

Riders looking for that extra handling advantage can now add a Showa Steering Dampener to their bike with this new kit from Ride Engineering. The ignition box does not have to be relocated. A set of Ride Engineering clamps are required.

P.N.: YZ-SHSB0-00 MSRP: $59.95

Contact: www.ride-engineering.com

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING 20

Weimer

Las Vegas was an important race for Jake Weimer. Aside from contract obligations, the Monster Energy factory Kawasaki rider had good reason to put it into the main event on Saturday night. Why? Weimer sat 21st in the point standings after missing ten straight races due to a broken bone in his wrist and shoulder dislocation while qualifying in San Diego. Jake had to pass Ivan Tedesco (who was dealing with his own injuries and wasn’t racing in Vegas) and secure four points. Weimer did more than that in Sin City, scoring 13 points for eighth place. He earned $2530 in prize money–chump change for the factory star. More importantly, he made the top 20 and finished in the final spot of series-end bonus money from Feld Motor Sports. The loot? $8780. It’s not a lot, but it’s not a bad perk after having missed most of the 450 Supercross series. Ivan Tedesco, on the other hand, didn’t receive a series-end bonus. Bummer.

NEW PRODUCT: HINSON CLUTCH COMPONENTS NOW AVAILABLE FOR 2014 HUSQVARNA MODELS

Hinson

[Press Release]

Hinson Clutch Components is excited to announce that our Billetproof lineup is now available for 2014 Husqvarna two- and four-stroke models. Used by Team Red Bull IceOne Husqvarna Factory Racing, Team Wilvo Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing, Team Bel-Ray Husqvarna Factory Racing and Team Red Bull Husqvarna Factory Racing, the durability and performance that Hinson offers is sure to hype up your bike’s performance.

Each Billetproof component is precision machined from billet T-6 aircraft quality aluminum and hard coated. This coating ups the surface strength for five times the wear resistance of stock and our high-end tolerances allow for a truer spinning clutch inside your engine reducing heat fade significantly.

MXA VIDEO: INSIDE CYCRA PLASTICS’ YAMAHA YZ250F/450F BODY KIT

SCOTT MALLONEE’S VEGAS PHOTO GALLERY

MXA freelance photographer Scott Mallonee made the trek out to Sin City. Here are a few of the great shots that he captured. 

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That’s a wrap on the 2014 Supercross series!

 

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Trey Canard and his mechanic, Big B, have their sights set on the Nationals.

 

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A pre-race hang out session. Racers today are much different than they were years ago when the top riders would avoid one another like the plague.

 

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The stars of the show…in 2030.

 

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Ian Harrison, Ryan Dungey and Carlos Rivera talk bike setup, while a masked man in a camo hat photo bombs.

 

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Jason Anderson does it for the kids.

 

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Debo strikes an imposing pose while a fan is happy to get a photo taken with the “Friday” star.

 

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Justin Hill gets a warm-up peddle in before taking to the track.

 

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One very happy fan.

 

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK: MOTOREX SPORT MAX 4T

Motorex

[Press Release]

MOTOREX has a worldwide reputation for producing the highest-quality premium lubricants and care products. With its new SPORT MAX 4T oil the company completes its lineup of lubricants with a premium quality, mineral-based formula aimed at the price-conscious street and off-road motorcyclist. Blended with premium mineral base stocks, SPORT MAX is highly shear stable, temperature stable and JASO MA certified so it is approved for use in wet clutch applications.

“SPORT MAX gives all motorcyclists the opportunity to use a high-quality MOTOREX product at an affordable price,” said Boris Mahlich of MOTOREX USA. SPORT MAX comes in 10W/40 for cooler weather or smaller engine applications and 15W/50 for warm weather or heavy duty use. Retail of $7.95.

SPORT MAX 4T

•Oxidatively stable due to quality base stock.

•Good wear protection.

•Optimized clutch performance according to JASO MA.

•JASO MA, API SL, SJ, SH, SG

•JASO T 903: 2006 Registered

THOR PHASE PRO CIRCUIT GEAR NOW AVAILABLE

INTRODUCING REDLABEL MX GRAPHICS

[Press Release]

Redlabel1

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Introducing REDLABEL Motocross Graphics. REDLABEL is a band of riders and artists that love the sport of motocross, and want to donate their creativity on style and design to help people customize their motorcycles they love.

REDLABEL’s outlook on motocross style is open minded and determined to push the boundaries on what is normal and/or available. We know there are people that want more options and more artwork to choose from and REDLABEL is here to bring that to the riders.

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Look out for REDLABEL’s new line of sticker kits coming out every few months at http://www.redlabel.mx/. See you at the track!

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