Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128314
THQ AMA 12Scc Eastern Regional Supercross Series d th e re cords co nt inue to fall. Team C hevy Tr ucks Kawasaki ride r James Stewart 's final season in the 12Scc lass was supposed to result in a pile of broken records, and just three races in, here they come. With his dom inant win in front of nearly 60,000 fans in Atlanta's Georgia Do me , Stewart now stands alone atop t he all-time 125 SX w ins list with 14, breaking a tie at 13 with Jere my McGrath . "That's a personal record for me, but to even be conside red in the same category as Jeremy McGrath is awesome:' said the IS-year-old. "Whe n you look at all the records he has got , it' s just amazing for me and my family." To ce lebrate , Stewart donned a A 24 McGrath numbe r-one je rsey after taking the win, and he also threw out the latest in his line of st iff dance moves - a move players on the Atlanta Falcons call the ABomb. Of course, the Atlanta fans loved the move, es pecially since it capped Stewart's first race ever in the Georgia Dome, which is about as close as the series comes to his home in Florida. While Stewart's big win puts him in the history books, the accom plishme nt seems almost dulled by the ease in wh ich he did it. While he did not grab the holeshot, he did take an early lead and then pulled away to a margin of ove r 25 seconds at the finish. Th is is typical Stewart , and as a resu lt most of the questio ns asked of him at the postrace supe rcross pres s conference cen tered on his graduation into the MARCH 10,2004 • C YCLE N EWS 250cc class next year. "I'm trying to win and have fun," Stewart said. "Beating the 250cc lap times isn't my number-one priority. I'm here to win, and I pre pare for that . I'm not taking anything for granted. Ne xt year will be diffe rent, and I'm trying to get prepared for that now by riding the East Coast tracks ." When Stewart does move up, his shoes loo k to be fil led by Suzuki's Broc He pler. The 17-year-old from Kittanning, Pennsylvania, claimed seco nd in Atlanta, mat ching his supercross de but performance from two weeks ago in Houston . "It feels great ," Hepler said. "I'm so happy to be doing so we ll. Last week, I wasn't on my game, but Ifelt great tonight." Heple r rode a smart, steady race during the I5-lap main, and while he was 40th Anniversary nowhere near Stewart's pace, secondplace finishes are quite an accomp lishment for a ro okie - especially when you' re racing against Stewart. The most sur pris ing res ult of the night was the thi rd- place finish turned in by Samsung/Radio Shac k Yamaha's Michael Blose . "I didn't eve n know I was in third:' said the Arizonan of his first career pod ium. "I was just out there riding my heart out. It's such an amaz ing feeling. I don't know wha t to say!" Blose is another in a line of Western Region ride rs who have switched to the East afte r so me disappo inting rides on their home coast. And he's riding much better here . "Because the team was so new, we