Cycle News

VOL. 52 ISSUE 2 JANUARY 13, 2015 P117 in fourth after a rough second round that saw him work from 17th to eighth, as part of a snarl- ing pack of fast riders. In a field as evenly matched as this one, a bad start can spell disaster. Mix- ing it up in midpack increases the chance of injury, something no- body needs, least of all Trey. Ca- nard is a contender and will win races, but his epic choke at the Monster Energy Cup does cast some doubt on his performance under pressure. Canard's factory Honda teammate, Cole Seely, is a dark-horse threat to win on any night. I expect him to win at least one round this season. Things should be more comfort- able at KTM for Ryan Dungey now that Roczen has defected. He's clearly the number one guy there, with Dean Wilson riding shotgun. I'm a little shocked that Wilson got that ride, based on his unimpres- sive results on an open bike last season. Dungey, currently sec- ond in points, will need to step up his game, especially in the pass- ing department. He still seems tentative, which probably is a fac- tor in his consistency, but I believe it hurts him more than it helps. In Phoenix, he danced with Weston Peick for quite awhile before he finally passed him, then left him- self open for a punt attempt, had Peick chosen to do so. Speaking of Peick, Coach Joe Gibbs (Peick's JGRMX team owner) has to be thinking that is the best money he's spent since 1982, when he coaxed running back John Riggins out of retire- ment and back to the Redskins, where he was named MVP of Su- perbowl XVII (Redskins 27, Dol- phins 17). Peick backed up a sol- id seventh at the season opener with a stunning fourth place on Saturday night and is fifth in the point standings. The longtime journeyman privateer looked re- markably comfortable and blaz- ingly fast on the JGRMX Yamaha, but I cannot say the same about his teammate, Justin Barcia, who sits in eighth after mediocre fin- ishes in the first two rounds. The jury is still out on whether the former Honda wunderkind can deliver the results his stellar ama- teur career promised. Probably the biggest surprise has been the rides put in by rook- ie 450 rider, Jason Anderson, on the newly formed Rockstar En- ergy Husqvarna team. The iconic Husky brand was pulled up out of the ashes by its adoptive parent company, KTM, and given a new lease on life. Anderson shocked everyone with a second at Ana- heim, and then came from 14th to sixth in Phoenix, leaving him third in points, just one behind Dungey. Other riders to watch are An- drew Short who is riding as well as I've ever seen him ride, and Jake Weimer. Weimer seems much more relaxed in the Ted- der Kawasaki camp after a few years in the shadow of Villopoto at factory Kawasaki. Speaking of which, Davi Millsaps managed a fifth in Phoenix, but hasn't shown the spark that he had while win- ning the Monster Energy Cup last October. Davi can never be counted out for a win. So, what about Chad Reed? It's safe to say that Reed is not pleased with his two 10th-place finishes, but can he do anything about it? In a world where a rider is only as good as his last race, the general consensus is that Father Time has stepped in and said "No mas" to Reed's latest comeback from serious injury. Many people believe that the two time Supercross Champion should pack it in. They may be right, but I don't think so. Reed might not have another Championship in his bag of tricks, but a few more wins would not surprise me one bit. Look, Chad Reed hates to lose more than any- one I have ever known, besides Ricky Carmichael. I've sat three feet away from both of those guys at press conferences and seen them have tears of anger after finishing second! Any normal per- son would be thrilled with second. Just the fact that Reed is putting up his own money to field a team so that he can race tells me that he feels he has some wins in him. He knows better than anyone what it takes to win, because he's done it more than all the other rid- ers combined! And that's good enough for me. CN

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