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/471913
CN III VOICES L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R "Unsurprisingly, the Motocross World Championships looks like a tough crowd." Announcing Woes I found watching the opening round of the MXGP Champi- onship to be an excruciating experience, not because of Ryan Villopoto's mediocre per- formance, which came as no surprise, but due to the combi- nation of a lackluster broadcast and a venue barely worthy of a hosting a camel race. The FIM and the syndicate behind the World Champion- ship aren't doing the fans, the sport, or the athletes any favors by choosing such an unsuit- able venue as the Losail Circuit in Qatar to be part of such a prestigious championship. My list of grievances with this event includes a totally uninspired ar- tificial track, dangerous lighting conditions, near-zero spectator attendance, and absolute-zero relevance between the sport of motocross and the culture of the host country. From their expressions on camera, it seemed to me as though the riders were just going through the motions to put this race be- hind them and move on to the continent where the champion- ship will be decided. Back to Villopoto's unimpres- sive overall result—anyone pay- ing attention to results of the MX of Nations over the last de- cade already knows that even the top Americans have their work cut out for them against the best GP riders when racing on foreign soil. I believe it will take several rounds (if not most of the season) before Villopoto adjusts to the tracks and the competition on the MXGP cir- cuit—by which time it may well be too late for him to emerge as a serious contender—but my biggest concern is whether I can endure a full season of such lame broadcast quality to find out. Greg Baumann Via the Internet I can't believe how bad the announcers for the World Superbike Championship are. I will immediately cancel my subscription to BEINSports. My question is: can't WSBK chip in for the pay of the two guys who made it the premier road racing show on TV? Maybe I will watch American road racing again, because my favorite show on all of TV has been ut- terly destroyed. Larry Higbee Via the Internet Qatar And Villopoto Maybe it was just the camera angles or the video streaming quality, but the track looked pretty easy, so it's not surpris- ing that everyone was able to run the same pace on it. The lighting looked terrible and the whole thing looked pretty em- barrassing for what should be a world-class event. Once they get to a real motocross track, Villopoto might have a better go of it. This race didn't look like anything to judge the field by. Richard Erik Carter Via the Internet I thought the track was a joke, but the bottom is it was the same for everyone. RV stalling at the gate didn't help, either. No excuses, though, he just didn't ride well, maybe next week will be better. James Bunn Unsurprisingly, the Motocross World Championships looks like a tough crowd. I don't know what Ryan Villopoto's expecta- tions were, but I'm sure he's disappointed. Hopefully it only motivates him to work harder to adapt to the new series and run up front. Lance Holst Backing Reed This letter is directed to Kim Palmer (Voices issue 8): Did we all forget that boneheaded move by Trey Canard landing on top of Chad Reed? Not Me! That little love tap Reed gave Canard for being so stupid and possibly ending both their sea- sons careers, was nothing. Reed has already paid his penance for it by being DQ'ed and losing all points for that race. Get over it. Will Mansfield Via the Internet Letters to the editor can be sent to voices@cyclenews.com. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News. Letters should not exceed 150 words and are subject to editing. Anonymous letters won't be considered for publication and each letter should contain the writer's name, address and daytime phone number… Editor P16