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/771039
VOL. 54 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 10, 2017 P113 narrowly lost to Jeff Emig in 1997, then won three more champion- ships on Yamaha, before Kawa- saki-mounted Ricky Carmichael unseated him in 2001. Honda brass had taken a lot of heat from the media when word came out that they had lost McGrath be- cause he refused to give up other recreational sports during the off-season. They took a whole bunch more flak when they hired Carmichael and his number-one plate away from long-time sponsor, Kawasaki, for 2002. I watched in amaze- ment and horror as Ricky, wear- ing a king's crown and robe, was lowered from the ceiling of the MGM Grand during the open- ing ceremonies of the 2001 US Open of Supercross, greeted by a deafening chorus of boos. It was a major PR miscalculation by the promoters, Honda and Ricky's team. It did not take long for RC to silence the critics, winning the Su- percross championship in 2002 and 2003, which was also the last time a Supercross championship was won on a Honda. When Car- michael had major knee surgery after getting hurt in the Nationals, Honda appeared to lose faith in their champion, and he signed with Suzuki, going on to win two more Supercross championships. Phew! Are you with me so far? Here are the ironic parts: Honda hired Roczen, who is well known for his participation in the same types of recreational activities that they would not let McGrath participate in. Best of all, they hired him away from a team owned by Ricky Carmichael, where he was riding Suzukis and had won an outdoor champion- ship. I guess what comes around, goes around—it will be interesting to see if Roczen or his teammate Cole Seely can get them out of their 14-year drought. Shane McElrath looked good out front in the 250 class and the championship will probably come down to a battle involving him, Plessinger and Jeremy Martin. I want to say that Austin Forkner will be in it, but I think his lack of supercross experience will hold him back. Lack of experience is certainly not what is holding back Phil Nicoletti, Kyle Chisholm or Martin Davalos. How it is that Davalos is still eligible to race in the 250 class is beyond me. I know that Filthy Phil and Chisholm were granted exemptions to al- low them to move down from the 450s, although I have to doubt the wisdom of both. Phil is very good on a 450 and Kyle seems too big for a 250, but hopefully they will do well. Eli Tomac suffered from a bad case of arm pump, which seemed strange when I heard that his dad, John, had been touting during the pre-race show that they had uncovered the secrets to ensur- ing adequate oxygen levels in the bloodstream and thus eliminating arm pump! Hey, I'm just para- phrasing what someone told me. Weston Peick looked fast, as did Seely, Anderson and Weimer. Of course Dungey looked great, especially in that Darth Vader grey outfit. Marvin Musquin was my pick to win and I am confident that if he wins a race, making him confi- dent, the sky is the limit for him. He is so good and so smooth; all he lacks is knowing he can win. Cooper Webb was a bit of a disap- pointment, but I did not expect much from him, because he gets bad starts. I sat down in the industry seat- ing, and during the 250 LCQ, two women in the seats in front of me started going crazy, root- ing for number-179, Jon Ames. They were so into it and their cheering was so infectious, that by the end of the four-lap race nearly everyone within a 30-foot radius was cheering for him! As it turned out, Jon is her son and this was his first supercross race. He finished third and his best friend, Zach Commans, finished fourth, holding off Scott Champion for the final transfer. It was refreshing and a wonderful reminder of the family aspect of our sport. Unfortunately, Ames crashed early in the main event and I was unable to find them afterwards when I got to the pits. I hope that he is all right and I can follow up in San Diego. In closing, everyone I spoke with throughout the evening is disappointed that the Stewarts are not racing and all are hopeful that James can find a way to get back out there, so he can go out in a manner befitting a champion and legend. CN