2009 Lites Outdoor Preview

What do you get when you mix hot sun, tons of skin and even more tattoos? The answer is the "AMA Pro Lucas Oil Motocross Championship."

This year int he 250 division might just be as good as it gets. There is a large group of riders who have not only potential to win races, but the championship as well. With the list of guys ready to do battle we will all bein for a little treat this summer.

My favorite this summer is going to be Ryan Dungey. Dungey is on a good bike and with the guidance of DeCoster he looks primed to finally step up and take it to the next level. The only problem he will have is the ten other guys with a title shot. Yes I said it, ten!

Runner up is going to be a close one. I do believe that when the final race rolls along both second and third in points will have a shot at winning the title that day. 2nd will be Christophe Pourcel despite the fact that this will be his first time around the circuit and will eventually be what keeps him just off the top step in the end. Pourcel is a world-class athlete and his story at this point should be up in the most prestigious sporting awards you can get. The question will be is Christophe fit enough to last the whole summer? I believe he will be close, but just short.

Third and just a few points short of his other rivals will be Tyla Rattray. I actually think that Tyla will lead the early part of the series, but a few mistakes mid way through will cost him. I have been following him since he was just breaking onto the seen back in 2000 and almost ten years later he is finally getting his big break. I will also remind you one more time that I believe that he will have a shot at the title at the last round.

Tommy Searle another Euro transplant looks to America for triumph in 2009. His weakness appears to be his team at this point. I am not sure about the current management structure, but something needs to change. They have the riders, they have the resources, but they still lack the discipline to mold their riders into champions. These two remind me of when Grant Langston and Mike Brown both came back from GP's, both being offered the same rides just off a championship GP battle to the end.

So I am sure most of you are now scoffing and laughing thinking about all the other guys that have a shot and who the surprises of the summer will be. Let's first start off with the surprise of the summer with Justin Barcia. The only thing is the closer we get, the more I hear about how it won't be much of a surprise. Barcia's teammate Blake Wharton looks primed for a win this summer and appears to have a early start to a good career.

Then you have the small enigma of the rest of the Pro Circuit team. How could I not consider them a threat? Simple, their teammates will be stronger mentally. I know Stroupe will be the fastest on the track most of the time. To win races and keeping it on the earth, both the wheels and his head, will be a test. Jake Weimer could have a head of steam if he wins the West Coast Championship, but I am not putting to much money if any on him winning the outdoor title.

This still leaves us with Nico Izzi and Jason Lawrence. Two kids who are supposed to be title contenders, but both had Lites seasons they would rather forget. I hope both rebound and have good summers. Lawrence has proved worth on the big bike so I am sure his drum is pounding a little bit. Izzi on the other hand needs to get going quick. There are a few younger kids ready to go and when budgets tighten up again he could be looking from the outside in.

We will stay with the theme of riders hoping to have a new start to a season and we can add poor Brett Metcalf. Brett has a new ride and a couple of rookies nipping at his heels. Brett has been primed to step up and take a championship and if he doesn't break a bone in his body he may have a chance. I think Brett will start off strong, but sputter a bit in the end. It is a long season and for a guy like him it always seems to catch up to him.

If we are going to talk about Brett then we must talk about another Honda, Trey Canard. Yet another rider who spent some time on his head, but for him it was probably a little hard to take. After winning the East Lites title his rookie year, it set the bar high and everything that comes with being a defending champion. If Trey can match the experience of some seasoned competitors he could be an outside threat for a win here or there.

Other honorable mentions for podiums could be Will Hahn the MDK KTM rider. Hahn's teammate Martin Davalos has shown the speed in the past, but his ability to keep it together is holding him back. He keeps referring to himself as a young guy just learning and it is getting kind of old.

Ryan Morais has had a good season so far in Supercross, but he himself admits he has a uphill climb this summer. The good news for him is that he has a Mitch Payton tuned missile and all the reasons to win. I grew up racing with Ryan so it would be great to see a Central California guy to well.

At this point I am sure I am leaving out at least five guys who should be top ten, but then my already top ten doesn't work so don't do like me and chase your tale. In all reality this seems to be the widest open a championship has been in a while.

There is some new changes to the series including the 250's running after the 450's and all the races going to Saturdays. The TV package has the riders on live national TV so all the ingredients are mixing well. When the gate drops this may in California one thing is for sure, the cream always rises to the top.

Lawrence to CAS Honda

Supercross to Spring Break

Welcome back race fans! Well this weekend came and went much in the way I thought it would. This cat and mouse points championship is coming right down to the end with Reed still leading by eight. Stewert rode sharp all night and despite a few near misses he came away showing he is still the man to beat.
In the Lites division Christophe Pourcel capped off a championship run with a huge exclamation mark. He rode hard and determined all night, while his other potential title contenders crashed or started slow. This has to be one of the better comeback stories of all time. I am really happy for Christophe.
The real story through out the whole night seemed to be what the track was going to do. You could see that the Lites guys had a little better time at it early in the night, but the Supercross guys were tiptoeing by the end of the night. The question I kept asking myself is how does this still happen. Is it really that hard to find better dirt for a top-notch race like a Supercross?
Now the series turns to the south and we can see if we get some good sun block racing as I like to call it. The series comes to a new venue in Jacksonville and right in the heart of spring break. I am hoping we see some good dirt, good racing and most importantly a continuing championship battle when it is all said and done.
Good job to Josh Hill for really pushing hard this weekend. I have always liked him and it is great to see him up front. This year has proven that sixth through twelfth can be a real toss up.
I will finish with a back up statement to how I felt last week in terms of the championship. If Reed waits for James to make a mistake and hand it to him again he will lose. Chad must finish ahead of James at least once to win it. He doesn't have to win, just finish ahead of him in one of the remaining races.

Clip of the Day

Nitro to an M-80 in a Single Night.

Wow what a weekend! First the expected unexpected mistakes of James, wild Pastrana riding, a great track and best of all an exciting race. Chad Reed came into the race with the point’s lead and left with a bigger one. Stewert who struggled to keep it on two wheels all night all but handed the win to Reed falling in the lead of the main event. Not to take anything away from Chad, but James still gave it to him by making silly mistakes playing right into Reed's strategy.

But can this really be a good strategy for Reed? On one Chad has the lead of the majority of the series even thought James has shown his superior speed to Reed's by easily accumulating more wins. Still every time we come to the weekend I feel the series is James to win or loose.

James on the other hand is riding as if he is fifty points down every lap and unfortunately this has really bitten him this year and dumped a bag full of points in Reed's lap. If James can wise up and realize the pressure is still on Reed he will win the championship. If Reed sits back and waits for it to come to him, I believe he will lose. Either way we will see the true colors come through starting this weekend in Toronto.

If James (385) wins the rest if the races and Chad (381) gets second Stewert every time he will lose four points. At least at this point we know they are racing for four points and I myself can't wait.

Once again Jason Lawrence rode a smart race and put his bike in the top five again. There is no question at this point he is here to stay in Supercross on a big bike. The real question is the most fundamental one and that is can he stay on the right track. This is going to be interesting to see what the factories do after this summer and budgets continue to shrink.

As for this weekend all one can hope for is the same racing we have been treated to for the last month. Track looks good aven though the Toronto dirt always plays a wild card. It if ruts up bad it could still resemble the Nitro Circus just minus Travis and his pet monkeys.

MotoGP goes to Bulgaria

The following is from Dorna...

The new five year deal, which will take MotoGP to Bulgaria from 2012 to 2016, was signed in Sofia by Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta and the President of the Bulgarian Motorcycle Federation Bogdan Nikolov, in the presence of the Chairman of the Bulgarian Grand Prix Organizing Committee Rumen Petkov and the President of the Bulgarian State Agency for Youth and Sports Vessela Letcheva. Following the press conference, an additional meeting was held between Carmelo Ezpeleta and the Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev to further discuss the project.

Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta commented, "This is the first step in bringing MotoGP to Bulgaria, which is an exciting project for us. The Bulgarian government demonstrated great interest in bringing a Grand Prix here and it will be an important development for us, having never staged a race here before. We are highly confident in Bulgaria's ability to host and organise Grands Prix efficiently and safely."

The meeting in Sofia also saw the announcement that Bulgarian free-to-air national broadcasters BNT will have exclusive live television rights to the FIM MotoGP World Championship from 2009, which will see all MotoGP races broadcast live in Bulgaria.

First Practice from WSBK and guess who is on top

Pos. Rider Team Bike Time
1 Ben Spies Yamaha World Superbike Yamaha YZF R1 1:32.752
2 Max Neukirchner Suzuki Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1:32.813
3 Leon Haslam Stiggy Racing Honda Honda CBR1000RR 1:33.015
4 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki Alstare Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 1:33.077
5 Laconi Regis DFX Corse Ducati 1098R 1:33.140
6 Noriyuki Haga Ducati Xerox Team Ducati 1098R 1:33.239
7 Shinya Nakano Aprilia Racing Aprilia RSV4 1:33.280
8 Michel Fabrizio Ducati Xerox Team Ducati 1098R 1:33.371
9 Roberto Rolfo Stiggy Racing Honda Honda CBR1000RR 1:33.433
10 Broc Parkes Kawasaki World Superbike R.T. Kawasaki ZX 10R 1:33.496
11 Ryuichi Kiyonari Ten Kate Honda Racing Honda CBR1000RR 1:33.508
12 Jonathan Rea HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR1000RR 1:33.695
13 Tom Sykes Yamaha World Superbike Yamaha YZF R1 1:33.747
14 Makoto Tamada Kawasaki World Superbike R.T. Kawasaki ZX 10R 1:33.835
15 Tommy Hill HANNspree Honda Althea Honda CBR1000RR 1:33.845
16 Jakub Smrz Guandalini Racing Ducati 1098R 1:33.901
17 Max Biaggi Aprilia Racing Aprilia RSV4 1:33.909
18 Shane Byrne Team Sterilgarda Ducati 1098R 1:33.991
19 Carlos Checa HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Honda CBR1000RR 1:34.012
20 Troy Corser BMW Motorrad Motorsport BMW S1000 RR 1:34.201