Five Takeaways From Supercross Round 8 At Detroit
In years past we've recapped each Supercross race with a series of
questions posed to several of our Chaparral Motorsports employees
and industry insiders. This year we've decided to change things up
a bit and will be posing questions to you guys via our Facebook and
Instagram (@chaparralMoto) pages, so be sure to head over and give
us your thoughts on our questions. For our blog we are going to
give our insight on the Top Five Takeaways from each race. A mix of
highlights, lowlights, or just random observations; you'll get to
read what we saw, or what we thought we saw.
Editor's note: I have never raced dirt bikes, so I have no
personal experience as to the grit and grind these guys sacrifice
their bodies to week in and week out. But I love watching the races
and respect the hell out of each and every one of them for putting
their lives and livelihood on the line each and every time they
roll up to the starting line.
Green Machine Triple Crown Domination
In Detroit we were treated to the second Triple Crown event of the
season, the first for the 250 East series. And just like we saw at
Anaheim II, both the 250 and 450 classes were won by the same
manufacturer. However, this time instead of 250 and
450 KTM
riders holding up both trophies it was green Kawasaki riders Eli
Tomac for the 450 Monster Energy Kawasaki
Factory team and Austin Forkner for the 250 Monster Energy Pro
Circuit Kawasaki Team.
We nearly saw a clean sweep of the top podium spot from both riders
in all three main event's in their respective classes. While both
riders were extremely fast all night, they showed it in different
fashions. Forkner was fast out the gate every time and was pretty
much gone. Tomac on the other hand struggled with starts in the
first and third races and had to navigate his way through the pack.
Unfortunately he missed the first place sweep in the third race by
finishing 6th but was still able to scrape out the overall-thanks
to Ken Roczen.
Tomac Owes Roczen A Big Thank You
Aside from showing extreme determination all night, Tomac's 6th
place finish came by way of a little bit of luck. Once Webb took
the lead from Justin Barcia, and with Tomac sitting back in 7th, it
put Webb and Tomac tied at 9 points overall for the night.
With the
tie the finishing position of the final race would determine the
overall winner, and with Webb coming in first that would have given
the KTM rider his fifth win of the season and second Triple Crown.
But that's not how it played out. With 1:47 left Roczen
inadvertently took out Wilson which shuffled Tomac into 6th giving
him a one point advantage over Webb and the overall win. Tomac owes
Roczen a big thanks and at least a pat on the back to Wilson.
Forkner Is Freaking Fast!
Forkner is putting on a clinic this season! He is perfect for the
season so far going three for three in wins this
season--technically six for six if you count the three Triple Crown
races. By sweeping all three Triple Crown races Saturday night he
became the first rider to do so since the race format was
introduced into the Supercross series. How great was he on Saturday
night? He led EVERY SINGLE lap of the night except for the very
first lap in the first main. That's 41 out of 42 laps! But screw
that, let's look at the bigger picture. There have been 81 laps
ridden in the 250 East main events so far this season and he has
led 80 of them!!!!! So yeah he's fast!
Things are going to be very interesting when Forkner faces off with
his West Coast Pro
Circuit Kawasaki Teammate Adam Cianciarulo this coming Saturday
night for the East/West 250 Showdown in the ATL. Cianciarulo is
having a spectacular season as well winning three out of five races
so far and holding an eight point lead over Shane McElrath. Who
knows who will come out on top but more than likely those Mitch
Payton
KX250s are going to get a lot of air time Saturday night.
Forkner's Pixy Fuel
We were all treated to a rather odd sight immediately after Forkner
crossed the finish line for the first time Saturday night as he
appeared to be sucking down the contents of a Pixy Stix. For
athletes that spend so much time, money, and energy ensuring their
bodies are in pristine shape and capable of performing at super
hero like levels, to see a professional athlete pound straight
sugar was pretty intriguing.
It was
later confirmed by the commentators and Forkner himself that he was
relying on quick sugar highs to get him through the night.
With little time to refuel between races and the need for
concentrated burst of energy to keep him pumped for the next race
it was decided by his trainer and nutritionist that Pixy Stix were
a good solution. Pretty interesting. Question is, how many Pixy
Stix will we see in the pits next week?
Reed Rides To Familiar Territory
132 times Chad Reed has made it to the podium in his storied
career. He doesn't need to be out there punishing his body week in
and week out. He's already proven himself several times over and
accomplished goals that many will only dream of. But for a rider to
make a podium at 36 years old in a sport as grueling as Supercross
and have a big ear-to-ear smile on and celebrate like it's his
first time on the podium, he absolutely deserves to be out
there!
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