What Really Happened: Steel City

09.06.2011 // 0 Comments

The problem with championships is that there can be only one champion. Most of the time, especially in motocross and supercross, there is one clear-cut guy who is just plain better than everyone else, and he wins. He’s the obvious champion.

But in the 2011 450cc AMA Pro Motocross Championships, there isn’t a clear champion. There won’t even be one after Pala. There will definitely be a champion, but an argument is easy to make for either Ryan that they deserve the title.

What Really Happened: Southwick

08.29.2011 // 4 Comments

Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey catches a fair amount of flack from fans and message-board types, and media for that matter, for not letting others “in”. What’s he really thinking? A lot of his answers in interviews tend to sound rather “canned” and it’s hard to figure out what’s going on inside his head sometimes.

What Really Happened: Unadilla

08.16.2011 // 0 Comments

Usually, when a factory team makes a pronouncement that they’re “unveiling the new (insert model year and model number here) early for this weekend’s event”, it seems like it’s usually just about boosting sales for the new bike. It might have new graphics, or a slightly different color combination or something, but the factory bikes are so incredibly different from the stock bikes that “model year to model year” changes usually don’t make a bit of difference.

What Really Happened: X Games 17

08.01.2011 // 3 Comments

This may not come as news to some of the more dedicated fans of two-wheel sport, but what really happened at X Games 17 is that we learned the difference between a competition and a popularity contest.

What Really Happened: Washougal

07.26.2011 // 9 Comments

What really happened at Washougal is that we learned both how much luck means in a sport like motocross, and to a degree that you really do make your own luck.

Honda’s Trey Canard is the definition of a competitor, and in a sport where it seems all of the racers at least go through a period of time of being “burnt out”, it seems like Canard has been motivated consistently throughout his career. Of course, it helps in this regard that he’s been hurt a fair bit, too.

What Really Happened: Millville

07.18.2011 // 2 Comments

Everyone’s talking about the performance Chad Reed put in at Millville this past weekend, and for good reason. Video footage of his insane crash just after he had taken the lead in the second 450 moto is all over the web and was featured prominently in the Speed broadcast of the race, and the fact [...]

What Really Happened: RedBud

07.04.2011 // 32 Comments

What really happened at RedBud is that we all got a lesson about what really matters in life, and motocross racing doesn’t. Not really. This past weekend we lost Josh Lichtle. Like most racers at any AMA National, Lichtle had been racing motocross since he was a little kid, and he and his family have been a staple in the motocross community for almost 20 years. Lichtle would’ve turned 24 next month. Reports say that Lichtle passed away this weekend from heat-related issues coming from racing at the RedBud National. And no matter how much anyone likes motocross, it’s not worth this. No sport is.

What Really Happpened: Lakewood

06.28.2011 // 0 Comments

However, what really happened in Colorado is that we learned that Blake Baggett is flat-out the fastest racer in the 250 class right now. Period.

What Really Happened: Budds Creek

06.20.2011 // 0 Comments

Fathers Day has a different significance to everyone, but when you’re a motocross racer, it’s usually about thanking your dad for doing what he did to get you to the point you are as a racer. But in modern years, there is an increasing number of motocross racers who are themselves fathers, so Fathers Day [...]

What Really Happened: High Point

06.13.2011 // 0 Comments

There are a lot of reasons why Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto was the favorite coming into the 2011 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship; he had just won the AMA Supercross title, he has a reputation as a motocross specialist, and he is in the best shape of his racing career. But after two [...]