Motocross Performance Magazine Canadian Motocross news leader
Good day and welcome to the first Yamaha Motor Canada Monday Gate Drop of 2020. Yes, a brand new decade is upon us and with it the beginning of another entertaining Monster Energy Supercross Series. With yet another opening round in Anaheim now complete, Damon Bradshaw brought it to everyone’s attention yesterday on Social Media that a Yamaha mounted rider has won the first supercross of each decade. Mike Bell in 1980, Bradshaw in 1990, Jeremy McGrath in 2000, James Stewart in 2010, and now Justin Barcia in 2020. I think that’s pretty cool so congratulations to the Blu Cru!
Other than a small mistake while leading the main event, Justin Barcia looked great all night long. Photo by James Lissimore
So let’s start off with the news that everyone is talking about….Anaheim 1. Just as it does each year, this event always brings a ton of hype with it through the gates of Angel Stadium. For three decades now the Anaheim SX has been the biggest race on the calendar for fans of our sport and 2020 was no different. Just like any sport’s season opener, watching the riders line up at the starting gate with a clean slate is always very cool. Like most, I watched the race on television and one of my favourite parts of the night was observing the riders as they’re sitting on the gate waiting for the cue to start their bikes for the first main event of the season. The nerves, the anticipation, the uncertainty of what is about to unfold, to me this is the essence of the sport. Obviously, the riders on the starting line at A1 are at a very high level, but I’m quite sure that every rider has had these feelings whenever the first race of the season comes along. As we witnessed on Saturday night, those riders that could block out the nerves the best were able to get themselves to the front, on the hard to pass Anaheim 1 track. I thought that both main events lived up to their pre-race billing. The hype was definitely real at Angel Stadium.
After a rough day filled with crashes, Austin Forkner pulled it together and almost won the 250 main event. Photo by James Lissimore
In the 250 class, Kawasaki rider Austin Forkner- who up until the main event was having a very challenging day, got out front early and appeared poised to take the first win of the 2020 season. Now, whether he got a little tight when he wasn’t able to shake the tenacious Justin Cooper, or whether the soft A1 track got the better of him? But with win in sight, Forkner made a big error and ran into a Tuff block on the side of one of the rhythm section. It was a mistake that we’re used to seeing on a rutted Eastern track which are typically a lot softer then most of the Western tracks. But with all of the rain that the Anaheim area has had during the past month, the A1 track was a little softer then it normally is. After Forkner got cross-rutted and ran into the Tuff block, Cooper and Ferrandis went by and then Forkner compounded his mistake by cutting across to the next section of track, missing an entire corner. Although he was awarded third right after the race, later Forkner was docked two positions and ended up fifth. Considering Forkner he’s coming back from a very serious knee injury, a Top 5 finish isn’t bad for the opening round, especially considering that he showed that his speed is good enough to win. Up front though, it was a Yamaha freight train as Cooper held on to take his first ever SX main event win. His teammate Ferrandis was second, and Geico Honda rider Christian Craig was awarded third overall. This series is going to be very entertaining as there doesn’t appear too be much separating Cooper, Ferrandis and Forkner.
It was great to see Justin Cooper take his first ever SX win at Round 1 in Anaheim. Photo by James Lissimore
Even before his big win on Saturday night I was a big fan of Justin Cooper. When I saw him race for the first time at the Baja Brawl a few years ago I was very impressed. So impressed that I made sure to go up and introduce myself and try and convince him to come to Canada to race our Nationals. I even mentioned his name to Andy White and Kevin Tyler and I believe that KT reached out to Justin about riding for the MX101 Team. Cooper obviously declined as he wanted to finish out his amateur career the following year in the USA under the watch of the Star Racing Yamaha Team. Looking back, I’d say that he made the correct decision, however it sure would’ve been cool to see him race a summer in Canada. Watching him ride at Baja made me an instant fan and I’m happy to see him find success in the pro class. I’m not sure if it’s his New York State upbringing, or the fact that at 22 years old he’s a little more mature than most, I don’t know, but he seems to be just a hard working, low maintenance rider that gets the job done. Hopefully this A1 win gives him that little bit of extra confidence needed to win some more races.
Adam Cianciarulo rode very smooth on Saturday night in his first ever 450SX main event. Photo by James Lissimore
The 450 class was a little more complicated as the main event is longer and the track had deteriorated that much more. With so much talk about Barcia riding a YZ450 than is more stock than ever before, you really have to wonder if his win at A1 is a sign of things to come? Has Yamaha found the perfect bike-set that allows Barcia to ride the way he wants? Although I’m still not sold that he would’ve caught Cianciarulo and repassed him if Adam had not made a mistake, but a win is a win and Barcia did look very comfortable. For his first ever 450 SX, Cianciarulo also looked great all day and if it wasn’t for losing traction on the face of that small triple and coming up short, the win would’ve been his. Moving forward to this weekend in St Louis and beyond, I don’t see why Cianciarulo won’t continue to ride the way he did at A1 as he just looks completely in control. Ken Roczen also looked good in the main event, although he let everyone know on Social Media that they went real stiff on his suspension set-up and that made him struggle in the main event. As you may recall, over the past few seasons Roczen has been notorious for liking his bike to be on the soft side. This gives him the feel he wants through the turns, but it left his bike open to bottoming out and sinking too far into the ruts. If Roczen can find a balance that he likes then look out as his riding appears to be great right now. One rider that didn’t look very interested in making his mark at the opening round was Eli Tomac. His 7th place finish lacked a little polish of someone who considers themselves a title favourite. Obviously, Tomac knows it’s a long series and it’s better to play it safe in the opening few rounds, but nothing can kill a riders confidence then your young teammate stealing all of your glory. Just think how excited the Kawasaki Team would’ve been with Cianciarulo’s ride on Saturday and how much deju-vu they would’ve felt with Tomac’s ride. As we’ve witnessed in the past though, Tomac could come back this weekend in St Louis and dominate. Also, how impressive was Cooper Webb’s ride in the main event? After getting sick in the days leading up to the race Webb had to dig deep in the main event and held on for an incredible third overall. As for everyone else, I’m sure they were all happy to make it through Round 1 in one piece.
Even though Chad Reed didn’t show up to A1 with his A game, he still qualified for the main event and made his 250th start. Photo by James Lissimore
Well that is the opening round in a nut-shell. It was a great race to watch and I might be part of the minority, but I actually enjoyed listening to the new broadcast team. I thought RC was much improved over last year with his race analysis, and even though Ralph Shehenn’s replacement is only with us for three rounds, I like his knowledge of the sport and how he articulated what was happening. I loved it when he said that he announced Chad Reed’s first ever pro race back in Australia in 1998. If SX wanted to really shake things up then they should’ve called Mark Travers and offer him a few races. I mean, who doesn’t miss Travs? So it’s on to St Louis where Saturday’s weather is calling for a high of 2c and light snow. Thankfully it’s an indoor stadium and in recent weeks it has been dry in the area, so the dirt should still be up to it’s usual St Louis SX standard. Happy New Year and if you live in the Calgary area, don’t forget about the Motorcycle Show this weekend. Have a great week and thank-you for reading.
The track for Round 2 in St Louis looks like it will be very entertaining.
