Motocross Performance Magazine Canadian Motocross news leader
As the supercross world prepares for the final three rounds of the 2017 Monster Energy Supercross Series, all eyes will be on just two riders. With the beautiful Salt Lake City mountains in the background, these two warriors will take to the track on Saturday evening to continue their epic battle. As they head into Round 15 in scenic SLC, both Dungey and Tomac are tied in points in the 450SX class. When the gate drops on the main event, the skies are forecasted to be clear as fans will get to watch two of the sport’s elite athletes go head to head. Dungey vs. Tomac, KTM vs Kawasaki, one down-to-earth kid from Minnesota vs. an intense bred to win rider from Colorado. This has all of the makings of a Hollywood movie.
After a weekend off, can Ryan Dungey regroup and hold on the red plate that he now shares with Eli Tomac. Photo by Krystyn Slack
Considering these two riders couldn’t even find each other on the track during the opening few rounds of this series, it’s pretty incredible that they head into the final three rounds tied in points. With the early season’s dominant rider Ken Roczen crashing out at Round 3 in Anaheim, Ryan Dungey was quick to pounce and took over the points lead for the next three months. With wins in Anaheim and Atlanta, and top five finishes in each and every other round, Ryan Dungey appeared to be the rider to beat in the post-Roczen world of supercross. However, after some early season struggles with bike set-up and confidence, Eli Tomac found his groove ironically at Dungey’s hometown race in Minneapolis, and has since never looked back. Little by little and race by race, Tomac has relentlessly chipped away at his competitor’s points lead until it finally happened two weeks in Seattle. With a feverish charge to second place in the main event after a bad start, Tomac finally did what very few thought he could accomplish a few months ago; he caught Ryan Dungey in the points standings.
Since February, Eli Tomac has been doing nothing but winning races and chipping away at Dungey’s points lead. With three rounds now remaining, he and Dungey are now tied. Photo by Krystyn Slack
With races left in SLC, New Jersey, and Las Vegas, these final few rounds are just what the doctor ordered for our sport. With great attendance at each round, and television audience ratings at a record number, this 2017 Monster Energy Supercross Series will go down in history as one of the most exciting ever, regardless of the final outcome. For Dungey, this could be his final attempt at a SX title as there is much speculation that he will retire at the end of this year. For Tomac, this would be his first SX title, and with the way he is currently riding, this won’t be his last. With so much at stake and so many story lines, this is exactly what fans have been waiting for. Let’s all get comfortable and enjoy what will be a very exciting final three rounds. Are you team Dungey or are you team Tomac?
450 SX Points Standings (After 14 of 17 rounds)
1. Eli Tomac 294
2. Ryan Dungey 294
3. Marvin Musquin 252
4. Cole Seely 211
5. Jason Anderson 208
6. Blake Baggett 177
7. Davi Millsaps 176
8. Broc Tickle 158
9. Dean Wilson 147
10. Chad Reed 143
11. Josh Grant 125
12. Justin Brayton 112
13. Cooper Webb 99
14. Jake Weimer 89
15. Malcolm Stewart 80
16. Justin Bogle 74
17. Vince Friese 74
18. Justin Barcia 65
19. Mike Alessi 59
20. Ken Roczen 51
