We understand that James Stewart won his heat race at the opening round of the 125 East Region Supercross last Saturday evening in Houston while his Kawasaki 125cc two-stroke was stuck in third gear for most of the race. That is a pretty amazing accomplishment . . . even for Stewart. If you have ever ridden a 125cc two-stroke motocross bike, you understand how narrow its powerband is. Even with all six gears available (Hondas and Yamaha’s have only five gears), heavy use of the clutch is generally required to exit a corner quickly. Being in the correct gear is critical on a 125, particularly, when you have a large jump to clear coming out of a corner.
This heat race win (he won the main event that same evening, of course, with his transmission working correctly), illustrates just how far Stewart is ahead of the competition he is facing in the 125cc class this year. When Suzuki’s Davi Millsaps makes his debut next Saturday evening, perhaps Mr. Stewart will have a bit more competition. Stewart will win the race, of course, but Millsaps is a prodigy in his own right. It should be interesting to watch.
