Okay, so that title may be a bit misleading. It may turn out to be another Stewart/Reed slugfest with every other rider half a lap back, but there is potential for other riders to mix it up this year.
Reed (Kawasaki) and Stewart (Yamaha) are both past champions, of course, with Stewart taking the championship last year in a close battle with Reed that went down to the final race. As we pointed out in an earlier article, although Stewart is not changing teams, both he and Reed are aboard all-new machines this year — Reed having switched to Kawasaki and Stewart aboard the radical YZ450F. Reed’s teammate will be Ryan Villopoto, a past Lites champion who beat Stewart at the final round of the AMA Supercross series last year in Las Vegas. Moving up to the 450 class this year, and a student, of sorts, of all-time great Ricky Carmichael is Ryan Dungey for Suzuki.
Although Dungey and Villopoto, among others, could potentially mix it up with Reed and Stewart, one would have to expect that Reed and Stewart will again dominate the series. Stewart started in a hole last year after an unfortunate first race, but then reeled off seven straight victories to take the series points lead and, eventually, the championship. Reed, who is not only a past champion, but also the most experienced Supercross rider in the field this year, is certainly hungry to avenge his loss to Stewart last year, and impress his new employer. The action begins tomorrow evening in Anaheim, California.
