Talking point: It’s about time for supercross changes!
It’s the first major change in the supercross main event format for years – and it’s literally about time!
As great and accessible supercross is, the reality was that for the fan, you did not get great value for your money. Unless you went to the practice session which gave you an extra 30 minutes of the seeing the elite riders in action, you would only get to see the factory stars like Roczen, Tomac and Dungey for 5 minutes at the begging on the night and maybe 18 minutes at the end, and maybe even less if the track had a sub 50 second lap time. It was pot luck with the amount you saw the riders depending on the length of track the event you attended had.
Compare that to an MXGP event where you get two days worth of action for your money!
But now all the fans will be guaranteed a 15 minute 250 main event (plus one lap) and a 20 minute (plus one lap) 450 main event. Ok, you might only get to see two or three more laps in each race but it brings more consistency to the sport and gives the fans a bit more value for money.
It also adds an extra bit of fitness and concentration from the riders side of things. At times the 250 class was only a 12 minute race and the 450 class maybe 16 or 17 minutes. For the money these guys make it was a pretty easy way to earn your money compared to racing two days of MXGP! Now week-in, week-out the riders will be racing for 16 minutes in the 250 class and 21 minutes in the 450s (give or take a few seconds) – they will need their concentration to be on point for longer and in a heated battle the rider who works the hardest may see more of an advantage in the final couple of laps.
And that according to Sr. Director of Supercross Operations, Dave Prater, is the reason for the change. “We believe this change will bring the fitness element more into play and provide more excitement for our fans,” explained the man in charge.
A few people say it won’t change much, that the racing never usually comes down to the last couple of laps and it increases the risk of more backmarkers. But if gives the riders a bit more of a challenge and increases the value for money for the spectator then it is definitely the right thing to do. It probably should have been done years ago!
You can have a look at the schedule for round one at Anaheim here (the heats will have a timed format too):
The schedule for A1 with the timed races.
