Throughout the first two rounds of the Lucas Oil Motocross Championship we have seen a number of top off-road racers come out to see where they stand amongst the best motocross racers in the world.  Though most of these “off-roaders” have had motocross careers in the past they have now moved onto the WORCS series or other off road series such as the GNCC.  The simple fact is, these guys are no push overs on the track and, on any given day, can put it to some of the best MX riders in the country.

The biggest name to have shown up over the last two rounds has to be Mike Brown. Brown came out swinging at Glen Helen when he ripped an awesome start in the first moto to edge out the holeshot king himself, Mike Alessi.  He then ran up front for most of the moto and was extremely impressive in showing that he still has what it takes to put in results.  Brown finished 7th overall at the first round of the outdoor series - he was looking to finish in the top 5.  We were looking forward to seeing him at Hangtown this weekend but he was a no show, Brownie is probably out training and staying focused on his current lead in the WORCS series.

Ricky Dietrich is a huge name in the off-road world as well and was the early favorite to win the WORCS title this year.  Whether it be on a motocross track or navigating the terrain of a gnarly works loop, this dude flat out flies. Early on it looked as if he was going to put it to some of these motocrossers, as he qualified 13th fastest at Glen Helen.  The first moto went well for Ricky as he finished an impressive 12th, but his second moto was plagued with inconsistency and bad luck. He finished 31st for 18th overall, not bad, but not what he was looking for, either.  Dietrich has won the most races (3) in the WORCS series but still sits one point behind Brown due to inopportune bad luck and inconsistency. Dietrich too was a no show this weekend at Hangtown.

Bobby Bonds might have had the biggest upside to his motocross career. After being signed to the prestigious Pro Circuit Kawasaki team and being named motocross/supercross rookie of the year in 2001, Bonds was tagged as "the next big thing." However, he was red flagged early on in his carrier by the factories due to a string of injuries.  It just goes to show how quickly things can come to an end in this sport, one year you are the badest dude on the track and the next everything is gone.  Bonds still had the passion to race, though. After taking time to heal he slowy began competing in more and more off-road races until finally winning the WORCS series title last year. Bobby came out to show that he can still roll on a motocross track but had a rough time at Glen Helen as he was unable to finish either moto.  He took a swing at it again this weekend at Hangtown, the same track where he saw his motocross career come spiraling down 2005 when he and Grant Langston came together while battling for the lead; this pretty much ended Bonds motocross career.  He came out looking strong and was the top off-road guy finishing 13-19 for 21st overall, but we are sure he was looking for better results.  Bonds has a lot on his plate as he is currently trying to defend his number 1 plate in the WORCS series and is currently sitting in 3rd, 11 points down of points leader Mike Brown.

JCR's Timmy Weigand is also a guy that had a solid motocross/supercross carrier that made the switch to the off-road world but still likes to get out with the boys on the motocross track.  Timmy was on the gas at Glen Helen. He battled his way into 13th in moto 1 but hit the ground and fell back to 19th, a solid ride nonetheless.  He put the hammer down in the second moto and put his JCR Honda in 15th for 18th overall.  Timmy came out to Hangtown this weekend, as well, stating, “it is good to ride with faster guys to see where you are at” he went on to say “being out here with these guys makes me push myself.”  Hangtown wasn’t so good to Weigand as he did not feel good going into practice stating, “I didn’t sleep well and woke up with a headache, I didn't feel good in practice and just wasn't feeling it”.  He went out in moto 1 and hit the ground finishing in 32nd, being that he has a big race next weekend (the Baja 500) he decided to sit out the second moto saying “I have the Baja 500 next weekend, and that is what I need to be focused on.  I didn’t need to be out riding not feeling 100% and chance getting hurt”.  Timmy won the Baja 250 and is also sitting 5th in the points chase in the WORCS series.

Kyle Summers has not been on the scene for long but he has already made a name for himself in the WORCS series.  Summers is going to be a name to keep an eye on. He went into the opening round on a high note after running up front at the 4-stroke national at Glen Helen just a few weeks prior to the first round of the outdoor nationals.  If he can figure out how to keep a consistent pace throughout the race he can be one to run up front. Kyle went 31 - 18 for 24th overall at Glen Helen and backed it up with a 25 - 39 for 34th overall at Hangtown. Last year Summers put himself inside the top ten at the first night race in Colorado after some insane battles with Tim Ferry. Look for more of the same this year as the series heads back to Summers home state in a few weeks.

Maybe the most gifted rider out of all of these guys is Bobby Garrison. Before Bobby got hurt last year he was looking solid in the WORCS series along with all the nationals that he competed in. However, Bobby just does not look to be 100% from the shoulder injury that he ran into last year.  Garrison is a gifted rider and if he ever makes a 100% recovery this kid could do some damage!  He has already made improvements throughout the year in the WORCS series but still has a little ways to go if he wants to be the Bobby Garrison of old.  Bobby did not make it into the motos at Glen Helen but came back out to the second round and finished 25th overall.

There were three other off road guys to take a shot at a national; Justin Soule, who is currently running 4th in the overall points standings.  Soule is fast and a lot of his fellow WORCS competitors were surprised that he and Taylor Robert did not qualify for the motos.  The last of the WORCS riders was Kawasaki’s Robby Bell who did not make it into the motos, either.

While the assault the off-road world has made on motocross has not set the world on fire, if you take into account that they spend less time testing bike set up, less time riding motocross and less time training for the brutal 30 min + two lap motos, they've done a damn fine job. Brown, Dietrich, Weigand, Summers and Bonds all showed that they can roll when given the chance.  Brown put it to a number of the factory guys and proved what you can do with a good start.  These off-road racers do not get the credit they deserve. They are fast and run a blistering pace for 2 hours, I am sure if Mike Alessi, Josh Grant, Chad Reed, or any of the other guys came out to a WORCS race the results wouldn't be the same.  If you have not seen a WORCS race or a GNCC go out and check some of these guys out, you will not regret it!