McThoughts: Dallas SX – 250 West
By Jeff McConkey
The final 250 West round before the annual East Coast break went off this past Saturday. Going in, Pro Circuit’s Joey Savatgy had a slim 3-point lead over Cooper Webb. In the main, all the 3 race winners from 2016 were all up front ready to put on a great race. Disaster struck red plate holder Savatgy when the leader Christian Craig crossed over on him in the whoops, causing a spectacular crash. It was just a racing incident, but it may cost Savatgy a chance at this championship. The track looked very slippery and one-lined in spots which made passing difficult. Savatgy was able to remount in 22nd and put in a very impressive passing spree to salvage a 10th and hopefully keep him in the title hunt. Let’s take a look at the results and see my thoughts.
250 West
1st Cooper Webb: Cooper may have gotten a little gift when Craig crossed over in the whoops and Savatgy went down. He lucked out when he was able to avoid Savatgy and his bike. It was nice to see him stay calm and stalk Craig for a few laps instead of pressing to make a pass. He now heads into the break with an 11-point lead.
#1W Cooper Webb. ~ It’s a Spikman!
2nd Christian Craig: Craig looked real good out front, but I still don’t think he has the fitness of Webb or Savatgy. Hopefully, he doesn’t cool off too much during this long break.
3rd Zach Osborne: I think Zach rode well, but I really don’t think he is going to get a win this year. He looks so good all day long and dominates his heat races, but just doesn’t seem to have the magic in the main.
#16 Zach Osborne. ~ Bigwave photo
4th Colt Nichols: Who’s going to sign this guy for next season? His top 5’s are no fluke and he is riding great. There are quite a few guys with factory rides that should be shaking in their boots, as Nichols is on everyone’s radar.
5th Mitchell Oldenburg: This is where I think we should see Mitchell every week. As his fitness improves, he will be able to hang it out more and show us that crazy speed of his.
#42 Mitchell Oldenburg. ~ Bigwave photo
6th Alex Martin: This is a ride that Alex has needed. He has had a rough few rounds, so hopefully the break in the schedule will give him some time to get back on track.
7th Jimmy Decotis: Jimmy didn’t get the start in the main he wanted. He was 13th and a had a pretty nice ride to get to 7th on a slippery track that was very hard to pass on.
#58 Jimmy Decotis. ~ Bigwave photo
8th Chris Alldredge: Not a bad ride for Alldredge, but with his deal being up at the end of the year, and his results lacking, he really needs top 5’s and a podium.
9th Kyle Peters: You can pretty much count on Peters to finish inside the top 10, every time out. He is very consistent and riding well. I’m curious to see how he’d end up with a holeshot or a top 3 start.
#40 Kyle Peters.
10th Joey Savatgy: Joey got the start he needed and I thought he was going to get around Craig, until he had a very hard get off in the whoops. Craig crossed over on Joey in a pure racing incident causing Joey and his bike to hit the dirt hard. I was very impressed how far back through the pack Joey was able to come to salvage a 10th at the checkers.
Biggest Stud: My stud is Colt Nichols. This guy goes out every week and gets it done, and there isn’t a whole lot of talk about him.
Biggest Stud: #69 Colt Nichols. ~ Spikman photo
Biggest Dud: No dud for me this week. Maybe I’m getting soft in my old age
Biggest Surprise: Joey Savatgy making it back to 10th was a surprise. Most guys would have packed it in. He made a lot of passes on a track that didn’t offer many different lines.
Cole Thompson Watch: Cole qualified 10th, started 9th and finished 17th after going down.
That’s it for the West until March as the East Coast 250 riders take over. Thanks for reading, see you in the ATL.
