Grant Langston admitted that even he was surprised to be back in title contention after scoring zero points in the second round of the AMA Motocross Championship presented by FMF, but as the series moves to round four in Budds Creek on June 19, the gritty South African finds himself up to second in the 125cc standings to rival Mike Brown.
While Langston and Brown are set for another showdown in the 125s, Ricky Carmichael is off to another great start in the 250 series. Even though he lost a moto for the first time in nearly two years last week in Massachusetts, the five-time 250 champ just keeps winning in spite of a much ballyhooed challenge from Kawasaki’s young star James Stewart, which so far hasn’t fully materialised. Yamaha’s Chad Reed, however, is keeping Carmichael honest by beating the reigning champ in moto one last week.
Langston’s victory in the opening round in Sacramento last month proved to be a costly one. He made a last ditch effort to pass leader Mike Alessi on the final turn, but lost control of his Monster Energy Drink/Pro Circuit Kawasaki and both riders crashed.
Even though Langston was able to remount his bike and cross the line for the win, he’d severely dislocated his left ankle in the process. A week later, Langston was forced to pull out of the race in Mt. Morris after snagging his foot in a rut and again hurting the tender ankle.
So it was a shocker last Sunday when Langston came back to win at Motocross 338, considered to be the roughest track in the series.
"I have to say I was a little surprised myself that I was able to win at Southwick," said Langston, who won the AMA 125 Motocross Championship in 2003. "The ankle was still very sensitive, but I guess adrenaline kicked in and I didn’t notice it much while I was racing. As soon as I took that chequered flag, though, the throbbing came back in a big way."
Langston is cautiously optimistic about his chances of catching Brown in the title chase.
"He’s got a full moto on me (25 point lead)," Langston said. "That’s a lot, but it’s still early in the series. I’m hoping the ankle continues to get better and I’ll be able to ride even stronger as the season progresses. One thing’s for sure; I can never do anything easy. I always seem to have drama surrounding me."
