Hello and welcome to the second edition of Moto Insider for 2012. With a big year ahead in the AMA (which has already started), Australia (MX Nationals start in April) and Europe (Dean Ferris, anyone?), we’re only just clicking into second gear at this stage of the season.

The biggest talking point after Phoenix’s second round of AMA Supercross last weekend was the incident between Matt Moss and Ryan Sipes in the Lites LCQ. We posted the film on our Facebook Page and got over 70 comments on it in a great debate.

So, who’s fault was it? That’s up to you to decide, because from what we have seen so far, every man and his dog have different opinions on this matter. For the record though, in the LCQ of the biggest series on the planet, you’ve gotta make it happen! And Moss isn’t one to lay down without a fight.

Matt Moss made headlines after making contact with Ryan Sipes in the LCQ at Phoenix. Image: Simon Cudby.

The other big news that came out of Phoenix was Ryan Dungey’s W for Red Bull KTM in the main event, piecing together an incredible 20 laps while his opponents fumbled the ball one after the other. It is a special reward for KTM and perhaps one that finally proves that the Austrian manufacturer really is on par with the ‘big four’.

So, the question is, would you say it is the new ‘Factory Edition’ 450 SX-F that helped KTM get this podium? Or is it simply a case of paying the right man to do the job in Dungey? Whatever you believe, KTM’s efforts toward this result began at the end of 2009 when they signed Roger DeCoster. By the way, will Dungey’s results make the 350 extinct in years to come? We hope not!

While Dungey was absolutely killing it out front, Ryan Villopoto again put forward an amazing ride to slice his way from the back of the pack to the podium in third. He has to be the title favourite now after two races, but both he and the Dunge will share the red plate in LA this weekend (get your umbrellas and tear-offs ready!).

Also deserving a mention this week is Jake Weimer, who won his heat and took second in the main to prove that he is a very good supercross rider who deserves his seat alongside RV at Monster Energy Kawasaki. Between the two of them, team green is up for a very big year I believe.

As for the Aussies, it was a relatively quiet round. Chad Reed didn’t quite have the pace, but he actually said afterwards that he was happier with his ride to fifth than what he was at A1 when he scored second. Expect him to hit his stride come San Diego, as usual. Interestingly, Reedy is already working on a special TwoTwo Motorsports livery for the Daytona round in March.

Brett Metcalfe was better in the main event this week, but still struggled throughout the practice and qualifying sessions, so lets hope he can find comfort soon. An observation that I made over the weekend was that while Yoshimura Suzuki has lost Rockstar as title sponsor, Metty is still running the helmet and even wore the branded Thor gear at Phoenix (no wonder Ralph Shaheen accidentally thought the team was still supported by Rockstar at A1).

Cody Mackie again came close to qualifying in the premier class (maybe this weekend), while both Moss and Ryan Marmont missed out on the Lites main for JDR/J-Star/KTM. As for Jackson Richardson, the word is that he had to sit out the round with some type of shoulder injury and that’s all we have at the moment.

Cody Mackie was again solid at Phoenix, but he awaits his first start in the main event. Image: Simon Cudby.

Anyhow, that’s enough about the U.S. for now, because tomorrow we’ll have the second edition of The Matthes Report for 2012, thanks to Pulp MX owner and Racer X regular Steve Matthes. He’s sure to have all the inside info from Phoenix in a newly weekly feature that’s brought to you by FOX (more on that partnership later).

In Australian news, Jake Moss has been linked to the Hart and Huntington team alongside Daniel McCoy in the Pro Open class. If you remember in December, we had a news story with team owner Kale Wallis, who said the team wanted a second 450 rider, but all the guys were taken.

Well, it looks like they may have found one in Moss if a deal can be agreed upon, according to speculation in the industry. The question is, what manufacturer will the team race with?

We’ve heard they’ll stay at Kawasaki, but McCoy was spotted riding a Suzuki as recent as yesterday at Appin, so we’ll have to wait for that confirmation. In saying that, we haven’t yet seen anything official regarding a deal for DMC at H&H.

Good news for New South Wales riders this week is that the Macarthur Motorcycle Club plans to reverse the direction of the main practice track (different to the one the MX Nationals race on) this week. It’s been over five years since the direction was switched, so that should freshen the complex up for now.

One person who has been laying incredibly low is Jay Marmont. Since his switch to Monster Energy Kawasaki, the four-time motocross and current supercross champion has been in work mode, getting his initial settings set for the year ahead.

The big surprise is that it looks like he could be switching to KYB suspension at Kawasaki (he used KYB at Yamaha last year), instead of using the Pro Circuit kit forks and shock. How do we know? Via Twitter, of course! Stay tuned…

KYB... Marmont... a sign of things to come at Monster Energy Kawasaki?

I spoke to Ben Townley last Friday for a magazine interview and he said that he is supremely confident with the bike that Carlton Dry Honda Thor Racing have supplied him with so far. He also said that he did come very close to a deal with Jeff Ward Racing to race in the U.S, but that never came off.

The big news though is that he may have time to race as many as five to seven AMA outdoors rounds this year alongside his Aussie races. BT didn’t say who with just yet and it isn’t yet finalised, but that’s great news for him if it goes ahead. Also, it should give us a real gauge at what level our locals are at.

What else BT mentioned is that in Australia, he’d like to see spectators given a little better infield access at the tracks that are capable, much like they do in Europe and the U.S. Rather than being ‘stuck’ on the outside, fans will be up close to the action more often.

Tomorrow I am personally off to the United States again on a whirlwind trip, getting some content in the books and also checking out the AMA Supercross round at LA’s Dodgers Stadium for the second year in a row. It’s a quick trip, but one that will hopefully result in some unique content to share with our readers in the weeks to come.

That’s all for another week, but remember, for all the information you can handle from behind the scenes, remember to ‘Like’ us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/motoonline, as well as Twitter at www.twitter.com/motoonline.

By the way, we’re in the final countdown of launching our all-new website for 2012, which is a touch behind schedule, but hopefully well worth the wait. We have a cleaner design to work with, all your favourite features plus more, and an inspired new contributor base that we’ll announce with the launch. Thanks for reading.