Josh Grant was involved in a rivalry with James Stewart at A2. Image: Simon Cudby.

A brewing rivalry between Josh Grant and James Stewart boiled over during Anaheim II’s third round of the Monster Energy Supercross series last weekend.

Grant, who rides for Stewart’s former JGR Yamaha team, came together with Stewart in the main event, forcing the latter down in a battle that made headlines throughout Angel Stadium on Saturday night.

“I don’t typically like to ride like that but he’s one of those guys,” Grant told Racer X Online in the Open Mic feature. “I’m saying ‘he’ as in James, is one of those guys that doesn’t care for any other riders out on the track and that’s the way it is.

“I did take him a little high, so he came in on me, dirtied me, and put his elbow up and tried to clean me out, which, all right, if you’re going to race like that then you can count on me kind of doing the same thing back.

“I don’t typically want to race like that. I’ve done it in the past, obviously with [Mike] Alessi and all that, but I don’t really want to do it.

“But at the same time I’m not going to let you push me over. So yeah, we had a little altercation but then when he fell, unfortunately he fell all on his own. So that’s just the way it is.”

Stewart was also able to share his side of the story on Racer X Online, hoping to look forward following what has been a long serving rivalry, according to him.

“Going after the rhythm section, he ran me high again for the third week in a row,” Stewart explained. “Then we go through the whoop section and I squared him up. I pushed him out a little, but I didn’t even touch him.

“I needed to run out wide so I could get the finish line jump, I didn’t take him out, I didn’t try to take him out – I mean, if I wanted to knock him down, I could have done that easily. Then he bombs down to the inside and knocks me off the track.

“Then I come up again, he’s letting everyone else go by, and I catch him and get by him on the start straight. But the Yamaha, with those air intakes, it’s loud, and I thought he was closer to me than he was, so I just tried cut down, and I went down.

“I figured he was going to try to take me out again, and if he was closer, he probably would have. It just sucks, I’m trying to race. Even with the [Chad] Reed situation, it’s different when you’re battling for the win on the last lap, it’s different. We’re battling for eighth place.

“It’s been that way with him for years. Phoenix, he hops out of line, tries to cut me off, same thing with Anaheim. I’m just over it, I don’t want any issues. I’m just trying to race for my team.

“We’ve been injured, we’re trying to get through it, I’m not trying to take anyone out. It’s unfortunate that whatever it is, he can’t let it go. I ended up on the short end of the stick tonight.”

Click here to read the complete line-up of Open Mic interview from Anaheim II.