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2018 North American Power Rankings – Week 3

September 17, 2018

Most top North American’s took a break before RenoCross on Wednesday and the Trek CX Cup, which includes the first round of the World Cup. However, there was a pair of UCI C2 races in Trexlertown, PA this past weekend. Kerry Werner won Saturday’s race (he did not race on Sunday) followed by Frenchman Matthieu Boulo and Curtis White. Sunday’s podium was much the same with Boulo winning, White second and Belgian Yorben van Tichelt third.

Werner was the only person from last weeks power rankings in action this past weekend. Therefore, much of this remains unchanged. White was ranked seventh in our pre-season and week one power rankings, but dropped off the list last week due to not racing in Rochester.

Here are this week’s rankings:

  1. Anthony Clark
    Clark finally returns to the US after racing starting his season abroad. He had great results in both Australia and China. How this translates to US racing remains to be seen. We will finally get to see him race in the sates on Wednesday in Reno.
  2. Curtis White
    White returns to the power rankings after kicking off his season this past weekend in Pennsylvania. As expected, White landed on the podium both days and looked very strong. We will see how this success carries him through the next few weekends of world class racing.
  3. Spencer Petrov
    Petrov keeps his spot after a good ride in Rochester. As long as he is healthy, he should continue to be a factor in many races. Like everyone else in our rankings it will be interesting to see how he does this weekend in Wisconsin.
  4. Lance Haidet
    Haidet is one of two riders in our rankings who is racing in Reno. He burst onto the scene in Rochester and looks to continue that success on Wednesday.
  5. Gage Hecht
    Perhaps the breakout star of two weekends ago, Hecht’s great road season has seemed to have prepared him for cross quite well. If he can maintain contact with the lead group, he’s a podium threat at any given race.
  6. Jack Kisserberth
    Kisseberth is another rider on the rise. He should continue to be a threat at most North American races. We expect him to be competitive this weekend and be one of the highest place Americans.
  7. Jeremy Powers
    After a great ride in Rochester, Powers turns his focus to Waterloo, WI. It was only a few years ago that there was talk of Powers reaching the podium at one of the US based World Cup rounds. At this point that is probably out of the question, but as we have seen, when Powers is on form, anything is possible. Consequently, we are not looking at a major upset, but a solid ride could see him back in the top twenty.
  8. Tobin Ortenblad
    Out of our top three riders, which remain the same for another week, Ortenblad is the only one racing this week in Reno. We expect him to do well in Reno and roll that success into Waterloo. As with everyone else, this will be his first clash with the European riders and should be a great test for him.
  9. Kerry Werner
    Werner’s streak of early season success continued on Saturday. He picked up his third victory of the season. As a result, he has appeared on the podium five times in five races. Werner’s focus now turns to the World Cup. It will be very interesting to see where Werner finishes this weekend in Waterloo. A top 20 or 15 is not out of the question.
  10. Stephen Hyde
    Hyde put in one last block of training this past weekend to prepare for the first two rounds of the World Cup. Like many on this list, he is skipping RenoCross and focusing on Sunday’s big race. Hyde should be the top American on Sunday and we think he may break the top ten.

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