Bird Dog
Foreword: Before reading the Pulitzer Prize winning editorial below I want to make it very clear that no one on our staff of literally thousands of journalists bought into this idea. Despite having a highly decorated career, I guess the big brains at Vurb don’t believe in Adam Cianciarulo. I’m here to prove them wrong. While I only give him a 19.875657% chance of making a run, I’m willing to put a 12-Pack of Claws on the line if anyone want’s a piece of this action. I’d explain the math but most wouldn’t be able to follow such indisputable logic. AC, never forget that the Bird is the only one who sees your true potential this year. Now, on with the show.
Adam Cianciarulo’s 2021 story comes with an asterisk. Off-season surgery means he wasn’t able to get the proper time of the bike to be 100% ready for the season. Not to mention, recovering while competing at the highest level really means you aren’t recovering properly. Hell, Bird Dog here has been recovering from a torn labrum for about five months and I can’t even begin to think about getting on a bike right now. But that’s why AC is a pro supercross racer and Bird Dog is a pro keyboard warrior.
Off-season injuries aside, when looking at his accomplishments this season, the question of “how the hell hasn’t he landed on the podium yet” must be begged. The question of, “can he make a run at the title” is also starting to creep into our minds. Allow the stat master to break this down for you.
Qualifying
Below you’ll see a highly complex spreadsheet on how AC has qualified this year. I’ve noted the qualifying position as well as the amount of milliseconds he was off the lead lap. Four out of six rounds he put in a top three qualifying lap, he took the pole position at Houston 2, and was never more than a few tenths of a second off the lead pace at any round. What’s that tell you? Allow me to explain. It tells you that AC has the speed. Not a huge discovery, I’ll admit, but noteworthy nonetheless.
| Round | Qualifying Position | Difference |
| Houston 1 | 8th | -0.41 |
| Houston 2 | 1st | +.107 |
| Houston 3 | 3rd | -0.022 |
| Indy 1 | 4th | -0.194 |
| Indy 2 | 3rd | -0.322 |
| Indy 3 | 3rd | -0.475 |
But laying down a heater is different than doing it for 20 + 2. Let’s see how he’s done in his heat races thus far.
Heat
| Round | Finishing Position |
| Houston 1 | 3rd |
| Houston 2 | 3rd |
| Houston 3 | 1st |
| Indy 1 | 1st |
| Indy 2 | 2nd |
| Indy 3 | 5th |
Son of a gun, he’s still impressive! Sure, he’s only racing half the field, but he’s only landed outside the top three once, and he’s taken the “W” twice. Surely that must mean something, right? Given, heat races are shorter and less stacked, but the kid is competing at a high level despite us truly knowing how his body is responding. Imagine him at 100%? He may be unstoppable!
And now we find ourselves at the end. While he’s flirted with the podium harder than a college kid on a dry spell, he’s still gone home and passed out alone after every round. But this is a numbers game, and the numbers are trending in his favor. The series is set to slow down a bit in the coming weeks.
The two rounds in Orlando are a full week apart (I know, weird, right?), and then you’ve got another full week between Orlando and Daytona, and yet another week until they get back into the hat trick of Arlington and Atlanta. This should give AC some time to recover in between races.
He currently sits fourth in the standings and is only 33 points outside the lead. While everyone is watching Cooper Webb lurk in second, Bird Dog is back here wondering if Adam Cianciarulo has a chance to go on a roll and wrap up his first title.
Main Event
| Round | Finishing Position |
| Houston 1 | 4th |
| Houston 2 | 12th (set the fastest lap) |
| Houston 3 | 3rd |
| Indy 1 | 4th |
| Indy 2 | 6th |
| Indy 3 | 5th |
Tom here, I’ve been watching AC since he was faster than Villopoto in his younger days, AC’s injury’s can cause a lot of riders to slow down, some from fear of getting hurt again. In any sport just a chosen few will come back as fast or faster, racers come in all levels of courage, there has been plenty of ex racers that “should” have done better. I’m sure a lot of racers after they retired thought “ man, I shoulda/coulda/woulda” . AC is fast and in the hunt but the way it looks, not gonna win any championships, not sure if he loses focus for the entire race lap after lap or what. It seems once he gets passed he doesn’t fight to repass the guy. He’s a good kid and spokesman for any brand, he’ll have a good career, better than most. Come on AC, prove me wrong