2019 Ironman Motocross | Last Chance To Impress

2019 IRONMAN MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

This weekend’s round of the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship is the last chance for many riders to impress team managers or earn support for 2020. They’ve watched on as their competition signed new deals or contract extensions, in some instances for the very spots the riders in need currently occupy, and waited for their offer to come. 

With how small the sport is, it’s completely possible to hear about every rumor or confirmed deal as soon as the initial interaction between both parties occurs, and that information is quick to spread between managers, mechanics, agents, and media. We’ve personally spotted riders come out of a manufacturer’s headquarters, only to hear more about a possible deal days later. 

So imagine going to work every day knowing that every move you make might determine your future. Sure, there will be some past results or personal relationships to fall back on, but to most, the last finish is all that matters. Have you always put in your full effort? Could you have pushed a little harder at the practice track? Were you easy to work with? Would a flash of speed at the right time be what gets an offer to your agent? And if you’re not there to race, does anyone remember you at all?

I can think of a dozen or so people in this position right now. Some are early in their careers and are being shown the door by those that touted them as the next big thing during their amateur careers after a tricky transition to the pro ranks. Others are experienced riders that have a list of accomplishments to their credit but maybe have faced a bad run of results, health issues, a lack of space, or disputes with the decision-makers at a team. Whatever the reason maybe be, they’ll pull their stuff out of the trucks on Saturday evening and hope there’s an empty locker elsewhere.

Not every rider in need will post their career-defining results this weekend. It’s the unfortunate reality and at this point, the most they can do is put their head down and push for an incident-free moto. 

After the weekend is over, it’s on the racer and those around them to reflect and determine a plan of action. Those that believe they are worthy of the best place in the pit will hold out for it as long as they can, while the desperate ones will extend their services to teams for little more than a bike, a mechanic, and a plane ticket to each race. At this time of the year, it’s probably too late to find a company with deep pockets to buy a ride on a team, but it wouldn’t hurt to flick through the Rolodex for every business card you’ve exchanged with some corporate executive on an airplane. Get creative.

There are other options, of course. One could take the money they’ve hopefully saved from those steady paychecks and invest in a privateer program, or reach out to a team and ask to be the first person called when a fill-in is necessary. Neither scenario comes with a guarantee, but it keeps their name on the minds of team managers and the public. Look at how Dean Wilson has done it two times for guidance.

The last outcome is the most drastic: call it a career and walk away. It has to be hard to realize that a lifelong dream didn’t go the way one envisions because some spend the rest of their lives hanging on to the hope that the big break will come with the next gate drop. But remember its best to walk away while you can, especially while you’re young, healthy, and determined.

I hope the best for all that are in this situation. That they line up on Saturday is a big reason why I have a job at all and there’s a sense of friendship and understanding between us. It’s simple to say, but my advice for them this weekend is to repeatedly think about the reason they ever got into racing. Find an old 90s video you wore out on YouTube, look at some photos of your amateur heyday, enjoy the process of gearing up and going to the line. Hopefully, there’s still a sense of excitement and passion left and you can live in the moment before it’s gone. Best of luck and have fun, boys…