Monday Kickstart | April 13 2020

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COVID-19 & MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

Have to say it feels a little odd to write about how motocross will be shaped by the COVID-19 crisis. The way society as a whole will come out from this is anyone’s guess because it really is touching every part of the world and the impact it’ll have will last for generations. My thoughts are with the people that will experience the worst of the virus firsthand, from the victims to the healthcare workers to all of their respective families, as well as the people that felt the financial-employment force of the pandemic. That’s always first and foremost. But you’re here to read about dirt bikes and that’s something that’ll be somewhat different when this is all said and done.

A few months back, my wife and I booked our first-ever non-motocross related vacation. We planned to spend the time between the Salt Lake City Supercross and the Hangtown Motocross sipping drinks in the sun of Las Vegas. Yeah, I wasn’t exactly thrilled to spend the one-weekend off after 17 on the road in a hotel, but anyone in the industry knows you have to plan your personal life around the race schedule, and the lack of a race meant I could completely unplug for a few days.

When Supercross races started getting canceled, I told my wife that our trip wasn’t going to happen. At that time, Vegas hadn’t announced any massive changes to their daily operations and all of the hotels were still open, so Megan thought my observation was an over-reaction. “Let’s wait and see before we do anything,” she countered after I initially brought it up. “It’s not until May, and that months away.” We discussed it a few more times while we waited for word on the remaining Supercross races, as there was a chance that the off-weekend could easily have become a race-weekend, but by the time Feld Entertainment stated that the season would resume in the Fall, Sin City had already announced massive closures and we’d come to terms with the fact that our vacation wouldn’t happen on the intended date.

What does that have to do with motocross? In the same way that I had to put the idea that our Vegas vacation wasn’t going to happen in my wife’s head, it’s time to put another grim idea in yours: It’s very unlikely that we will see bikes back on the track in June like MX Sports and InFront Moto Racing had hoped.

While we are still weeks away from the intended race dates (June 7 for the MXGP of Russia, June 13 for the Florida Motocross), all government and scientific signs indicate that the COVID-19 situation will not be cleared up enough in time to allow large groups to gather here or abroad.

How could that be, especially as many in the US discuss a desire to get back to normal and certain countries in Europe have announced reductions on their social distancing restrictions? Well, there are big differences between a few dozen people returning to restaurants and thousands filling hillsides or stadiums for hours on end.

Last week Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta, boss of MotoGP and World SuperBike, did an interview with German publication Speedweek and stated that the major road racing series could only continue when bans on travel and gatherings are eased, an obvious observation. But the most revealing part of Ezpeleta conversation was when he said believes that this will only happen once a vaccine is created and approved, which medical professionals have openly stated is about a year away, and that the entire 2020 season hangs in the balance as a result. Although Ezpeleta’s outlook isn’t entirely unique, as a similar sentiment by the Chancellor of Austria the day prior set the tone for the interview, it was a major change in outlook by a leader in motorsport, one that had made every attempt to start racing as soon as possible.

The MXGP series takes pride in its global tour, so the same travel bans between countries would force the series to stop. As for the Russian return, an announcement regarding this race must be imminent, because the official word from state media is that COVID-19 is now a serious issue, as the country reported a surge of cases in the past week and President Putin expressed support of lockdown measures for the entire country. If you’ve followed the way other countries have reacted to the virus, then you know this is a huge change in message from Moscow, and there’s little chance they will keep their borders open to countries in Europe. The MXGP of France, a country with over 14,000 deaths as of Monday morning US time, is one of the next races on the calendar and is slated for June 28. While typing this, President Macron announced that the country will allow churches and schools to re-open on May 11, but no large gatherings will be allowed until July. Not only does that basically cancel the MXGP, we now have to wonder what will become of the MXON, which is on the schedule in September…

Our situation in the United States is a little murkier. Recent reports brought bad and good news, like how America is now the nation with the highest amount of deaths and revisions to expert analysis show the total number could be lower than the six-figures that were reported earlier. That’s proof that things like social distancing and commonsense (wash your hands, don’t touch your face unnecessarily) worked, but it’ll be necessary to continue these steps for the foreseeable future in order to keep the spread under control. We’re not here to get into the left-right politics of things, nor the moral “should you ride or not” decision that you have already made inside. We just have to look at the situation in different states, because like Europe, everywhere in America is going through this in a unique way.

For example, let’s say that we have two more weeks under the current “way of life” but then allow dining areas to reopen, movie theaters to have screenings, and open up for small gatherings of less than 500 people, with the number to gradually grow as the situation improves. It would take weeks, if not months, of progress to happen before a figure like 10,000 people could gather for sporting events. There would be little chance we would get together in the swamp of Florida. By that scenario, RedBud would be a big ask. It’ll be interesting to see how society adapts immediately after this. Will you still stay far away from others while in public after this is over, even if it’s to lessen the odds of catching a cold? Or will you be among the mob through the front door of a department store when Black Friday hits in November? The mixed response to that question will certainly have an impact on how crowds return to sporting events, concerts, malls, and so on.

I want to go to the races bad. Really, really bad. I miss finding the best hotel in my price range in the Bonvoy program, going through the routine of packing my bags and getting through the travel, finding a local’s only place to eat, etc. Going to the races is what I enjoy more than anything, it’s where the fun is and where people I consider friends are, but like with the Vegas trip weeks ago, I’ve come to terms with the fact there’s little chance of doing anything of those things soon. It sucks, but there are many more important things in the world right now to take on than a motorcycle race.

The idea of holding races at private tracks without crowds, like how MLB has to start their season with empty stadiums in Arizona (an idea the players don’t completely agree with), is not something outdoor motocross could copy, due in part to the size of the staff required for teams and the racing organization and the financial hit that the track operators would take from a lack of ticket sales.

Personally, I think that we’re more likely to see the last seven Supercross races in than we are all 11 motocross rounds, but with less than full stadiums. In fact, I’d be surprised if fans could come at all if the races happen. It won’t be from a lack of trying by anyone, but it just seems unlikely that we get all of this sorted out in the short amount of time (roughly eight weeks), especially when you see at what’s happening in Germany and Italy, places that are further ahead of the US in this situation, right now. Germany will soon allow public spaces like eateries and shopping centers to re-open as long as the necessary personal distancing measures were in place, while Italy extended their lockdown until May 3. Some progress, some stagnation. We’re going to be dealing with this much longer than we initially thought.