RCH/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing will head into Round 7 of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship a man down and will only enter one rider for tomorrow’s Red Bull Southwick National.
Broc Tickle, rider of the No. 20 Suzuki RM-Z450, will be sidelined for the rest of the season after suffering a shoulder injury last weekend at RedBud MX. Tickle underwent an MRI this week that revealed the damage to be more extensive than what was originally expected. He was diagnosed with a Posterior Labral Tear, a Hills Sachs Lesion, a type 1-2 Superior Labrum Anterior to Posterior Tear and a Posterior Shoulder Dislocation. Fortunately, the 450 Class veteran will not require surgery but recovery time is expected to be six-eight weeks. He finished 17th overall last weekend and fell to seventh in points.
As a result, Justin Bogle will race the lone factory-backed Suzuki for the team co-owned by Carey Hart and Ricky Carmichael.
“It’s a tough situation and ended up being more damage to Broc’s shoulder than what anyone originally thought,” explained RCH team manager Kyle Bentley. “It really speaks volumes about how tough Broc is, the way he gutted it out last weekend. It’s a shame because he was having a really solid season but we all know that injuries are part of the sport and everyone deals with it from time to time.”
Bogle comes into the Wick 338 with four previous professional starts at one of the most demanding and grueling venues on the Pro Motocross schedule. In eight motos over those four starts, the 24-year-old racer has logged a 10.75 average overall finish. Last season, in his first year competing full time in the premier 450 Class, Bogle earned his first moto win and collected the Holeshot Award in both races.
“Southwick is one of the toughest places we go so that makes it a lot of fun,” said Bogle. “I drilled both holeshots last year and won my first 450 Class moto so I’m really looking forward to this weekend. Obviously it’s a sand track so that presents a whole new set of challenges. We worked on a lot of different stuff this week to get ready. I think we’ll be in good shape. I’m really bummed for Broc. He was having a good season and we spent a lot of time racing one another on the track. We all know the risks but that doesn’t make you feel any better when you can’t race because you’re hurt.”
Last Saturday, Bogle was a mainstay in the top five for much of the opening moto but a fall near the halfway point left the rider of the No. 19 RM-Z450 nursing a sore wrist for the rest of the day. Still, Bogle raced through the pain and came away with a respectable 7-9 finish, earning him an eighth-place overall showing.
The workman-like effort powered the 24-year-old Cushing, Okla., racer into a tie for fifth in points as the second half the season kicks off tomorrow afternoon.
“Last weekend wasn’t my best by any stretch but we stayed after it all day and got out of RedBud with a top 10,” Bogle said. “I had a good run going in the first moto and thought I pretty much had a top five locked up, but I fell in a sweeper and landed funny on my wrist and had to fight through that the rest of the day. Second moto, I got a good start but I made a handful of mistakes during the first lap and kind of shot myself in the foot. Once I got my head screwed on straight, I settled in and made a couple of passes. The goal this week is to be better than I was last week and be a fixture in the top five. I feel like I should be there every weekend so that’s the goal.”
The first moto of Round 7 from the Red Bull Southwick National will be televised live on MAVTV Sat., July 8 beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, 10 a.m. Pacific. Live television coverage for the second moto will shift to network television on NBC at 3:30 p.m. EDT, 12:30 p.m. Pacific.
All motos can be streamed live on the NBC Sports Gold app. NBC, NBCSN and MAVTV will combine to provide extensive television coverage over the course of the 12-round season. Capping off each round of the championship will be exclusive one-hour highlight shows on NBCSN, each airing within a handful of days of every National.
Photo by: Chase Yocom
