Photos by: Hoppenworld
Last year, Brett Metcalfe was a man without a team in the U.S., so the Australian took his skills up to the Canadian Motocross Nationals and won himself the MX1 Championship up north. Then, while preparing to defend his Championship, Brett got a call from the Monster/Kawasaki team to ride the injured Ryan Villopoto‘s 450 in the 2014 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. It was an offer he could not refuse, and he has definitely looked up to the challenge in the first two rounds.
At the Glen Helen opener, Metty just missed the podium with a 4-5 score for fourth overall, and at round two, the #24 went 6-9 for eighth overall. While the 6-9 score at Hangtown looks worse on paper than the 4-5 at the opener, there was a lot of good that came out of round two for Metty. In the second moto, Metty put the championship-winning bike up front and led the first five laps of moto two. In the end, he crashed and finished ninth, but you can’t win until you learn the pace of the leaders. With that, Metty now heads to round three in Colorado sitting fifth in the 450 Championship and armed with the knowledge gained from the first four motos.
After his eighth overall at Hangtown, we caught up with Brett to talk about his season so far. You can read the interview below.
Eighth overall today for you, but how are you feeling overall?
Yeah, I’m ready to move on to next week. It was good, though. The track was really rough today. It was nice. The first moto today was good. The second moto was a good start and then just mistakes. I struggled in both motos with my arms a little bit. I just couldn’t finish off the motos, and I’ll keep working on that. We’ve been working on things during the week, and I think we improved a little from last week. The results weren’t as good, but my riding speed and comfort on the bike is starting to get a little better.
Your starts look good so far this year.
They’ve been okay. The second one today was really good, but we’re going to keep working on little things. This whole program is still new to me and I’m adjusting. It’s taking time, but I’m determined to get up there and finish off the job properly in the motos.
You looked really good early on up front in moto two today battling with Justin Barcia for the lead. Justin was getting super aggressive behind you trying to make a pass stick. Did that intense battle with Justin cost you later in the moto?
No, I was fine, I knew it was him, and I expect that. It was the same for me in the first moto. I’m getting to a wall right there and I can’t get over it yet, but we’ll get there. I feel good, though. Last year, I was leading races and in control—in a different environment obviously—but, even here, I’m not bothered by that. I was just riding my own laps even at the end there. It’s tough to get passed at the end with a couple laps to go, but you got to stay focused, ride your own laps and not get emotional.
What happened there at the end?
I was just done. It was all I had and I couldn’t push any more. Those guys were still on it, so I just let it go.
Right now, you’re in fifth overall in the 450 Championship. After a year away, top-five is definitely a solid start to the season. How are you feeling about where you’re at?
I haven’t really even thought about it honestly. It’s probably a close fifth because I’m sure today’s results weren’t that great. It’s kind of where I’d hope to be coming back into this series. That’s where I want to be. I want to be up there.
How much different is the Canadian motocross series in comparison to the American motocross series?
It’s a lot different. It’s not as big, obviously. Still, the racing up there was competitive. The riders are really strong. It’s a good Championship and I enjoyed it, but it’s not to the factory level down here in the U.S. It was really enjoyable racing up there.
How does your factory Kawasaki compare to the Kawasaki you were riding in Canada?
It’s a completely different bike. With the setup they have here, they can do whatever they want to do. You can’t even compare a full factory bike to a production-based bike.
Now the series is heading to the thin air of Lakewood, Colorado. How do you like the Thunder Valley facility?
I’ve always loved that track there; it’s a good place. I’m looking forward to getting up there. We have press day there, so we’re going to head up there early. I’ll hopefully have a stronger finish up there. I like the track, and the elevation’s an obstacle with the bike setup, so it’s nice to be on a good team that can get that thing figured out. Hopefully we’ll be up there on the podium.
Alright, good luck next weekend, and thanks for talking with us.
No worries.
