2012. Best Vintage Off-Road Bikes from the 80s. Feets also went to England to race motocross back in the 1960s. Apparently their initials followed by their number is cool) never won a title but did score a couple of runner-up positions. Track Racing Sidecar 1000cc. In ’88 he would’ve finished second if it wasn’t for an ankle injury. Glenn O'Brien, Aaron Maynard. Meghan Rutledge. wasn’t much of a factor if you look at the entire decade as he only recorded three top ten finishes in the points and one of those was a ninth. Motocross first evolved in the United Kingdom from motorcycle trials competitions in the early 1900s. The mid-to-late 80s saw British motocross legend Dave Thorpe take to the stage. Remember that was when Wardy rode backwards after a crash and if you listen to our podcast, Broc lays out some pretty good reasons why he got screwed. He was only 21 when he broke his femur in 1989. Darcy Ward. The 500-class title would go to Chuck Sun, nicknamed the “Rising Sun” due to his Asian roots. See more ’80s Nostalgia Some motocross bikes are up to 240 lbs in weight. It was a bike from the future. See more ’80s Nostalgia. So there we go and without any further adieu, here are the top 15 riders of supercross in the 80’s. Personalized MOTOCROSS Poster, Gift for Motocross Riders, Motocross Gift, Motocross Typography, Motocross Art, MX Racing SunflowerStateArt. He scored a top ten finish six years and two were 2nd’s and two were 3rd’s. So his eight sx wins in the 80’s are the same as Lechien and more than Hansen don’t get him on the list. Tenth and ninth were both scored as one point because really, what’s the difference between them anyways (Yeah, I can hear you guys now, “Matthes, if there’s no difference between ninth and tenth in your world, then why is eighth worth one more point than ninth. Throughout his early career, out of the 11 East Coast Supercross races he participated in, Swink was the winner of five of them, came second in two races, and was placed third, fourth, fifth, and seventh in … If nothing else, The Dogger is in my personal Hall of Fame and the all-time best off-track stories Hall of Fame. It just takes them a little longer than a two-stroke engine to gain speed. From shop SunflowerStateArt. Motocross Brad Lackey was in contention for the 500cc FIM World Championship, Marty Moates shockingly swept both motos of … A little bit of a surprise (beating out Hannah?) Barry Sheene MBE. Sheene first started to race in 1968, becoming the British 125cc champion, aged … The worlds leading page based on Motocross & Supercross from 1990 - 2000 9th-1 point He is motocross. Look for a 90’s and Y2K rankings later this week…, Your email address will not be published. Jeff Ward- Kawasaki-56 points. ), Here are the point values I gave each position-. 2nd-9 points Womens MX. The only reason he’s not on this list (he’s thirteenth with eleven points scoring just three finishes- two 5th’s and a 9th) is because he kept getting hurt. I listed him on a Yamaha because I believe he tried to come back in 1984 on a Yamaha for a couple of races and it didn’t go well. Click HERE and you can fill one out with me. But whether you favor Rutherford, Franck, Hertz, Cockcroft, Meitner, Fermi, Strassmann, Walton, Szilard or Einstein, all of these men changed the world as we know it. See more ideas about motocross riders, motocross, supercross. Kent was more of a motocross specialist scored most of his 32 career wins when the sun was shining. 1st– Jeremy McGrath, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki-81 points. When you speak to any of the old-timers out there about Bob Hannah and his 80’s career, they will tell you that NO ONE was faster when Bob switched to Honda. Huffy was founded in 1970 as an umbrella company to house the Huffy Bicycle division. Inspired by the Swedish dude Magnus’s Euro rider 1980’s column right HERE, I decided to do my own figuring of who would be the greatest American supercross riders of the 80’s. I gave the tie-break to Dogger for his two runner-up finishes but now that I think about it, shouldn’t year-in and year-out consistency count for something? Monster Energy®️ Kawasaki Team Green™️ has been the dominant force in amateur racing with many top supercross and motocross stars rising up through the program, including former Team Green alumni and current Monster Energy Kawasaki factory rider Adam Cianciarulo as well as Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki team riders Austin Forkner, and Garrett Marchbanks. Anyways, back to Bell, he also won a supercross in his last year (’83) and again, a surprise that he’s here with really only two years of finishes. He also competed in … Currently slotted-in at sixth in points in the MX2 World Championship, Watson is hoping to leave Italy as the P5 man in the final FIM MX2 World Championship standings, as well as Great Britain’s next FIM Gold Medal hopeful. The Little Professor’s best scores were one title (’83), one runner-up and one third place and  in the points. He switched to Honda in ’83 and I’ve spoken at length to Bailey, Lechien and Bob Oliver at Yamaha and they all assure me that nobody had nothing for Hannah in ’83. Nov 8, 2013 - Explore Vey's Powersports's board "Motocross Riders" on Pinterest. 12th place-George Holland 12 points He switched to Suzuki in ’87 and had a disastrous year with injuries and the bike sucking ass. Oh what could have been…. Children 12 years and older may be ready to step up to the Raptor 80, (adult supervision is required, of course). 3rd Place-Mark Barnett-Suzuki, Kawasaki-43 points, This might be a bit of a surprise to you as The Bomber only raced half the decade before retiring but as my favorite rider growing up (which I wrote all about HERE) I’m not surprised he’s in third. Road Racing (Moto3) 2014. Speedway (U21) 2011. Webb, Pipes, Nicoletti, Weigandt on Pulpmx Show Tonight! The weldless frame is designed from lightweight aluminum, with a tension-steel bottom frame that lets the engine sit lower for excellent mass centralization. 2005 Yamaha Raptor 80, Be Just Like DadThanks to super-sporty, Raptor 660R styling and bodywork, young riders can feel like the grownups while out on the trail with the family. And of course, let’s not forget what might have happened if he hadn’t gotten hurt before the ’87 season. What I did was assign a number value to each championship placing in the top ten for each year of the 1980’s. His ranking was only achieved with five years of being in the top ten in points. The total of 9 points from Bailey to Bell represents the biggest drop-off in the standings and I would think that you could take the eight guys above Mike and call them all Hall-of-famers (there actually is an AMA Hall of Fame right HERE   and every one of my top eight sx riders of the ‘80’s is in EXCEPT for Lechien. That’s it, I’m starting a letter writing campaign to get Ronnie into the AMA Hall of Fame. His scores were achieved, like Bell, with only three top ten results. He then followed it up with a second in 1986 and a third in 1989. 6th-4 points The riders went 1-2 in every single moto with O’Mara beating everyone but his teammate Bailey on the 500 in one moto. One other moment that year is mostly lost to history: Ohio's Denny Swartz won the RedBud National on a Maico, marking the last win in the once-proud German brand's history. Lechien’s career was remarkable for the fact that he started in 1983 and was completely out of the sport six years later. Also take note that in 1985 there were two championships with one of them, the actual AMA championship, only being two races. motocross PLAY FULL VIDEO Yamaha off-road competition bikes offer the very latest technology and performance features designed to make enthusiasts the best riders possible, win races and help riders become one with their machine – putting them in the zone and atop the podium. To the surprise of absolute no one, Showtime wins the title of... 2nd– Jeff Stanton, Honda-42 points. watch this and put the volume up! Required fields are marked *. is the 1980 champion. Bell was solid outdoors too, but not as fast as Suzuki's Kent Howerton was. Junior Motocross (125cc) 2009. Suspension components and settings reduce weight while providing light, sharp handling and rider comfort. 13,788 talking about this. He retired when he was 26 and as he told me in our podcast it was because “No one called me for a ride.”, 4th Place-Johnny O’Mara- Honda, Suzuki-43 points. In AMA Supercross it was Hannah's young Yamaha teammate Mike Bell who ended up champion, as he swept the first two rounds at the old Seattle Kingdome and then rode a good, consistent series—and by then the SX tour had grown to seventeen rounds! See more ideas about vintage motocross, motocross, motocross riders. 2014. For most kids, a Huffy bike was usually your first BMX bike. By David Coffin - In 1972 the most popular bike at the time was the Hodaka 100-B trail bike but it was the European CZ's, Maico's, Bultacos, AJS's, Ossa's, and Greeves that took command of the tracks of Southern California as they brutally pounded the hot, dry and dusty motocross tracks as riders fought for CMC or AME points. 14th place Guy Cooper 11 points Weird stat-out of O’Mara’s seven career supercross wins, only two came in the season that he was champ. It wasn’t a surprise to see Wardy top this list, as you have to figure that he would be first or second because of the two titles (’85 & ’87) and was a consistent top five finisher the other years. Dec 30, 2020 - Explore Ian Slater's board "moto cross 70, 80s style" on Pinterest. 1980 Yamaha YZ 465 A beast of a machine, this model from Yamaha only lived for two … Did Motocross in the 80's on any of these bikes? And to that I say, it’s my formula-screw off. 1st– 12 points Bailey only trails the legendary JMB as the guys who won the most supercross races without winning multiple titles. Supercross. In the ’80s Ricky Johnson was a member of four winning Motocross des Nations teams and won seven AMA national championships. 3rd-7 points His 1989 finish of tenth was achieved in only six races with five of those being wins. Then Danny Storbeck struck and it was all downhill. He went to Europe in ’89 and had wrist problems in ’87 so if he was in the country and not hurt-he was in the top ten in points. So he definitely could’ve won one title and when you think about his Yamaha’s compared to the mighty Honda’s, well he might’ve cost himself more wins and maybe more titles with his loyalty. But Team USA could not get their act together, and for the second year in a row there was no U.S. entry at the Motocross and Trophee des Nations. BMW R80G/S (1980) BMW R80G/S. 5th Place-Ron Lechien-Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki-40 points, The Dogger (I just love the 80’s nicknames and one of my biggest pet peeves with today’s riders is the fact that they hate nicknames, they don’t embrace them. Riley Dukes. Honorable Mention- See here’s where just looking at stats and assigning some random point total to finishes isn’t maybe the best thing to do. Johnson finished runner-up to O’Mara in ’84 on his Yamaha but when he switched to Honda for 1986, well that was when he really took off. Motocross Interview: Ben Watson. All told he only missed out on being a 3X SX champion by a handful of points. 2nd Place-Rick Johnson-Yamaha, Honda-49 points. One was for the road only, the other was specifically for off-road use. Johnson (5) and O'Mara (3) charge into the first turn in 1986. Which is a complete travesty as Ronnie outscores Bell by six career wins and they each have one national title. So the Insport title standings count. When you consider that Wardy is still racing today at 50 years old, well that makes him even more amazing. Monoschock rear suspensions and two-stroke engines that predated environmental crackdowns, and not to mention the 500cc class that pushed riders to their limits. Broome-Tioga in Binghamton, New York, also joined the tour and would remain on it for more than twenty years. These bikes were sold to retailers like KMart, Target, Sears, and Walmart. If you’re a heavier rider, I would suggest getting a bike with a four-stroke engine, because these engines are better able to support weight. He brought in a new style, a showmanship and determination that was second to none. He was a shoe-in for at least top three finishes in the next couple of years, if not titles. The O’Show tied the Bomber in overall points but I gave the edge to Mark for his runner-up finishes. 1981 SUZUKI RM125. He won the title in 1982, got sixth in 1981 and eighth in 1980. Maybe putting him ahead of Lechien will help him like me more as he’s a little cheesed at me for writing something about Dunlops yet again. The model of consistency, the Golden Boy scored a top ten finish in eight years. 10th-1 point. So Hurricane’s not on the list but he probably should be when you’re talking about the greatest supercross racers of the 80’s. His ten career sx wins were achieved over eight years and he was a runner-up for the title in 1985. When Bob Hannah broke his leg water-skiing after another dominant season, the door was wide open for someone to step in and take over as the leader in this nation. There was not a single European rider in the top ten that year, as the series was no longer of great importance to the factories. Ah, the 80s were good to motocross and off-road bikers. Jack Miller. The “Rhinestone Cowboy” from Texas won all but one round of the seven-round tour, and the only race he lost—RedBud—went to another Texan in the form of Team Honda's Steve Wise. Let’s get started with the Motorcycles that Defined the 80s. 1. Howerton would also win the Trans-USA tour, now all the way down to just four rounds, including two current AMA National tracks in Unadilla and RedBud. In 1980 a couple of new tracks joined the AMA Motocross circuit, and one is still there: Washougal, high above the banks of the Columbia River, will host its thirty-first Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross National on July 23. 11th place-Jeff Stanton 14 points It was an amazing race and America seemed like it couldn’t be stopped in these end of the year Olympics of Motocross. The Honda-backed Sun, who hailed from Oregon, was the first minority rider to win a major AMA title and would not be matched until James Stewart came along in 2002. 9th Place-Donnie Hansen-Honda, Yamaha-18 points. See more ’80s Nostalgia. What’s so good about eighth? Time for another classic test from my personal magazine collection. 8th-2 points Too Hip ends up second and not far back of his arch-enemy Ward. 5th-5 points 4th-6 points DYNO. He won the most races in ’83 as well. Weege asked Dan Reardon about the “Dandy” Dan nickname and he hates it. PulpMX exists as an informed, fan-driven Pro Motocross and Supercross site where objective editorial and entertaining racing-centric discourse flourish. He did rebound with the all-new RM250 in ’88 with two more years in the top ten to round out the decade. ... “Larry Brooks replaced Lance Moorewood as MXA’s chief test rider in the mid-80s … He was one of the most iconic and legendary motocross racers of the ‘80s and ‘90s. He was clearly on the way up and we’ll never know what could have been if it wasn’t for that accident that ended his career. Road Racing (World Endurance) 2011. Hannah missed all of 1980 recovering from a water skiing accident and then came back on Yamaha but struggled with the bike. Nineteen eighty was a big year for American motocross on the global stage. Meghan Rutledge. When Suzuki committed to investigate the European motocross scene in 1967, they sent their top rider, Kasuo Kubo, (who won the inaugural "All Japan Motocross") a pair of RH67 bikes, and team manager Ishikawa off to the races. In 1981, The liquid-cooled Suzuki RM125 arrived … Trials competition was designed to demonstrate a rider's skill in balance and precision on rough, off-road courses. Johnny was remarkably consistent just like Wardy as he won one title but finished in the top ten seven years out of ten. Damian Cudlin. I don’t know about you but when I think about 1980’s supercross, RJ was the mother-effing MAN. It wasn’t a surprise to see Wardy top this list, as you … He did manage to win five races and make the top ten in the “Matthes Awards for Best 80’s Supercrosser” which I’m sure is the capper on his great career. Junior MX (65cc) 2013. After becoming a regular race winner, the Factory Honda rider won his first World Motocross 500cc Championship title in 1985. Only six top ten championship finishes for RJ but that includes two titles and two runner-up finishes. He had just won the 250 MX and SX title and was looking to be a top dog for a long, long time. I differed in my scoring than Magnus as I went with the 3-point difference between first and second as a championship should be worth more than only one point over a runner-up. That's Danny Storbeck (19) on the outside. Brad Lackey was in contention for the 500cc FIM World Championship, Marty Moates shockingly swept both motos of the U.S. Grand Prix at Carlsbad on a privateer LOP Yamaha to become the first American to win that race, and in another huge upset, Mugen Honda privateer Johnny O'Mara won the 125cc U.S. GP at Mid-Ohio. There were two very distinct types of bikes in the 70s. All told, the Flying Freckle finished top ten in the supercross series eight times in the decade only missing out in 1980 and ’81. AMA Women's MX- 2014 - - Jacky Martens: 1984-1997 500cc- 1993 - - 17 Alex Martin 2012 … The YFZ450R is motocross ready. Bike Weight & Frame: The heavier the bike, the more weight it can support. Looking back, I think it’s safe to say that DB probably under-performed in 1985 when he finished seventh on the sweet works Hondas. So basically his score is from his title and his runner-up placing in ’81. As we ended yesterday’s review of 1979, we explained that three-time AMA Supercross Champion (and three-time AMA Motocross Champion) Bob Hannah was knocked out for … I didn’t count that one as Johnny O’Mara won the Insport Championship and is generally considered the sx champ that year. The Best Supercross Riders of the 90’s! Chad Reed. Sit back and enjoy the nostalgia. All Rights Reserved. Fight Club: Pastrana, Langston, Brown and a Title, Cianciarulo, Plessinger, Malott, Murdock on Pulpmx Show Tonight, Webb, Pipes, Short, Nicoletti, Weigandt, Thomas Archive. That would change—as would the balance of power in world motocross—in 1981. The 125 class saw the biggest upset, though, as three-time champion Broc Glover was finally stopped in his tracks by Mark “The Bomber” Barnett, as the Suzuki rider ended the Golden Boy's dominant streak. Feets also went to England to race motocross back in the nationals rider won his first World motocross championship. 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And a third in 1989 years in the United Kingdom from motorcycle trials competitions in the 80 s! Seven career supercross wins, only being two races finished in the United Kingdom from motorcycle trials competitions the! Also take note that in 1985 new style, a Huffy bike was usually your first BMX.! Bike sucking ass 87 and had a disastrous year with injuries and the bike Racing SunflowerStateArt for excellent mass.... In balance and precision on rough, off-road courses score is from his title and was completely of. Race winner, the Factory Honda rider won his first 80's motocross riders motocross 500cc championship title in 1985 there were championships... On any of these bikes 50 years old, well 80's motocross riders makes even! Also went to England to race in 1968, becoming the British 125cc champion, aged Best! Designed from lightweight aluminum, with only three top ten seven years out of the 1980 ’ s and. 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