The city of Crawfordsville, Indiana In SuperMotocross, Ken Roczen is trying something unusual. He will drop down a division to compete with the 250 riders for one round, mostly for fun but also with the intention of outperforming some of the athletes who have admired him for their entire lives.
He hurriedly ran the notion past his wife once it began as an intrusive thought. She told him to make the call and start the process after around 15 seconds. In order to begin preparing, Roczen made arrangements to borrow a bike from the BarX Suzuki squad.
Time was running short. Over the course of four days, Roczen has learned how the powerband is different from the 450 he often rides. On the smaller bike, shifting is much more common, and it has taken some time to get used to it.
Before the Ironman National, Roczen stated, “There is a proper way to run a 250, but you have to rev it more.” “I’m certainly not going overboard. Although you have to perform that well in front of 39 other people, I feel like I’m in the thick of things. I’m sure I’ll be okay with that.
In order to gain perspective, Roczen has been working out with Levi Kitchen, who is competing against Tom Vialle for second place in the 250 Pro Motocross Championship.
Kitchen thinks he’s ready.
With a dismissive laugh, Kitchen remarked, “He looks good; he looks okay.” To be honest, I have no idea why he is concerned about his starts. He got me on a couple of them, and we had starts the other day. Lately, I’ve been getting pretty fantastic beginnings.
“He will definitely mix it up.”
When Roczen last rode a 250, the majority of the riders were only in elementary school. Haiden Deegan was seven years old and training on a 50cc bike in preparation for a career in SuperMotocross.
Deegan remarked, “I just think it’s cool that I get to race Ken Roczen.” Since I was a young child, I have admired him in the racing world. Getting to race him is cool because he’s getting older and I’m sure he won’t be done for long.
Roczen mockingly expressed outrage in response to Deegan’s remark.
The 30-year-old Roczen has been observing these Young Guns advance through the ranks. Although some, like Jett and Hunter Lawrence, have already advanced to the 450 class, Roczen is nearing the conclusion of his career rather than the start in a sport that favors young athletes.
Now he’s going through what he did to Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, Ryan Villopoto, and Ryan Dungey.
As I’ve gotten older and raced guys like Villopoto, Dunge, Stew, and others, I’m getting to race men who, I don’t mean to offend, were most likely urinating in their diapers at the time. I don’t mean that negatively. To be honest, I think it’s awesome to see people stepping aside and simply observing the generational divide.
The sole goal of those kids is to demonstrate to Roczen that the 250 category is equally as formidable as the premier class.
After Deegan and Chance Hymas, Roczen rocketed to third place on the Ironman Nationals’ first practice session board. At odds of +650 for the overall triumph, however, sportsbook traders are not showing him much respect.
“It will be enjoyable,” Kitchen remarked. “Obviously, but since I see him a lot throughout the week, I just want to give him the best beating possible because he wouldn’t be able to handle it.” More News About SuperMotocross