by dirtgirl
5 Minutes with... Dean Wilson
Thursday, August 19, 2010 | 3:05 PM
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PrintMonster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson is enjoying a remarkable rookie season in the AMA Motocross 250 National Championship Series. The Scots/Canadian/Californian is throwing knuckles for a top-three spot in the championship fight, and has also won an overall event this year. Last Saturday at the fabled Unadilla circuit, #108 wound up third overall, despite getting totally taken out for the lead by wild-riding, take-no-prisoners rival Justin Barcia in the opening moto. In Corona to swing by Pro Circuit, Racer X grabbed the happy-go-lucky kid and asked him about his dog-day afternoon in Upstate New York.
Dean Wilson: No, I’m not really super-bummed on the day. To be on the podium, I’m always happy. I just think I should have had a better finish; but for crashing and everything, third isn’t bad.
Obviously, Justin Barcia has earned a dubious reputation for running roughshod over other riders. I understand there are two sides to every story, though; you think he cleaned you out, but I think he says he had the inside and you didn’t let off. What really went down? Enquiring minds want to know...
Yeah, it’s always the excuse that he had the inside or whatever, but I really don’t care. It’s the second time he’s cleaned me out. The first time [Atlanta Supercross], I was pretty pissed, but whatever; I let it go. This time, I mean, I was winning and I was actually riding decent, then I crashed and then it just totally ruined my race. I was pretty pissed after it, but I just forgot about it, came out second moto and I beat him, so that’s all that matters. He beat me in the overall, though, which sucks.
That’s the second time that’s happened to you this year, where you’ve been literally knocked out of the lead, both by guys on the same team... The first one was when Trey Canard knocked you off the track at RedBud.
I know. Trey’s was a really aggressive pass, but I don’t think it was dirty. This one was just dirty because he was going in there wide open and I had no chance. But whatever, I’m just going to forget about it.
Is it better to forget about it or is it better to save it up and know that next time you owe him?
Well, he’s got that reputation, so it’s not like I’m going to go over there and fight the guy. I mean, everybody knows he’s a dirty rider and it’s like, whatever. Payback sucks.
Are you going to paint your face all half-blue and go after him?
Yeah, we’re going to go "Braveheart." I’ll have a "Freedom" butt patch and then I’ll have some ginger hair running out the back of my helmet. That should be good. Maybe tartan gear...
Dean Wilson leads Justin Barcia over the big tabletop at Unadilla in the first moto.
Photo: Steve Cox
Do you know what your actual material is?
Yeah, they have a Wilson tartan. I actually have a kilt at home.
Don’t wear that...
No? Why?
Wear it like at the des Nations; just don’t wear it around the pits casually. It’s just a recommendation.
No, not here. The thing that sucks with the kilt is if you’re a true Scotsman, you don’t wear any underwear underneath it. I haven’t busted that one yet. I better be a true Scotsman if I’m going to wear it. I haven’t worn it in a while.
I’m not scared. I’ll do it. Just free-ball it...
That takes us to this: Early in the year, you were juggling back and forth if you were going to ride for Canada or Great Britain, and you didn’t know what you were going to do. But now, you’re going to end up riding for Great Britain. How did that play out in your head and how do you feel about that decision?
I’m really happy about the decision. It definitely wasn’t an easy one. Team Great Britain had been calling me for a couple months. It was tough. There’s a lot of politics on the Canadian side and things just didn’t really work out. It sucks because I kind of owe it to a lot of people in Canada because they helped me out and stuff. At the same time, I was born in Scotland and that’s where I lived and learned how to ride a dirt bike. I’m so glad to ride for them and I’m looking forward to the future and this year.
Who are your teammates again?
I’m not sure yet.
There are a couple other Scotsman that go pretty fast, right?
Yeah, Billy Mackenzie is pretty fast. Shaun Simpson is fast. Stephen Sword is fast. There are actually quite a few.
You guys could actually have Team Scotland.
Yeah, we could. The little island is actually pretty strong.
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Rubbin's racing, but punting someone off the track is complete Bull****t. Trey C and Barcia have one coming. somebody on a PC kawi needs to clean out barcia. Put him on his head a time or 2 and maybe he will think twice about riding like such a little kid. This is professional racing now. Trey almost decapitated villopoto in 08 east coast SX. How can you feel good about making such a dangerous Bullcrap pass??? Only the honda guys. I was a barcia fan, trey C fan also, as well as a deano fan. after dilla and red bud i lost all respect for those guys. The PC kawi boys ride Hard and clean, letting their fast times win. Those 2 honda guys are gonna seriously injure somebody, like a career ending takeout. If you cant beat em' straight up, why take em out? Dean if you read this,,, I know your pisssed off, but turn that anger into motivation. Put them in a position where its your turn to punt them off the track. Whether you do or dont,,, Get it inside their heads that you are faster and You can take them out at any givin moment. They'll be riding backwards, and you'll go straight to the front (like always). Its like Larry brooks is running the geiko show. I hardly doubt LaRocco is telling them to ride like idiots. A hard block pass is so much different than an off the track Punt
I am happy to know that Dean is not wasting energy and time thinking about taking anybody out. He seems to have his own criteria and that demonstrates a strong character. It's better to focus on your own goals and not include anything negative on the list, just the way he seeems to be doing. That will get him really far. Congratulations on your awesome ride so far this year, you are making tons of fans by being a gentleman on and off the track. (Being a funny dude helps off course) Keep rocking that Kawi DEANO!!!
I forgot, good luck on your MXON ride. GO DEANO!!!!!
c'mon pinned; Canard's wasn't bad and even Wilson - who was closer to it than you - says so. Wilson just needs to get more aggressive and not let anyone push him around. And I dunno, moto... you'd think that's true, but then he says, "Payback sucks." What's up with that? I thought you forgot about it, Deano?
ya Dean, you have great attitude and you'll have an awesome ride at the DN. Canada ain't sending their best (just like America) so you made the best choice. As for Justin, I look forward to your payback homie!!!
Just like America? Another classic from Trip.
Deano, I think it is super cool when you don't cry about getting taken out. I also agree that canards was just good hard racing. Barcia is a mommas boy, He has blatantly taken you out twice. If it was the other way around he would be protesting you. The guy can't match your speed so the only way he can beat you is when he puts you on the ground. His aggressive riding was cool at first but everybody is about sick of it. When the time is right please punt the little kid like a football. GOOD LUCK, BUDDY!
I like the way Deno rides, he is in a good position in the series. Shouldn't have let Barcia catch him, Barcia was all over him and definitely riding faster at that point of the race...hey just saying from what I saw...either pick up the pace or get out of the way, lay back, regroup, then attack. Soooooouth Wiiiiiiiick!
I've been lukewarm on Barcia since the beginning of the year....and cooling off fast. He has way too many incidents like this that are always him and someone, never with the someone getting into him. Dungey is dominating the big boy class and you never see him get into anyone, even by accident. Look back to Red Bud and the awesome race between him and Townley that went lap after lap with absolutely zero contact of any sort. Could have had something similar with Barcia and Wilson, but Barcia took care of that. Didn't he have a couple of mechanicals in SX because of such contact? Guess he doesn't learn so well. Aggressive riding is great, demolition derby is not.
Hell yes Eric Johnson!! Hell Yes!!
What Saywhat said is significant. I saw the race both live and on the tube, and there's no doubt that, speed-wise, Barcia was giving Wilson all he could handle. Combine that with the Unadilla roost he was taking lap after lap, and I can see where he'd want to get by ASAP. While Canard's pass wasn't as rough, it was otherwise a very similar scenario. And you can't compare 250 racing with 450 racing. The battles on the small bikes are always more ferocious. That's why 125s/250s/Lites have always been the most exciting class to watch.
^^^^^^I agree......when he made the pass, they were coming directly towards me ( as i was on the entering cavity side)....and to me.....yea, justin took the SAME exact line about 3 or 4 laps in a row and deano knew he was there......this time justin was basically next to him and had the inside...and deano raced him hard.....thus them hitting in a GREAT racing pass......someone said it above....the kawi boys RIDE hard......Ill add the Geico boys come to RACE......ps.....Im not a Monster Energy PC fan AT ALL.......but Im more a rider fan.....and am VERY BIG FAN of Dean Wilson And Tyla Rattray.....BOTH AMAZING RIDERS!!!!......but have to say there isnt a rider on the geico team i DONT like.......see ya at tha Wick!!!
I don't disagree that Barcia was going faster, or that he was taking the same line in that corner (seems to me there is only one line there). So, if he was that much faster, pass somewhere that knocking the guy down is not necessary. Just because you have used the same line over and over does not give you rights to it if someone is in it. That is exactly what Stewart said when he landed on RC's head a few years back. I don't understand what Wilson should have done to avoid getting knocked down, pull over like a lapper? It takes away from the racing, because now Wilson has to worry about getting taken out, instead of just racing. The day that a move like that is considered a "GREAT racing pass"....I can't even comprehend that. When countless pros have a problem with the way Barcia rides, it is fairly clear there is a problem. If EVERYONE rode like that, this sport would be an embarassment. It would just be one big smash-em up derby.
I want to see Dean punt that punk kid Barcia so far off the track out into the woods that he will be wishing he brought a tent with him.
Pourcel passed Dean in the exact same corner. Dean was pushed out of the line. Barcia passed Dean in the exact corner. Dean was pushed out of the line, this time Dean fell in the ****ty pushed out ruts. I like Wilson alot, this was the exact same pass that his teamate made on him. With that being said, I want to see Barcia get punted for the backbacks he's due
BKR, you say that if a rider is "that much faster, pass somewhere that knocking the guy down is not necessary," but when the difference is small, the rider behind has to decide whether to "accept" second or "make something happen." As I said before, Canard found himself in the same situation in that earlier race, and like his teammate, he made it happen. Funny how RV absolutely t-bones Dungey, taking them both down in that pivotal SX race this year, but I don't recall anyone calling for him to be "punted."
I was on the inside of the corner where the pass on Dean was made. If I leaned far enough out, I coulda pulled Barcia right off his bike...thats how close I was. It was a perfect, beautiful pass....same exact line Barcia had taken for a # of laps. Dean got bumped....not too hard....he basically moved out of the line..the only reason he fell was he had to ride over a pile of crap on the outside of the turn. The pile of crap had a small steep drop off that his front wheel went over. It was some good racin!
Barcias pass was very aggressive no doubt. But I dont think he intended to knock anyone down and Wilson knew he was there and knew he was coming on the inside. He could have blocked the inside completely and not let Barcia in there. And Canards pass wasnt dirty at all. I was watching that one live and saw the tv footage, he passed him hard, but not dirty.
Congrats on an awesome year so far Dean. You have been haulin! Finish strong these last few rounds!
You're with me again, griffter. All this Barcia stuff aside, though, Wilson is a helluva rider.
I think Barcia has a few coming to him...Ice Trey has one coming too. Like I said before, i'm tired of Barcia's whole act. You don't see Dungey out there taking guys out to get around them. Barcia ended up getting run down and falling on his own anyway. Lame. Hopefully Deano "Flying Squirrel" Wilson now knows that these guys are dangerous. He either needs to check out or let the claws come out and fight. You can only push the kid so far I have a feeling. Once the light goes on for #108 I don't think he is gonna do much losing. GO DEANO!
...also, I was calling for RV's head when he took out Dungey. That was insane. He even admitted on Pulp MX that he was trying to take him out. The thing is, he knew Dungey was close behind him and he was so worried about getting paid back that he made a bad mistake. The whole thing could have been avoided. Whatever...Dungey is the Wizard.
Sorry Sef, RV is my favorite and I was screaming at the TV "What are you doing?!!!" hen he got into Dungey like that. I came on here and called it complete B.S. but him getting hurt kinda took any wind out of people's sails on that one. Some were saying that Dungey turned into him. Uh no. I agree FroLives. If RV had waited for a last 5 lap charge, I think he would have won without any issues. I still don't understand that move. I'm liking Wilson more and more on and off the track. I can give a rider a few passes but this is clearly "how Barcia rolls". The time is coming where it will cost him.
Well, BKR, regarding your apparent dislike for Barcia ... were you a Bradshaw fan? Hannah? Those boys weren't afraid of a little bumping!
Liked them both, although Hannah was a bit before my time. He was on Hondas already. My response is that Bradshaw lost his only shot at a SX title due to stupid smash em up derby shenaninagans. It also seemed to be the turning point in his career as it went downhill from there. I know Hannah had issues with Howerton but did he smash into EVERYBODY all the time when passing? He wasn't doing that on Honda and beyond. Both Bradshaw and Hannah were agressive, but I don't recall either taking people out left and right the way Barcia has been doing. Same race we saw Pourcel catch and pass Canard and go by with zero contact and neither guy let off and they had complete confidence in each other, and went at it for several laps. That is racing to me. Pourcel just as easily could have pulled a Barcia and cleaned him out first chance he got. The only time I've seen Pourcel get into anyone was when he sent a message in SX....to Barcia, after Barcia had knocked down someone from PC....was it also Wilson? There are so many incidents I can't even remember them all.
BKR......agree with you on this one. Remember earlier in the supercross season when Barcia was complaining about being worried someone was going to break his leg during practice? I think he's not doing good this year because he has to watch is back so much. At the beginning of the supercross season I said he was burning bridges and was crucified for it.
You say Hannah was before your time, so that means you saw him (on Honda) when he was much older than Barcia (and had recuperated from a badly broken leg that caused him a lengthy layoff). In his early days with Yamaha, he would bump anybody out of his way to get to the front. And again, I would point out that Barcia didn't really knock Wilson to the ground; Dean lost his balance going over the berm. You say the kid is "taking people out left and right." We're through 10 rounds of the Nationals. Who else has he taken out? Let me add that Bradshaw lost his best chance at a SX championship because he CHOKED at the final round in LA, not because of any crashing or bumping, and Mr. Consistency, Jeff Stanton, took the crown.
Bradshaw choked in the final round, but if you recall the Chicken Dance he did one round and gave away buckets of points, he never would have been in position to choke. If Hannah slam-danced his way around people in his early years, I wouldn't have liked him. I guess he mellowed out then in his old age? Why, if that is an acceptable way to pass? I can't remember all of Barcia's incidents and who they were with....which includes SX, heat races and all, not just outdoors. One race he flattened his header pipe after banging into someone, Davalos was punching him in the head in qualifying once (I defended barcia at that point), Pourcel was retaliating against him for slamming a teammate in a heat race, this one with Wilson.....how many am I not even remembering? All that was from this year. What about last year? I never even heard of what Garjan just said about him complaining about someone breaking his leg. If that is a worry, why throw more gas on the fire? If Dean Wilson thinks it was dirty it was dirty. That kid is as laid back as it gets.
I wasn't a big Bradshaw fan, and I didn't like Hannah much in the beginning (since he came in and stole my guy Marty Smith's thunder). Once he mellowed a bit (but didn't really slow down - his first Daytona on Honda was incredible), Hannah became the pied piper for fans. As for "If Dean Wilson thinks it was dirty it was dirty," I'm afraid I can't put as much faith as you in his being the ultimate judge of all things dirty. Like I said, Barcia didn't even knock him down; he took the spot in the corner - with force - and Dean lost it going over the berm. Both riders are young and will probably battle for years. Time will tell how it pans out. For now, I'm going with Barcia's an aggressive rider. That's my opinion. You're entitled to yours.
I watched Hurricane Hannah and Typhoon Tripes bump each other at least five or six times (a piece) at Hangtown in the late seventies..I had never seen that type of racing before in my young age and was just dumfounded by it all.. They never did anything that would make the other rider go down, just enough to get him out of the race line or screw up his timing. Years later watching some of the flat out "t" bone and rediculous block passing that the chicken and Bradshaw were pulling were compared to Hannah and I saw no comparison at all. Now, these days some of these kids are willing to put it all on the line to advance one position with not a lot of regard for the other rider's safety, let alone thier own....
Fancypants, that was kinda my point. I'll tolerate bumping, it's going to happen. Plus if you consider the scalpel-like instruments they had back then bumping was almost necessary to get through a corner, haha. Seriously though, I don't expect there to be zero contact as that would be pretty much impossible. But when you enter a corner knowing a guy is there in the line and that there will be heavy contact and the guy most likely is going to go down? That seems on the B.S. side to me. I would bet that in the last two years, 75% of all serious contact (practice, heats, MX, SX) has involved Barcia. If every rider rode like that, what would happen? I don't think at all that there is the intention of knocking someone down, but it is an attitude of I don't care if he does go down. A move like that is tolerable last lap desperation style, not at minute 15 of the race. Interestingly, Pourcel passed Wilson same corner, same line (both in it) earlier in the moto with no contact. He gave Dean the space to get through the corner. You are correct Sef it is all opinion though.
"A move like that is tolerable last lap desperation style, not at minute 15 of the race." Easy to say when you're not the one taking Unadilla roost for 15 minutes! Also, BKR, "75% of all serious contact"? Wow! As for the comparison to Pourcel ... if you compared RJ and Bailey, Ricky looks like quite the bully! Totally different riders/styles (and I'm not saying Barcia is RJ ... or CP is Bailey). As time goes by, I could end up agreeing with you on this ... or you might see JB in a better light. Right now, he's in his second year as a pro - with lots of expectations ... and still a kid.
I really liked the statement that Wilson made when asked about riding for Great Britan. He said"Lets settle this right now, I am from Scotland, its where I was born, raised, and learned to ride. It just sucks that some people are getting bent out of shapebecause I have a Scottish flag next to my name on the results . I just with they would get over it." I guess that clears up where Dean feels he is from.
You know the pass happened and there was contact period. It may go the other way some day and all the guys liking the Barcia pass had better tolerate it when the Honda is the machine on the ground.
I'm not sure if you heard the same thing as me, bd, but I heard him say something similar about being born and learning to ride in Scotland, but I also heard him say that he has strong ties to Canada and was prepared to ride for them if not for some political issues within the selection process. From what I heard, I would say that he feels he is both.
The quote came from this months Racer X, it was word for word. He said the Canadians need to get over it..