5 Minutes With... Mitch Payton
Wednesday, January 12, 2011 | 7:00 PM
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PrintWhat a night for Pro Circuit’s Mitch Payton this past Saturday at Anaheim Stadium as his team went 1-2-3 in the 250 class. It was a fantastic way to start the year for the powerhouse Southern California house of horsepower and one that I’m sure Mitch and his entire team put a lot of work into to make sure it happened. The team just shows up, year after year since 1991, and no matter who’s on the bike, the rider performs.
Not all is perfect in PC land though as the switch of exhaust pipe companies by the factory Kawasaki team is something that has stirred the pot a bit for the man that many call the most powerful in the pits. I spoke to Kawasaki team manager Mike Fisher to get his take on the switch HERE and now, I called up Payton to talk about this and, of course, his tremendous night.
Racer X: Mitch, thanks for doing this and is there any way that your Anaheim could’ve gone any better?
Mitch Payton: No, I don’t think so. I’m really happy for all the guys and we’ve all worked so hard to make this happen. It’s awesome when it all comes together and this year was a little more difficult than usual. We had some difficulties in getting all of our parts that we needed and all through Christmas and New Year’s, it was a little bit of stress and a lot of work to get here.
And was there one guy, for whatever reason, that impressed you more than another?
No, I was actually impressed with all of them in different ways. I’ll start off with Tyla (Rattray) because it was his first supercross ever in the States and it’s one of those things where you’re watching practice and someone does something. Then we all go “Uh oh, you have to go out and jump that” which we shouldn’t do but he went out there, jumped it and crashed pretty good. He hit his head, a little bit of a concussion but we got him checked out by Asterisk. At one point he wasn’t going to ride but he decided to and I’m glad he did.
I’m really happy for Tickle also. He’s in good shape, I knew he’d be ready and it was just a question of if he got a good start, how he was going to do it you know? He was awesome, rode flawless and rode his own race, didn’t let anyone affect him out there.
And Hanny, we all know Hanny and with him all the little pieces have to be lined up. I think that trip down to Australia was good for him, it kept him racing and it showed that there weren’t any distractions. If you go back and look at the tape from last year’s Anaheim to this year, you’ll see a lot of improvement.
Yeah, he really looked like he was in complete control out there and even when he was in second, it seemed that it was no problem for him if he had to turn it up.
Yeah, he didn’t look like he got tired. Look at his times, he was solid and wasn’t winded when he got off the bike at all. I’m really happy for him and for all the guys.
Pro Circuit sweep the podium at the opening round of Monster Energy Supercross.
Photo: Simon Cudby
How about the 2011 KXF 250, what do you guys still have to work on as far as making it better?
We’re still waiting on a couple of things. It’s nice when you feel like you have everything under control and we need to know that we have everything that it’s going to take and spares as well to feel real comfortable and we still need to work on that. Overall, we’re still really happy with the performance and Anaheim was the first race that we ran the new Showa forks, the new one-sided SFF fork that they have and I’m really happy that they looked good. In testing they liked it but you never know until you get it under race conditions. The EFI system seemed to be really good this weekend, no issues at all. It was a lot of work this year to make sure our bike was better than last year’s- that was our goal.
What about the competition? Anyone that caught your eye or anyone that you know is going to be a factor before this thing is over?
I think it’s so unpredictable. I think Martin (Davalos) looked good, I think Ken Roczen looked good-Travis Baker also. (Nick) Paluzzi, Ryan Morais there were some guys in there. It’s the first race and I think that those guys will be in there. I’m really pumped about our results but it’s nothing to gloat about. We have to get better because everyone else will get better also.
What happened to Tommy Searle? I thought he was going to ride west for you?
Yes he was. We were going to have him under truck and supply him and bike and everything. When he went back to England, he twisted his ankle running over there and when he got back here he was limping and was under the eight-ball as far as when he could start riding. So then when Harry (Nolte) got over here, we had a meeting with Tommy and the decision was made that he was just going to concentrate on the GP’s and not add another whole element to the program. It just didn’t make a lot of sense so Tommy’s been out practicing and we’ll do some testing with him and get him ready for the GP’s.
So the question on everyone’s mind is what do you think about Factory Kawasaki switching from your exhaust to FMF?
Well, I don’t really know how it happened. I’m not really sure (laughs). I guess I’m disappointed in that I had a conversation with Mike (Fisher) in mid-December because I had heard they were thinking of changing exhaust systems and he said it wasn’t true. We were made aware that there were some issues with the exhaust. We did address every issue at hand and had viable solutions. Unfortunately, they refused to look at what we came up with, I think he did me wrong and I was lied to. I don’t appreciate that, I have a great relationship with Kawasaki and I would think that they would have respect for us as well.
So this has definitely fractured a friendship but I suppose you’re happy with the fact that Ryan (Villopoto) won as he’s one of the guys that rode for you for so long.
That’s the thing because we help them with some of these guys. Ryan’s been with us since mini-bikes, just like (Ricky) Carmichael was and (James) Stewart was, they were brought up on the program and you supply them with rides because you want to bring them up and keep them going and you don’t want to lose them over a deal like this.
Thanks Mitch
Thank you, see you this weekend.
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I think it would be cool for Mitch's team to be backed by BMW and use Husqvarnas next year.Thats what he started with.Plus it would be super cool if his team never missed a beat and kept on winning on Huskys
I think the pc guys should start a 450 team so they don't loose anyone
Good job Steve, thank you for having the testicular fortitude to ask both guys the pipe question. Am I reading too much into it or is Kawi not giving Mitch the support he needs? "How about the 2011 KXF 250, what do you guys still have to work on as far as making it better? Weâ
Racer X, what's with the space constraints and no warning? To finish my thought: "Weâ
Congrats to Mitch and the PC team!!! Mudhole, I second that motion! Help bring back the Hoosky's!!!! Roger D at KTM, Mitch at Husqvarna!!!
What, I can't cut and paste a quote from Mitch? "We're still waiting on a couple of things". Mudhole, from a nostalgic perspective it would be cool, but he already has the infrastructure for the rest of the Japanese bikes. My Service Honda CR500 came with FMF exhaust. I switched to PC and it is better all around. PC exhaust also made a noticeable difference over stock on my '87 CR500 (I should've kept that bike and turned it into an ice racer!)
Yep Screw KAWI... This is the thanks you get !!! Im sure Mitch would get HONDA'S and do work on everyone.... IF IT WASN'T FOR THAT DAM MONSTER $........
Now we need to hear the other side of the story, yoo hoo Fisher.
Garjan, Matthes posted a link in his intro. Fisher gave a pretty weak answer. Red Bull doesn't sponsor Honda anymore...all the best to Mitch and PC, he's earned it!
I wonder what's so special about a custom built fmf pipe over a pc pipe? Nothing against fmf but I really don't think Mitch would find it to difficult to build a pipe with the same performance???? O well next stop Phoenix.
SW460...thanks I missed that. Your right he gave a very vague answer.
MF (ha) is looking weaker by the second . We all read what he had to say about Villo's prep so Mitchs version doesnt seem to far fetched but I would like to hear his ahhhhhh......... version. Mitch is a no bs guy whatI want to hear from him is how he feels about Hanny racing lites other than he hasnt pointed out, The lites class doesnt seem like a litmus test for a guy with his talent. JimM CarlsbadCA
I suspected something was up. The industry is full of dirty tricks. Just Like JS7 never does any interview with Racer x and when they did the shoot out they put a 6 on the blue bike and Ping never has any good things to say about JS. Its no secret theres no love ntw JS and Racer X but they wont admit it.
Here are some of the lowlights of the Matthes / Fisher conversation re the pipe deal. " PC is perfect for us" "we can't possibly ask any more from him " "we have the highest respect for him and all hes done for us" (and finally no im not kidding ) "I dont know exactly the details".
I'm just happy to see that Matthes is back and Cox is gone...happy new year
Pourcel on a PC 450 will be mitch's FU and it will be a huge one when Pourcel cleans house
Pourcel held out for money, screw em
Yeah screw frenchy!!
Wow, thanks for showing us both sides by talking to Fisher and Mitch. I swear, I'm starting to really like Racer X more and more everyday I'm on here. You knew what we wanted to know, and you went out and got the info. I KNEW there was more to the story that what Fisher's dumbass was putting out there. He's such a *****. Man when is Kawasaki going to fire this clown?
Fisher sounds like a weasel. He should have just manned up and told Mitch what was up!
It sounds like Kawi was all about shedding weight this year... wonder if the FMF system is lighter? I'd like to hear the real technical reasons why they picked FMF-- weight, power delivery, etc?
You want tech specs? Here you go $$$$$. PC doesn't pay anyone to use their stuff. FMF does. This is all about $$$$ plain and simple.
I agree. PC needs to start paying riders well so that they dont have such a reputation. Mitch uses his team perfomance to get the guys which is good but the reputation of not paying well needs to be addresed.
Well said DJ. If the switch were about weight or horsepower, FMF would sure as heck want that in print. Especially when race #1 ends and FMF is atop the podium. Everything runs on sponsor $$, understandable. However with the intimacy of the Kawasaki/PC relationship on the line, this may have been a bad move. Mitch must have received a telegram stating not to mention the word money in any interviews. Build your own bikes Mitch. "Mitchasaki". Watch the big five scramble for decades to keep up.
I find that a lot of problems and confusion can be solved, when people are honest and up front with one another. Yes, I am one of those guys that is like that. I dont have a hidden agenda, and call it like it is. I dont lie to folks (unless some girl asks me if "these jeans make my a$$ look fat?" Then, for self preservation, I do tell a little white lie, lol. I have zero respect for folks like Fisher, that cant just be honest, especially to someone like Mitch. If you have a problem with a guy, address the problem directly. If you like something that someone did, let them know. I guess to my way of thinking, being dishonest and lying, well, how can you look yourself in the mirror if you have no integrity?
DJ is right - $$ talks and the economy is bad for everyone. Kawi was trying to reduce their financial investment. FMF was willing to write a check and Mitch was willing to write an invoice for product sold. If I'm at corporate, I'd rather get a check than an invoice. This is why Mike Fisher's story is so weak - there was no good reason from a performance perspective. Someone at corporate just motivated Mitch to part ways with Kawi. I'm betting that Mitch is already thinking about/investigating options. Yes, he started with Husky but his first big push was with Honda when it was Team Peak/PC in the early 90s.
Dgizzy - Mitch has the best lites equipment. He doesn't have to pay big $ to get top riders. His record of producing championships shows Mitch's current formula works just fine for him. Remember, Mitch is in this game to make $. The more he pays riders, the less profit there is for him. Simple math.
Anyone that's been around moto since between now and 1986 knows Pro Ciruit is top tier performance (even if you don't like them, you must admit). They are committed so deeply in this sport that what you get for your dollar/yen/investment is truly the "total package". The economy has made companies and people do some desperate things but, if Kawasaki blows this, it will go down in history as one of the biggest bungles in Motocross/Supercross E V E R. KTM, Roger DeCoster, Red Bull, Honda & Yamaha are salivating at this opportunity.....
This was the bs from Fishy during his conversation with Matthes . I revised the quotes to read what KAW press release is gonna be when MF gets the boot. " PC (Fisher) is perfect for us, we can't possibly ask any more from him (Fisher) ,we have the highest respect for him (Fisher) and all hes (Fisher) done for us " however..........
that *****in' fish! it isn't a matter of pipe performance, weight, money, or what have ya. it's all about being honest and up front. it's hard to believe how this d-bag's still with kawie. they shoulda tried to get decoster or the goat (if available) to manage team kawasaki.
my honda is all pc from motor to pipes and suspension and its the best bike i have ever rode so keep up the good work and look for me at the supercross races this year thanks to mitch and all the guys at pro circuit pc all the way number 783 honda for team powersports of joplin pro circuit fly and bsg gutting racing