For the past nine years Mark Worth has been a standout amateur rider on Team Green Kawasaki. He contested the 2015 season in the A classes but after the season found himself without a professional deal lined up for 2016. That changed early last week when Motorcycle Superstore and Albertson Enterprises announced the details of their new team. He was at home preparing to race one more season on the amateur circuit when he received the call. “It’s very exciting and I’m very blessed. It’s a huge step for me to sign with the Motorcycle Superstore team with Albertson Enterprises,” said the man most know as "Marky".
Worth will make his debut in the pro ranks at Anaheim 1 in a few short weeks. We caught up with him on Tuesday to get his thoughts on his new team as well as talk about his final year as an amateur.
Racer X: Does it feel weird not being at Mini Os this week?
Mark Worth: I went to Mini Os a few times, but I never was really a fan of it. I actually broke my wrist there the last time I raced it two years ago. I raced it a few times not doing the supercross portion, which worked out better for me. It’s such a far drive on the other side of the country for me. [Worth is from Arizona.] I’m missing the whole racing scene, of course, but I’m thankful for a lot of other things as well. It’s not too big of an upset, but I would like to be racing.
I actually had a really good year there when I first moved up to the 250. I got two thirds and a fifth in the outdoors. It was pretty cool to me because that was against guys like Jordon Smith, Aaron Plessinger, and RJ Hampshire. It was a good start to the big bike career.
Speaking of those guys, you’re going to be racing some of them here again pretty shortly. Tell us about your new deal.
It’s very exciting and I’m very blessed. It’s a huge step for me to sign with the Motorcycle Superstore team with Albertson Enterprises. They are such a great group of people. It’s nice to have a place to call home. I was in Texas for a week and a half and I was just getting to know everyone. Gregg and Jimmy [Albertson] along with the whole crew really have their stuff figured out. We have huge goals for the team and I’m very excited to get the season started with them.
How did you first get in contact with the team?
I had something going with the Motosport.com Crossland team before Monster Cup. I hadn’t signed anything with them, but they brought me the bike to ride. The deal fell through and it was a big hit for me. I was upset. I was still riding a Honda after that and I went out to Grindstone Compound to get in front of some teams. All of a sudden I got a phone call saying the team was interested in me. Albertson had the team finalized and they were looking for a rider. It was a lot of back and forth. My trainer Shannon Niday was a huge part of it. He put in a good word for me. The team called me up again and said if I wanted to race Anaheim 1 then I was on the team. It was kind of scary at the time because Anaheim 1 is so soon, but it also took a lot of weight off of my shoulders. I know I can do it. I’ve been working for this my entire life. This is my chance to get myself out there. I’m excited to get out there and see how this all works out.
Were you planning on turning pro regardless of how everything worked out with Crossland?
With them it was kind of just like if you do well at Monster Cup, then we will see if we want you to do supercross, or wait until outdoors. Monster Cup wasn’t the best race for me. I wasn’t as prepared as I should have been. Either way the whole deal fell through and we didn’t have a choice. After that I went home and was thinking about doing some more amateur races. Then this Suzuki deal came up and it was impossible to turn down.
You were in a tough spot as a long-time Team Green rider. All of the pro teams were full for this season, so it was a bad time to lock down a ride with any team.
Yeah, it was probably the toughest time to be an A rider in this position. At Loretta’s I had won a 250 moto and I thought maybe that would do something. I did end up having some bad luck and it didn’t work out for me. I was on Kawasakis since I was nine and there were some issues in the team and I made the decision to go to Honda. I think I’ve ridden every bike brand in the past few months. With the Suzuki it’s a great bike. The bike handles and turns really well. It’s a great bike and I can’t wait to get on one that is setup for me. I’ll start busting out laps for Anaheim.
The good news for everyone is that we have even more yellow bikes on the track for 2016.
That’s cool too! Suzuki fell off the map for a few years in the 250 Class. Now it’s coming back with the Dirt Candy team and the Albertson team. It’ll be cool because we can put Suzuki back on the map and show everyone what’s up.
Looking ahead to Anaheim 1, you get to finally live your dream and realize that the hard work has finally paid off for you.
I’m really excited to go out there and do something that I’ve looked up to since I was little. I’m especially looking forward to Phoenix. That’s going to be crazy with it being basically my hometown race. I’m looking forward to doing my best as well as show everyone that Arizona kids can be up in the mix. We get to be in the new stadium too. I’ll have my family and friends there, as well as everyone else who has helped me my entire career. Being out there in front of everyone will be quite the experience.
You know, it’s a good thing that you got your Road to Supercross points out of the way last year.
Exactly. We made a quick decision last year to do the last three rounds of arenacross. My dad and I flew out and Kawasaki had our bikes under the Babbitt’s rig the entire series. They were just waiting on me to figure out when we were going to do it. I can’t thank the Babbitt’s guys enough for making me feel at home. I only ended up racing once because of the loophole they have. You can just get your points in practice by qualifying. I had some pretty fast lap times and was excited. It was a great experience. I got to see Austin, Texas, Tacoma, Washington, and Fresno, California. It was cool to explore with my dad and we had some father and son bonding. It’s something I won’t forget.
Now you’ll spend Thanksgiving with the family this week. What is next for you as you gear up for Anaheim 1?
Jimmy gave me the okay to head out and drive to Texas next week. We’ll get to testing and doing some laps. It’s hard to adjust to supercross, but over the years I’ve been sort of a natural at it. My trainer Shannon Niday has been with guys like [Trey] Canard and [Ryan] Dungey. Both of those guys are supercross legends. He always watches me and tells me that I’m a supercross rider and I hope that is true. I’m going to need that skill by my side coming up. Once I’m comfortable hopefully I’ll be seeing some top tens in the first couple of rounds.
As a standout rider with Team Green over the years, do you feel like you’ve been overlooked?
Yes, definitely! It’s tough as an amateur because I never went to a race just expecting a top five. I always wanted to win and I expected it. A lot of times I did get the win, especially in this last year in A class. At races like Mammoth I was up front battling with Vince Friese and he’s not an easy guy to do that with. I ended up getting a moto win against him and that was huge. At Loretta’s I did get a moto win although it didn’t last long with bad luck in the other motos. Still it was huge. Not a lot of riders win in the A class at that event because everyone is in that class. It’s tough being overlooked by factory teams. It’s hard to see a guy get a ride that I have been beating. I’m not a cocky guy, but it’s still tough for me to see that. I’m very happy Jimmy didn’t overlook me. They’re going to give me everything that I need.
The team will be doing both coasts, right?
Yeah, it’s going to be Kyle Cunningham and I on the West Coast and Jimmy and Josh Osby on the East Coast. Jimmy and Kyle are veterans and they know what to do and how to do it. I’m grateful to have those two there for Josh and I as mentors and competitors. They know what we need when it comes to testing and it will be very beneficial to have them teach us the ropes. I’m excited to get to work with them this season.
I couldn’t be more appreciative of this opportunity. I’m also thankful for my family and friends who have been behind me to get me to where I am today. I’m a religious kid and I thank God for putting me in this position. I’m definitely blessed.
Thanks for chatting with us today, Marky. Have a happy Thanksgiving!
Thanks, Troy. I hope you have a great Thanksgiving as well.