Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin just blew some minds after an amazing race in Atlanta. Not only was the action incredible, as Martin, Justin Bogle, Martin Davalos, and Marvin Musquin had a shot at the win, but J-Mart made it all happen despite a sub-par start. It was impressive! Why was he so much better here than at the opener last week? Let’s find out.
Racer X: First of all, I know you won and that’s cool, but the race was awesome and exciting. Do you even think about that?
Jeremy Martin: I did. I thought about it in the main event. I was right behind Marvin and I was like, “Wow, this has got to be one cool race to watch!” Honestly I thought about it and when I started to get to the front and Marvin made the mistake and I was fortunate enough to be able to… he gave it to me. I just jumped the triple by him when he didn’t do it. I could tell when he made the pass on the next person that I just passed because the crowd was like [cheers]. So I was like, “Oh, Marvin’s up a position and he’s probably right behind me.” It was a great race.
What do you think led to that? Was it the track leading to mistakes? Everyone had good laps and bad laps, it seemed like.
I thought the track was good tonight. That dragon back up into the dragon back down, I don’t know if anyone’s ever seen that before. So that was really cool. Then the triple-on was hard to get consistently every lap. The track was fast. It was tough to pass, but I thought it was good. It was one of the better tracks they did and the transitions were a little bit smoother than what I’ve raced in the past.
You were maybe sixth early. It’s got to be pretty satisfying to come through like that.
It’s a good feeling. To pull a holeshot and to win is a great feeling—don’t get me wrong—but to come from behind and to do it, there’s a lot of pride in that. It was a good feeling. I learned a lot from those guys. Marvin’s a good guy. He’s going to be there all season. Bogle was good; he’s going to get stronger. It’s just like outdoors.
What’s the difference between you this week and last week? Is there a huge difference in your riding, or did the race just work out for you?
Not going to lie, there was a lot of nerves going into Dallas. I didn’t qualify for the first two years. I just rode really tight that night. I walked away with 18 points and a fourth and almost got a podium that night. I was like, this is good, off to a good start here. It’s going to be a good season. Just take it one race at a time.
Wow, the Dallas thing actually did run through your mind?
Yeah, I think everyone’s got these little inner demons. Everyone fights something. I was fighting it a little bit. I think I came out and I beat it.
Dungey isn’t at Carmichael’s Farm with you anymore, so are you lonely? Are you by yourself? How’s this work during the week?
The Dunge left. He’s working with Aldon [Baker] now and he’s down at Baker’s Factory. Ricky [Carmichael] has really stepped up and Jeannie [Carmichael] as well. They’ve been working with me really hard this off-season, the team as well. I spent a month out in California riding and training with my brother and showing him my blue fender.
Yeah, but your brother has stepped up this year. He’s gotten faster.
Yes, he has. He’s gotten so much faster that I haven’t beaten him! So I’ve got to keep that going. We’ve got that brother rivalry.
He got a podium, so now you had to get a win.
[Laughs] He’s good. I’m proud of him. He’s been riding hard. I think he’s going to get better as the season goes.
Are you the only guy riding at Ricky’s right now?
No, they have hired a trainer that’s coming. His name is Clint. And they have Joey Savatgy, Gavin Faith, and Alex Frye.
They will be there weekly?
They’re there every day, every day that I ride. They work with Jeannie and stuff, and I work pretty closely with Ricky, Jeannie, and then my practice bike guy.
Let’s go back to the race. Do you remember, there were only three laps to go when you got the lead, I think. It was pretty late. Then you passed Bogle in the whoops, like you just sent it. It was pretty sweet.
I got lucky honestly to pass Bogle where I did because he landed off the triple and I think he slid exiting the corner. He gave me the hot line through there. Then I was like, this is my time to pounce. And I was worried about him honestly retaliating in the next corner, so I cut it pretty tight. But he was good. I really enjoyed racing like that—everyone was aggressive but the there wasn’t anything crazy or maybe out of line in a certain sense. It was good, clean, aggressive racing. I though it was good for the crowd to put on a big show like that. Hopefully that brings more people back for Atlanta 2.
