Last week, we released Part I of our look at Grand Prix riders that came to the United States to race. Steve Matthes and Jason Weigandt tried to determine which riders made the right choice by pursuing a career in the U.S. Today, we’ll look at other riders—such as Ken Roczen, Marvin Musquin, Christophe Pourcel, Eric Sorby, Tommy Searle and more—in Part II.
Eric Sorby
Sorby came out of nowhere—seriously, no one had heard of the guy (I think David Vuillemin had something to do with getting him a ride)—to get a mid-season ride on a vacant Pro Circuit KX125. He jumped into the 2002 125SX West Region in Houston and made the podium in his very first race! The next week he was runner-up to Chad Reed on the East Region (125SX rules remain weird to this day) and was a top five guy for the rest of the series. Sorby, whose best finish in the GP points was 17th in 2001, got a full Pro Circuit ride that next year. Unfortunately for Eric, those initial splashes were pretty much his best races, although he stayed here for a long time with a lot of teams.
Was it Worth It?
Steve Matthes: Yeah, because Eric was never going to be an outdoor warrior (he did get third overall at High Point in 2002 and 2003 and second overall at Hangtown in 2003) but was very good at supercross, so coming to the U.S. was a good bet for him. He seemed to love the American way of life, which is why it’s surprising he’s back in Europe now. Sorby’s stories of avoiding practice and training back in the PC days are legendary. I think he didn’t realize that once you get on the podium, the work starts, not stops.
Jason Weigandt: Sorby is an all-time character in this sport. He once told me that after he showed up in the U.S. and podiumed, he had basically accomplished his life-long goal and started slacking off! There was a brief (two week) outdoor run in 2003 where he nearly won Hangtown and podiumed High Point. That was about it. For Sorby, I don’t know if it was worth it, results wise, but he sure seemed to have a lot of fun here. He even got to be a star on Bubba’s World! Isn’t that what really matters?
Matthieu Lalloz
At some point the American teams, seeing the success of Vuillemin, Roncada and others, basically started bringing over any French guy that did well in that country’s supercross championship. Matthieu’s best finish in GPs was 16th in the 1999 125 World Championship, so it’s not like he was a world title contender. But indoors he was good so Suzuki signed him right up to the factory team (Weege will tell you below who ended up getting bumped to make room). Lalloz scored seventh place in the 2003 125SX East Region (his best race result was a fourth) and that’s about it. Lalloz now works for SCOTT in Europe. He’s a nice guy but this is not a signing that Roger DeCoster will look back as a success.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Uhhh… no. Not sure what Suzuki saw in Matthieu and why they needed to get him on the factory bike, but to me he didn’t look ready to race over here at this level. As for outdoors, I see his motocross results in the Vault but I cannot remember one single Matthieu Lalloz motocross moment.
Weege: Lolloz screwed BudMan. Buddy Antunez put his five AMA Arenacross Championships on the shelf and returned to supercross and motocross full-time with Team Suzuki in 2002, and he did well (fourth in 125SX East Region, seventh in the 125 Nationals). He was expected to return in 2003, but as the story goes, someone at Suzuki saw Lolloz ride at the supercross test track and thought he had amazing potential. So BudMan got dumped back into Arenacross and his slot was given to Lalloz. Poor Budman!
Grant Langston
South African Grant Langston followed the path of Greg Albertyn. Within three years of landing in Europe he won the 2000 125 World Championship. The following year, he had a choice between Pro Circuit and KTM for his assault on America. He decided to stay orange and his first year in the U.S. (2001) saw him win a 125SX. He should’ve won the 2001 125 National Motocross Champion, as well, but his wheel exploded in the last moto of the year. He eventually got that 125MX title (2003), broke some bones, reinvented himself with PC, got two Lites SX titles, then won a 450 National Motocross Championship for good measure. Langston had a great career and won indoors and out and on different continents. He is now the color analyst for MAVTV and NBC Sports Network for Lucas Oil Pro Motocross.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Yes. End of story.
Weege: Absolutely.
Shayne King
The Kiwi won the 1996 500 World Championship and was pushed to come to America by KTM in 2000 to give its first-year factory team some star power. King, a veteran motocross racer without much supercross experience, struggled to adapt indoors on the gigantic KTM 520SX-F although he did make pretty much every main through his smarts and experience. Outdoors, where he was expected to shine, was a bit of a disappointment with only one top ten finish and a fourteenth overall in the 2000 450 Nationals—he pulled a ton of starts though!
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: King wasn’t coming over here to start his career like others on the list. He was older when he showed up and couldn’t ride supercross that well (although when you Google “bikes that weren’t built for supercross” his 2000 KTM 520SX-F will pop up). He was put in the U.S. by KTM to give the program credibility and as a guy that worked on the team then, I remember he was professional and he tried hard. He was a nice guy and seemed to enjoy his year living in San Diego. (I also remember his mechanic Jimmy swore like a drunken sailor every second word.)
Weege: Just realizing that a Kiwi veteran with almost zero SX experience somehow got that monster bike into any SX mains demands major kudos. I mean, four-strokes were not good at supercross back then, and KTMs were not good at supercross back then, so a four-stroke KTM was definitely not good at supercross back then. Oh, and 2000 might have been the all-time peak of gnarly, technical supercross tracks.
This was a recipe for “out for the season” as soon as the first whoop section at Anaheim. Somehow he avoided that fate. Obviously Shayne’s best years were in Europe, and since he didn’t make a huge impact here, I don’t see how it added any value to the U.S. KTM racing effort. This also stole a year of his prime away from the GPs.
Rodrig Thain
Speaking of KTM, Thain was another French supercross star that came over to KTM that first year in 2000 and was pretty good right away. (Thain raced a few 125SX West Region races in 1999 on a Honda as well.) But Thain was really an unknown dude. I was working for the team and still had no clue who he was or what he could do! He scored a podium that first year in 125SX, then got a factory Suzuki ride for 2001. He scored podiums indoors and out that year (four podiums in nine races during the 125MX series) and was runner-up in the 2001 125SX West Region. That’s a nice start, right? Well, he was dropped by Suzuki, went to Yamaha of Troy then he got hurt and missed most of the 2002 season. Just like that Thain was gone, back to Europe for the 2003 season where he finished 12th overall in 125MX. He came back over again in 2004 and raced for a few years but never got his old magic back.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Well, like the other French dudes, he could ride supercross and he rode for factory teams for three years so there is that. When you look at his results, they’re actually pretty good but I doubt many remember Thain over here. I remember he was always a nice, kind of shy dude who struggled with the language. (I still see him here and there at races in Europe.) In the end, I’d say it was worth it.
Weege: I’m literally in shock reading the stats above. I don’t remember him doing that well! What I do remember was, he was one of the lucky guys armed with a Yamaha YZ250F back when everyone else on the gate had a 125 (2002) and he just struggled big time. I think that ended up being the curse of death for him—you’d better kill it on that bike or you’re out. I mean, everyone on that thing was running strong. Ernesto Fonseca dominated from his very first SX race on it in 2001. Nathan Ramsey used one to battle the super-talented Travis Pastrana down to the wire. Chad Reed dominated 125 East Region in 2002. Privateers were winning races outdoors on that bike! But Thain just didn’t seem to gel with it. He probably made good money on those teams so it was probably worth it for him, but YoT probably wanted more.
Steve Boniface
Apparently when he was on 80cc bikes, Boniface was James Stewart-ish and everyone saw big things for him. Stepping right into a GEICO Honda ride in 2001, Boniface was up and down that first season and then moved to factory KTM the following year. Steve scored a few podiums in supercross, and his indoor results were a lot better than outdoors. A small guy, later in his career he jumped to the big bikes and did some testing for some teams as well.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: For Steve, yeah sure it was but for GEICO Honda, KTM and the other teams he rode for, probably not. Outdoors there wasn’t really much for results and a few podiums in a regional series isn’t awesome. Boniface never really raced the GPs at all so he was clearly an indoor specialist like so many other French guys.
Weege: As we go through this list, you start to see a change in the riders. In the 1990s, only superstar dudes (JMB, Albertyn, Tortelli, Vuillemin, etc.) were getting rides here, but by the 2000s factory teams were practically holding cardboard signs outside of French SX races saying “Rides available!” It started getting a little out of hand (and Matthes is very bitter no one ever recognized Canadian talent in the same manner).
The move to the U.S. was worth it for these riders, but it wasn’t for the teams, so we actually have to flip our standard here, because the caliber of riders had changed so much. Albertyn and Tortelli left titles on the table in Europe. Some of these other dudes were probably super pumped just to get a shot anywhere—especially here. Of course it was worth it to them!
Tyla Rattray
Following in Albertyn and Langston’s footsteps, this South African battled in Europe for many years before making the jump to the U.S. In 2002, at just 16 years old, Tyla made the podium in Europe in the 125 class but from there it was a struggle at times with injuries. He finally broke through in 2008, winning the 125 World Championship, and then jumped ship to Pro Circuit in the U.S. where he won races, grabbed multiple podiums and was a title threat for many years.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Heck yeah it was. Some will say Tyla wasn’t very good at supercross, but he actually led the 250SX series points one year! He was always a top five guy, most times a podium guy and sometimes he was unbeatable on the small bike. He only raced one year on a 450 in motocross and was a top ten guy. Rattray wanted to come to the U.S. for many years but he had to win the 125MX world title. As soon as he did, Mitch Payton was there.
Weege: Yes, it was worth it, and partly because he was headed to the 450s in the GPs, but instead got to enjoy some podiums and wins on a 250F over here. I’m not sure that would have happened if he had just stayed there—maybe he could have won a MX1 title? For a non-supercross guy, he got pretty good at supercross. Oh, and then he became besties with Ryan Villopoto, who got him one more year of paychecks as his teammate for Monster Energy Kawasaki in the GPs last year. Now he has a good gig as team trainer for TLD KTM. Rattray made the most of the connections he made in the U.S.!
Tommy Searle
The talented Brit got a factory KTM ride to race the 2009 250MX Nationals. Looking back at his results, he was better than most remember with a fourth at his first national ever followed by three-straight podiums in his fourth, fifth and sixth races. He ended that first season sixth in the points and earned national number 19. But in 2010 he took his first crack at supercross, and (are you ready for this?) he struggled with injuries. He started that outdoor season strong but got hurt and POOF, he was gone. Searle was better over here than you think though.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: I think so because Tommy Gun was only 20 years old at the time and that’s the time to try a U.S. racing career. It didn’t work out and he headed back to Europe where he’s been a top rider for a long time now. Hey, sixth overall in the 250 Nationals is pretty solid for your first time over here, so there.
Weege: After all these Aussies and Frenchman over here, the world really needed a Brit to succeed in the U.S. Unfortunately it didn’t work out. Searle had the goods, though. He was fast and aggressive…but the supercross thing just wasn’t his cup of tea. He also got caught at the wrong time. KTM’s U.S. racing effort was on the verge of collapse just as he got going, and that led to some strained relationships and contractual issues. Maybe with another year he could have figured supercross out, but KTM wasn’t in a position of strength at the time. Just two years later, they had Ryan Dungey winning 450SX races for them!
Max Anstie
Anstie came over to the U.S. as an amateur and was brought up in KTM’s amateur program, although controversy seemed to follow him no matter where he went. He raced one year for the factory team with so-so results, then was picked up by Star Yamaha. No results really to speak of at Star, and he was soon back to Europe.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Well, no because Max has been a top MX2 rider year after year in Europe. It’s funny: we forget how young he was when he raced over here because he still hasn’t aged out of MX2! The whole Anstie “thing” is weird and seeing as how he’s much better at motocross than supercross, he probably should’ve stayed over in Europe from the start and he’d probably have gotten some more wins by now.
Weege: To this day, I can’t figure Anstie out and that point is really driven home by the fact that, as I write this, he’s sitting on a two-race win streak in the MX2 GPs. That’s how good he’s capable of being. But then every year, for half of the season, it’s like he’s nowhere to be seen. I feel he showed lots of potential in that Star Racing year, but that team has always had a short leash. He also has a great personality and is a superb interview—he was hilarious even as a 14-year-old at Loretta’s (but his time with KTM’s amateur team ended on a very strange note. You think Searle had KTM collapsing around him? The Anstie deal was just nuts).
Talent and personality, yet somehow it just never works out consistently, either here or there. Was it worth it for him to come over here? I’ll vote no, because he could have and should have won a ton of GPs and maybe even an MX2 title over there by now. He’s certainly fast enough.
Christophe Pourcel
Pourcel won the MX2 World Championship in just his second year in the GPs and then tried supercross with Pro Circuit in 2007. He promptly finished second and first in his first two races! But he had to finish his deal in Europe before coming here full time, and a bad crash held him out for the entire 2008 season. Finally ready in 2009, he won two-straight 250SX East Region titles rather easily and just missed out on two 250 National titles. Then things got weird. He rode for MotoConcepts for three races before quitting; then he went back to Europe and raced two seasons of MX1 before coming back on a Valli Yamaha YZ250F for one motocross season. Now he’s on the Rockstar Husky squad in 450’s and getting fast qualifying times on the reg.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Yeah, man. Beyond the two 250SX titles CP probably should have two 250MX titles. He’s made some curious choices here and there but he’s like Frank Sinatra in that he’s going to do it his way. He’s always loved the American way of life—he’s had a house here the whole time (even when he went back to Europe)—so there’s no doubt that heading to the U.S. was the right move.
Weege: You win two SX titles, you made the right move.
Marvin Musquin
The French importation of riders has slowed since the Y2K days but Musquin is a lot different than those riders. He was a world-class motocross rider with two MX2 titles before coming here. Marv’s had a series of stops and starts in the 250 class (he’s the same age as Ryan Dungey but a rookie in the 450 class while Ryan is in year six) but he got a 250SX title, just missed a 250MX title and he’s always a guy to contend for podiums.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: Early on, I wasn’t sure because he couldn’t stay healthy. He’s beaten that issue and for sure he’s delivered for himself and for KTM. Plus, Marv is, like, the nicest guy ever. Welcome to America!
Weege: I agree. He tore his ACL and missed supercross right off the bat, so things weren’t looking good. With those two MX2 titles, Marvin could have cashed some big checks by staying in the GPs, and might have avoided the supercross injuries. His U.S. evolution has been a slow one, but by last year he had it dialed. Now people have nothing but love for Marvin, and he and his wife Mathilde seem like everyone’s favorite couple. So it’s all good.
Ken Roczen
Funny that Roczen, the fastest German motocrosser ever, ventured over to Loretta’s one year and was barely a top ten dude. Granted, he was probably 14 or something, but still. Anyways, Roczen’s path to America was groomed for a long time and when KTM stole him away from Suzuki, the yellow guys were very upset as they knew he was something special. Winning the MX2 title in 2011, Roczen was already moonlighting here in the USA in supercross and scrubbing his way to victories. All he’s done since is become one of the very best riders in the world. You know the rest.
Was it Worth It?
Matthes: I don’t have to answer this do I? Look, Roczen’s always been a fan of American racing (I remember him talking about coming to the U.S. in 2009 when I was at a GP) and way of life. Interesting though that with his expected switch to Honda in 2017, he’s already been through three OEM’s in just five years over here. Keep cashing dem checks, Kenny!
Weege: From JMB to the Lalloz/Thain/Boniface era to this? We’ve come full circle. Roczen, like JMB, can beat the Americans at their own game.
