This past weekend TPJ/Fly Racing’s John Short achieved two of his season goals in the same day; he finished inside the top ten in a moto and scored a top-ten overall finish. Short’s performance in second 450 Class moto at round six of Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship was beyond stellar. The rider out of Texas put on one helluva ride finishing an impressive ninth place in the second moto, after finish 15th in the first moto, to finish tenth overall in the sands of Southwick.
Short admits that he’s not really too worried with overall season standings and just wants to keep improving as the series continues. With another “gnarly” track on the schedule this weekend—maybe the three roughest tracks of the year all back-to-back-to-back—Short’s excited to tackle the famous RedBud MX course and keep momentum on his side.
We caught up with Short earlier this week to talk about his weekend at Southwick.
(NOTE: The following interview was conducted via iMessage and has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Racer X: Rapid fire question, what are you doing right now?
John Short: I’m just hanging out at home getting ready to eat some dinner!
Dinner, nice! What’s on the menu?
Yes sir! Some grilled chicken and steak, veggies and quinoa.
Everything sounds good, except that q word. [Laughs] What’s that?
Honestly, I’m not 100 percent sure exactly what it is but it’s similar to rice.
Good enough! So anyway, a top ten overall finish this weekend. That’s pretty cool, huh?
Yessir. My goal all season has been to get a top ten moto finish and then an overall top ten. It feels good to finally accomplish that and have that confidence heading into the last half of the season.
You even got a compliment on Instagram from Doug Henry!
Really? I’ll have to check out my Instagram. [Laughs] Actually that was probably the best part of the weekend! Paul [Perebijnos] from Pro Taper networked to help me find a mechanic for Saturday and it turned out he [Justin] was good friends with the Dowd family. So after the race I was able to go meet and hang out with John Dowd and Doug Henry, two guys I grew up watching on TV.
That’s almost better than finishing in the top ten! What was that like? Just hanging with two legends.
It was a cool experience for sure! They seem like they are both just normal guys that love the sport and love having a good time.
That’s awesome. Let’s chat about your season a little bit. A top ten last weekend, and you’re 20th in points currently. How do you look to keep the momentum rolling your direction?
I started the series in Colorado so I was already down a bit in the points standing. I’m not too worried about the overall series standings at the moment.
My goal is to continue my training during the week and work on the little things that will make me a better rider and racer. It feels good when you work hard to make improvements and then you see it show in your riding at the races. This weekend was a great confidence builder and as long as I am improving and learning every week there isn’t much more I can ask for. I’m very motivated and I want to keep moving forward.
Speaking of your riding and confidence; walk me though that second 450 Class moto at Southwick. You were on another level, bro.
Well, the first moto wasn’t ideal after a first turn crash. I felt like I could do well with a better start. Moto two I was just in front of mid pack off the start which wasn’t ideal but I knew the track conditions were tough. I felt strong and I’m confident in my conditioning so that helped me out. I was able to ride hard the whole moto. From the gate drop to the checkered flag I tried to keep my focus forward and just pick off as many riders as possible. I knew there would be some riders struggling with fatigue so my goal was to charge every single lap, regardless of what place I was in.
Did you even pay attention really to what place you were in? Or were you just motoing basically and picking dudes off?
I had no clue what place I was in until I got back to the truck. I just rode hard the whole moto.
I had a hard time seeing the pit board because of how fast and rough the mechanics area straightaway is. I saw a pit board pop out at like 25 minutes that said 17th and I was thinking, “there is no way I’m that far back!” It was another rider’s board though!
[Laughs] Oh man, that could have been so demoralizing!
Oh for sure but either way I was riding as hard so I guess it is what it is. It made it nice when I got back though. I wasn’t expecting a ninth. [Laughs]
Next up, RedBud. Literally three of the gnarliest tracks in the series right in a row. You ready?
I’m excited! I think tougher conditions and heat could possibly play into my favor a little more. I definitely would love to turn in some more good finishes this weekend. My goal is good starts and ride to my potential.
Thanks for chatting John. Anyone you want to thank?
Thanks for your time and for doing this interview with me sir! Thank you to each and every sponsor and supporter that helps make each weekend possible for me to go race.
Mcwhorter Consulting LLC, Mcwhorter Brothers MX, Maxim Honda, Gainesville Sheetmetal, LapKing, CCR transportation, Five Star Roofing, Beau Boynton/Fit-N-Wise, Game Moto/HSBK, Merge racing, Xclusive Truck Kustoms, Monarch Heavy Haul, DSC Construction, RJ racing, A Ary Co., Fly Racing, X Brand, SIDI, Devol, Rekluse, Twin Air, Pirelli, Pro taper, EBC, Motion Pro, TPJ, Polar, Vertex Pistons, Hotcams, Moto Hose, Firm Automotive, Acerbis, TM Designworks, Engine Ice, and Bolt.
