California native Dilan Schwartz put on a breakout ride this past weekend during the Thunder Valley National going 8-12 for a ninth overall in the 250 Class aboard his Bar-X/Chaparral/Ecstar Suzuki RM-Z250. The team is based out of Temecula, California, and is one of only two full time Suzuki teams in the paddock due to JGRMX closing its doors late last year. The young rider from Alpine, California, spent most of his amateur racing days with Team Green Kawasaki until making the switch to Bar-X in early 2018. In 2020, Dilan threw down some impressive rides at Loretta Lynn Ranch in the 250A class battling with notables such as Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Stilez Robertson and then-Yamaha rider Mason Gonzales.

Fast forward to 2021, Schwartz raced a majority of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship while only missing a few rounds due to a minor injury. With trainer Randy Lawrence by his side, the young Suzuki rider looked to the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship to really leave his mark in the industry. “As soon as I saw how Dilan did in practice, I knew it was going to be a good day,” said Lawrence. “He’s been working hard.”

With an unchanged RM-Z250, Dilan put his Bar-X ride to work and turned some heads while doing so. Could he be a beacon of hope for the RM Army? Here’s what the young rider had to say.

Racer X: Dilan, how is your 2021 Pro Motocross season going so far?
Dilan Schwartz: The first round was a little tough. In the first moto, about halfway through, my shock ended up breaking so I had to ride through that, but I ended up 18th so fortunately I was able to get some points. In the second moto my bike blew up, so it was definitely a tough first weekend. I knew I could do a lot better than that and in Thunder Valley I came out eighth in the first moto and 12th in the second moto. I'm really pumped with those finishes and I think I can really start shooting for top tens each race and just improve from there.

Did the elevation at Thunder Valley affect your weekend at all?
Obviously in Thunder Valley the elevation is really high and everyone's bikes are a little bit slower. Unfortunately, I did get a little bit of elevation sickness so the second moto was a little tough for me. When you're running up front like that, you don't want to give it up, so you fight until the end. On the plus side my bike stayed strong all day with zero problems, so I'm pumped with that.