Just before the first 250SX East/West Showdown of 2023, the entire 250SX class contingent was pulled off the gate and the stadium announcers came across the PA system urging people to clear the stadium. Lightning was in the area as a huge storm surge blew overhead and it forced the entire 14th round of Monster Energy AMA Supercross to a grinding halt. Riders were gathered up in the tunnel as teams went to work preparing for a mud race, but nobody really knew how long it would be until the race was ran.
One such rider was Phoenix Racing Honda’s Cullin Park who had just made it back to the tunnel after coming through the Last Chance Qualifier to make the main event. It was a whirlwind night for Park and the delay made it even wilder. Once the race eventually ran during a torrential downpour, Park turned his night around as he rode to an eighth-place finish in the main event. Afterwards, I caught up to him to get all the details.
Racer X: Walk us through your day. We’ll start off with the break. Everybody from us media guys to the fans, nobody kind of knew what was going on. Talk about that through your experience as a rider and trying to get ready for the race, but then you weren’t sure if it was going to be soon. Talk us through that process.
Cullin Park: Yeah, it definitely kind of worked out in my favor because I had to race the LCQ. You had no time in-between the LCQ and main, and then we got sent back. That was weird. I didn’t know what was going on. Then they said we were on a delay.
Did you guys go all the way back to the pits?
No, we just stayed right behind the gate, basically, in the tunnel. It was just weird because you’re just waiting, and no one really knows what’s going on. Then there was lightning and rain, so you’re like, are we even going to race tonight? Obviously, I wanted to race. It kind of worked into my favor, just having that break for in-between the LCQ and main. You never want to be in the LCQ. Overall though, the main event, I just kind of stuck to my laps. I knew with the mud, everyone would be going down. I made two passes on the last lap and got myself into eighth, so I was pretty happy with it.
Was it difficult to get ready for the race physically, get your heart rate up? Did you jog around at all?
Yeah. I was sitting down there trying to do jumping jacks because you get into that zone of just relaxing and almost getting tired, because obviously it was getting late too. We didn’t start the race until 10:30, and, shoot, I’m normally asleep by then. [Laughs] I had to get myself all hyped up. I was actually asking for some caffeine. I needed something to get going. [Laughs] Obviously it ended up working out well for me.
As you mentioned, the LCQ isn’t ideal. Having a little bit of an extra break, did that kind of help calm the nerves? Take a breather, catch your breath, let’s go for this main event? That was a bit of a hectic night there, going to the LCQ and everything. You had to work your way through it, too. Red flag restart as well.
Dude, literally. I had my best day going. I qualified eighth, which is my best ever, so I’m stoked going into the night. First lap of the heat race, I bent my front brake rotor. So, I had no front brake so I’m going backwards. Didn’t make it obviously, and I’m like, dude, no way this is happening. Then got into the LCQ and made the pass into fourth, and then they threw the red flag. I was crapping my pants because just with the staggered start and being in fourth in an LCQ, you obviously have the biggest target on your back. So I’m like, I’m about to get murdered out here.
You made a quick pass.
Yeah, I passed into third really fast because I’m like, I don't want to be the guy in fourth. Then just kind of rode it in from there. But that was very stressful, just being in a staggered start in fourth. You don’t want to be in the LCQ in general, but then to have that whole thing go down, that was a stressful situation. But made the most of it. Just definitely happy with the way my night turned out.
Was that the muddiest race you’ve been in recently?
For sure on supercross. I haven’t had a mudder in supercross, besides Atlanta last year, which it kind of dried up. I haven’t had a mud race like that in a long time, but I enjoyed it.
You mentioned the time kind of prepped the bike a little bit for the mud as well.
Yeah, they were kind of scrambling down there because obviously we’re all down there, and then one of the mechanics got back and got a bunch of foam. Even got the foam on the helmet just to help with weight.
So what’s the approach with you as a rider with tear-offs versus roll-offs?
I went with roll-offs, and I actually ran out of them, which that just goes to show you how much I pulled. There’s a lot of roll-offs to go through, and with two laps to go, I had to ditch the goggles. I just ran out. I was pulling it so much. Personally, I like to stay away from roll-offs, but with how much water there was, I knew tear-offs probably wouldn’t work out. The start straight alone, I got covered in water. It wasn’t even mud. Just that first part, it was like I was riding through a pond. That was not ideal. I’m just stoked I got to keep my goggles for as long as I did. I only had two laps without it, so shoutout to FMF Vision for that.
There was no sight lap and stuff, so when you’re going around the track do you know there’s puddles in certain spots? Or you assume this is a low spot, so you just go to the outside? Is there anybody telling you from higher above, hey, watch out for this?
We actually didn’t have anyone today high above, so I was going out there blind. Then we obviously rolled the finish—or at least I rolled the finish line first lap. Someone hit it in front of me on the second lap. I said, “No way. We have to hit this thing now?” [Laughs] So obviously I pulled the trigger on that. Every single transition had a lot of water. I will say though, Dirt Wurx did a really great job. They must have sealed it like really fast before the rain came, because I thought the track was going to be way worse. For as much rain as we got, I can’t believe how good the track was.
I thought it was going to be really bad, especially with the puddles off the start. I thought it might be worse, but you guys raced through it.
Yeah, exactly. It turned out to not be. Obviously, it was super muddy but the circumstances we were given, it was not bad at all.
Then just looking at the last couple races, what’s your goal as we look to finish out this supercross season?
We’re going to Nashville. I’m really looking forward to that race. I’ve got a lot of family and friends going. I’m kind of bummed it’s a day race. Day races just don’t have the same vibe to me. But you know what? When the gate drops, you forget about what time it is. I’ve obviously had a really good season and just progressing, but I just feel like I have a bit more in myself. Obviously, my best result this year has been a seventh, but I’d like to build off that and get sixth, fifth. Just get a good start and put yourself in a good position and good things will happen. Definitely want to finish the season strong. There's no letting up for me.
Anything else you want to add?
Just want to give a shout out to Phoenix Racing Honda. They’ve been crushing it for me all season. We just keep making progress and making improvements to the motorcycle, so I’m really stoked with the way we’re going.