After one race on a 250F at the season opener, Ty Masterpool jumped up to the premier class of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship and had himself quite the summer. The Texas native put together a program on a Kawasaki KX450 and in the 18 motos he did this summer, he finished inside the top ten in all but one moto (a mechanical issue resulting in a DNF at RedBud MX). Unfortunately, Masterpool suffered from appendicitis at the Pro Motocross finale at Ironman Raceway that cost him a trip to the hospital and sidelined him for the last two motos of the year. Still, the #81 machine finished seventh in the standings with 242 points, which scored him 14th in the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) qualifying standings for the playoffs.
Knowing he was not 100 percent entering the playoffs—lack of fitness as he has not been able to train for the SMX rounds for more than seven minutes because he hits a wall and limited recovery from inability to eat—Masterpool still came out and did his best to manage a solid ride. Masterpool had an 11th-place finish in moto one, then got the holeshot in the second moto, where he would finish 12th. He’ll take an 11-12 day for 11th overall in a stacked field, especially given his situation. But Masterpool knows he is capable of, and wants more, but he is doing what he can with what he has been handed. Without much he can do ahead of the final two races, he is looking to make it through the championship smoothly before having surgery to remove his appendix. Check out what he had to say after the race.
Racer X: So, we know you’ve been dealing with your appendix issue. What percentagewise were you at entering the weekend?
Ty Masterpool: Ah it’s hard to put a percentage but I was in the hospital for two and a half days, I got eight IV bags of antibiotics—they’re so strong they have to put it in super slow. It takes like four hours for half a bottle of this [holds up shaker bottle] to go in you, because it’ll burn your veins. So, and then I just finished my antibiotic pills yesterday morning, so my stomach feels like I’ve been eating Taco Bell four meals a day. [Laughs] But yeah, my energy is really bad, I couldn’t even eat anything in between the motos, I just couldn’t get anything in my stomach, felt like I was throwing up. So, little bummed on today but realizing where I was last week, I definitely didn’t think I was gonna be here so gotta be thankful, it was the cards I’m dealt with, but yeah definitely crazy. My energy’s just really bad. And second moto dude, third lap, I could feel pain. Because if I get pain in it I have to go straight to the hospital and get surgery so, I’m like, I have to be super cautious. I’m not going against doctor’s orders, dude, everyone’s giving me crap. I’m not going against doctor’s orders and all that, I’m not risking it. But yeah. It’s serious if it ruptures, it’s life threatening so I have to take it super easy and really feel the pain, but it’s not too much worse.
![]()
Align Media ![]()
Align Media ![Masterpool's jump to start the second moto.]()
Masterpool's jump to start the second moto. Align Media ![Masterpool, Adam Ciancairulo, and Ken Roczen leading the field in the second moto.]()
Masterpool, Adam Ciancairulo, and Ken Roczen leading the field in the second moto. Align Media
Being hot during the day race, what the heck was your recovery like between the motos?
[Laughs] Not that good. It’s just hard, like, my gut’s all messed up, I can’t eat anything and really keep it down, so, just struggling with that. But yeah. I felt like I showed glimpses of my speed but then I just can’t keep it all together.
So obviously, pretty good start the second moto but, just knowing your situation—it’s a bummer situation because you could really benefit from this SMX format, so, I guess, what’s your expectations, is there anything you can’t do for the next couple of days to get ready for next week and the round after that?
It’s just hard, I can’t really ride that much. Coming in here, I only rode a couple days for seven minutes. I would like, gas that seven minutes. I’m bummed because my stamina was feeling so good at the end of the season, like, I wasn’t getting tired. But yeah, there’s nothing really—I can’t train too hard cause then it’s gonna flare up and I have to go to the hospital. So, just trying to keep it from flaring up, keep it under control so I don’t have to get surgery because if I get surgery, I wouldn’t be here at all, so just kinda trying to hold it out for the last three rounds, and then I’ll get surgery after LA.
That’s what I was going say, so are you just going out there to be out there as much as you can without pushing yourself too much? Trying to like—not backing down or throwing it away, throwing the towel in, but you’re just kind of cautious?
Yeah, it’s just hard. I mean, those antibiotics mess you up so much with your energy level and all that. And then it’s hard cause I can’t train as hard as I want cause then I’m gonna over-train myself because my body can’t really handle it. But I don’t care if my freaking stomach doesn’t hurt at the end of this season, dude, I’m getting surgery, I’m getting this out of me. [Laughs] I couldn’t even imagine if I was like, in title contention or something if that came up, dude, I’d be devastated. I’m getting this surgery no matter what—I’m like, no one even knows what is does dude! I’m like, I didn’t even really know what appendicitis really was, I just remember seeing it in a movie or something. It’s crazy. [Laughs]
So, you mentioned wishing you could do better given the situation. Looking into next year, I guess you know what to expect after doing these couple even if they’re not great just because you could have a good supercross season, have a really good summer, and come in here and just know the style. You’re building for next year.
Yeah, I felt like I showed glimpses of it, it’s just hard to kinda put it all together. Dude today was the first time I’ve ever done a 20-minute moto on a supercross track too, so I was like, it’s just a lot of new stuff. It’s just the cards I got dealt with, gotta be thankful for it, make the best of it, so, we’re doing it. And yeah, it’s hard to say all of it: people are gonna say it’s all excuses but, you know. It is what it is.
Yeah like, I think you’ve talked about this before—you’re not anti-supercross, you’re gonna do supercross.
[Laughs] No! I love supercross! I’m gonna be doing supercross, it’s all a rumor, so, yeah, I’ll be there.
