Justin Cooper has officially wrapped up his 250cc career in AMA Supercross and Motocross. Cooper finished 7-3 for fourth overall in the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) final in California, taking sixth overall in the 250SMX championship. Next year, the New York native will be full-time in the premier class, as he signed a deal with the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team—who he has competed with ever since turning pro in late 2017—for the 2024 SX, MX, and SMX season. After the season finale, Cooper stopped to chat with our Steve Matthes.
Racer X: You’re done with 250s. What’s that feel like?
Justin Cooper: Obviously it’s a bit emotional, it’s bittersweet. I would have liked to go out on a better note. We’ve had a rough couple races, that’s for sure.
I was pissed because I couldn’t pick you in fantasy, I had you last week. I thought you were a potential winner, and you came out yesterday and you were really good, and today you were good in practice. Feeling more at home?
Yeah, I felt really good today. The first moto I didn’t really get the best of starts. I couldn’t make a pass for anything.
I don’t think you were alone in that.
You really just had to be aggressive, and I wasn’t going to just go hit someone. Maybe I should have been, because I felt like I had a pretty good start, and I was kind of cautious being around Haiden [Deegan] all night. I kinda just rode it in. I had a good second moto, started third, and that’s where I finished. I had a good race up with the Star boys and that’s kinda how it went, fourth overall.
Read: Justin Cooper Signs with Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing for 450 Class in 2024
It didn’t look like it to me, but a few riders told me it was Salt Lake and Vegas type dirt. Was it like that?
Yeah, I think the track was the best yesterday. It actually had some ruts and tonight it just got more and more hardpacked as we got on it. That part was a little bit frustrating. It’s definitely hard to ride, and it takes away from the line choices.
The SMX thing didn’t go your way as much as you wanted it to, but what’d you think of the whole three-race thing, the points, two motos, and all that?
It was interesting with how much things got shuffled around tonight, and what was up for grabs. It seemed like all the top guys had pretty good races and everything went pretty smoothly. There was definitely a lot to play for tonight and I wish I was somewhat in it. I had that first-turn crash at round two and I knew it was somewhat over. It’s been up and down. I wish it could have gone a bit better.
Did you like the whole idea of SMX?
Yeah, I did. It’s something new—short and sweet. It’s a short series and a lot can happen. It’s not like a 12-round thing and a lot can happen in those three races. You have to get it done quick.
You can make some money though, right?
Yeah, three races for that much money is always a good thing.
| Position | Rider | Hometown | Qualifying Points | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Haiden Deegan | Temecula, CA  | 554 | 157 |
| 2 |  Jo Shimoda | Suzuka, Japan  | 468 | 152 |
| 3 |  R.J. Hampshire | Hudson, FL | 474 | 122 |
| 4 |  Levi Kitchen | Washougal, WA | 478 | 114 |
| 5 |  Jordon Smith | Belmont, NC | 234 | 110 |
| 6 |  Justin Cooper | Cold Spring Harbor, NY | 399 | 101 |
| 7 |  Max Vohland | Sacramento, CA | 416 | 98 |
| 8 |  Tom Vialle | Avignon, France  | 422 | 90 |
| 9 |  Hunter Lawrence | Landsborough, Australia  | 660 | 89 |
| 10 |  Jalek Swoll | Belleview, FL | 221 | 88 |
You’re still young, but the coliseum, the peristyle, all the history, what’d you think of all that?
Yeah, I’ve never really been here, and I barely got to watch any of that stuff back then. It was all new for me. It was cool to see the history. I kind of saw some videos during the week of what it was like back then, and it was cool to come back here and even have some of the riders who raced then, be here this weekend.
Was it dark up there coming down?
Yeah that section was really dark. Right before you came down you couldn’t see much.
Thanks for doing this, and next time we see you, you’ll be on a big bike.
Yup, big bike.
