At the 2024 Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GasGas Factory Racing team intro on Friday, Justin Barcia was introduced once again as the team’s sole 450cc rider, joining 250cc teammates Pierce Brown and Ryder DiFrancesco. Barcia is back on the GasGas team for the 2024 and 2025 season after signing a new two-year deal back in April, but he is still off the bike following his crash at the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) finale in California at the end of September. Barcia is hoping to return to riding soon and lineup for the 40th anniversary Paris Supercross in mid-November before ramping up his boot camp for the 2024 Monster Energy AMA Supercross season. At the team intro, our Spencer Owens caught up with the #51 for an update on his health, returning to the team, his past success at Anaheim 1, and more.
Racer X: Last time we saw you, you had a big crash in LA and broke a few bones. How has the recovery been?
Justin Barcia: Yeah. Unfortunately, LA didn't go to plan. I came away with some injuries. Scary times. Yeah, it was a lot. I haven't really thought about it lately, just been recovering. I had to wait a little over a week for surgery just because I had some air in my chest, so that was a bummer. I was sitting with a beat-up collarbone and some bruised lungs and broken ribs and all that fun stuff. But all in all, I'm healing up well and feeling pretty good. Can't complain. It's been nearly a month now. So, we're getting close to being back on the bike, which is nice.
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Spencer Owens ![]()
Spencer Owens ![]()
Spencer Owens ![]()
Spencer Owens
You now have a full year on this iteration of the GasGas 450, what are some things you learned about the machine this year that you hope to carry into 2024?
Yeah. I have a full year under the new GasGas frame, which is great. I’m feeling really good on it. Obviously in supercross, it took a little while to get comfortable. Then once I got comfortable, I was clicking off podiums, got a win and then unfortunately, you know, things happen. Some injuries came along, but other than that, felt great on the bike. We learned an absolutely ton. Obviously, it was more of just suspension, getting it comfortable, getting it dialed to that frame. Going into next year we will have a bit different suspension setup and things like that. So, not too many changes. But I think it'll be pretty easy to adapt to the bike and find the base setting and be ready to race.
The competition in 450SX continues to grow with Jett Lawrence, Hunter Lawrence, and Justin Cooper moving up full time but the veterans are still here. How do you look at the competitive landscape of the 450SX class now?
I think we all start racing for that competitiveness. That feeling when you line up, those nerves, those butterflies, I still get that to this day being over 30 years old now. I still feel it. Time has flown by honestly. It’s crazy. But all in all, I have great experience now. I've been doing it for a long time. I still have that speed. I still have that Bam Bam aggression. I have a kid now which is cool. I have the motivation, not that I needed any more motivation, but it's just great to go on the line and kind of have my life sorted out. I have a great team behind me. I know my bike's really good. So really, all I have to do is make sure I have a great base setting going into the races. Obviously, competition is gonna be strong. It always is strong, but the goal is obviously to be on the podium quickly, not take so long. Get on the podium quickly in the beginning of the season and then have some race wins and be fighting for the championship by the end of the year, that's all I think we all can ask for on the team.
We still have two months until A1, walk me through what the next two months looks like for you?
Yeah, next two months for me will obviously be recovering from my injury. Still have a little bit of time to go. Which like you said, we talked about the experience. I think it's good that I'm having some off time right now. I'll be able to come out and know what I need to do for training. I don't need a ton of time to get ready. Obviously, I have plenty of time to get ready, so not worried about that. Just recovering, making sure I'm healthy and then hitting the test track, getting my base setting ready. Making sure my fitness is good. Starts are key, obviously. So, all in all, I have a great group around me. I can't wait to get with the team, start testing, start riding, hang out with [Eric] Sorby, the whole crew, have my kid, my wife at the track. It's just family time with the whole team. Getting that base setting, having fun and show up to Anaheim ready to go.
Anaheim 1 always seems to go well for you. Just talk about Anaheim 1 and how you always seem to crack off wins over the years.
Yeah, I think Anaheim 1 has always been really good to me. I didn't win it recently, which is okay because I kind of want to get the weight off my shoulders. I think a little bit, there's a lot of pressure. Obviously, during preseason you get the speed going and you come out swinging. I think I'm really good at going racing. That's what I do is I race. So, I think me as a racer, I’m just ready to go from that first race. So, I feel like obviously if I have the speed and I know I have the fitness, we go out there and we throw down and we win races. So yeah, Anaheim is a very special place to me. A really good vibe there. I love the stadium, and I have a lot of good memories. This year I obviously want to go out there, throw down. If I can get a win, great. If not, be consistent, get some good points, and get the win later on in the season.
