It’s a face we’re familiar with in press conferences. Back in January, at the Monster Energy AMA Supercross pre-race presser in Anaheim, as reporters talked about Chase Sexton, Eli Tomac, and Jett Lawrence as the three favorites for the title, a frown cemented itself on Cooper Webb’s face. On Sunday, after a close second at the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations, Webb looked that way again. It’s the third time he’s raced for Team USA, and each time the squad came up agonizingly close only to come up short.
But when he spoke, he was more positive. He understood the challenges, the task, and was proud of the effort.
“Like these guys said, these track conditions are tough," Webb said. "All the teams are good [in those conditions] especially the guys from Europe. To be up here on the podium is great, obviously we all wanted to win as a group, but I don’t think a lot of people expected us to do anything. To be in second place, I think that shut a lot of people up. We just got to be better and come back next year. It’s always an honor to be on this team, it’s been a long time for me.”
Webb volunteered to take the 250 slot for the team once Chance Hymas went out with injury. He rode Haiden Deegan’s YZ250F one day, said he could make it work and volunteered to race. He also missed just about all of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship this season, and half of it in 2023.
I asked him after the race if he really felt fully prepared.
“I got better every time I rode it,” Webb told me of the 250. “At home I felt good on it, but in these conditions, it was hard, and then racing against 450s was tough as well. It [the challenge] was just trying to ride the bike the way it’s supposed to be.”
On the practice track at home, he got the 250 figured out pretty well. When you threw in the chaos of mud, ruts, rain, hills, and battling 450s with different strengths and weaknesses, it was harder to get it right. On Saturday, he was off the pace. He nailed an incredible start by nearly holeshotting the qualification race out of the 24th gate pick. But he drifted to the back of the top ten, lacking speed. The team and Cooper looked at video and saw him taking 450 lines on his 250. He’d need to adapt and apply, but that’s what Webb does better than most. Few riders have ever made more gains from early in a race weekend through race time than the North Carolina native.
He was better on Sunday, for sure. Team USA gave him the outside gate each time (some teams gave 250 riders the good gate). He was mired in traffic the whole way in moto one, taking 17th. In moto two he improved, taking ninth. And just to throw in some vintage Cooper Webb form, he was under pressure from Mikkel Haarup on the final lap but held him off. No one passes Webb on the last lap these days.
Still, it was just a 17-9. But the ninth was the one Team USA counted (each team drops a score) and that was the fifth-best moto finish anyone put down on a 250 on Sunday. He also outdid rival 250 racers from Australia (Kyle Webster, best of 11th) and France (Tom Vialle, best of a 12th).
I asked Webb how many actual 30-minute motocross motos he’s done in the last year.
“That’s a good question,” he said with a laugh, and really no idea for an answer.
“Today was crazy,” he said in a Yamaha statement. “The track conditions, and this event in general, is insane. I had an up-and-down day. The first moto wasn’t the greatest for me, but I redeemed myself in the second one. I felt like I rode really well that moto, put up a solid number and left it up to the boys. Overall, it was a great effort from the team. Everyone stepped up and did their part, and we were a few points away from winning it all. I’m happy with the podium. Obviously, the goal is to win, but I think with the cards that we were dealt, coming into this two weeks ago, this is a good result. I’m just stoked to have a good time, get on the podium, and come out of here healthy and ready for the new year.”
