Certainly a man of the moto media in this day and age, an integral part of Race Day Live on Peacock, as well as a part of the dynamic duo in flanking Justin Brayton on the AC & JB Show podcast, one Adam Cianciarulo provides the U.S. fanbase with extraordinary insight and information from the world class racing he ceaselessly monitors and studies. And he does all of this after stringing together an extraordinary 11 year pro career which ran from 2013 all the way through 2024.
The 2019 250 Class AMA Pro Motocross Champion and 2020 450 Class Pro Motocross second place finisher, the racer out of Port Orange, Florida also won 20 races along the way–11 races in 250SX, seven races in 250MX and two races in in 450MX before ultimately calling time on his career in 2024.
A champion, a winner, and in a relationship with Kawasaki throughout his entire professional tenure, Cianciarulo took everything he learned and gleaned from the sport along the way and carried it all into the broadcast booth. Holding station in Southern California for this Saturday’s SMX World Championship Playoffs round from Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles, California, we caught up with AC to ask him about, well, a lot.
“Not too bad. Not too bad at all,” answered Cianciarulo when asked how he was feeling about being in SoCal for round two of the SMX World Championship Playoffs. “Just stoked to be going back to work here with the SMX Playoffs and stuff. I always enjoy doing that, so it was nice to get back to work this past weekend in Columbus and knock one of those out. We had a little weather roll through. Live TV is always ever changing and it is very stimulating for me in that way. This past weekend when we started the show, we really didn’t know what the schedule was going to be or how we were going to go about it, so we kind of just had to figure it out in real time. Had a blast doing that and the pre-show and the post-show. And then during the week for me it’s just all of our production meetings and just making sure everything is sorted and we have a good plan going into round two. I actually got out and played some golf this morning. I only have one day during the week when I’m working where I can go out and play, so I always try to get it in when I can.”
In an interview I conducted with Cianciarulo earlier this summer, he spoke about dedicating his life to the sport and just where else he might want to go with it, stating, “I’m just figuring out how I can contribute the best I can to the sport and the industry that I love so much. I have a lifetime worth of experience in the sport. I think I have a lot to offer there. It’s really just trying to figure out where exactly that fits in. I’m pretty busy these days.”
After reading this quote back to him, Cianciarulo weighed in on it all.
“Of course when you’re young and in the sport as a rider, it’s all about you,” he explained. “It’s all obviously about working hard and trying to perform and win championships and win races. I think one of the things I had looked forward to in retirement is that it’s a very selfish type of lifestyle as an athlete. You focused on yourself and the way that you feel and the way that you feel on the bike quite often. I think that shift for me has been instead of, ‘How can I promote myself or do these things for myself?’ I now look at it more from a standpoint of, ‘At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done and I’m at the end of my life, I just want to be able to say that I contributed to the industry and to the sport.’ I just want to have a small footnote in the sport’s history. I think my motivation is to see the sport continue to grow. It’s in a great spot right now. Like I said Eric, it’s just being more focused on the community over my own selfish desires.”
In any form of motorsport it can be argued that a racer must be selfish and self-centered to get the absolute best out of themselves and the racing effort around them.
“Oh! I mean absolutely,” pointed out Cianciarulo. “I think you can say the same thing about a lot of different motorsports. Really anything you do at a really high level, you do have to be selfish and everything just kind of revolves around you. Don’t get me wrong. I grew up like that, right? I mean I was good. Really young. I had all these opportunities and these things that people did for me. I think it’s just wanting to experience a different side of life, as well. It’s a bit of an adjustment when you stop racing and things don’t kind of revolve around you. I think it’s just embracing that instead of just trying to put yourself first in every situation. I get the most fulfillment out of being in service to other people.
“To me, racing is the best job in the world. It’s incredibly difficult and taxing, but it’s very rewarding because you’re always trying to get the absolute best out of yourself. When you put everything on the line like that and you work toward it, it’s a very simple way to live. I think the closest I get to those feelings now are before go we live on TV. It’s more excitement than nerves or pressure, but you always want to perform well on TV and represent the sport to the best of your ability.
“I definitely don’t take that lightly and I’m glad I get a little excited and a little nervous before we go on,” he continued. “That’s the kind of stuff that makes you feel alive. I try to take the same mindset that I had about racing. I didn’t want to just take the same mindset that I had about racing. I didn’t want to just coast along. I worked really hard my whole life and I wanted to apply the things that I’ve learned in racing and in life to what I’m doing now. I think if I was just kind of ghosting through it and not putting much effort into it, it probably wouldn’t be as fun, but I genuinely take it seriously to represent the sport and to try and give people the best information I can. That is my responsibility, so I take it seriously. I work really hard at it. We have an amazing crew. Everybody on Race Day Live. Justin Brayton…the crew I get to work with is awesome. Everybody just brings each other up. Everybody wants to work in an environment like that.”
An 11-year professional career, the 2019 AMA Pro Motocross 250 champion and a winner of 20 professional races, just what does Adam Cianciarulo think when he looks back over his jersey shoulder at his body of racing work?
“Honestly, it depends on the day Eric,” he said. “I think there are a lot of times where I can look at what I did and be very proud of what I did. I think the odds of winning a championship, winning races, riding for a factory team and making a lot of money in the sport is not high. I mean that is reserved for the elite. I’m glad I got to that level, but of course as a perfectionist and as someone that had a lot of talent on the motorcycle, there is a sense that I did leave things on the table due to some injuries and stuff like that. A lot of those things were outside of my control and I think we can all play that game sometimes when we have certain goals and we don’t reach them. At the end of the day, the life that I have right now, I’m so happy with what I’m doing that even some of those results that I wish I could go back and change, it’s a little easier to take because it’s put me in this exact position in my life and I’m very happy where I’m at. You know you always want more. Of course I wanted to win more races, but ultimately, I’m happy with my body of work. I’m happy with my attitude through it all and just always trying to be the best I could.”
Certainly in the middle of it all on any given race week, what’s Cianciarulo make of the current day racers he’s around in 2026?
“You know I was actually just talking about this with Justin Brayton when we were walking around the track just this past Friday. One of the things that I love is the brotherhood between ourselves and the other riders. If you’ve been at that level and you’ve won at the highest level, there is a certain respect that you get from the other riders. We all know how difficult it is. It’s such a difficult way to make a living. At the same time, it is so rewarding. We all have such a passion for it. Just being on this side of the microphone now and being able to talk in a more relaxed way with the other riders and try to get to know them a little bit more, I really enjoy that aspect of it. Ultimately, my job now is to try to let the fans know just how difficult it is to do what these guys are doing on the weekend. I have so much respect for all the talent that we have on track right now. That’s why I take my job so seriously. Those guys deserve to be praised for what they’re doing.”
A number of years back and at the then Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, Cianciraulo, still racing at the time, came walking into the Kawasaki pits of Angel Stadium early that morning. Upon doing so, I asked him if he still felt the rush of race day. Earlier this week, I asked Adam if he remembered that and how he feels now in 2026.
“Oh yeah!” he replied. “I remember that as clear as day. I think I have a more relaxed vibe at the races now because the pressure to perform is less. Even though it is still there, it is less than it was, but there is something to be said, too, of experiencing the races and the industry from a different perspective, you know? I love it just as much, but just in a different way. I’m just so grateful that I’m in this spot now where I can still be a part of the traveling circus.”
