Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

D a m on Bradshaw couldn't have asked for a better way to begin his first full season as a pro than by winning his first professional supercross race against most of the big names at the ' Osaka Supercross in Japan. What made it more memorable was that the 16-year-old .native of Charlotte, North Carohna, beat the seemingly invincible Rick Johnson in th e process and instantly caught everyone 's attention. But 'u nfort u na tely Bradshaw's first supercross in the U.S., the opening round of the Camel SupercrossSeries at Anaheim Stadium in California, wasn 't so memorable. After a poor start, Bradshaw was charging up to the front of the pack when another rider he had been trying to pass'crashed in a triple-jump section. Bradshaw was committed to making the section in one leap, but had to toss his Yamaha away in midair when he saw that the downed rider was where he wanted to land. Bradshaw landed on his back, pulling ligaments and tendons away from his sixth vertebra. Although he finished the race, Bradshaw's big American pro debut ended with a trip to the hospital. The injury also forced him to sit out the next two rounds of the Camel Supercross . Series in Seattle, Washington, the following week. But Bradshaw showed everyone that he could bounce back as he turned in a superb performance at the San Diego Supercross. After easily beating Ron Lechien in his heat race, Bradshaw came back to finish third in the main event , and once again he battled with Johnson for several laps . In his first pro appearance at Daytona durin~ Cycle Week, Bradshaw will be pursumg the l25cc Eastern Regional Supercross Championship instead of goin~ up against Johnson and the boys. And If his two-crash, come-from-behind winning performance at Miami is any indication, the competition will likely be eating a lot of black Daytona sand from Bradshaw's rear wheel. If it wasn 't for as the cr h at Anaheim, it could 've been a different story, especially since team mat e Micky Dymond broke his hand in San Diego . Although Team Yamaha's Bradshaw has just recently been thrust into the spotlight, most notably for his performance in Japan, he's actually been waiting in the wings to take center stage for several years while racing the amateur circuit. And those years were also successful as Bradshaw earned more titles than he can remember. " I' ve won around 26 championships," he says. He's taken the Bronze Boot award three times at the Florida Mini Olympics, which tests a rider 's skill in 'IT, motocross, stadium motocross and grand prix racing, as well as taking numerous class championships, primarily on minis, at the AMA Amateur Nationals, NMA , Amateur Nationals at Ponca City and NMA's World Mini Grand Prix. • Bradshaw didn 't attain his position on the Yamaha team overnight, but he says that they have been supporting him for nine years with the intention that someday he would make the factory team. "They started helping me out on 50s, and have helped 'ever since," says Bradshaw. " It's (factory ride) the direction Yamaha's been in ever since I started riding for them. After they saw the talent . I had they kind of ~oomed me and worked me toward a ride, We've reached that point. Hopefully, now I can take it in my own hands and do the job." It was about three years ago that Bradshaw first came to the attention of Yamaha Racing Department Manager Ken Clark when he was winning everything in the mini ranks. ~ "As a 13-year-old he was looking strong," said Clark. "Two years ago we started planning for when he would turn pro. I remember talking to his parents then, saying that in a couple of years we would see him riding in the Anaheim Supercross." Before he caught Clark's eye, Bradshaw already had the attention of Yamaha Motorsports Department Supervisor Mike Guerra and was getting help through Yamaha's Amateur Support Program. "I guess it was his determination," is Interview: Motocrosser Damon Bradshaw Groomed for the big leagues By Nate Rauba Photos by Rauba and Kinney Jones Sixteen-year-old Damon Bradshaw has attracted a lot of attention for his determ ined riding and strong showings against the veteran stars. what Guerra says made Bradshaw stand ouL "He had that look that nothing would get in his way, that nobody was too much for him. He doesn't give anything to anyone." Bradshaw began developing that determination when he started riding motorcycles at the age of three, just after learning to ride a bicycle. "My dad tol d me that as soon as I could ride a bicycle without training wheels he'd buy me a motorcycle," recalls Bradshaw. "A couple of days went by and I had learned , so he bought me a motorcycle and I've been on one ever since." . At four years of age Bradshaw began racing, and he wasn't just going to the local tracks . ''I traveled everywhere, and everywhere I went I was getting beat but it was a good experience for me," he says. "I think that's what helped me go as far as I have. " My parents put forth the money to travel. They worked every day of the week, then on the weekend there went their money. Luckily it's paid off' and hopefully some day I can repay them." Bradshaw's travelling paid off with numerous amateur championships and it also helped him to attain the speed to run with National-level riders . His farewell amateur rid e was at the AMA Amateur Championships in Tennessee where he earned a championship with an outstanding com e-from-behind ride to win a rnoto and take the title. The next day Bradshaw turned pro and raced the 125cc National at Millville, Minnesota. After getting knocked down in the first tum he charged back for fifth in the first moto, then backed that up with a fourth-place finish in round two. His next 125cc National at Washougal, Washington, didn't go as well, then things were pretty quiet until Bradshaw scored his big win In Osaka. At first he really didn't realize what he'd done. " It kinda hit rne a couple of days later," says Bradshaw. "It was one thing to win, but to beat Ricky just added to it, "But it's only one race," Bradshaw is quick to point OUL "There're a lot (of races) this year and I just want to try and do those same results." The win gave Bradshaw an instant confidence boost and made him an overnight celebrity. Suddenly all the magazrnes wanted to find out about Damon Bradshaw, putting extra demands on his time and forcing him to grow up-a little faster. " I' m still a kid sometimes, and then there're times when I have to be older than I really am, " Bradshaw ,says. "It's hard; there're so many different people I hav e to call for interviews and stuff, It's hard to keep up with them all, but I do the best I can . " It doesn't bother me talking to people, the media or anything like that, It's good to do that," People have been talking a lot about Bradshaw lately. Radio ads prior to the opening round of the Camel Supercross Series at Anaheim exploited Bradshaw's Osaka victory, and suddenly everyone was anxious to see if the kid was for real. ''I'm sure they'll be expecting me to beat him again," Bradshaw said before the race, "but it's going to be just as hard, if not harder than it was to beat him over there." ' It was a lot to expect of a young rider, but Bradshaw put aside the pressure and thou~ht of it as a normal race. Being the new kid on the block not only gets the fans talking, but it also attracts the attention of the established veterans he races against, and Bradshaw has drawn a good share of comments from the stars. Some have been good, yet a lot have been directed at the way Bradshaw rides on the track. Johnson, Jeff Ward and Ron Lechien are just a few of the top stars to have locked handlebars with him in preseason warm-up races, and a common complaint among all of them has been that Bradshaw goes all over the track to keep from being passed. But Bradshaw is quick to defend his riding. "They all do the same thing," he says. "I don 't care what they say, everyone is going to move around on the track. When I was behind Ward and Lechien (at a pre-season warm-up race) they would move over in front of me. It's only huma n to take your line. . "The reason they say things to me is because I just started and they didn't think I would do it this soon. But I' ve ridden with the guys and I know how they are. I think it's kind of hard for them to accept the fact that I'm starting to get some publicity. I'm not bragging, but I think I deserve it because all through the mini ranks I didn't get that much publici ty and I won a lot of races.

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