Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

By Davey Coombs hat is the world supposed to think of Damon Bradhaw? Four years ago he was at the top of his game, living the large life of a superstar under the Yamaha factory tent, when he decided to quit racing. Two years ago he stepped back into the fire, but the flames were too hot again and Bradshaw did not realize the great expectations that his team, his fans and the industry in general had for him. But rather than quit, Damon set out on his own in 1997, with the help of Manchester Honda Racing and AXO. The results still aren't quite what the world expects, but the privateer says he's happier now than he's been in a long time. Here's what Bradshaw has to say about his leaving Team Yamaha, his new team, and his thoughts about his progress since hitting the comeback traj!. There are a lot of thjngs to talk about. It's been a wrole since any of us in the medja have had a chance to sit down and talk to you at length. The biggest thing to ask is, why did you decide to come up with your own team this year? Well, at first I thought the Yamaha thing was going to be a go. In July or so (team manager) Keith McCarty goes, "You know, we haven't really talked about this much, but it sounds like everything is a go for next year." And I said that's fine, same money and everythipg, so I left i't at that. After the Washougal ational, which was one of the best rides I'd had all year, Keith called me and said they decided not to renew my contract. He said he hoped he left me enough time to get something else going and that was it. After all those years with Yamaha it ended just like that? Yeah, just like that. But I was only mad for about 20 minutes, I guess. In fact, I wasn't really mad at all. I was kind of like, 'Well, maybe I've done something wrong: And I knew the results weren't quite what everybody thought they were going to be, even though [ was off a season and a half outdoors, and two supercross seasons. I knew it was going to be tough - I didn't think I was going to come right back in and kick everybody's ass, but I think that's what a lot of pe0ple thought. So anyway, I thought about it for 20 minutes or so and then I went over to Bob Hannah's house later that day. I mentioned it to him and he told me about his similar thing with Suzuki. They told him they djdn't really have a place for him or whatever. And he said he was mad for a little while, but he got over it really qmck and it just made him work harder at something else. Who did you talk to next? 'V!J!l I probably talked to' Jim Hale at AXO first, because I knew I was out of my Fox deal (through Yamaha) and I djdn't have to deal with that anymore. [ told him that I wasn't going to be ridjng Yamahas and that I wanted to ride Hondas. So we just started talking and started putting things together. In the beginning I really wanted to do it all completely myself, just get up enough outside sponsorship to where I could buy everything and do it that way, and there was just not enough time. It was during the time that we were trying to do all the European supercross races and to get all that lined up it was going to take three or four months to get everything organized. Then Jim said if I was serious that he would help me as much as he could, try to orgaolle a lot of it while we were in Europe. The Manchester Honda Racing thing popped up but they djdn't think the y were big enough for what [ wanted to do, thinking that I was maybe going to expect too much or that they just couldn't do what they thought I needed. I told them that regardless of my name or anything, I don't have to go to the races in a big semi or anything, it doesn't have to be some big entourage. I said I just wanted the opportunity to ride something djfferent and I think it would be good for me to do something djfferent. So AXO and MHR started putting the things together and then Mac Tools came aboard. I got really excited when things started coming together. It was a lastminute thing for sure, but once it started to happen I was excited. I forgot about the Yamaha thing the minute I started talking about the other things. So there's no hard feelings about the way you were treated by Yamaha? Those guys could not have put forth more effort. I think the way things ended with them wasn't qllite right, but they never quit trying to make things work for me, and I was with those guys for 17 or 18 years. But I think it was really good for me to try something totally djfferent. I djdn't have any idea that we were going to end up with the truck that we ended up with, and the sponsor, and just the way that everything turned out. I told Jim all I was really concerned about was having a good motorcycle each weekend and a good mechanic. I said if we have a box van, that's fine with me, I really don't care. Because of the advertisement part of it, they wanted a rig tliat was really nic=e. Believe me, our truck is a lot nicer than haVing a I]ox van. You can go in and have a shower and go to the bathroom. You don't have to go to the porta-johns. It makes being at the races a lot easier. So you like having your own team? I'm really enjoying it. Another reason I wanted to start putting this stuff together is because maybe it will give me something to do when I'm done racing. [f I want to continue to be involved with the sport maybe I can continue working with this team and try to make it bigger and better. When you left the sport for a time back in '93, a lot of people thought it was the sport but it w,asn't, was it? It was a million other things. Yeah, basically) just wasn't happy being there for whatever reason. I don't think it was all personal reasons or all the race track stuff, or because I wanted to do something else. [ was just really tired of doing the same thing week in and week out. Being away from home, not being able to enjoy life. It wasn't getting me anywhere. I've always had the most fun and the best times in my personal life, with hobbies and friends and everything, and I got to the point in my career where I didn't do a lot of that. Back when I was doing well in '91, '92, whenever, I was out on the lake, I was waterskiing. I was having fun: spending time in airplanes, with my girlfriend, and eve~g else. That's kind of the way I'm doing things now. Our results haven't been as good as I would like this year. We're still early in the season, but I'm having way more fun than I had at Yamaha the last couple of years. But racing is a job sometimes. Of course, but it turned more into a business than just a job, and I realize sometimes it has to do that, but it's still got to be fun. I don't think a lot of peo-

• Cover