Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128362
, . Sebastien Tortelli: Fast Start Going into Anaheim I, the media might've ignored Sebastien Tortelli a little bit, but the Team Makita Suzuki rider, in only his second race on the RM-Z450 four-stroke, certainly caught their attention after narrowly missing making the podium in fourth place and putting himself in good position in the points race early in the season. We chatted with Tortelli after the Anaheim race. en: 50, what did you think of the Anaheim I and the way things turned out? sebastientortelli: It was a little bit tough. They did a great job getting the track as good as it was, considering all the rain we got. The track was very tricky, not very deep mud, but more tricky than anything, and slick. It was a challenge. I just went out there and was patient and took my time on the racetrack, and do the 12 laps. The first thing was to try to get through the moto and start the season with a good result and get some points. That was the main goal. en: You actually passed Ricky Carmichael for third late In the race. What happened there? sebastientortelli: Yeah, I passed Ricky and he passed me back. I passed him again, and then I just lost my front end in the whoops - oh well. But I was pretty happy how everything turned out. en: Going Into the race. you were kind of left out of the hype. How did that make you feel? sebastientortelli: I didn't care, really. I'm mean, I'm doing my own thing, I want to take it easy in the Supercross season and try to improve the bike as best as possible to get ready for the outdoors; that's where Suzuki wants me to shine. en: Last year. a knee injury kept you sidelined for much of the season. How Is the knee now? sebastientortelli: My knee is history now; it's stronger than my regular knee. The last surgeon I had in France did a great job, and that is what I was finally waiting for. en: After placing fourth In the opener, how do you feel about the rest of the season? sebastientortelli: I'll be happy to be in the top five; I would be very stoked about that. I don't want to take any risks or anything like that. I'm going to try to keep everything on track all the race season and be healthy. en: You mentioned the outdoor Nationals, Is that your main objective this year? sebastientortelli: I'm looking more forward to the Nationals; I'm better in motocross. Basically, my goal is to make it through [Supercross] and shine in the outdoors. I know I can ride well if everything goes together in Supercross, but I don't want to be stupid and take any chances. With Bubba coming to the outdoors in the 250 [class], and Chad, I think the outdoors is going to be great. I'm very excited about all year this year. en: How have you been adaptIng to the new RM-Z450? sebastientortelli: I was expecting a lot of work, being the first time with the bike. Straight from the start [testing], we got some good results. The bike was very easy to handle; I was very surprised. After a month, the bike was set, and since the end of November, we haven't done any more testing. I'm surprised how good the bike is in the whoops; it's way less nervous than the 250. Brett Metcalfe: 125 Holdout has switched teams and is now a member of the Yamaha of Troy squad. He's also riding one of the few two-strokes on the Supercross tour. We caught up to Metcalfe at the Phoenix round of the THQ/AMA Supercross Series. en: What are your expectations going Into the season? brettmetcalfe: My only expectations are to do the best that Ican at every race and be there every race, make the most of every weekend, and that's going to put me in a good position at the end of the series, if I can do that. I've just got to put it all together. en: What do you think about your move over to the Yamaha of Troy Team? brettmetcalfe: I love this new team everything is great. Everything is working out and I'm really happy, and I'm motivated and I love being at the races. I like riding the 125. en: When you were first offered the ride with Yamaha of Troy, did they tell you that you had to ride the 125, or was It your decision to ride the bike? brettmetcalfe: The deal was to ride a 125 only, with testing and stuff, and see how it goes. And we kind of decided to stay with that. I mean the bike's really good. I like racing it. en: Do you feel that the 125 Is competitive with the other popular four-stroke bikes out there? brettmetcalfe: I mean, yeah. I think it's the best two-stroke that I have ever ridden, no doubt. But I think the fourstrokes... I mean, every year the bikes are getting better and better. They're new breeds, where the bikes just keep getting better. With this thing [the 125], it's got nowhere else to go; you can't get much more better than that bike. We'll still get it a little better, we are still working on a few things, but as far as a twostroke/four-stroke thing every bike has its goods and bads. The two-stroke has a little advantage, sometimes, over the four-strokes. The majority of the times, though, four-strokes are a little better. en: Will you ride the 125 In the Outdoor Nationals? brettmetcalfe: Most likely, yeah. I'm looking forward to that. en: Will you do any East Coast 250 rounds. or are you going to stick to the 125 class only this year? brettmetcalfe: No. next year for sure. This year we just... I mean I'm the only rider that is riding it [the 125] in the whole of America, as far as I know. So, every test session is for me, really. We have to deal with the bike and base it around what I feel, and we have a lot of work to do.