Cycle News

VOL. 50 ISSUE 50 DECEMBER 17, 2013 first-ever number-one plate with a team that stood behind him through years of injuries, and then ultimately with his family, including his older brother Tommy, who never did get a Supercross win or championship in all of his years as a legit contender in the 250cc class. "It's really impossible to put into words how special that was for me," Wilbur says. "Sometimes, I still can't believe it." MR. HOLESHOT There's no doubt that racing with the fractured hand in Vegas made the fracture worse than it would've been. He went and got it fixed up and missed the first four AMA Nationals of the season while it healed. He rushed back as fast as he could and showed up for Budds Creek. "I definitely rushed into it," Hahn says. "I mean, when I say 'rushed,' I was on the bike as fast as I could be from surgery. And as soon as I felt like I could do 30 minutes on my dirt bike, we went racing. I didn't really make the decision until the Wednesday before Budds for sure, because even the week before that I was still borderline. I had exactly an hour on the bike in me before I couldn't hold on and my hand was toast. The only thing that sold me on going for it at Budds was the fact that all the tracks in California are pretty hard-packed, and I hoped that once we went east, the bumps would be softer on my hands. So, that was my thought. Let's just go, try it, and make the best out of it." But Hahn went out, in his first race back, and snatched both holeshots. "It ended up like being one of my best Nationals of the year, unfortunately," Hahn says. "And the starts, for me, I think it's just that I've been on the same bike a long time. I've gotten to do a lot of awesome testing with these guys and gotten to know that bike so well that I just know how to make the power work for me. The traction in that rear tire is awesome and we have a really good dirt bike, too. I have a routine. I think every time you go to the gate, the biggest thing isn't practicing 60 starts per week or anything like that, I think it's about going to the gate confident and just having a routine." That routine landed Hahn the $15,000 Motorcycle-Superstore. com Holeshot Championship for the AMA Nationals. Remarkably, he got the award after not only missing the first eight motos of the year, but he clinched the award with four motos still left to run! And almost more remarkably, the guys who ended up finishing second and third in the holeshot championship were his teammates Zach Osborne and Justin Bogle. "It's pretty cool!" Hahn says. "None of those bikes on that gate are slouches. Any of those bikes are capable of a holeshot. I just think we have a really good, complete package. Although, I did hear plenty of rumors that I had a P171 'start mode' and all I had to do is hold it wide open and dump the clutch... We all wish everything was that easy, but it's not." The truth is that Hahn has always been a great starter. The rumors might have seemed more valid if Hahn used to start like his team manager Mike LaRocco used to in his heyday, but not with Wil Hahn. Even so, he credits his team for his success more than anything. "I have no doubt that Mitch [Payton, from Pro Circuit] builds a great bike," Hahn says. "I think there are plenty of good bikes out there. But I think that we have the best team. And without a doubt, we have a great dirt bike. But, the best thing for me is the team. It's the employees, the staff, the whole package that adds up." TOP HAHN When there are two brothers racing motocross, more often than not the younger brother ends up being the most accomplished. There are exceptions to the rule, of course, such as the Alessi brothers, but look around and you see Gio and Ivan Tedesco, Sebastien and Christophe Pourcels, Jeremy and Jeff Emig, Jeremy and Joel Albrecht, Alex and Jeremy Martin, all the way back to Dewayne and Gary Jones, and the younger brother nearly always ends up more successful. The biggest reason for this is probably because the younger brother chases his older brother around for a decade or more be-

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