INTERVIEW
2016 AMA 450MX NATIONAL CHAMPION KEN ROCZEN
P138
VOL. 53 ISSUE 50 DECEMBER 20, 2016 P138
now you switched teams after
winning this title. Obviously,
it's coincidental, since you
probably signed your con-
tracts months before you won
those titles. How long is your
contract with Honda?
My deal right now is three
years guaranteed, and then
there might be two optional
years or something like that. It
just happened to be that I won
the championship, but I made
my mind up way before I won
those. I think everybody agrees
that I took a chance going to
RCH, but I was ready for that.
That's what I wanted to do. The
first year was a struggle, then
we turned it around, obviously. I
was looking for something differ-
ent, and I feel like, with Honda,
I'm with the right team, and I've
been really happy with what
we've been doing. Obviously you
never know, but I can see myself
growing old with them, you know
what I mean?
So it's possible this will be
the last team you race for.
Exactly, yes.
Comfort in general is noth-
ing if not a good thing. If
you're comfortable with your
team and your bike and your
surroundings, there's proba-
bly not a lot more to want. We
know you want to win more
races and titles, so that's
obvious, but what else should
we expect from you?
I've done a lot of thinking
about this over the last few
months, and I'd say I'm more
focused than ever because I got
another smell of glory, you know
what I mean? You get a title, and
it's just really motivating. That
makes me want more, so I'm as
focused as I've ever been, and
I'm with the best team out there,
period. I've gone to different
teams, and I've been on differ-
ent bikes, and when I say that
I'm with the best team, I mean
it. I don't just say it because I'm
riding with the team. Truly, it
"I know what I'm planning to
do, so I guess we'll see once we all
line up in January."
Roczen's
supercross
season didn't go
smoothly—not
until the last few
rounds, when
he finally found
the magic bike
setup.
