RCH/YOSHIMURA/SUZUKI FACTORY RACING KEEPS WORKING IN EAST RUTHERFORD
April 28, 2017
CHINO, Calif. (April 28, 2017) – Abraham Lincoln once said, “I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing so until the very end.”
Those poignant words from the 16th President of the United States serve as inspiration and offer a credo for those who compete in sports, the classroom, the workplace or simply in everyday life.
Lincoln’s words hold particularly true for Justin Bogle this weekend as the rider of the No. 19 Suzuki RM-Z450 leads the Suzuki RM Army into MetLife Stadium for Round 16 of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship.
With much of his sophomore season in the premier 450SX Class proving to be a struggle, Bogle comes into this weekend focusing on the positives and looking to finish out the final two races of his 2017 Supercross campaign on a high note.
Last weekend at Round 15 in Salt Lake City, Bogle won the holeshot and was racing inside the top five when his machine got away from him in the whoop section at Rice-Eccles Stadium, just prior to the halfway mark of the 450SX main event. Extensive damage forced Bogle to the mechanics area so his team could survey his machine and offer makeshift repairs, ultimately leaving him 21st in the final rundown.
Still, the 24-year-old Cushing, Okla., native is using last week’s disappointment as added motivation to move the needle as the season begins to draw to a close.
“I’m not just chomping at the bit ready for Supercross to be over,” explained Bogle. “I’m not approaching the last two races like that. I’ve done that before and lost all my momentum going into outdoors and struggled as a result. I’m working during the week. I’m doing some different things, kind of switching up the approach, looking to improve each time so I can get back up front where I belong. I’m not looking at my Supercross season as some horrible thing that I’m trying to get away from. I’m not running from my season because my season had to be bad to really make me look in the mirror and realize some things. It’s all good.”
Bogle finished 10th in last year’s visit to the Meadowlands Sports Complex but prior to 2016, he took top honors in 250SX Class competition in 2014 and finished second a year later.
“I’m excited about this weekend,” Bogle said. “Last week was kind of par for the course with how our season has gone. I drilled the holeshot and was running with the leaders when the bike got away from me. Coming back to a stadium where I’ve had some success really helps when it comes to putting last weekend behind us and focusing on something positive heading into this one. We’ve got nothing to lose in these last two races and everything to gain. That’s how I’m looking at it.”
Bogle’s RCH stablemate Broc Tickle is sidelined for the remaining two Supercross races of the season after sustaining a fracture in his right wrist in a practice crash on Tuesday at the team’s practice facility in Corona, Calif.
The Holly, Mich., rider earned seven top 10s this season, including his first career 450SX Class podium finish, and is currently eighth in Monster Energy Supercross points.
“Obviously it’s a big bummer to get hurt at the tail end of Supercross because I feel like I had a couple top fives in me to close out the season,” commented Tickle. “I guess, timing-wise, it could be much worse and the injury isn’t that extreme. I just broke a bone in my hand and I’m looking at being off the bike for two to four weeks. That schedules me to come back right about the beginning of the Pro Motocross season. I’ll keep training and work on fitness. I’ll definitely keep up with cardio and do the best I can to stay fit. One blessing is that we got a bunch of outdoor testing done so we’re in a good place. I’m really thankful to the whole team for a solid Supercross season. I got my first 450 Class podium and I’m looking forward to more of those.”
Before the gate drops at the track, Tickle and Bogle will meet fans and sign autographs at the Motorcycle Mall tonight from 6 - 7 p.m. Located just 15 minutes west of MetLife Stadium in Belleville, N.J., Motorcycle Mall carries new and used Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Honda, Ducati, Piaggio, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, Can Am, KTM, Kymco, Sea-Doo, Ski-Doo, Slingshots, Vespa, Victory Motorcycles, BMW and Triumph.
Round 16 of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, will be televised live on FOX Saturday, April 29 beginning at 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, 2 p.m. Pacific.
Back to News