Interview: Justin Barcia – Viva Las Vegas
By Team TMX on 15th Oct 19
AMA Supercross Justin Barcia Monster Energy Cup
The last place I expected to track down Justin Barcia was in a Southern California grocery store, but thats where we found the Monster Energy Factory Yamaha charger mid-morning on Monday.
Happy go lucky as ever and, as youre about to find out, quite keen to make the four hour trek over to a town thats been hard on every one of us namely Las Vegas, Nevada Barcia was in great spirits and not only expecting to do well at the 2019 Monster Energy Cup, but to win the whole thing (including the briefcase full of a million dead presidents!).
Tuned-up, healed up and straight up, the now veteran racer who has his own way of doing things is ready to tap his 2020 racing season into first gear. Check it out.
Dirt Bike Rider: Justin, whats happening?
Justin Barcia: I was just in the grocery store.
DBR: Thats a good place to be.
JB: Yes sir. (Laughter).
DBR: Okay, what have you been up to? Whats going on now in your off-season?
What off-season?! (Laughter). There hasnt been an off-season. Me and my wife took a week off and then we loaded up our camper with our dogs and we headed out to California and weve been in California since. Yamaha has the new bike and there was a lot of work to be done and weve made really good progress already. Yeah, weve just been grinding away and working really hard to be the best that we can be this year.
DBR: Hows married life treating you?
JB: Good. Yeah, life is good, man. Cant complain. The wife helps me a lot.
Justin Barcia
DBR: The Monster Cup is a handful of days away. Whats your game plan? How are you looking at this one-off race?
JB: For me, Monster Cup is a chance to win a million dollars. I had a tough outdoor season, but any great athlete is able to put those things in the past and move forward and I believe I am one of those athletes that can do that. Yeah, Ive just been working hard and I believe that I have a really good shot at coming in there and doing really well. Last year things didnt go as planned there, but I think this year Im in a much better position. Im healthy. The new bike feels a lot better. Were going there to kick some butt, thats for sure.
DBR: Yeah, I was going to say that 2019 was the best of times, the worst of times for you. You won the opening round at Angel Stadium but then fell into a shattered window of injuries and bad luck. That stuff set you back, huh?
JB: Yeah, for sure. It was tough coming out and winning that first one and then having all of those injuries and not being comfortable and things like that, so yeah unfortunately the injuries dragged through the whole year and I wasnt able to overcome those obstacles. It was nice finishing the season out being somewhat healthier and now Im full-healthy and I feel like my fitness is really good and getting better every day and I feel strong. Its cool to see that progress. Yeah, this year has been a tough one and I want to finish it out really strong.
DBR: Looking back on the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Nationals, what do you make of it all? Good? Bad? Ugly?
JB: It was difficult. Like we talked about, I was injured coming in and didnt have any time to test and just wasnt able to get the bike right all season. It was something where we knew we had some issues and we were never able to overcome that with my injuries and testing and things like that. Unfortunately it was difficult, but we get better towards the end of the season and I started getting healthier and the bike did start getting better. Yeah, it was not good. Thats the past and weve moved forward a lot since then. Im excited to go to the Monster Cup to show people where we are at. Weve turned some corners for sure.
Justin Barcia
DBR: I know its a bit early, but are you feeling good about 2020?
JB: Yeah, I feel a lot better than I did last year. The team has really stepped up a lot in this off-season. Weve made a lot of changes with the bike and a little bit of personnel changes. Ive been around a long time and seen a lot of things and I can really see that this team wants to be where they were back in the day and winning championships and races. It is really good to see that motivation and again that I feel I havent seen in a while. Also, the boys did a good job this year on a few redesigns on the bike. Its feeling really positive already and Im just really excited that everyone is excited about the new season as well.
DBR: Did the team make wholesale changes to the bike?
JB: No, not really. Honestly, the bike is not that much different, but they did make a little bit of an engine change which calmed the chassis down. I havent ridden a YZ250F, but I believe they made the 450 more like the 250. The 450 has been a tough machine to ride in supercross. With me riding the bike, I now feel like theyve addressed those issues and we just keep running it through the testing sessions.
DBR: It caught me off guard a bit when I looked into it, but youre a veteran now, huh?! Youre now a decade into your racing career.
JB: Yeah, thats pretty cool. Its kind of weird to say Im a veteran, but I feel like this year, for me, that a lot of my new goals are achievable, you know? Ive been around a long time and I have a lot of experience. Yeah, its pretty crazy to say Ive been around for a while now. It feels good. I still feel young at heart and I feel like I still have that spunk you need to go out there and win races and be in the fight. Its pretty cool. Yeah, Im really looking forward to this year.
Justin Barcia
DBR: Yeah, youve won championships and big races so you know youre fully capable of winning anything. Maybe you just need a little bit of good luck blowing in your direction...
JB: Yeah, a little luck and a lot of hard work. I have a really good team behind me. I feel like this year that a lot of those things are falling into place. There is no reason why we should not be competitive. Deep down right now I havent felt like this in recent seasons; I feel like I can do what I want on my motorcycle and I feel good about that. Things are falling into place for us to be in the hunt for the championship. Im over just winning one race or two races; I want to be in that long fight. I definitely want to do big things this year.
Justin Barcia
DBR: Ive known you for a long time now and youve always struck me as a guy who just plain loves to race his motocross bike. Thoughts?
JB: Yeah, I mean, honestly, for me, this is a sport that I love. I grew up as a kid just that just loved to race dirt bikes. If you lose that passion, it can be difficult. And Im not going to lie; I have lost that passion before. But you never lose that love of racing your motorcycle. Its one thing to go and ride, but its another thing to get on the track and race. That feeling? Ive never been able to find that feeling in anything else Ive done in life. Yeah, I love this sport and Im grateful for the opportunities that Ive been given.
DBR: One last question and Ill let you get back to pushing that shopping cart around: Can you win this deal over in Sam Boyd Stadium in Vegas come Saturday night?
JB: Yeah, I believe we can win, for sure. Racing is never easy and there is a lot of variables that pop up: Riders, track and all those kinds of things. For me right now and at this moment I believe that I can win some races.
Words: Eric Johnson
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