Fox MX | ALWAY5 | The Ryan Dungey Story

week, he was always texting me saying "hey, good luck this weekend, go get it." I mean, he's paying attention to my racing. I feel like more than he was paying attention to his and that was always okay. I also started with the Fox racing team that year, so I felt like I belonged, it felt good, you know, I think when you think about Ryan and you think about Fox and you think about winning consistently and performing consistently and that's what we really want them to do. consumers think when What I think about Fox is that it will always work and that's Ryan Ryan acts every time 2009 is when he had his first legitimate season, the long season was very mentally draining and tough, the Supercross season was difficult in itself and It came down to the last round, but I was able to secure my The first championship, sorry, it's going as a Supercross Lites championship and then the outdoor championship is another very close championship battle, but we also won that outdoor title and here they come the designations.

I decided to go to the 450 class, no one thought we were going to call one. This is a B team in my seasons and the best, I think, may be Ryan Dungy, who goes through the rhythm section, doesn't look over his shoulder, knows exactly what he's going to do: take the checkered flag here on the bike. end of the The day he won the race, but he doesn't realize that Team USA is about to win his fifth motocross, the consecutive nations we won the designations and it was like he was on cloud nine. I was excited, it was the best season, I mean, it came. pretty quickly we went from 2009 to 2010.

I went up to the 450 now I'm at the top of the class, we won six races that year and then the championship and Supercross is the chair, there is not much energy, love and we won 10 of the 12 races on the air free and we won the championship and then we went to the designations in Colorado, it was in the USA, you know, this is the Olympic Games of our sport, right, and we won, so within that two year period it was like in a high level of excitement and, but very soon, there was another big learning curve that was to come, it was South week and he had finished the tackle and then came the hardest part was telling Ryan, you know, he said Roger nian.

Hey, you know, we want to talk to you real quick, so they brought me in the RV and we got on their bus and we said yes, so there's no easy way to say this and we're really happy for you, but we're going to going to KTM next year, we had told Ryan we were leaving and he of course was bummed, it was like someone had taken all the wind out of his sails, you could tell he was devastated, you know, Be patient. Please note that I have another year of contract with Suzuki for 2011, that year was so stressful and hectic that I learned to worry that year 2011, Southwick national, a hurricane is coming on your bike, it breaks, they can't start, you are riding behind the starting gate his mom is scared the race goes off and suddenly here comes Ryan Dungey with a pickaxe coming down the hill the group is halfway down the track Ryan jumps on the bike the starting gates are already up he has to go around the starting gate that he had if he had not entered the track before the leader crossed the finish line, he would have been disqualified.

There are probably dozens of races in Ryan Dungey's life that in the first second, third, whatever it is, he finishes seventh, but it really was epic. He saved his chance, the title went. a beautiful thing, Brett Metcalfe wins, everyone is happy and I always remember that you know, we always remember the races that guys like Ryan Dungey win, but I was lucky enough to be around some of the ones that he lost and he never let you down, he always performed. with the grace of a champion, so yes, 2012 comes and just says that we argued about the previous year, yes, so my contracts are over and I'm going to go to KTM, go from Suzuki to KTM, when he did, you already know. a career suicide and it was a bold move it wasn't easy you shouldn't let these guys walk with him anyway he couldn't make up his mind or he went back and forth and back and forth Roger and I were there with each other.

There were some little things with the bike that I couldn't figure out. He wants to make sure we don't leave anything on the table, setting the performance as to what's necessary, that way you go to the main event or you go to the series to qualify, they say I have to base it, we didn't have any kind of failure dropout mechanics and we won the 2012 outdoor championship right away, making that change, a lot of people doubted him, a lot of people said he would never win on this bike and then he won. a championship, it was a really cool moment anyway and then there was a suicidal change, you know, I've established a stupid thing, I don't know, just Ryan was the toughest when things went wrong, he was so good at limiting the damage that and that is. why he won a lot of Monster Cup championships when the shifter was banned and he couldn't put his foot on it anymore because it was wrapped around the footpeg and he moved on the jump by hand and he finished second, you know, when he was racing , anything could happen a bike that he gets back on the bike and he comes back to it and gives me one hundred percent, you know, some guys and the throttles go off or something's not right, they go off the track.

I've never seen Ryan do that and he can take a bike like no one else. he can be in the top three and he can do it, he will make it work and the never give up attitude is so great that he never gave up for me, that's better than a title. It did matter if he finished last, but you knew that when he was on the track it was One hundred percent he always races to the finish line always now we are in 2015 we have a new bike. Many wonderful things happened this year. I began working with Aldon Baker to find the God who would dedicate himself to his nourishment. to strength training, to cardio, to the track, to his boxing, to his equipment, to his rest program, even after leaving the facilities, he does it impeccably.

I mean, God definitely analyzed every solitary area to do the job in the best way. that he could, took all the guesswork out of my program. I went to every race knowing that since I'm doing everything I can, there's nothing else I can do and I don't think there was anyone doing anything better than the way we were doing it, you know, so in return that it gave me confidence on the track, it gave me confidence in my bike setup and in myself, it allowed me to go out and execute and do my job to the best of my ability and hopefully that's it.

If we won that night, we'd get some podiums, we'd get some consistent results. I won my first race in round five and would go on to win eight more and win the Supercross title, which was the first Supercross title for KTM. The attention to detail and how a motorcycle has to be, that just takes its toll, there is an element of it being a continuous risk. I think the most successful drivers will leave at a relatively young age just because of the workload they have to endure for so many years. How Ryan has been doing it and how well he's done it, it's amazing that he's been so consistent without much rest.

I would say RIA when he got injured while doing the outdoor season. I think it was last year, so in 2016 not many. People really knew the extent of the injury and the outcome of what it could have been when they were doing all the x-rays and checkups and we were sitting with the doctor and I couldn't even move my neck and it was so painful. you know and here comes the doctor and he said if your neck rotation had gone more, you know, into paralysis, shortly after that we booked the flight to Minnesota, we'll spend like a couple of months here and just take it. all in and I understand what's going on, he had broken his neck, we were at home and I can tell you that I didn't want to come back, I didn't want to do this season, I was going to call everyone, that's right, I'm calling Elden. to the house I said Eldon I'm one hundred percent fit I'm ready to go, my mind just isn't on it you know and I said, I think it's time for me to finish.

I don't want to do it this season. and he looks at me and says, well, how about we go through Supercross? How about we go from January to February? Let's go back to the east coast, see where we looked at it then and we're sorry, we talked and I said everything. right, I decided that I'm making decisions based on fear and I can't make a decision based on that, you know, I won't be happy with myself if I do that, I'll just take it one race at a time and maybe I can finish in May. I just started on myself.

I can finish after Las Vegas. That's all. There is nothing more difficult than having that internal battle with yourself. You know, I feel like in 2017 you saw a different Ryan. We are leading. We are starting. throw away the lead now we lose it get it back and we have one race left and that gave me the motivation for that day to give it my all, no matter what, win or lose, that was going to be it, I think the real Ryan was playing smart and The consistency did the job and I take my hat off to the second third cleanest.

Dungey wins the championship by five lengths, that 2017 Monster Energy AMA Supercross champion for the fourth time in his career is Jesus, it's the craziest race in my life, but we won the championship and it was nice to be able to put that to rest. I'm the Dean of Las Vegas, when you come to me, it was very emotional. A year ago, my father passed away, so he dedicated himself. the championship for my dad and as we went down we won the championship the craziest night of racing here it's Carlos and he's giving me a big hug and I said it was for your dad they started crying you know it was great it's for me.

This is, I have no words to say, I mean, it's just a moment, they, he, they fill it out and I'll say thank you Ryan, here we are in 2012, everyone says you're crazy, this is, you know, the crew suicide, what are you? doing six years later and now KTM is the largest manufactured supercross motocross, it was one of the best things that could have happened to me. It's crazy, it's strange to me, you know. Here I am sitting here at 35 years old and Ryan is 27 and we are talking about his retirement not mine, he is a promoter, you have guys who can't choose their exit and it's heartbreaking and you have guys who stay too long and it's a little bit disappointing for Ryan Dungey the commitment with which he ran and the conviction was expressed when he said he was done, I mean you could hear it, you could feel it and you were happy for him and from the moment he was number one 42 in that room 250 until The time it was number one in Las Vegas, I took a bow and I was way down, like I said, my career has been so much better than I could have dreamed.

You know, when I was a kid, I just wanted to race dirt bikes. Yeah, looking back, I had no idea it was going to be a multi-supercross motocross. champion, no one expected him to be the next guy to come out of the amateur ranks to get the factory contract and win races. You know, it's the New England Patriots tied with Tom Brady at No. 199, who in the world would have thought some kid from Minnesota was going to win nine championships and retire at age 27 as one of the all-time greats. He was a definite hero for this era.

And you know what I mean. For the children who are yet to arrive. You don't have to be a superstar at a super young age. You can flourish. Later in life, you know it, so don't beat yourself up about watching someone work their way from nothing to the top of the sport. It's really something to be proud of. He showed that every man could be a champion if every man did it. I think a lot. of the competitors will realize how much that guy brought to the table, how consistent Ryan was he was consistently the guy everyone could count on every Saturday, he had an impressive career, over 30 Supercross wins and this consistency was never a asks when you watch The Wreckers how many podiums did he finish in a row how many races did he win I'm sorry you haven't won, luckily he has titles, he has nine in 11 years of racing and that is exceptional, he is a unique player -A cyclist of a generation with all those who have worked with them you probably realize that yeah, when I say the name Ryan Dungey, one of the first things that comes to mind is the perfect athlete, you know, doing things like showing up to the ESPYs and taking off his clothes and doing the body problem for ESPN those calls don't come out of nowhere, you have to do the footwork to make it when you need someone.

Ryan Dungey was showing up, he knew what his role was as one of the greatest athletes in the sport because he knew and the whole grand scheme of things, one day there might be a box of Wheaties for him and I think we all joked when we were kids, you know, one day it will be us on the cover and it happened and I It was just unreal, but the biggest thing was bigger than me, it was big for the sport. I think the way he fit in there as a champion, the clean guy, my goodness, what a perfect model for the sport outside of dirt bike.

Always think about how humble a guy he is, how kind he is, you know the charity work he does for st. Jude is willing to do anything to help anyone who takes off their shirt for you. He's been able to do a lot of things for a lot of people that have been very positive and I feel like that's why he's here, you know? I don't think it's just about riding a motorcycle, I think it'sIt's about what he did with his motorcycle. I feel like if I look at my old career, it was the best scenario of how everything could have happened, from being a kid as an amateur to me becoming a professional and how it all went.

I'm one of the riders who was actually able to make a living doing what I loved. You know, just do my thing, do what I do best and that's ride and I can finish now. my family, my wife and all these other people worked really hard and now I can enjoy it a little bit before moving on to the next chapter, so yeah, it's nice, it's great. Ryan Dungey is a journalist, fan and promoter. Drop me, you can always count on Ryan Dungey, I'm Ryan Dungey, Tyler, you, sir, and I'm Ron Dunn, jizz, okay, let's see, here I pull out my notebook.

Ryan is the type of guy who understands a slogan and just says it. All the time, hey, what's up? The guy who used to be his favorite, super excited, was way over your goldenrod, that was a bad idea and I can't tell you how much crap he's taking for people super excited about Dungy, not really able to see the actual ride Like when the cameras and everything is gone, he's like us, he goes to drink a six pack and he likes to fish like he's playing and you know, he takes his clothes off and I'll jump on me like He, he, he's like any normal person, so you know, if he takes a couple of silver bullets in him, if there's a karaoke machine, he's the first one to stab and me and Lens will be sitting on the couch the next thing you know it's there.

He comes out with his George Strait hat, boots and George Strait jeans and starts singing and is obsessed with George Strait, everything has to go right in the relationship and everyone plays, so I get a free mug for shorts for myself, like this that one of Ryan Dungy's funniest moments and Ryan don't get mad when I tell you this. He asked my mom one time when my mom was making dinner and asked her what bird the ham comes from. Sorry, it doesn't come from a bird. I'm pretty. I'm sure you know that now you