JASON ANDERSON TALKS RACING MXGP, BIKE SET UP & CLUB MX

Currently fifth in points, eleven off leader Jett Lawrence in the 450 Supercross championship is Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson. In my humble opinion, Anderson has never looked better. Although he has yet to take main event wins in 2022, I suspect it’s coming soon. now thirty years old with a young family, the 2018 450 Supercross champion is focused on the end goal of battling for a second 450 title. We had a few minutes to talk to Jason after the Arizona round where he finished second to Ken Roczen.

 

BY JIM KIMBALL

2024 GLENDALE SUPERCROSS // FULL COVERAGE

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JASON, I’VE BEEN TO A HANDFUL OF ROUNDS, AND WATCHED THEM ALL; YOU LOOK FASTER THAN EVER. Yes, I feel pretty good. I am excited to hopefully keep my progression going! But the other guys out there are doing their homework to try and not make it easy on me. They are trying to be as fast as me and I am trying to be as fast as them, so it is a competition for sure.

Jason Anderson all smiles after his second-place finish in Glendale.

YOU COULD WIN ANYTIME, BUT HAVE NOT YET TAKEN A MAIN EVENT OVERALL – ARE YOU STRESSED? To be honest, I think the only thing you can be stressed on is the race-to-race weekends. When you get to the last round, you see where you are at.  Whether that be in the points lead or not in the points lead. I think the stress right now is literally just being your best race-to-race.

I KNOW YOU ARE BASED ON THE WEST COAST, AND STAYED WEST THROUGH THE ENTIRE SERIES, WILL THAT CHANGE FOR 2024? That’s true, in the past I have stayed out west, but this year I am going to go ride Club MX. Honestly, for me, I love staying at home. I would rather be at home in California, but I always see their tracks on Instagram, and they look super fun. It is easy for me to get an Air B&B for a little bit and have my family with me. Luckily, Kawasaki will ship a bike out for me, and I will be able to ride out there. I never have even ridden in the Carolinas, besides the one SMX that we did in Charlotte.  For me, it will be something new.

Looking for that top step, Jason Anderson has been showing great consistency this 2024 Supercross season.

SINCE YOU USUALLY STAY IN CALIFORNIA, WAS DETROIT A BIG ADJUSTMENT FOR YOU, ESPECIALLY WITH THE DAY SCHEDULE? We will just be half asleep in the first practice.  Once the day goes on, maybe like first practice you are sleepy and tired, but we can take naps in the rig or our motorhomes or just hang out.  By the time the night show comes around, we will be ready.

LET’S TOUCH ON THE ALL-NEW 2024 KAWASAKI KX450, HOW IS IT? The bike is new. Obviously, our frame is a little different than last year but a decent improvement, I feel. Our new motor is also an improvement, but I think most of all our new chassis is good. Even when I got on it at the beginning of the season, I did maybe only three different settings until I came up with this one. Actually, Broc Tickle (Test Rider) came up with this one and we have been running with it. We tweak it a little here and there and basically that is it.  

Would be interesting to see Jason line up for MXGP in the upcoming years.

I RECENTLY WATCHED AN INTERVIEW WITH YOU WHERE YOU SPOKE ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF RACING THE MXGP SERIES, IS THAT TRUE? To be honest, I would not go there unless I had a good opportunity on a good team. I am going to be later in my years, and it will be a little tougher to maybe talk a team into letting me do it, but shoot, I know my wife is down. If she is down, I would go do it.  

OTHER THAN RACING, IT SEEMS THAT EXPERIENCE WOULD BE A REALLY GREAT ONE. Yes, obviously, the experience would be great. You get to travel the world, but when you get there, it is business. Of course, you still must perform.  You can’t go there for a free vacation. I still must be ready enough and if the time came, if I did decide to do it, I would be down to do it, but I know that I would have to grind to figure it out and it would be tough on me. But at the same time, it would be something that I would not forget as far as just my life.  

Low stress from good preparation as Jason Anderson lines up against the best and continuously puts in competitive lap times.

YOU ARE GOING TO WIN A MAIN ANY DAY NOW. I felt like Anaheim 2 could have been the one, but you know stuff happens. But yes, I could win one. You never know what could happen. I am enjoying what I do and just try my best. 

LET’S FINISH UP WITH THE GLENDALE SUPERCROSS. I IMAGINE YOU ARE HAPPY WITH THE SECOND BUT WOULD HAVE LIKED TO CATCH KENNY TO TAKE THE WIN. I felt like I had a chance too. Kenny got off to a great jump, and as I was trying to overcompensate and catch him, I was making mistakes – especially in the long rhythm section. I felt I had the best line there, but it was difficult to do it every lap. During the mid-part of the main, I was closing the gap but then made a few more mistakes.