Will James Stewart Jr Race Again

The Fastest Man On the Planet – A James Stewart Retrospective (Part 1)

by Feb 28, 2021 2 comments

68 Career total Supercross wins, 48 total Motocross wins, seven Time Loretta Lynn's Amateur National Motocross Champion, 2-time Motocross Des Nations Champion, three-time National Motocross Champion, ii-time Supercross Champion of The Earth. The statistics are only the tip of the iceberg when you talk about James Stewart, an African American who entered a largely white sport and dominated every possible level from his amateur days and into his 14-year professional person career. His fashion and presence gave him a Rockstar like feel anywhere he went and became one of the most love riders of all time. Hither we await dorsum at the career of the single virtually ascendant African American motorsports athlete of all time, The Fastest Homo on The Planet James "Bubba" Stewart.

Humble Beginnings (1985-2001)

Born in Bartow, Florida in 1985, Stewart got into the sport of motocross at a immature age equally his male parent James Stewart Sr, amend known every bit merely Big James in Moto circles, was an amateur rider in the Florida scene. He'southward even on record maxim he took James on a ride on his Kawasaki once they left the infirmary for the starting time time. Like most parents of well-nigh athletes in general, Big James sacrificed and so much to make sure his son could get the take a chance to participate in races.

He worked 70-hr weeks at a packaging plant at some point. Big James would even get equally far as collecting cans and bottles to make actress money. Somewhen, his sacrifices would bear fruit for his son. At 4 years erstwhile, James received his first-always bike, a Yamaha YZ50cc. The bicycle was a Christmas souvenir, and for the lack of a amend phrase, the gate dropped on his storied career.

As for his offset number, 259 would end up being his first widely known one. The story behind it is that a babyhood friend of his Tony Haynes, an African American rider who was near nine years older than James and had been racing, became paralyzed from the waist down during a crash when he was but 16 years old. Haynes, at some point, gave James his blessing to use his number. 259 is one of the near infamous numbers in motocross history. Current MXGP star Glenn Coldenhoff has run #259 since 2013, citing that James was his favorite rider growing up in an old interview with Motocross Action Mag.

Trials and Triumph

Shortly after, James began his amateur motocross career. In simply two short years, he would brand his first race get-go. This was at the famed Loretta Lynn'due south Amateur National Motocross Title in the 4-8-twelvemonth-old 51cc course. In his debut year in 1991, Stewart would finish 20th overall sporting moto finishes of 15th, 17th, and 27th. Despite a poor start on the big stage, James would come back in 1992 to stop 2nd in the 51cc class. The post-obit year, he would win his first of 11 championships at Loretta Lynns, a record that still stands, albeit tied with Mike Alessi as of 2004.

In 1995, Stewart, afterward a couple of years running both Yamaha and Kawasaki bikes in divide classes, would make the total-fourth dimension switch to Kawasaki. He would spend the next 12 years with Kawasaki. The final ten championships he won at Loretta Lynns were all with Team Dark-green, racing against the likes of futures pros Davi Milsaps, Broc Hepler, Josh Grant, Justin Brayton, and many more than in his god-like amateur run. Subsequently sweeping both 125cc classes in 2001, it was time for James to plough pro. In January of 2002, James Stewart would make his professional person Supercross Debut with Team Chevy Trucks Kawasaki at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California. James would continue to have the greatest 125cc/250cc career ever.

Welcome to The Show (2002-2004)

Kawasaki was in an interesting spot once James Stewart turned pro. Ricky Carmichael, who at this point, won the last iii Motocross, and last two Supercross Championships, left to ride for Mill Honda. A comp for this would be if, right now, Patrick Mahomes left Kansas City and signed with the Miami Dolphins as an instance. This could accept been a completely disastrous state of affairs for Kawasaki as a brand. Still, Kawasaki's rails tape over the last quarter-century of finding and developing talent has been arguably second to none. Kawasaki went from Carmichael to Stewart, and then after Stewart to Ryan Villopoto, and and then Villopoto to at present Eli Tomac/Adam Cianciarulo, with very minimal to nil turnover at all. Unprecedented stuff.

Instant Success

With an uncommonly good team behind him, Stewart was able to notice success instantly, finishing second in his offset-always Supercross start in Anaheim. A week later, at the recently demolished Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, James Stewart would pick upwards his offset-e'er professional win at just 16 years former, which is too a record that nonetheless stands to this solar day. James would so pick up three more wins at Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and at the season finale in Las Vegas. Ultimately, a three-race stretch where he finished 10th or worse doomed his title hopes as he finished vii points back of eventual champion Travis Preston.

James would, however, rapidly choice up the step as he shifted focus from Supercross to Motocross. He won an impressive ten overall events with an as impressive 16 individual moto wins, on his fashion to his start-ever professional championship, beating second-place finisher Chad Reed by nearly 150 points. And once more, everything that happened in 2002 was when James was xvi years old, 16. During this season, there was an infamous situation that happened at the eighth circular of the season at Unadilla in New Berlin, New York.

Stewart vs. Reed

Chad Reed claimed in the lead-up that if he could become a good showtime, he absolutely could trounce James Stewart. Stewart responded past pulling off one of the most diabolical moves I have e'er seen in professional person sports during Moto i that day. James proceeded to get an early lead, merely decided to ride lax, let Reed bye, and then blew by him a few corners later and so ran away with the moto win.

Bruce Stjernstrom, who was the team manager at the fourth dimension, said in a recent video with Motocross Activity Magazine that the team was concerned that something was wrong with the bike. James never gave any indication that something was incorrect, which did not help the team out either. Once the team got to James at the podium, Stewart, according to Stjernstrom, told the team simply, "I but wanted to show that I could win." If that is not the most common cold-blooded move in motorsports history, I do not know what is. Unfortunately, James never got the take a chance in 2002 to compete in The Motocross Des Nations, which is the motocross equivalent to The Olympics for those that are unaware. The Us opted not to send a squad due to various terminal-minute issues. The decision would conclude James Stewart's eventful rookie year.

Second Season

Year number ii pro for James Stewart was one of epic proportions and will likely never exist topped once again in the 125/250 class. Again, he would be in the 250 West region for supercross. James would beginning with a second-place finish to defending champion Travis Preston. But after that runner-up performance, James went on to win every single one of the seven races remaining on the 250 west schedule that twelvemonth and easily won the 2003 125cc Due west Supercross Title. Nonetheless, there was one final race left on his supercross schedule.

Injuries Aplenty

That year'due south 125 Due east/West Showdown Race in Las Vegas was the final race. James would go an early lead in the master event that night only would make a mistake in a tabletop rhythm section that would cost him multiple positions. After crossing the stop line jump, James would make a major mistake in dipping the front of the cycle down too far. The mistake forced him to bail off his bike from virtually 10 feet in the air.

This wreck, to this day, I would say, is ane of the two or three worst I have ever seen in sport. Afterward making hard contact with the ground and sliding to a stop correct past the mechanic'due south area on track, James laid motionless for a expert while every bit the medical staff rushed to his aid. The wreck would non be the last time James would accept a major wreck. Crashing trying to win or win convincingly was a staple of his career.

James was the type of passenger to give 150% and wreck himself out of a win rather than ride at 75 percent and get a podium. Information technology'due south what made him a phenom in moto circles. It for sure cost him multiple championships throughout his career, including the upcoming motocross flavor, where he had to miss the opening four rounds due to a broken collarbone from the Las Vegas wreck.

2003 Season

Despite being out of title contention in Motocross, Stewart never took his human foot off the gas pedal once in the eight rounds he ran in that year. At his beginning national of the year at Budds Creek in Maryland, Stewart would put on i of his all-time dandy performances. In the get-go moto that day, Stewart would show that he was without question the best rider in his form, winning by a margin of 47 seconds over eventual champion Grant Langston. His second moto performance is, however, what is remembered the most.

Stewart would become ran into nearly 15 feet off the start and fell, causing him to first dead concluding. What happened next would be in the realm of preposterous. Stewart unconsciously passed rider afterward rider, after passenger, eventually taking him to race leader Ivan Tedesco, and he would suffer the aforementioned fate as 38 men did before him. Stewart would end up winning this second moto by half-dozen seconds over Tedesco.

The Scrub

During that Budds Creek weekend, Stewart would be performing a technique that would go a major part of motocross race craft for years to come, The Scrub. The scrub is a technique where a rider leans the bike over to the side coming to the takeoff of a jump to stay off the ground for as little time equally possible to run faster lap times. While other riders tried this likewise, none fabricated information technology await every bit good or cool equally Stewart did hence the alternate term "Bubba Scrub" was coined for information technology. Scrubs have since become vital in riding technique, and Stewart deserves a ton of credit for that.

Stewart would then go undefeated for the 2003 Motocross season, going 14-0 in 14 Motos. Despite missing about a tertiary of the season, Stewart managed but to finish 30 points back of Grant Langston, and you would recollect with his otherworldly performances, he would accept gotten a spot on that yr's Motocross Des Nations Team.

The Second-Choice

Well, unfortunately for James, Team U.s. Manager and motocross icon Roger DeCoster opted to become with that year's 2nd-place finisher, Ryan Hughes of Red Balderdash KTM, over him. Hughes would end up suffering a mechanical failure, and the U.s. barbarous just short of Team Kingdom of belgium and icon Stefan Everts despite a herculean effort by Ricky Carmichael (will not be the last time either of those 2 gets mentioned). Stewart would then be getting prepared for his final yr on a 125cc before moving to the premier class the following year in 2005.

Going into 2004, James would exist allowed to switch from a 125cc two-stroke wheel to a 250cc four-stroke bike to run in its identify. 4-stroke bikes had slowly begun making their way into the sport due to them being more than environmentally friendly and today are industry standard at the pro level. However, since two strokes weren't outlawed yet, James decided to stay on the 125, mainly because information technology would be his last year in the class before making the spring to the premier class in 2005.

Stewart would cease his iconic 125 with an absolute bang, sweeping that yr's 125 Eastward schedule to win the championship. James would win all but one circular on that yr's motocross schedule at Red Bud on July quaternary to win the outdoor championships as well. Between Budds Creek 2003 going all the way to Budds Creek 04, Stewart won all 18 races he entered in that span.

Terminal Overlook

His final tally in his 125-career looked equally follows: 18 Supercross Main Upshot wins (Showtime All-Time), 2 Supercross Championships (Tied for 2nd all-time, albeit with well-nigh a dozen other riders), 28 AMA National Overall Wins (Outset All-Time), two AMA Motocross Championships (Tied for second All-Time). And in 56 career 125 events, Stewart went 46-10. I practice not have the words to properly express how good that is.

There volition never exist a rider in the modernistic 250cc class that will ever put numbers like that upwardly always again. In July of 2004, it was announced that James had signed a two-year contract extension with Kawasaki, and the brand that he was with since 1993 as a piffling kid, would officially take him into the premier form of Supercross near a one-half year later. Before I wrap upwardly part ane of this retrospective, I would exist remised if I did not at least take a little time to bring up this adjacent segment.

Harsh Realities

Of course, racism plays a function in the story of James Stewart. In James' E:60 segment from 2009, his father, Big James, went into a story of when he and James went to a race in Alabama when he was young. Large James tried to shield his son from the harsh realities of their situation. A man walked up to him and told him, "We don't race * here.", to which Large James responded by proverb, "Good, because I came here to race a motorcycle", then went into how he told James that the conversation he just had was just null.

In the same E:60 segment, James pretty much said he did not truly go that he was different from other racers until he turned professional in 2002. "You know people would boo me for getting second and then cheer the third-identify guy. It never registered to me that I'm black, they're white, and I never paid attention to information technology, because I was merely trying to trounce them." Ane notable incident of targeted racism did stop upward happening in the middle of his run equally a professional person.

In Southwick, Massachusetts, in the summer of 2007, a heckler repeatedly called him racial slurs and gave him the middle finger, all while hanging over the fencing at the edge of the rails each time James would pass by. James would respond by giving the clown heckling him a thumbs upwardly every fourth dimension he passed by. He said he did this to show that he was the bigger person and that the heckler did not matter whatever. James has done so much good for the sport on and off the track and is a class guy.

To exist Continued

And on that annotation, that will end part one of this retrospective on James Stewart. In part two, we will look at his terminal years with Kawasaki, his stints with Yamaha and Suzuki, the Creation of the Seven Brand, and his Downfall in 2015-2016.

Thank you for sticking around, and see you for part two here before long.

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Source: https://primetimesportstalk.com/2021/02/28/the-fastest-man-on-the-planet-a-james-stewart-retrospective-part-1/