MXGP Insider No.42 presented by Kawasaki – Stefan Everts at 1998 MXoN

Geoff Meyer

Welcome to our web-exclusive weekly column: Transmoto’s MXGP Insider, presented by Kawasaki.

I recall it oh so well, the late September of 1998. The rain clouds were as dark as I had seen them in the whole six years I had lived in Europe. Sitting at a roadside fuel station with a bus load of Stefan Everts’ fans, we all looked towards the sky. Just one more hour and we would arrive at the Foxhills circuit, for what would be my eighth visit to the greatest motocross event in the world, the Motocross of Nations.

I often travelled with the Stefan Everts fan bus back in those days; it was a cheap way of getting to the motocross, and also an enjoyable one. Travelling with Everts late Uncle Pierre was a pleasure, as he was always accompanied by a warm group. On this day, despite the rain clouds above, they looked positive and happy, as they would be watching their king once again go up against the almighty Team USA. Or maybe, just maybe, they were hoping for heavy rain.

“In 1998 we had Foxhills, which was of course a legendary race due to the large amounts of mud, and I mean real mud,” said Everts. “They didn’t cancel it, but they changed the track over the hillside for the other races, because nobody could get up the hill anymore; I was the only one who could do it. Everyone remembers I was the only one, and it was a great victory, because just two weeks before I lost my championship to Sebastien, and I was so down. I spent the whole week trying to get over that loss, but I went to Foxhills with an attitude to show everyone what I could do. Everyone was disappointed when the rain came, but I was just smiling.”

“It’s funny, it doesn’t matter who I talk to in Great Britain, they all talk about Foxhills. Some people don’t even know I won 10 World Championships, but they know about that race in the mud. Of course racing in mud is tough, as you have to really concentrate on the track and make sure you don’t get caught. On that day in Foxhills, I was working hard on not losing momentum going up the hill. You needed to go at a steady pace, but not stop and not ride into an area where it might be too deep, but that wasn’t easy for many people. In the end they changed the track, because nobody could get up, other than me. That felt pretty good, to be the only one who could do it. Years later I still think about that race, and it’s one of those days in my career that I can be really proud of.”

Everts would of course end his Motocross of Nations career with a victory over James Stewart in the 2006 event, again in England, but this time at Matterley Basin. Once a king, always a king.