Chad Reed’s ready for Anaheim 1

Dual AMA/World Supercross Champion, Australia’s Chad Reed will enter a new phase of his career this weekend, pulling up to the start gates at Anaheim’s Angel Stadium as a team owner and lead racer.

Second on the all-time Supercross win list, the Kurri-Kurri born and raised star has enjoyed considerable success in the sport as a factory-supported rider, and in 2011, has opted to go it alone with his own outfit, TwoTwo Motorsports.

‘My team, my choices’ is the catch-cry of Reed, who has assembled a small yet committed staff to contest the championship which will be fought out over 17 rounds across North America.

The champion in 2004 and 2008 has relished the various off-season challenges and said he felt a sense of pride in fielding an entry under his own team’s banner.

“We’ve faced a very busy few months but to the credit of all involved we’re well and truly ready for A1 (Anaheim) this weekend and the season that lays ahead,” said Reed.

“It will be a special moment to ride out on a bike that our team has engineered from the ground up, as a rider I’ve never had the ability to make the choices that I have with the TwoTwo Motorsports Honda.

“Our test sessions in the leadup have been productive and the team has worked tirelessly to factor in my feedback which have resulted in a bike that I feel very comfortable on.”

After a tumultuous 2010 season interrupted by injury, Reed felt certain the positives of being away from the racetrack would far outweigh the negatives.

“In past years I’d been working so hard in the off-season that I was spent by the time the time came to race,” he explained. “I’ve changed things up, and while still focusing on my fitness, I feel much better prepared and very much refreshed.”

The traditional season-opener in California has yielded good results for Reed in the past.

In his most recent championship year, 2008, Reed won the opener, Anaheim 1, then proceeded to sweep the following events at the same stadium, Anaheim 2 and 3.

The venue also holds significance as the site of his first ever AMA Supercross win.

Eight seasons and 38 wins later, Reed enters a new and exciting chapter as a team owner and a legitimate title contender in what is considered to be the most talented AMA Supercross 450 field ever.