Exclusive: Cooper Webb Interview

Winning an AMA National can only happen when you’re in a good position mentally. That mental strength comes from a combination of things that in a way build from each other and it’s hard to get all without one. Confidence, results, training and momentum. With this in mind, it seems highly unlikely that a rider could come into a series like the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, half way in, and not only land on the podium, but come two laps away from taking a 1-1 finish.

That is exactly what Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha’s Cooper Webb did last weekend at RedBud. While 95% of riders in the field would be stoked on a podium in a perfect world, Copper was visibly “pissed off” after being passed by his teammate, Jeremy Martin, and crashing on his own while out front. I gave Coop a call this week to talk about his injury, RedBud, modern day podium speeches and racing the Australian Supercross Championship in 2015. There is no veil here – this is Cooper Webb telling it like it is. 

Alright Coop, let’s get straight into it… You’re back and got on the box pretty quick but you were self admittedly “pissed off” on the podium. Where are you at with it all right now?

Yeah, overall it’s been good. I think coming back to a full-mudder at Budds Creek wasn’t the best and not really a good way to judge where you’re at but that being said I feel like I rode good there apart from a few of the little crashes that I had. Then RedBud was almost picture perfect! I obviously made a couple of mistakes that cost me a 1-1 there but to come back after a bad injury and kind of fit back in like you didn’t miss a beat was what I was trying to do but that is always easier said than done. Looking at the positives I lead pretty much all of both motos which was a good feeling and I was on the podium second race back so can’t really complain.

It was funny, I was talking to someone about that race and they commented how stoked you should be to be on the box but you were visibly angry after both motos. Honestly, I think some of the other guys in the field need to think about that because regardless of the situation you only want to win and I think that was pretty cool to see that emotion and the fact that you’re not just going to use the injury as a crutch and you really want to win regardless.

Yeah, exactly. Obviously right after the moto I was bummed but when you kind of step back and put in in perspective, any time you’re on the box is a good thing and you tell yourself going into these last races that you want to build back up to one hundred percent. But as a racer, I know what I’m capable of doing every weekend and when you don’t do that; especially in the way I got passed in those motos, you can’t help it getting to you. Those are the races that keep you up at night.

Correct me if I’m wrong here, because I’ve never really asked anyone this question before…

Yeah…

Even if you’re dog tired with one lap to go, as a professional athlete, and as fit as you are, I know you could throw down a lap fast enough to hold off Martin, especially with only a few turns to go. Was it just a full on mental thing?

Yeah exactly, I know what you’re saying. For me, it just got to that point where I hadn’t been racing and I hadn’t lead an outdoor race since the middle of last year and I’m on that last lap telling myself ‘I’m going to win, don’t mess up, don’t mess up’ and then the nerves kick in and then Martin is on your arse pushing for the win and you’re trying not to think about him at all but at the same time you can’t help wondering where he’s going to go. So it is just the battle that you have with yourself and being mentally strong and being in control of the nerves. And I can tell you, I’d rather be the hunter than the hunted on that last lap.

And from watching you in supercross it seems like the headspace you were in mid-West Coast, that could never happen to you in one of those races.

Yeah, I am a firm believer that motocross and supercross is every bit as mental as it is pyhsical and that’s why you see guys that dominate. There is no better feeling that going to the line knowing you’re going to win when everyone is trying to win. There is a massive difference in those two mind frames and in supercross I had that feeling. Going to the line this weekend I knew that if I started in the top ten I had a legitimate shot at winning but once I got into the lead I really could feel that I wasn’t one hundred percent in shape and that can play on your mind. We did everything we could physically but nothing replaces seat time and with that in your head it can make you second guess yourself which affects that mental side down the stretch.

You’re not in the championship picture but your teammate is – does it get weird in the truck when he’s battling you to get those three extra points over Marvin? Is he looking at you like ‘Bro, don’t screw this for me’ and at the same time you are trying to get the bonus money and get yourself on a roll for 2016?

Yeah, that’s a good point… I guess too like we were just saying, you work so hard to get into a mental state to win that when you start thinking about different things it can really throw out that mental game that you work hard on. And the reason I’ve made it this far is because I’m a really competitive guy, it’s definitely not in my nature to pull over and let a guy past so he can win a championship (laughs). I always look at it too like if Jeremy is going to be the champ again he will be the champ and I’m sure that when he holds the number one plate up he would want to know that he himself was the guy that won it and there wasn’t any kind of team tactics going to hollow that feeling.

Not to mention the dollar difference between first and second…

That is true!

So let’s back track a bit to the injury. I feel like it was kept pretty quiet? What exactly was the deal there?

Well I did it in Vegas in practice. It was just a really slow crash that twisted my ankle pretty bad but I could feel it wasn’t broken and X-Rays showed that but I knew something was wrong in there. So we went and got an MRI to see what was wrong in there and it was just a weird injury because I had so many different doctors saying different things and that puts you in a weird situation. Eventually I got a diagnosis after seeing four or five doctors and found out that I had a slight tear in a ligament in my ankle so in the time between Vegas and Hangtown I didn’t ride and basically just wanted to go in there and go easy on it and try to get some points to stay in the title hunt. I kinda figured even if I was just scoring points at the first few rounds it was better than sitting out and letting the whole championship go out the window.

And first moto I went out and did really well to the point where I surprised myself; I lead a lot of that race until a rock busted by goggle lens out and I had to ditch those but I was on the box and that kinda gave me some hope that I made the right choice. It was kinda crazy too because I wasn’t even putting my left foot out in turns.

Then the second moto I got in a pile-up first lap and was in last and I got up and just went into freak-out mode and kind of forgot that I needed to protect that leg and ripped my foot off real bad and I just knew that I had jacked it up even more. So it was back to the doctors and it was the same thing again – MRIs and no one really knew the extent of what I’d done. It ended up being that I had torn that ligament again and now I had a cut in the cartilage and that was causing me a lot of pain. Basically my foot and leg bone were rubbing together because of the displacement of the cartilage so I had to wait for that to heal before I could really do anything.

So it was like, do we keep racing and risk it any more of do I say that I’m out until it’s healed and come back ready and try win races to prove a point so that’s what I did and I’m glad I made that call. So I had a cast, then a boot and in four weeks I was doing everything but riding and just doing a heap of rehab trying to stay in shape for when I could ride.

The big bummer of it all was that it just wasn’t clear cut like breaking a bone, you know, okay I got six weeks and then I can ride but this was just more complicated and more based on feel and how it was healing so it was just a frustrating time.

I want to talk a little bit about Swanny (Gareth Swanepoel) because I think it is crazy how underrated that guy is as a trainer. He has won a championship and got a lot of podiums with you, and he has done great things with Tickle and Aaron Plessinger but he really doesn’t seem to get thrown into the mix with other trainers out there.

I would totally agree with that!

Tell me what was the thinking hiring him when he didn’t have any other guys when I’m sure you could have worked with anyone you wanted? Or did you guys just really gel straight away and you could see his potential as a trainer?

I guess looking back on it people might have thought it was risky to go with a guy who didn’t really have any riders and what not but it was just one of those things that worked from the get go. He basically decided that he was going to retire and he was with Star Racing at the time and he told Bobby Ragen from Star that he was going to transition into training and go to school to get all the qualifications and what not and when he had all that in a line he contacted Bobby again and asked if he would mention him to his riders and see if anyone was interested in working with him.

At that point I just had a guy writing a program for me and me and my buddy would do it together. So I went to dinner with Swanny and my Dad and he basically told me what he was all about and the kind of methods to his training and the way he thought about it all. I had just come off my rookie outdoor season and I had a feeling that if I wanted to be a championship guy I needed to get on a solid program and even though I’d be his first ever guy I just had a feeling with him and I knew that he was the right guy to help me and we worked together in my rookie SX and second outdoor year. It was a successful partnership right away and I ended up fifth in Supercross with a bunch of podiums and motocross was a great year for me as well getting third in points as well as winning overalls and being on the podium every weekend.

Like you said, he is really underrated and in my opinion he’s the best guy out there. Obviously he’s my guy but it’s so nice having a guy in your corner that was so good as a racer who can really relate to what I’m feeling. He knows how being tired makes you feel on the bike, he know’s how tough a 30-minute moto is during the week when it’s 105 degrees and you know that he’s put his money where his mouth is and been through the grind just as hard as he’s asking you to grind. You can’t explain that to a guy who’s never ridden a dirt bike. Aside from that he’s done awesome stuff with Broc and Aaron and we dominated supercross together so I’m pretty stoked on taking a chance on him a couple of years ago the way I did. I have actually wondered before what it would have been like if I didn’t hire Swanny. Obviously I think I am a talented rider who is more than capable of going fast but who knows if I would have been able to put together a season like I did in supercross without Swanny in my corner?

It’s crazy too, with all the big name trainers they all have their own unique ethics when it comes to training and how they think it should be done and that really has to resonate with the individual rider too. You’ve seen it with Ken and Aldon – they got results but Ken just wasn’t happy in that environment and didn’t agree with the ethos. To me it seems like you and Swanny really see eye-to-eye when it comes to training.

Yeah, and at the end of the day the guys not just my trainer but he’s one of my best friends and being younger than him I can talk to him about anything and get advice on whatever. And like you were saying we are on the same wavelength when it comes to the training side of things. I really trust what he says and even though I might not want to do exactly what he says (laughs), I know that’s what I need to do and I have no problems doing it. The best thing with Swanny is that he takes riding as the priority and I’m not sure if there are many trainers out there that see it that way. The fact that he was so good as a racer too is a bonus when we are working together at the track. He’s won races and won GPs and was always known as one of the fittest guys so it’s hard to argue with him.

So before we started rolling on the interview you said you wanted to race the Australian Supercross Championship. The AUS-X Open promoter, Adam Bailey, will probably read this so throw it out there – you wanna do it?

Dude, I would love to do the Australian Supercross Championship. Let’s make it happen! I love getting to travel to new places and Australia is just one of those places I have always wanted to go ever since I can remember. Honestly, I’m just a big motocross fan to where I am following who’s doing what in the Australian series as well as the GPs and stuff. I think Swanny kind of got me more interested in that side of it with him knowing everyone in Europe, but yeah I’m a fan of that series and I’d love to go over there!

Maybe this interview will get some gears turning! The AUS-X Open is in Sydney and I don’t know how much you know about the girls who lay on the beach in Bondi but I feel like you’d be into it.

Man, I know about Sydney, I’ve heard good things (laughs)!

There’s the whole Chad/James showdown going down too – that will be cool!

Man, that’s what is missing from the sport right now, especially over here. I don’t want to advocate fights or dirty riding or anything but people love to see that rivalry and that’s kind of gone a way a bit these days. I feel like I’m still trying to bring that style back to the table and that’s why it’s a bummer to me that James isn’t allowed to race because that guy is just so damn exciting! Him and Chad, the rivalry they had a few years ago, man I miss that! So it will be cool to see those two race together in Oz and even if I can’t be there to race I wanna watch it!

That is something I was going to bring up… Now, I don’t want this to come across the wrong way because I am a fan on Dungey and personally think he is a great guy, but if you’ve seen one Dungey interview you’ve seen them all; and not just Dungey – a lot of guys will give such a bland ‘proper’ podium speech to the point where there is no point doing them. As fans, what do we learn from them? And the part that I don’t get is that there isn’t pressure from the teams to be boring, it’s just the norm and it’s how people do it.

Exactly!

I will say though, I was stoked to see how passionately he spoke on the box after the second moto at Hangtown, you could really see how losing that race to Eli burned him. I wish that was every weekend from the great man!

Yeah that’s right.

I know with JDR that at no point did Jay ever tell Malcolm, “Hey man, wanna tone down the charisma on the podium”. The teams aren’t telling you guys you need to be so flat and boring but so many guys are… That’s what I like about you is that you will always tell the camera what you’re really thinking and that lets fans get closer to your world! What’s your take on that? Why is that the norm now? Do you think it’s just a case of follow the leader? Each year podium speeches got more and more ‘professional’ so is it just a case of what you saw growing up?

Yeah, I totally agree. And I don’t think you have to go out and talk shit or anything for the sake of some publicity but you can be honest about how you feel and show some emotion. “Yeah that race was good, my bike worked good but I got beat and that’s okay, here’s my sponsors, thanks.” I’m a racer, and my whole life I’ve been a competitor. When I come off the track and get beat I’m not cool with it and when I say I’m pissed off on the podium I’m just being real and honest. I think the sport right now needs people to be themselves and show emotion and a bit of their personality. Of course, we still need to be professional and there is a point where you can take it to the level of being an idiot. Personally I feel like that fans want to know what we’re about and they can see straight through a guy who gets passed on the last lap saying, “Well it was still a great race, yeah I got passed and I’m cool with it… Sponsor, sponsor, sponsor.” They want to hear what you’re going to do about it! That’s my take on it, some people might not agree but I guess I’m just doing what I think is right? And I mean some of it could just come down to nerves for guys too? They kind of don’t really know what else to do so they just go with what they saw growing up?

Well, you’ve got it dialed either way – win, lose or draw – so keep it alive on the box and you might inspire the next wave of kids to speak their mind. So that’s pretty much all I really had for you, mate! Have a fun weekend off and good luck at Millville, I’ll actually be at that race so I’ll see you there!

Yeah no worries, thanks for the time, and thanks Transmoto. I want to quickly give a shout-out to my Mum and Dad for everything they do, the fans for always supporting the racing and Swanny and the everyone on the team! Hopefully this interview makes the Yamaha guys in Oz give me a call or something and I can race that Supercross round, eh?!