Catching Up With Mitch Payton
swapmoto
- January 24 2009
- 1,563 views
- 17 comments
We spent a couple minutes with Pro Circuit’s Mitch Payton at Reliant Stadium to get his take on his new riders, the new 94db sound limit and 250cc two-strokes in the 250F class at the Nationals.
The west couldn’t have turned out much better for you.
No. The west has been really good. Both guys have done, what I think to be, a great job thus far. Jake [Weimer] is riding really well and Ryan [Morais] has gotten faster every single weekend. I’m really happy with both of them.
Somebody like Morais, who has shown a ton of potential in the past, joins your team and starts producing the results. It seems like that happens often when riders join your team.
I think we’ve all seen him in the past have some really good races, and I think he knew this was an opportunity where he had to step up if he was going to do it. I believe he is putting everything he has into this season, and I think it’s proving that if you put a lot of effort into anything you can succeed. It’s nice to see him do it.
Talk a little bit about your East Coast Lites team and what you expect from them.
I think both of these guys are going to be winners. Austin [Stroupe] won this race last year, and he didn’t finish up the outdoor season because he was hurt, but I believe he is more fit and stronger than he was last year. He certainly has 15 hard laps in him at the test track, so I expect a lot from him. Christophe [Pourcel] has awesome speed, so I don’t see a reason why they both can’t be on the box here and hopefully at every round.
Both Stroupe and Pourcel got bit by the same jump at the test track during the off-season and both had collarbone injuries, right?
Yep. They broke their collarbone on the same jump about a week a part from each other. It was a bad jump, and we should’ve removed the jump sooner.
How has the new sound restriction been? Was it easy to meet or has it been a struggle?
It’s always easy to meet it by choking the bike down. Once you meet it, though, the hard part is trying to recover from the performance that you lost. So that took us a little time to get back to where we were, but we had a little bit of a head start because we went to the Motocross of Nations last year and that was the same noise level over there. We’ve been working on it since July or August of last year. I think we have everything almost as good as last year’s performance.
The Pro Circuit pipe we have on our KX250F test bike is amazing. It’s actually quieter than the stock pipe.
This year was kind of odd because these pipes are built in a way that doesn’t allow the public to alter the pipe in any way. So since we had to sell it that way, we wanted to make sure it was at 94db. When we were testing on a Honda CRF450R, it was actually a little louder than ours. I was worried people weren’t going to like it, but when test riders rode it they said they liked it because it was quieter and had more power than the stock pipe.
Comparing last year’s race bike to this year’s race bike, are you even with performance?
I think we’re above last year’s bike. A lot of that is because we have a new bike this year. They changed a lot of things this year. They gave the bike a new head, which was a good starting point for us. The bike also has more bottom and mid than last year’s bike.
Changing subjects a little bit, we sat down with the NPG last week. What are your thoughts on allowing a 250 two-stroke in the Lites class?
I don’t think it’s a good idea from the standpoint that there is already a rule in place that allows you to ride a 250 two-stroke. It’s not like anybody is banning it. You can ride it in the 450 class. So if it’s due to an expense, you can race that bike. There is already this rule in place, so I don’t think it belongs in the old 125 class. It was never intended for that. The second part of that I do not agree with is that almost all the manufacturers decided to stop making the 250 two-stroke, so why should they spend millions of dollars to produce a bike that many won’t buy. It’s done.
As far as Pro Circuit is concerned, how much of your business is still two-stroke?
I’d say that our two-stroke sales have probably fallen off by 60 percent in the last few years. I think that’s mainly because nobody is competing on them and three brands don’t even sell them anymore. They’re still selling some of them in Europe, which we still sell some product over there. The only two-stroke stuff that we do really well on, though, is mini bikes. A majority of all mini bikes are two-strokes, so that’s good, except for Honda. Even Honda doesn’t make an 80cc anymore. They discontinued that and instead have the 150F. So, I think for them to make this rule two or three months before the outdoors is a bad idea because the manufacturers have already gone down that road and they’re not going to turn around.
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January 24th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
And the 250f belongs in the 125 class? I’m sorry Mitch but I think you don’t like it because Kawasaki doesn’t make 2 strokes no more, and if they did you probably love that rule change. It’s about the 250 racing in the 250f class not the 125. I think there should be three pro classes: 125cc 2&4 stroke, 250cc 2&4 stroke, and 450cc 2&4. Not only would it save the 250 but also the 125 and make racing a hole lot cheaper! Yay!
It would also spread out the the riders a bit and more room for privateers. Just a thought!
January 24th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
…and don’t forget, your idea would open the door for a 450cc 2-stroke
January 24th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
Mitch is looking @ the 2 vs 4 stroke from a buisness point of view which isn’t fair to the racers - esp. the privaters. I hate the fact that 4 strokes compete under a handicap. All 250cc bikes should be able to race in the same class. Mitch mentioned “the old 125 class” thats exacty what it is “old” it’s the 250 class now. How about the factories produce a 125 4 stroke for the 125 class huh?
January 25th, 2009 at 12:11 am
That would be awesome!
January 25th, 2009 at 12:14 am
that`d be a 500 buddy,a real mans bike!
January 25th, 2009 at 12:27 am
bring the 2 strokes back,i miss the bee hive starting line,and the awesome smell of 927 mixed with race gas! keep our roots man. same goes for the numbering system,i want to know each season who is the best and on down the line,permanent numbers are a joke,riders drop outta the sport like fly`s unlike nascar where they grow old with the number…dont mess with the core,this is supercross,not nascar! my other idea is to bring in a starting gate like in horse racing where you line up in your stall and come blazing out when the doors fly open! how cool would it be if we didn`t know who was behind that box till they came blasting out fighting for the holeshot! it would also provide good sponsorship space for t.v.
January 25th, 2009 at 12:28 am
can i work for you ?
January 25th, 2009 at 1:22 am
Get over your 2 smokers! EFI and valves are todays technology. Someday we all will be running Hydrogen bikes and then full electric. If we don’t embrace change then we will be outlawed! All these “green” freaks are going to have us all shut down before you know it!! We need to make some adjustments. And i don’t mean jets! A dirt bike is a dirt bike! I don’t care how the “power band” comes on… Move on boys…
January 25th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Go tell that to the chainsaw guys and see what happens. Two strokes are lighter, smaller, less, complex, make more hp per cc, and a lot cheaper. If it were about the epa you can make it run cleaner. It’s not. They’re race bikes the epa doesn’t control the emissions on them. I don’t see too many four stroke weed eaters and chainsaws.
January 25th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
its is all about technology and mitch payton trying to be like nascar,expensive bike equals expensive sponsorship deals, what they don`t see is that the bikes are too much of a handfull in sx and too damm expensive to own and to operate period. i totally believe stewart could wax everyone on a 250 in sx prolly even on a 125 for that matter,its not about the bike,its the rider! oh re-mapping efi and adjusting valves is an awesome way to increase the average joe`s service fee, and im positive you weren`t using the technology to the fullest on your fourstroke before it came with efi,so dont believe the hype! 2strokes are way funner to ride and easier to work on,and they are way cheaper.if they put the tech into two strokes like they do on these four strokes,oh man,the bikes would be insane!…sukk it light mototony
January 25th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
well said!
January 25th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
wow,that horse racing start gate could be exciting, i agree that sx and motocross need to stick to its roots,ask doug henry about sx only contracts….what would be sick is if they would do one sx round then one outdoor round then maybe cut out like 5 rounds! it would be keep the teams working like crazy im sure, but man,the racing would be awesome, and you would really know who is the baddest rider out there! plus it could create more of an off season for rest and other races!
January 26th, 2009 at 2:29 am
OK fellas… here’s the deal.. 2 strokes are/were awesome! I have 2 in the shop, 4 strokes are the “now” and if you can understand 50 year old technology (valves) it’s a snap! no need to take it to the shop, get a set of 3 dollar feeler gauges and set em! My YZF has not needed a top end in 50 hours. Maintain em and they last. And the KTM 2 smoker has not needed a top end either in the same time.. go figure. I just think (my opinion) that we need to look forward to new tech if we want to keep riding. The big 4 are not putting any $ in to 2 strokes. We have to embrace it or be lost like the Dino’s… Sorry guy’s. Oh, and I have a 4 stroke weed wacker, lawn mover, and chain saw… Hmmmmm….
January 26th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
I RACED A HONDA CRF 450 07 AND IT WAS A GOOD BIKE,BUT I SOLD IT AND BOUGHT AN 08 YZ 250 AND IT` JUST A BLAST TO RIDE. IM IN TOTAL CONTROL AND I DONT GET ALL WORN OUT IN 3 LAPS AT THE TRACK…PLUS THE BIKE HASN`T REALLY BEEN CHANGED SINCE LIKE O2,YEAH IT GOT AN ALUMINUM FRAME AND BETTER SUSPENSION,BUT THE THING RIPPS AND ISNT THAT MUCH SLOWER THAN A FOUR STROKE. UNDERSTAND “50 YEAR OLD TECHNOLOGY”…. WHAT???HOW IS SOMETHING 50 YRS OLD AND IS TECHNOLOGY??? THAT DOESN`T EVEN MAKE SENSE… UMM YEAH YOU CAN JUST USE A FEELER GAUGE,BUT IF ITS OFF, YOU HAVE TO MEASURE THE DIFFERENCE ,THEN BUY A WHOLE BUNCH OF SHIMMS, THEN DO ALL THE MATH AGAIN TILL YOU FIND THE RIGHT COMBO,BELIEVE ME….IT`S A HASSEL,OH AND IM SURE THE REASON YOU DONT HAVE TO ADJUST YOURS IS THAT YOU DON`T RIDE FAST ENUFF TO EVEN GET THE BIKE UP TO TEMP! DEWD,COMMON,GET OFF THE BAND WAGON….FOUR STROKES SUCK! THEY ARE LOUDER,HEAVIER,MORE EXPENSIVE,AND A PAIN TO MAINTAIN…YOU WANNA TRY EXPLAINING TO A 15 YR. OLD HOW TO RE-MAP EFI OR ADJUST THE VALVES ON HIS NEW STATE OF THE ART 9000 DOLLAR TIME BOMB! GOOD LUCK….I`LL BE AT THE TRACK LAYIN` DOWN SOME ADRENALINE FILLED LAPS WHILE YOU ARE THROWIN` THE FEELER GAUGE AT A WALL TRYING TO FIND THE GREASED MARKED PAGE IN YOUR MANUAL “50 YR OLD TECHNOLOGY VALVE ADJUSTMENT” ……BURRRRAA-RAA-RAAA-RAAA-RAAAAAAAAAAAAP! LOL!
January 27th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
I agree with you 100%, hes looking at it from the manufacturing standpoint not from the actaul racers who have to fork out the money to race. I think it would make an intersting change and would allow more people to race, myself included because building up a 250f to race spec is too expensive and wit a 250 2stroke its manageable.
March 17th, 2009 at 2:33 am
hahaha, i totally agree with the statement above.
^^^
April 21st, 2009 at 8:27 pm
have you been in a true lawn shop 2strokes are dead wake up!