CONCORD, N.C. — It doesn’t matter that it’s been two-and-a-half months since Cooper Webb was in a race setting.
It also doesn’t matter that the first SuperMotocross World Championship playoff round at zMAX Dragway will be his debut race with Star Racing Yamaha.
Webb has made one thing painfully clear: He is here to win.
While it would be easily accepted if Webb simply wanted to take the upcoming three-race playoff stretch as an opportunity to learn the new YZ450F machine he’ll be riding next year, that’s not the two-time AMA Supercross champion’s intention.
“There’s a lot of stuff to prove for me. I’ve been kind of caged up, I guess you could say,” Webb said. “I’m definitely ready to get out there and do some hard racing.”
After a mid-summer split from his team, Red Bull KTM, the one-time AMA Pro Motocross winner was relegated to the sidelines for the remaining motocross season — a bitter pill for the 27-year-old to swallow.
“I’m a racer, so it was tough to watch on the couch this summer, while you’re preparing and feeling good. Just good to be back racing and to see where we’re at,” Webb said.
It was the second consecutive motocross season Webb missed, as he also spent last summer recovering from various side effects from a Supercross injury. But all that is behind the two-time 450 Supercross champion, as he looks forward to the blank slate awaiting him during SMX.
The No. 2 Star Racing Yamaha rider enters the playoffs as the sixth seed. However, with the points reset, Webb is only nine points behind series leader Chase Sexton, presenting Webb with the only thing he needs: A chance.
Webb has long been known to thrive in the “underdog” position, and it’s arguable that, with him riding a brand-new bike with little preparation, that’s exactly what he is heading into SMX.
But Webb’s rivals beware — whenever he smells blood in the water, the shark has been known to pounce.
He was hot on Eli Tomac’s heels during the Supercross season earlier in the year, keeping the points gap close as the two brought the title fight down the wire. But their respective campaigns went up in smoke before the final round, as both riders sustained injuries.
Sexton, the survivor, secured his first 450 Supercross championship.
“To be able to have an opportunity to end the year on a high, with the SMX championship, having some sort of No. 1 plate to fight for is super exciting,” Webb said. “I’m here to win.”