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by Chris Martin

"There are a lot of guys to watch out for now. Obviously, the Europeans, number one. As well, you've got McGrath, Henry, Wardy. They're all going to be there. It's going to be tough<" says Avard of the Vegas finale.

Ray Gundy photo

Despite ranking as the top points scorer during in the regular season, Aussie Mark Avard enters the Vegas AMA Red Bull Supermoto Championship finale as a bit of a dark horse candidate for the crown. The Pacifico Saunders Suzuki ace orchestrated a picture perfect championship campaign -- always finishing in the top ten, regularly in the top five, and landing on the podium at South Boston -- that is, if this were a conventional championship.

But it's not, and the winner-takes-all format may seem to work against Avard's efforts more than any other rider. Still the former ISDE standout is relishing this weekend's challenge and looking forward to the opportunity to surprise yet again.

Finishing the regular season on top of the standings, you have to be pretty happy with how the season has gone to date.

It's been good. The bike's been not quite up to speed. We've got it handling really, really good so it's good on the tighter courses, but it hasn't quite suited the more open courses, unfortunately. But, naah, I think we've done okay. The guys are doing a bit of work on the motor for Vegas. We've got pole position for the heat race, and that's going to help a lot.

So are you expecting a pretty significant improvement in the motor for Vegas?

Jim Wood has apparently been working on it whenever he's got time to finish it. We've got the Yosh motor, but it hasn't quite had enough power out of the turns. We lose a bit coming out of the corners. Jim Wood -- he does all the flat track motors and they go quite good -- so hopefully we'll be a bit closer to the big boys.

Considering your position, are you a little torn over the winner-takes-all format of the series finale?

I sort of accepted it early on in the year. It might not be the best thing for me, but I think its' the best thing for the sport, you know? Having all the good guys there and getting a few of the Europeans there to build it all for next year. Obviously, I'd love to be in the position I'm in if it were a conventional championship, but overall I'm here for the sport and for the long-term.

How did you end up racing the AMA Supermoto series in the first place?

I did the world championship last year. I did one race over there to see how I'd go, and once I saw how fast those guys were I sort of got hooked a little. I knew I'd have a bit of a head start on the guys in the U.S. so that got me a little keen to ride this series. And I've had a couple of goes in riding in the States, but not a full attempt. A little bit of motocross and a little bit of enduro stuff over there. Always loved the place.

You didn't start the season with the Pacifico team. How did you get hooked up with them?

Basically, they were at Laguna Seca there with Chris Carr, and they saw how I was going on the KTM there. So they approached me about covering my costs. As I've got a real job back here, that was a pretty good offer at that stage of the game. I rode at Long Beach as a guest ride and got third for them, so they were keen to have me back.

And what's your real job?

I've got a small business. I own a bike shop with a wreckers -- a dismantler. I pull bikes apart. So, I've got to make some money here, and that's why I've been going back and forth every meet, every round. It's been a little tough. The flight is not too bad to the West Coast -- maybe 13 hours, but going to the East Coast, the time change kind of knocks us around a little. Takes a few days to get up to speed.

Looking ahead to Vegas, who are some of the guys you're most concerned with?

At the start of the year, it wasn't looking too bad, but they've been adding up! There are a lot of guys to watch out for now. Everyone's putting a lot of effort in. Obviously, the Europeans, number one. As well, you've got McGrath, Henry, Wardy. They're all going to be there. It's going to be tough. I'll be happy to make the main to start with, and then I'll work it out from there. Should be some great racing.

What would you consider a successful showing for yourself in the finale?

It depends on the course. The car parks (parking lots) suit me because they're a little slipperier, so you can't put all the horsepower down. If it's a little slippery and a little tight, I think we'll go okay, because the Suzuki does handle really well. We've put a lot of development into the handling of the bike, and it does drive good, despite lacking some horsepower.

I'm confident I can make the main, but it is racing, and anything can happen. It's hard to come back through the field if you have a fall or something. I'd love a top five. Top ten is realistic and top five would be a good day. Podium would be a miracle.

You've racked up some pretty impressive credentials in enduro racing. How did your particular racing background prepare you for supermoto racing?

It helped me because it taught me a lot of what I would need to know for the off-road parts. Initially, I was a lot better on the off-road than the roads, because enduro is pretty flat and slippery. It's been good, but I had also done some roadracing over here in Australia, so I had a bit of experience everywhere. I've always been a top ten contender racing whatever style, and then you put it altogether in one package for Supermoto. That's really helped me in this sport, for sure.

And my pavement skills have picked up a lot since Europe last year. It was the same for Doug Chandler. At the start of the year, he went to Europe and picked up his pace quite a bit.

Overall, the package is not bad. My fitness has been the worst thing because I don't get much time to train.

How did you initially get into supermoto racing?

A couple of years ago I did the Australian series -- just a three round series when a guy was trying to kick it off down here. I was a little over the motocross -- I had done motocross, grass track motocross, and enduros for a long time. So I thought this has got a bit of an opening, so I gave it a go and ran second in the Aussie title. That was 2001.

Then I thought I'll give Europe a go last year because that was the first world championship. I just sort of got hooked on it. I got a renewed enthusiasm for riding and by the end, I was finally getting up to speed. Europe's pretty tough, but America is getting that way now as well.

You're also leading the Aussie series, but there seems to be a scheduling conflict for you...

Yeah. The Australian promoter was keen to have me here because I'm leading that at the moment, but unfortunately the last date of the Australian series is this weekend as well. So I'll miss out on the Australian title because I'll be in Vegas, and I don't have a big enough of a points lead to beat them.

How's the supermoto scene developing over there? Is it growing fast in Australia like it seems to be everywhere else?

Oh, absolutely. It started out about the same as it was in the United States at the start of the year, but obviously the U.S. will pick up momentum a lot quicker. We need more club stuff and state rounds to support the whole Australian scene. The popularity is quite good though, and I think it will continue to grow quite nicely in Australia as well.

Have you started making plans for next season yet? Have you decided if you want to race in the States again, or maybe a return to the world scene, or anything like that?

I hope to do the AMA series again. I like America a lot more than Europe. Europe is a great place, but I feel really at home in America. So, yeah, I hope to be back. It's just a matter of hooking up with a good team and getting some good support. If I do it next year as a series I definitely want to be on competitive machinery and doing everything properly to give it the best shot possible.