FreestyleXtreme Magazine Issue 21 | Page 99

Dean Ferris
Well you definitely turned some heads . Were you surprised with your top three qualifying result and then that secondplace finish in the opening race ?
Nah . I ’ ve watched them on TV and thought I could be at the front with those guys , but I didn ’ t voice my opinion before the race . I didn ’ t want to sound cocky in case I sucked ( laughs ), but I thought I ’ d be at the front and let the results do the talking .
It must feel good to have that validated though .
Definitely . I was happy , the mechanics were happy , everyone back home was stoked I did so well . It was a big weight off the shoulders and it ’ ll help me in the future for sure .
So you still have dreams of racing back overseas ?
You know , I never really wanted to leave Europe , but I was in a pickle and it felt my career was going nowhere . I thought I ’ d come back , ride for CDR for a couple of years , rebuild myself , and that ’ s exactly what I ’ ve done .
I feel it ’ s time to go back and give it a really good crack . I ’ m in a better place now : I ’ m stronger , fitter , smarter and have a couple years of extra knowledge under my belt . I ’ ve done a lot of winning , which is really valuable . When you dive in the deep end in Europe and you ’ re not winning , it kinda sucks .
Well your first attempt at an international career was a bit of a rollercoaster , to put it mildly . Give us a bit of a run-down of those few years after you left Australia in 2012 .
In 2012 I signed for a privateer team and had a blast cruising the world on a big adventure . They were a good bunch of guys , but their equipment wasn ’ t good enough to do well on . I showed flashes of brilliance at times and that was enough to get me a ride with Dixon Yamaha the following year .
By the end of 2013 , I ’ d sorted my chassis out and started hitting my straps and winning races - and had that amazing performance at the MXoN , which saw me get picked up by Red Bull KTM in the US . But 2014 just didn ’ t work out . I struggled to get comfortable , then broke my wrist , so I decided to go back to the GPs halfway through the year as I was keen to go back there in 2015 . I worked my arse off and went well with the Ice One team , but it ended in tears with a broken femur .
So 2014 was a write-off , and 2015 was tough mentally . I just wasn ’ t getting anywhere with the team , with my results , with anything . I was trying so hard and got no reward . I struggled to ride the bike and even though there were no crashes or injuries , it just felt like a battle . At the end of that year I decided to come home to CDR . I ’ d been away four years and really wanted to rebuild , recharge , see my friends , and aaah …. see if Renae wanted to have a relationship with me ( laughs ).
Ha ha ! Did you meet her overseas or was she back here ?
No , I ’ ve known her since our childhood , since junior days at the motocross . So I came back , fell in love , got life back on track , my career , I started riding a great bike for a great team , and since then we ’ ve been ticking boxes and making strides .
So it must feel like there ’ s some serious unfinished business overseas , especially in the US .
I mean , I could stay here and just collect the pay cheques , but I feel like I haven ’ t hit my straps internationally yet . I did briefly at the end of 2013 and I loved that YZ250F so much , but that was short-lived . The years after that I was never comfortable on the track , so I ’ ll be wiser this time and choose equipment that will really work for me .
What plans are you working on for 2018 ?
I know all the seats in Europe are full already , so that ’ s out of the question , but in the US everyone ’ s still shuffling around . I ’ m working on something actively at the moment which could see me race 250 supercross and 450 motocross in the US . My first priority is to stay with Yamaha because I ’ ve got a great relationship with the brand and with CDR , and I ’ d love to keep that going . Jumping ship every year isn ’ t healthy for relationships , for yourself and having to learn a new bike all over again . If I could finish out my career on Yamaha , I ’ d love to . I ’ ve always felt at home there and I think I always will . u
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