Krista Voda: Former motocross star Carmichael brings huge fan following to NASCAR
By Krista Voda
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Kevin Harvick Inc.'s Ricky Carmichael brings star power to NASCAR.
David Griffin
NASCAR Scene
COMMENTARY
Ricky Carmichael is still learning his way as a rookie in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series, but the 29-year-old Florida native brings a brand of star power to the circuit that hasn’t been seen in its 15-year history. Simply put: Carmichael is the Dale Earnhardt Jr. of motorcycles in terms of popularity. The 15-time American Motorcyclist Association champion brought a huge fan following along for the ride when he decided to try and forge a career in NASCAR.
Competing for Kevin Harvick Inc. and with Ron Hornaday as his teammate, Carmichael returns to Indianapolis for the July 24 AAA Insurance 200 at O’Reilly Raceway Park. Carmichael has competed – and won on four previous occasions – in Indy. The difference then? He was racing on two wheels in the AMA Supercross at the RCA Dome.
It’s been interesting to witness Carmichael’s transition to NASCAR this season. He’s been so dominant on motorcycles his entire career – and now he is faced with a fairly steep learning curve.
“The first thing that comes to mind would be how much more mental concentration it takes for me than what motocross took. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s so new to me and because I did motocross for so long that it just felt like it was second nature,” Carmichael says. “Also, how close the field is and how much parity there is. If you ask me to make up three-tenths on a motorcycle, I would tell you ‘no problem,’ where [in NASCAR] there would be no guarantees.”
As a newcomer to NASCAR, Carmichael fortunately doesn’t have to look far from his No. 4 team hauler for support. Hornaday, a three-time series champion at 51, is not just a mentor. He’s a friend, too. There’s plenty of good natured trash talk between the two drivers. When we first introduced Ricky at a SPEED press conference earlier this year, he referred to Hornaday as “old man.”
“The only Truck series regular guy I know decent enough to hang out with and learn from would be Horn. Did you know he says he was a champion motocross racer, too? I still haven’t found him in the record books yet,” Carmichael says.
Motocross has a huge following in Southern California, and droves of fans came to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana in February for no other reason than to get close to Carmichael. He rewarded them with an eighth-place finish, his best outing of the year until a seventh-place run July 18 at Kentucky Speedway.
When fans who followed Carmichael’s motorcycle career come to watch him compete in NASCAR, hopefully they’ll get hooked on the speed and adrenaline of Truck action just as they did with the bikes.
It may take awhile for Carmichael to completely adapt in NASCAR, but he’s smart enough in terms of competition and dealing with outside forces to persevere.
One thing is for sure already – Carmichael’s star is going to shine for a long time to come.
Krista Voda hosts the popular SPEED prerace show, "NCWTS Setup", leading into each NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Voda is also a regular host on The SPEED Report and serves as a pit reporter for NASCAR on Fox coverage of the Sprint Cup Series.
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5 responses to "Krista Voda: Former motocross star Carmichael brings huge fan following to NASCAR". Post a Comment.
Bill8848 said:
Jul 22, 2009 at 12:54 PMI went to New Hampshire and saw him run in the busch east series. He impressed me with the run he had going. I watched him race in Southwick everytime Moto-X raced there and I will watch him again this year when the trucks are in NH this Sept.
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» Confirm Abuse Reportmanzytrophygirl said:
Jul 23, 2009 at 2:59 PMRicky is doing it right...he has made the transition well and is fun to watch every time he races...his heart and soul are in every lap and he respects his fellow racers on the track...he will be around for quite a while...a real asset to the truck series.
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» Confirm Abuse Reportbruno said:
Jul 23, 2009 at 3:46 PMTHat is one ugly dude!
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» Confirm Abuse ReportBill8848 said:
Jul 24, 2009 at 11:52 AMso what bruno,see his wife yet,he's not complaining
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» Confirm Abuse Reportwmvjr1960 said:
Jul 25, 2009 at 12:55 AMLook at what Ricky did in MX, he is coming along fine . Danica needs to play with trucks too if she wants to hang with the boys.
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