Cycle News Staff | June 7, 2018
The JGRMX Autotrader/Yoshimura/Suzuki Team is shaking things up quite a bit starting next weekend at the High Point round of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship where you will see Justin Hill in the 450MX class, Phil Nicoletti riding for Husqvarna and Jimmy Decotis making his return to racing (though, that won’t happen until Muddy Creek the following weekend).
Hill To 450s, Nicoletti To Husqvarna
Just Hill will compete in the 450MX at next week’s High Point National. (Photo: Kit Palmer)
According to the Autotrader/Yosimura/Suzuki Team, Justin Hill will move up to the 450MX at High Point and at select events in that class later in the series. If things go well, he’ll finish out the 2018 in the big-bike class. Hill will race in the 450 class full time next year.
The team’s Jimmy Decotis, who has been recovering from injury since the Daytona Supercross, will return to the 250MX class at Muddy Creek in Tennessee.
And then there is long-time JGRMX member Phil Nicoletti who is leaving the Autotrader/Yoshimura/Suzuki Team to step in for the injured Zach Osborne at the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Team.
Phil Nicoletti is leaving JGRMX for the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Team as a fill-in rider for Zach Osborne. (Photo: Kit Palmer)
And, rookie Enzo Lopes who came in as a 250MX replacement rider for the JGRMX team at the start of the series will remain on the Autotrader/Yoshimura/Suzuki squad for the rest of the series.
“It’s really cool that the Autotrader/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing Team is giving me this chance,” said Hill. “This is something J-Bone [Jeremy Albrecht, team manager] and I talked about before the start of the Nationals. I’m stoked to see what the 450 class is all about before I make the full-time jump up next year. I had a lot of fun racing a few 450 supercross rounds. The goal is to learn, and I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Jeremy Albrecht added, “Justin has a tremendous amount of talent, and he has been working hard at increasing his intensity. The Suzuki RM-Z450 has proven to be an outstanding bike, as Hill showed during supercross earlier in the year. The team isn’t putting any pressure on him to win the 450 class. The established stars are going really fast right now, but I like Hill’s attitude about this opportunity. We will evaluate Justin after several rounds and make the decision whether to have him contest the remaining 450 Nationals.”
No word yet as to Justin Bogle’s status. Bogle started off the year as one of the JGRMX team’s initial 450 riders, alongside Westin Peick, but has been out with an injury for most of the year so far. He has been riding again but no date has been given for his return to racing.
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