Ricky Johnson

This article is about Rick Johnson. For other uses, see Rick Johnson.
Ricky Johnson

Johnson celebrates winning the 2012 AMSOIL Cup
Nationality American
Born (1964-07-06) July 6, 1964
El Cajon, California
Related to Luke Johnson
TORC: The Off Road Championship Pro 4 career
Debut season 2011
Current team Menzies Racing
Championships 2011, 2012
Best finish 1st in 2011, 2012
Finished last season 2nd
Previous series
2009–2010 TORC Pro 2
Championship titles
1984 AMA 250
1986 AMA 250 and Supercross
1987 AMA 250 and 500
1988 AMA 500 and Supercross
TORC Pro 2 (2010)
TORC Pro 4 (2011, 2012)
Awards
AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame inductee (1999)
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America inductee (2012)
1997 and 2003 Baja 1000 winner
1999 American Speed Association Rookie of the Year
2012 AMSOIL Cup winner
2014 Frozen Rush winner
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
12 races run over 4 years
Best finish 31st (1996)
First race 1995 Spears Manufacturing 200 (Mesa Marin)
Last race 1997 Carquest 420K (Las Vegas)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 2 0
Last updated on: February 3, 2014.

Rick Johnson (born July 6, 1964) is an American former professional motorcycle, off-road truck and stock car racer. He competed in AMA motocross and Supercross during the 1980s and, won seven AMA national championships.[1] He later switched to off-road racing. In 2010, he won the Pro 2WD Trophy Truck championship in the Traxxas TORC Series.[2] In September 2012, he won the 4x4 world championship race at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway and later that day won the AMSOIL Cup pitting the two and four wheel drive trucks. Johnson won the 2014 Frozen Rush, the first short-course off-road race on snow.

Racing career

Motocross career

Johnson was born in El Cajon, California where his father was an avid motorcyclist who bought his son a mini-bike when he was 3 years old.[1] When he turned 16 in 1980, he earned his pro license.[1] He won his first national championship in 1984 for the Yamaha factory motocross team.[3] For the 1986 season, he was offered a job with the Honda team by team manager and five time former world champion Roger De Coster.[1] He battled his Honda team-mate David Bailey throughout the 1986 season, coming away with the 250 title and the Supercross crown.[4] During this season Johnson and Bailey were part of one of the most epic battles in Supercross history at the Anaheim stadium. De Coster picked Johnson, Bailey and another Honda team-mate Johnny O'mara to represent the U.S.A in the Motocross des Nations in Maggiora, Italy. Team U.S.A. won with a clean sweep. Back home, he finished second to Bailey in the 500 class. Unfortunately, the rivalry was short-lived as just prior to the start of the 1987 season Bailey was paralyzed in a practice crash.[1] Johnson would dominate the 1987 season, winning both the 250 and 500 crowns.[1]

In 1987, Johnson also won what is considered one of Supercross history's greatest races in the Super Bowl Of Motocross at the L.A. Coliseum. After crashing in the first corner Johnson came back from near dead last to pass Jeff Ward and eventually privateer Guy Cooper on the penultimate lap to squeeze the win. He followed this performance by adding the 1988 Supercross and 500 titles to his name. Johnson started the 1989 season strongly but suffered a serious injury when he broke his wrist in a practice session.[1] He would never fully recover from the injury. He soldiered on for a few more seasons but the injury proved too debilitating. He announced his retirement at the beginning of the 1991 season.[1] At the time of his retirement from motocross racing at age 26, he was the all-time leader in Supercross victories.[1] Johnson was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2012.[1]

Career after motocross

Johnson went on to have success in off-road racing and stock car racing. He took wins in the famous Baja 1000 twice and was American Speed Association stock car series Rookie of the Year in 1999, driving for Herzog Motorsports as a teammate to unrelated El Cajon, CA off-road racer Jimmie Johnson.[1] Johnson ran twelve races in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series from 1995 to 1997.

Off-road racing
Pro 2 demonstration
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Johnson's 2010 truck

Johnson founded the Traxxas TORC Series for the 2009 season. He sold the series after the season to the United States Auto Club (USAC) and he concentrated on being a driver. Johnson won the TORC Series Pro2wd Championship in 2010 after a season long battle with Rob MacCachren, the defending champ. This championship came down to the last race of the season at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway with Johnson securing a second-place finish to win the championship.[2]

In 2012, Johnson won the Pro 4x4 World Championship race on Sunday at Crandon's second race weekend. Later that day, he won the AMSOIL Cup pitting the Pro 4x4 and Pro 2 drivers against each other.

In 2013, Johnson joined some Stadium Super Trucks races, with sponsorship from Jegs High Performance.[5]

Johnson started 2014 early by competing in the Red Bull-sponsored Frozen Rush race. This inaugural event featured Pro 4 trucks racing with studded tires on snowy mountain slopes at Sunday River in Maine. Eight drivers from the two national series (TORC and LOORRS) were selected to compete head to head with the victory advancing to the next round. Johnson beat Johnny Greaves in the final round for the win.[6]

In addition to short course truck racing, Johnson has competed in desert off-road races. In 2009 and 2010 he was 3rd in the Unlimited Truck class of the SNORE Mint 400.

Personal life

Johnson now lives in Southern California with his wife, Stephanie, and their children.

Images

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Craftsman Truck Series

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Rick Johnson at the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame
  2. 1 2 Greaves, Johnson, Currie Crowned 2010 TORC Series PRO Champs; Douglas Wins AMSOIL Cup (5 September 2010). Race Dezert http://www.race-dezert.com/home/greaves-johnson-currie-crowned-2010-torc-series-pro-champs-douglas-wins-amsoil-cup-10242.html. Retrieved 7 September 2010. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. ↑ AMA motocross champions
  4. ↑ Motocross Action Every champ
  5. ↑ "Ricky Johnson joins Robby Gordon's stadium truck series". Racer. 20 March 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  6. ↑ Jung, Carter. "Frozen Rush: Ricky Johnson Wins Inaugural Race". Red Bull. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ricky Johnson.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
none		 Red Bull Frozen Rush Champion
2014 		Succeeded by
Bryce Menzies
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