Like many professional motocross and supercross riders, Joel Wightman was introduced to the sport at a significantly young age by his father. While most of the country’s top riders were destined for success at a young age, Wightman didn’t hit his stride until the late years of his junior career, which saw him claim his first Australian title with Yamaha’s junior development program. Now a regular on the national scene, the 20-year-old juggles a part time job as a lifeguard at the local swimming centre while using his available time to prepare for Australia’s motocross and supercross championships.

“I started racing when I about five years old,” Wightman explained. “I raced the NSW state titles and Australian Junior Motocross Championships almost every year except for 2009. I was honestly a mid-pack guy and just enjoyed it until I got onto the bigger bikes in juniors. In 2012 I got in contact with Shane Booth and rode for the NSW Yamaha Junior Racing team – that was by far my best year, and it was then that I decided I wanted to chase the top level of racing. I won the 125cc 15 years class at the junior nationals that year in Coolum.”

“At the end of 2014, I got a job as lifeguard which has allowed me to cross-off when I obviously go away for racing. Most weeks I’m working 20-25 hours per week, so it still gives time to train. I’m training in Newcastle twice a week, so I’ve got plenty of time to do the racing thing – and that’s what I’m chasing – but the casual job is just something to keep me plotting along.”

A string of injuries in 2014, which marked his second year in the MXD category, denied him the chance of completing the full season. His sole performance at Conondale’s seventh round saw him take a race win, although a crash in the final race resulted in further injuries. The following year Wightman joined the CRF Honda Racing team for his rookie season in the MX2 class, and is now at the tail-end of enjoying a two-year partnership with the NSW-based outfit.

Image: Jeremy Hammer (Foremost Media).

“It’s great working with CRF Honda Racing, getting in contact with Mark Luksich at the end of 2014 was the best thing for me,” he expressed. “I didn’t have a lot of direction after being hurt and not being out there for the whole year. Getting onto him and setting up the team has been awesome – my Dad is my mechanic and we do all of our own work, it just works really well.”

Wightman has been joined by Western Australian Kyle Webster for 2016, and with the pair equally as talented as each other, they have continued to find themselves battling one another throughout the season. Wightman completed the 10-round Motul MX Nationals series in eighth, one position ahead of Webster, although the New South Welshman is adamant that he holds a strong relationship with his teammate despite their regular on-track encounters.

“I’ve never really been in a situation where you race someone so close on the track and then come in and pit with them. It’s been really good though, Kyle and I get along really well and there hasn’t been any issues. I enjoy racing him, I feel he has had a really decent year so it’s good to build the team up, and it’s really just good for both of us,” said Wightman.

Two fourth places finishes in the 2015 Australian Supercross Championship and most recently a fifth place finish at Toowoomaba’s second round of the 2016 series have signified Wightman’s strength and ability in the discipline, which he has put down to having access to a supercross circuit since racing aboard 65’s. In addition to that, the influence of his older brother Kurt and Australian off-road legend Toby Price – who lived with the Wightman family for a period of time – assisted him in gaining valuable skills and experience on the technical and challenging tracks.

“Back in the day, Toby Price lived with us for about six months and we had a supercross track at our old facility,” Wightman continued. “My older brother was riding the nationals, so we built up some pretty decent sized supercross jumps for him as well, and I was trying to do same kind of jumps on a 65! I’ve had a supercross track since I was about eight years old, so I’ve always been able to ride it. Being familiar with the technique and mentality of minimising mistakes and being calculated is probably why it’s more suited towards me.”

Image: Jeremy Hammer (Foremost Media).

As the 2016 Australian Supercross Championship begins to wrap-up over the next three weekends, Wightman – currently fifth in the series standings – is aiming to remain consistent to ensure he maintains his top five position, which would see him better his 2015 overall result of sixth.

“I want to keep achieving consistent results and end up with a great overall position,” he commented. “I’m well inside the top ten, I got sixth last year so I want to better that in my second year around. I really just want to finish off strong while also making improvements with my starts and qualifying speed. If I can do that for the rest of the series, I’ll be pretty happy. The field is very stacked this year, so a podium would be great, but I’ll just have to see what happens.”

Standing as one of the largest riders in the quarter-litre category, Wightman admits that it has its advantages and disadvantages, although he is eyeing off a step into the premier 450 class as soon as 2017 if the opportunity becomes available.

“Stepping onto a 450 has been something I’ve been thinking about a lot this year, there’s obviously some other big guys who have done well on the smaller lites bikes throughout the year – there are times when I think its affected me, but I’ve also been able to use it to my advantage at times as well. I’d love to get on a 450 for next year, but it all depends if I can get a deal. As far as getting on one, I definitely want to,” he concluded.