Image: Octopi Media.

Two-time 450SX champion Cooper Webb has departed Red Bull KTM Factory Racing with immediate effect, the team revealing today that their five-year association is officially over.

It was mutually agreed between the pair that KTM and 27-year-old Webb would be parting ways midway through the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship.

Webb had claimed two podiums in four rounds to open the outdoor season, despite only making a late decision to enter 450MX, and was third in points prior to a mid-week crash ruling him out of RedBud. That would mark the end of his summer and time at KTM altogether.

Earlier in the year, he won two rounds of Supercross and had challenged for the title until he crashed out of round 15 in Nashville. He was eventually ranked third in the final standings, completing a significant turnaround after enduring a winless 2022 campaign.

“On behalf of the team, I would like to thank Cooper for the years of successes we have had together,” commented Red Bull KTM team a manager, Ian Harrison. “Over the past five years, we have been on the 450SX podium 52 times and of those, 21 were victories. We won the 450SX titles in 2019 and 2021, had a strong runner-up season in 2020 and finished third this year despite an unfortunate season-ending crash in Nashville.

“Cooper had the option in his contract as to whether he wanted to race outdoors and he decided at Daytona that he would not compete in AMA Pro Motocross in 2023. However, following his SX season-ending crash in Nashville, Cooper reached out about racing MX and KTM agreed to support him for the summer. Both sides came into the series somewhat underprepared and a practice crash before RedBud sidelined Cooper once again.  

“Both Cooper and the team have decided to part ways, this will give him time to recover and then move on to the next chapter of his racing career. The team and myself wish him all the best. I will always be reminded of the success we have had together because Cooper’s championship bikes and trophies stand proudly in the KTM race shop lobby.”
 
Webb joined Red Bull KTM Factory Racing in 2019 and went on to clinch a first-career 450SX championship in that inaugural campaign, before again claiming the premier class crown in 2021 onboard the KTM 450 SX-F Factory Edition.
 
Collectively, between 2019-2023, Webb and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing amassed a total of 21 main event wins together in the 450SX division of AMA Supercross, as well as a single Pro Motocross 450MX round victory.

Webb has constantly been linked to Star Racing Yamaha – potentially alongside Eli Tomac – for the 2024 season, which would see him reunited with the organisation that he won multiple 250 titles with in 2015 and 2016 before stepping up to the premier class with the then in-house factory Yamaha program.

With Webb currently positioned second in the inaugural SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) standings, it is unclear if he intends to contest the three-round playoff series with a new team this September. Current SMX leader and new 450SX champion Chase Sexton has been rumoured to be replacing Webb for 2024 at KTM.