After 24 years of professional competition, South Australian motocross legend Brett Metcalfe has completed his final season of Australian ProMX Championship. The 40-year-old announced before the final round at QMP that 2024 would officially be his last year of racing full-time, and while he’ll still line up for the Australian Supercross Championship, MotoOnline caught up with Metty for this Conversation about this final chapter.

Metty, here we are at the end of your last ProMX championship. How were the emotions at QMP for your final weekend?

I’d come off a pretty solid round at MX Farm and was feeling good on the bike, but the final round was different as my son, Nash was racing, too. So the racer in me was trying to focus on my race, and the dad in me was trying to make sure my son was on the line and that he was prepared. It was cool how it worked out, that it was my last national as a professional, and his first national as a junior, so my emotions were a bit of a mixed bag. As a dad I was nervous, but as a rider I was excited for my last race and to close out my career outdoors.

During that final moto, were you thinking about the fact this was your last time putting in laps as a full-time racer?

Definitely, and especially on the last lap. You always dream of that perfect race where you’re leading the moto and waving to the crowd, but that wasn’t the case at all [laughs]. I was 11th and just circulating, but on the last lap I was aware that this was it. I took it in and as I crossed the line I could feel it in my chest and my stomach. It was a special moment to know that a big chapter of my career was coming to an end. It was overwhelming, as there were a lot of thoughts about all the cool things I’ve achieved over my long career.

Looking back on it everything you’ve accomplished, what’s the one thing you’re most proud of?

I’d have to say being selected to ride for Australia six times at the Motocross of Nations. That’s one of the highest honours you can probably have, as representing your country is pretty special. While I never won a championship in the States, the seconds and thirds are special on a personal level, but there’s something different about riding for Australia. I was part of two Australian teams that qualified first and it was awesome to be the first Australian team to finish on the MXoN podium with Chad Reed and Matt Moss.

Entering 2024 you dropped a few hints that this might be your final year, but you stopped short of confirming it. What was the reason for that?

I didn’t want to announce it, string it out all year with a big retirement tour, then get to the end of the season and regret it if I felt I could’ve done another year. I always admired the way Kevin Windham retired… He turned up to a round of the AMA Supercross and said, ‘I’m done, I don’t want to do this anymore’, and that was it. About four weeks ago I realised this is it and that’s why it became a bit more official going into QMP. Once I’d announced it, it was over and there was no turning back – I’m quite content with that now.

So what was the driver? When did you realise that it was time?

I don’t really know, but I think MX Farm helped confirm things in my head. I was riding really good in the first moto and I had a podium right in front of me, but I wasn’t motivated to send it a bit harder to bag it. Over the past couple of years, I’ve found I’ve been riding more reserved and not willing to send it as hard as the front guys. At the same time, I’ve been more consistent as I haven’t missed a motocross race since I returned in 2017. It’s still cool to be racing, but I want to be competitive, and it’s starting to get out of the zone I’m willing to be in.

Fair enough, and it’s a huge achievement to be able to call time on your own terms after such a great career. Now we’ve got supercross coming up. Do you have goals in mind or do you just want to enjoy the experience?

It’ll be a slow start as I haven’t ridden supercross since before covid in 2019. I didn’t race last year and in 2022 I got hurt at the first round in Melbourne. I don’t have massive expectations to start with, other than to be on the gate and to complete my laps. It’s a short championship – five rounds over four weekends – so my goal is to just improve with each round, and by the end of the championship I’d like to be a top-five contender. One of the rounds will be at Adelaide, tied in with the Supercars, so that should be massive. I’d love to be in good form by then and there’s absolutely no doubt I’ll try and make that one of my better rounds.

And what happens next? How will you fill your days after supercross wraps up?

I’ve got a lot of plans and ideas I want to do with GO24. GO24 stands for ‘Get Outdoors’ and was never intended to be motocross-only – I’ve got big intentions to travel around schools and promote outdoor living and health activity to kids. That’s starting to take shape, so that’s really exciting. As far as motocross goes, I’ll be involved, for sure. I want to keep the Penrite GO24 team going and growing, and I’m quite interested in helping steer the sport in the right direction, working with Motorcycling Australia and promoters, and being involved as a rider representative or something similar. There are plenty of options, so I’m excited about what the next chapter holds.