At the conclusion of the 2024 Australian ProMX Championship, KTM Racing Team rider Kayden Minear found himself on the second step of the MX2 series podium following a solid season. The 17-year-old then set his sights on a recent trip to the United States, where he again achieved success in winning a moto at the Ironman National’s Moto Combine amateur race, before contesting the 250 World All-Stars in Las Vegas at the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) Final. Conversation details what has been a rapid couple of months for the Western Australian, who is expected to compete in the US full-time next season.

Image: Octopi Media.

Kayden Minear, the last time we spoke was after a successful day at Queensland Moto Park, just before you headed off to the United States that night. Can you take me through that experience?

Yeah, I mean we had a really good day out at QMP, I haven’t really taken the time to look back through the times and stuff like that, but I mean, life was pretty full on from there on. So, we jumped on a plane and headed for South Carolina and we test rode my bike and kinda only did an hour on it and then went straight to Ironman and raced that, so it was a pretty quick turnaround, but man it was such a cool experience.

The bike you had there was part of the Orange Brigade program with Daniel Blair. What was the overall package like?

The bike was the amateur factory engine, as they call it, and obviously I had my suspension in it. It wasn’t a fully built bike, but it wasn’t fully stock. So, it worked out, and honestly, it wasn’t bad at all. I was happy with it and it got me through the trip, so it did a good job.

The Moto Combine at the Ironman National was a great result for you, with a race win and an overall podium finish. How was that weekend for you?

Yeah, it was awesome. It was such a cool event to be a part of. I was fortunate enough to get a pretty good start in that first moto to pull a lead quickly and get the win. For the second moto I, unfortunately, had a bit of bike drama, lost a bit of power, but still managed to finish fourth in that race, so second overall for the day. I’m not mad at that at all and it was a really good event. I learned a lot and it was cool to experience something new.

The off-track activities are just as important at these Moto Combines, with coaching and training throughout the day. How does the day typically plan out?

It’s actually really cool. I was fortunate enough to be paired up with Chad Reed, but they kinda give you an introduction beforehand. You have to stand up there and tell them who you are, where you come from and a little about yourself, then they put you into your teams and go out and walk the track with your coach. Chad was really good. He gave me a lot of insight and some very useful information. Yeah, then went out to ride, came back and sat down with our coaches, we had a debrief and looked at the times and things we could work on. We did the first race and once again we just came back, debriefed, saw what we could do better on and then did the last race and yeah that was the day wrapped up. So yeah, it was cool I think having them coaches to help was a very, very positive thing.

Winning the first moto is a massive accomplishment. Was that what you expected?

I kinda didn’t know what to expect. I knew what I was capable of and, obviously, as every racer does, go out there to win. That was the goal and it kinda worked out and we just had a really good race so all of the pieces fell into place and yeah, it turned out to be a really awesome Moto.

Image: Supplied.

Did the other riders know who you were? Just a week earlier, you were standing on the championship podium in MX2 at ProMX…

Well, nah, not really anybody knew who I was. I was just that kid from Australia, so they didn’t really take notice until kinda the first race. Then they went ‘Oh crap, who is that guy?’ And then, the media started blowing up after that moto. Everyone was calling me ‘the unknown rider’, so I was just known as that for a long time. And then I think finally, they started looking into who I was and realised who I was and all of my success back here in Australia, so it’s definitely cool to get out there and get my name out.

Do you see it as a problem that you can be competing at the highest level here and yet no one really knows who you are?

Yes and no. It doesn’t really bother me being called an unknown rider, but it is a little bit disappointing to see how disconnected Australian motocross is from the other side of the world. I think we could be a lot better at pushing our sport and bridging that gap from country to country – if we could work on that, that would be really cool.

Was it a bucket list moment for you? What were the nerves like being at a Pro Motocross?

Yeah, it was a bit of a ‘pinch me’ moment, to be honest. I kept kinda reminding myself I was there to do a job. I just wanted to go over and see all the bikes and just take it all in, so it was a really cool experience. I mean as a kid growing up, watching American Pro Motocross and Supercross, I kinda got to see some of the people I have watched my whole life so that was so cool.

What were the next few weeks like and where did you base yourself?

Yeah, so we stayed at the Next Level compound with Daniel Blair, it was awesome. I mean, the tracks were unbelievably good. I just had an awesome time getting back into supercross and that was really fun. Then we headed over to Vegas, we raced the SMX finale, which was another major pinch me moment. It was really cool to be there and be a part of it.

What did you think of SMX and the concept of combining the two disciplines?

I think the concept is a really cool idea, but for me obviously, having a bit of a lack of resources it’s a bit hard to set up a bike for it. Just everything about it was a cool concept. I mean it was cool to see them doing something else. The money they put on the line there, gives other people who usually wouldn’t be up there in the Supercross and Pro Motorcross series a chance just to go out there and give it a good crack for the three rounds. I think it will definitely be a big part of the future.

The day started strong for you, qualifying in the top five, but a tough start in the main event ended with a 10th place finish. Was that frustrating, especially after your success at Ironman?

Definitely, it was very disappointing. But you know, whoever got the start made it easy and I’m going to take responsibility and say I stuffed up my start… It was very hard to pass on that track, it wasn’t a very long race, so it would have been cool to have two races, but unfortunately that’s how it goes so yeah, regardless it was just a very cool experience.

Image: Octopi Media.

Las Vegas had a traditional look for you, with your graphics and your own mechanic from Australia. Did that provide an extra sense of comfort for you?

It was really good to have my mechanic, Patty, with me. He flew over and put my bike to how I have it here and it definitely felt like normal, so it was really handy to have him. Obviously, he puts a lot of hard work in, and he knows how I like my bike, so that’s a big thing for me.

Was the plan to come to America and try to find a spot for yourself? Has anything come from the last month?

Yeah, definitely. We’ve had a few options, but right now we’re just trying to focus on the Australian Supercross series, so that’s the main goal right now. I’m going to go and execute that and then maybe we’ll talk about it more, but yeah, so far, we are just focusing on the Australian Supercross.

Is America somewhere you expect to see yourself in 2025?

Yeah, definitely. That was always the plan coming over, to try to get a name for myself and get a ride for next year, so I think we’ve done just that and next year will be a very cool learning curve and a new experience… I’m excited

With the countdown on until the start of the Australian Supercross Championship, did this also shape up to be an ideal pre-season for AUSX?

It’s a very good pre-season for Australian Supercross, everybody knows the tracks here are different from America, so it’s going to be cool to get back on an Australian track and I’m excited for that. Riding on the American tracks has definitely been a good pre-season.

Supercross didn’t go as planned for you last year. What are your expectations for this season?

Obviously, I want to be at the pointy-end, but you know, we’re going to come into it with a level head – just get into it slowly so we’ll definitely be going for a more mature approach this year. I am looking forward to the first round, because I’m a Brisbane local these days and it’s in Brisbane, so I’m excited to start there.