Features 10 Feb 2022

Profiled: Robbie Wageman

Emerging Yamaha standout on progress in 250SX West series.

Team Solitaire Nuclear Blast Records Yamaha standout Robbie Wageman has made a convincing start to the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Championship, earning consistent results to currently sit seventh in the 250SX West point-standings five rounds in. He features in our latest Profiled piece.

Wageman bagged an eighth-place finish at Anaheim 1’s season-opener, getting out of the gates up-front and through the opening laps, setting him up for a strong race and giving him exposure to the intensity and pace at the front of the field.

“It’s been super-awesome, been having a good time, just focusing on my starts a lot in the off-season and it’s been paying off,” Wageman told MotoOnline. “Just running up front and learning each weekend and learning the pace up front. I’m just going to keep doing that and I’m happy with the way I have been riding and progressing, getting those finishes.”

Image: Octopi Media.

From there, the YZ250F rider out of Newhall, California, secured another top 10 in Oakland and, while the results fulfil a lifelong ambition, he is highly motivated to use the knowledge of running with the top guys to further enhance his performance during the season.

“It’s been a dream of mine, to be up in the top 10 in Supercross, so now I’m hungry for more and fighting for more,” Wageman added. “It’s very important, it stems from getting a good start, we’ve been trying to execute good starts each time, even if I get a good start and I drop back to eighth, ninth, 10th or whatever it is, I just want to be up the front and learning that pace with the top guys up front.”

Wageman’s worst result of the season to date came at San Diego in 14th, however, he recovered to finish ninth the following Saturday at Anaheim 2’s fourth stop of the season, crediting the platform provided by the team and the Yamaha YZ250F to helping his progression.

Image: Octopi Media.

“My whole team at Solitaire Nuclear Blast Yamaha is insane, we have a really good platform with our Yamaha 250 – it’s awesome,” he said. “The whole team, Ryan Clark, Chris Elliot, my mechanic Eric [Angelski] built me a great motorcycle, definitely capable of running up front so that’s what we are trying to do… we are going to tear it up and put it up front.”

Another top 10 in Glendale’s Triple Crown this past weekend solidified Wageman’s front-running potential and, with four top 10 results from five rounds, a top-five finish would seem a question of when rather than if as the season unfolds.

“To get a top five would be amazing, but yeah as far as that, I want to keep starting up front and chipping away, hopefully just positioning better each weekend whether it is one position, whatever it is I just want to keep progressing each time I’m on the track, and just fight every time I’m out there,” he concluded.

Recent