Luke Clout | Coming To America?

INSTAGRAM | @lukeclout4

IMAGES | Australian Supercross Championship/Foremost Media

The last few weeks have been big for Luke Clout. With a spot on the CDR Yamaha Monster Energy squad, Clout emerged as a contender for the SX1 title in the early rounds of the 2019 Australian Supercross Championship thanks to a pair of podium finishes in the first two rounds, then stayed speedy and consistent through the three motos at the Wollongong round to take the night’s overall win. With three solid results to his credit, the Australian eyed the SX Open in Auckland, New Zealand, as his chance to take the top spot in the series standings.

It was a lofty goal, especially since the SX Open and AUS-X Open are the two most illustrious Supercross events in the southern hemisphere and have an influx of American riders on the entry list, but Clout wasn’t worried. In fact, he viewed 2018 Supercross champion Jason Anderson as his main competition at the race in Auckland, not Justin Brayton, the guy that had controlled the point standings since Brisbane.

With 2-1-2 moto finishes and a second-place overall result on the night at the SX Open, Clout achieved both goals, as Anderson was the only rider to finish ahead of him in the three races that mattered (he out-dueled Anderson in an exciting second moto for the win) and the Australian overtook Brayton in the series standings by a lone point. “I said to my family, we sat down at the dinner table Tuesday on my birthday and I was like, “If I can get second to Jason, that’s awesome.” He’s the only guy that I wanted to [get] beat [by],” Clout shared during his time on the microphone in the post-race press conference. For a rider that has faced a series of setbacks in recent years (the usual injuries, a rough run of racing in America with a small Suzuki-backed team), the weekend proved he can battle with some of the best in the world when given the opportunity. And it sounds like that chance is coming together.

During the post following the night’s final race, Clout confirmed he has eyed a return to racing in the United States for the first part of 2020. “It’s a little hush-hush, but there is some stuff in the works at the moment. You should see me there in the first six rounds or so. The details are a bit confidential at the moment. I can’t wait to get over there. I really think that I can do some good things. So, I’m excited,” he stated. Since Clout is in a contract for a few more weeks, he was understandably unable to go into too many details but rumblings in the Australian paddock indicate that it could be with a Honda-backed team. 

Clout’s confidence seems to be at an all-time high, which is a good sign for a rider that has faced his share of struggles. Remember when he signed a two-year contract to race Supercross in the United States with MAD Racing/Dirt Candy/Suzuki in 2016, only to break his femur days later during a practice crash at the Oakland Supercross? After that incident Clout returned to Australia and spent the last few years rebuilding himself into one of the front-runners of the big island’s national championships, evident in his second place overall rank in 450 outdoor series in 2019, and sixth place in the 450 Supercross championship and third place in the 450 outdoor series in 2018. “There was probably a good three or four years there that everything I did just kind of didn’t go right, with teams that were folding. Everything I did just kind of didn’t go right. Luckily I kind of just rebuilt and I stuck in there,” he reflected in the press conference. “There were times that I was like, ‘I don’t even want to do this anymore.’ I rode last year on a great team. I was lucky enough to get picked up by CDR Yamaha. Really gelling with the team, really gelling with the bike. The rest is history.”

One of the more interesting elements of the offseason Supercross events is how riders in the regionally series get the chance to gauge their talent against internationally-known stars. How often do you see championship-caliber NBA players going to far-flung countries and getting heat in a game from the locals? In Supercross, it’s a normal occurrence and Clout took full advantage of the opportunity. “You don’t really know how you’re going to stack up the American guys because you just watch them on TV, you watch them on Instagram and you see how good they’re riding. So you kind of just base your stuff off that and hope you can do well,” he noted. “I’m just kind of confident in my ability. I think that’s a big thing. My mental aspect is a lot better now.”

There’s one race left in the Australian Supercross Championship, more than ten days from now in Melbourne. It’s likely that the one-point advantage over Brayton will be on Clout’s mind for much of the time between now and that championship-deciding gate drop, but it could be one detail to a much larger element of his life should things go the way he hopes.