Troy Dog
Since the departure of the Amsoil Arenacross Series, (the AMA’s official AX program) smaller series’ like Kicker AX and Hoosier AX have been able to grow tremendously. Both series’ have gotten TV deals and a lot of great riders have been on the gate. The Hoosier Arenacross Series has even helped grow talent, such as today’s star of this column, Michael Hicks.
I’m not able to follow arenacross how I would like to, given the two series, and so many other series that I follow. However, whenever I look at the results of the Hoosier series, Michael Hicks is one name that sticks out to me. He’s the defending champion of the series and coming up this weekend is the season finale in Tunica, Mississippi. In 250/450 Pro classes, Hicks leads the way and with Izaih Clark breaking his ankle and out of contention, Hicks has successfully defended his crown.
Who is this AX legend? I looked up his results from Loretta Lynn’s, but that’s all I could find from him from a Google search. I went straight to the source and slid in his DM.
It turns out that Hicks has been racing AX consistently for the last five years. Also, he went the Jeremy McGrath route and throws down on a BMX bike in his spare time to help with control. He’s a laid back dude, who likes to keep to himself, which has been pretty interesting this season with Hoosier’s Fox Sports TV deal. The cameras are just going after the guy and he says he’s getting better with more experience. He stays busy when he’s not in the tight turns under the light. If you want to find him he usually stays shredding everything on two wheels. His arsenal of bikes include a BMX race bike, two dirt jumpers, two scooters, an enduro mountain bike, and a downhill mountain bike. He also just bought a Sur Ron bike and he’s been doing a lot of urban riding on that. I don;t know what that even means, but I respect it. He also tinkers with RC cars. This dude has some toys.
In my opinion, the fact that Hicks does not have some sort of team support is mind blowing. He’s helped Hoosier Arenacross get on the map and he’s continuing to get better. No matter who shows up on a race weekend, no matter what AX he’s at, he runs with and usually beats veteran riders who have been in this game for quite a while. His goal is to be on a team soon, but he’s also realistic. He’s started his own mobile detailing business called Diamond Detail STL, which specializes in commercial and residential automotive, boat, and aircrafts. He told me that one day he hopes to make it big in this sport, but if not, then you’ll know who to call when you need a vehicle cleaned.
Be on the lookout for Hicks tomorrow night in Hoosier AX, as well as at Detroit, Indianapolis, and St. Louis rounds of Monster Energy Supercross. I will be shocked if he’s on his own deal next season. This kid has a good program going. I have a feeling that we will be seeing him in the mix for a while.
