US Champion Ken Roczen (Suzuki): What’s next after 2026?

“After Salt Lake City, I took a two-week break and just did nothing,” explained US Supercross Champion Ken Roczen in an interview with ‘Motorsports NBC’.

Roczen’s mini world tour

“After that, though, I started training again. In July, I was in England for Suzuki at the ABR Festival (Adventure Bike Rider). Straight after that, I went on to a Fox photo shoot. Then I was surfing with Red Bull at the Kelly Slater Surf Ranch in California. At the end of July, I flew to Japan, and afterwards I was glad to be back to a normal daily routine and returned to my usual training schedule. When you’re constantly on the move, you do get quite out of sorts with jet lag and so on. That does make things a bit tricky.”

No Nationals this year

“In 2023, I didn’t have any major injuries. I did compete in a few motocross races over the summer and was in with a chance of fighting for the championship in the end. It was different in the last two years. In 2024, I had problems with my knee. Last year, it was my ankle. People expected me to race at Unadilla this year, but I’d never actually announced that. I don’t think I really need that one race for the SMX play-offs either. I also don’t fancy turning up to a Pro Motocross race unprepared. I might only get on the bike once every two weeks at the moment. I need a day or two to get back to a competitive level. It’s also quite warm in Florida at the moment, and even if you’re fit, that’s a problem. But I reckon as long as I’m not injured, I’ll be back in my normal racing mode pretty quickly.”

SMX is firmly on the agenda

The SMX play-offs begin in Columbus on 12 September, and Ken Roczen will be there. “Now is the right time to look at the schedule. I’ve started motocross training again. We can’t train for Supercross outdoors at the moment because it’s raining far too much.”

Will Ken Roczen carry on in 2027?

“I’ve been putting off answering that question for months now. Sometimes I think I should carry on. I’ve never had the number 1 in Supercross, nor has Suzuki for a long time. It seemed very unlikely that I’d win this championship, and I’ve always thought: once I’ve achieved that, I’ll call it a day. It really weighs heavily on my shoulders. I’ve been a professional motocross rider for 17 years. Part of me wants to carry on, but the more distance I put between myself and the races, the less I care. At the same time, I love riding my dirt bike. But I’m also trying to do lots of other things. I enjoy jogging and train a lot. It’s a matter of time. I know I’ll have to make that decision at some point, but the day I make it simply hasn’t come yet.”

Roczen’s own philosophy

“If I carry on in 2027, I’ll go into that competition as if I’d never won the title. I don’t want to make a bigger deal of this than it is. If I carry on, it’ll be a complete fresh start. But if I do carry on, I’ll be ready. If I step away, I’ll mean it. I won’t be stepping away just to ride around in 5th or 10th place.

On his trip to Japan

“I’d never been to Japan before, even though I’ve raced for all these Japanese teams for so many years. During my time at Honda, there was a plan to go, but then the injury got in the way. Later on, there were further attempts in 2017 and 2018, but the timing just never worked out. I think it was really important to build that personal relationship. I’ve travelled all over the world, but I’d never been to that place, which is actually so important to us. It was really cool to get a feel for the culture. I met the president and lots of engineers, and I think that was an important meeting.”

Ken Roczen’s schedule for the rest of the year: