Posts
1961
Joined
1/15/2016
Location
Statesville, NC, USA
Fantasy
Where did it go? It seems to have been removed?
RJ Hampshire- OverRated Article
Upgrade to enjoy this feature!
Vital MX fantasy is free to play, but Premium users receive great benefits. Premium benefits include:
- View and download rider stats
- Pick trends
- Create a private league
- And more!
Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
I read it.
It was the most embarrassingly effusive and sycophantic bit of MX journalistic fluff I've seen published, and no reflection on Hampshire, who was probably blindsided by it.
Yeah it was pretty bad.
Who was it written by? Vital?
Vital/Lewis
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
What happened.
Was it deleted?
Okay, this is confusing to me. It wasn't an article about him being overrated. Jeez.
Someone told me he was, I argued that he was underrated then thought that message needs to be shared with the world...
The messaging was clearly very unclear – the title probably didn't help – so I removed it and am adding more context to help.
Was it really that bad.
He has been better, but that class is absolutely desolate this year. I don't think it's a story that a guy with his speed in his ninth season against meager competition is crushing it. At the end of the day he still needs to race the races and get those results, but is anyone really surprised?
RJ has always been a podium guy if he can stay off the ground. Seems to me he might be a better 450 rider to smooth him out.
Surprised, no, but he is better this year, no matter what way you look at it. I guess "we" should appreciate that.
Maybe not though, I guess
I like RJ, but he's "better" this year because he's probably not pushing as hard because the competition is definitely lacking. It is hard to argue with winning a 450 heat though 😂
I do agree the 450 might smooth him out a bit.
I didn't read the article so I have no opinion.
Those are interesting points.
This was kind of why I wanted to write the article, because everyone has a different opinion/idea about Hampshire.
Rj is damn fast. He is another wilson though. Love em both!!!!
Hampshire is one of the unsung heroes in the 250 class.
He's the epitome of keeping your nose to the grindstone and pushing forward.
Rides clean, doesn't take anyone out.
All while being in the shadow of the Lawrence's, etc...
That's why it was so bad ass when he won that 450 heat race.
I know you are talking about the 250 class, but I look at the entire body of work for signs of promise.
This competition doesn't look meager.
450 Heat 2 (Top 9 Transfer)
1. RJ Hampshire
2. Cooper Webb
3. Chase Sexton
4. Jason Anderson
5. Christian Craig
6. Shane McElrath
7. Benny Bloss
8. Justin Starling
9. Grant Harlan
10. Kaeden Amerine
Perhaps that's the intent of Lewis's article, which I didn't get a chance to read.
I didn’t see the article either, but he reminds me of Zach Osborne. Not the smoothest but gets up front.
The point of my article was this discussion. Every person has a different opinion on Hampshire, which must be hard for him.
He is having a strong year, statistically and otherwise, but that's being overlooked, as everyone has a preconceived opinion.
The title of the article was, "Overrated or under appreciated?" To illustrate the broad range of opinions of fans, not my own.
Pit Row
Now I’m interested to read it. At least your article was read. Most of us need to visit the homepage more often.
He's been in the shadow of way more than just the Lawrence brothers. How long has he been in the class?
Some would say too long...
I still have it. To be honest, I'm proud of it. I think it's thought provoking and gives Hampshire the credit that he deserves.
I basically said that he is always swimming upstream against people's expectations, because his name carries weight...
That must be tough, because it means that his small wins (2023 season) are not celebrated as people won't focus on it.
I'm interested to read it too...looking forward to the update.
Good points. RJ has been a top steady performer while lots in this class have flamed out or crashed out.
The constant speed means that he has to win, I believe, for most people (fans and industry) to give him some praise.
Not many riders have to cope with the pressure of expectation, so I thought it'd be nice to shed light on that struggle.
Before I got stats, I didn't think this year was anything special because I presumed (see) that he is always this good.
I realized that even I had done him a disservice, by not giving him more props in 2023, which also inspired the story.
Besides being a badass the guy is a father of two, I can’t imagine balancing that alone and at a young age!!
Daytona is not exactly a great representation. He qualified 5th and finished 8th, but it's not a traditional track.
Great ride nonetheless, but he then went on to qualify 15th at Indianapolis, and then pulled out of the night show.
For comparison, Jmart qualified 2nd and finished 2nd at Daytona back in 2017. The competition was pretty tough back then as well. Dungey, Musquin, Tomac, Anderson, Seely, Reed, Millsaps, Baggett, Grant, Barcia, ...
He then did the first 3 rounds of 2018 in the 450 class finishing 11-10-12.
Again, everyone has a different opinion on Hampshire. Again, the point of the story! It is a really interesting topic.
I didn't read the article, so I'm assuming some things here....but it seems odd to me the article/interview was so badly received it had to be taken down?
RJ is a good dude and fast as hell, but in this sport results speak, period. He's been on top teams and has always delivered similar results.
Just because he has insane speed and is a good kid, his end-of-season results are what should matter.
No article, good or bad, is going to sway a Mitch Payton or Bobby Reagan into signing or not signing a check.
I wish we could stop adding the caveat of age or years in a class to peoples results... Sometimes we overlook things in our training, philosophy, program, and so on that make a big difference. I bet none of you oldies got it all figured out at 21 and never went back to the drawing board.
Hampshire is doing great this year. I'm pulling for him each weekend.
Some people like these articles, some don’t. Some readers can’t see the forest for the trees. There could certainly be more original Vital articles, for sure.
Post a reply to: RJ Hampshire- OverRated Article