How did H.E.P sign Ken Roczen? | Dustin Pipes Interview 12

Ken Roczen signs for H.E.P Motorsports Ecstar Suzuki! Imagine if someone had bet on that a year ago, they would have been laughed out of the room. How did a contract between a rider who has won twenty 450SX mains and a team that has never finished higher than eighth arise? Dustin Pipes, the leader of the 'yellow' team, explained that situation in this exclusive Vital MX interview.

There are a lot of titbits to chew on in this lengthy discussion, which is only available in written form. The most intriguing point, in the eyes of this scribe, is that discussions started back in March and yet it was not until late November that '94' threw his leg over the RM-Z450. This also confirms that Suzuki played a big part in getting the Roczen deal across the line, to their credit, and that there could be more of a link between the manufacturer and Pro Circuit in the future.

There is also some light shed on how H.E.P Motorsports will run out of two trucks from this moment on. It is thought that Roczen will sit beneath the H.E.P Motorsports Ecstar Suzuki tent with his 250SX teammates, Dilan Schwartz and Marshal Weltin. Kyle Chisholm and Brandon Hartranft (or the rider who will fill his seat, which is expected to be Shane McElrath) will be on Twisted Tea Suzuki presented by Progressive Insurance.

Vital MX: We all knew that Kenny would be a free agent for a while, but when did those discussions start for you? Why was the test so late compared to others?

Dustin Pipes: Honestly, we talked to Ken's agent around the time of Daytona. We were just having these small little chit-chats and kind of catching up. Nothing materialized until after the podcast but we were trying to put some stuff together for him, domestically, throughout the year. It was just to see if it was even a possibility. Things never really came together for us, but we touched base again once that podcast went on. We were talking to other guys at that point too, obviously, but we just wanted to gauge where Steve [Astephen] and Ken were at. We kind of just talked a little bit since then. It was not a real possibility until right after Australia, to be honest, as that is when we made the offer and call. It actually happened pretty quick. There were a lot of discussions, like little ones, throughout the year. There was nothing super serious from either side until after WSX. It happened pretty quick, once it did.

Is it frustrating that the test did not happen sooner for you? If that had happened sooner then you could have had more of a head start and, crucially, time? Do you wish that you had pushed harder to get him on the bike and been more aggressive with your strategy?

Yes, for sure. We were pushing to get it done before he went to Paris. With his travel schedule, and stuff like that, it did not really work out. Honestly, when we were talking to Steve, he said that he was testing the Yamaha and stuff like that. I was kind of like… I did not really think that was going to happen. I was like, "Just do ours on that date!" He went to Club, obviously, so it was a real thing. I was definitely pushing to make it happen before Paris – that would have given us some more time. Those things happen though. We had another test for Chiz and that happened whilst Ken was in Paris. We tested for three whole days, sunup to sundown, with Kyle, trying some different bike set-ups. No matter whether we were going to do Ken or not, there was a very real possibility that Chiz was going to be on the team. We wanted to make the best platform possible for Kyle – that ended up translating over to Ken too. I definitely wish that it was sooner. The way that things stacked up in the end, with the test time that we got, was definitely a plus. Everything stacked on top of each other quite nicely in the end.

Was there some hesitation on your part to sign Kenny? Look, off the track, Kenny is probably the biggest rider in the world with the highest profile. There are a lot of eyes on him. This is a big step for any team or program and pressure comes with that. In a way, this is a make-or-break season for the team. This is your opportunity to prove that you can handle a guy like Kenny and everything that comes with that. Were you almost unsure about whether you were ready to make that step?

We definitely had multiple meetings and there were some different voices in there, just on what we should do. I don't think that this is a make-or-break year, but I will say that for a team that is looking to grow and get better with our partners… We have to take some calculated risks. We were not ready for Max [Anstie] at the time, but we went and led laps in our second race. I think, going off of that experience, we are much more well equipped to handle Ken than we were Max. It is just making sure that we have the right staff and people in place, to make sure that when we want to pull the trigger then we can do it smoothly. Things are never going to happen like we want them to, but as long as we are prepared to handle those risks then that is what we want to do. By no means do I view this as a make-or-break season. I view this as a test. This is us going to the next level. I am very, very excited for it.

Internally, what was the biggest hurdle when it came to signing Kenny? There was conflict with Twisted Tea, which is a major sponsor of yours, so was that difficult to manoeuvre around or was it easier than you had expected?

You know, we have a really good relationship with the guys at Twisted Tea. They kind of follow our lead on things. It was definitely a tough conversation, because we are so close to a lot of the people there and in an ideal world then we would have Ken under the Twisted Tea banner. That was not an option with Red Bull, so that was a hoop but not the toughest one. Making sure that all of the bonuses were lined up was the biggest thing that we were waiting for. We had to make sure that stuff fell in line. Ken had a lot of faith in us, because it took a while for us to finish this contract and get everything put together. He was on the bike for multiple weeks without a contract. Obviously, in good faith, we were working towards that, but he really had a lot of faith that this program was right for him.

What is the feeling at Suzuki? Is there excitement? Has this almost revitalized the relationship a little bit? There were rumours about you switching manufacturers in the summer months or talking to others at least. Has this helped to put a spark back into that relationship?

I will say this: Suzuki was integral in getting this deal done. This would not have happened without them. There were a lot of people moving very quickly and in the right direction. Suzuki are very keen to do well with Ken and support him, as well as the team, in the fashion that is needed for a top-level race team.

That must be nice for you. It almost pays you back for the years that you have put into Suzuki. Again, you were talking to other manufacturers. This confirms that you made the right choice to stay yellow.

Yeah. I mean, I know that there was some stuff out there that we might switch. When we started this race team five years ago, I was sitting at a table with Chris Wheeler at a JGR test and I said that I should start a race team. It was literally a random conversation, then a week later we had another call and I started a team. Our heart is always going to stay yellow – we bleed yellow. Staying here and growing the program is always the top priority for us. I think that our relationship with the manufacturer is probably a little different to other race teams, so we plan on being here for a long time.

Do you feel like having Chisholm involved and being able to sell that to Kenny helped push him across the line when it came to agreeing terms?

Yeah, I think that it was definitely a plus. I don't know if it was a deciding factor. It was definitely something that we wanted though. Chiz was on the team like three or four years ago too. It was something that we were not really… When we had him, we almost didn't utilize him correctly like we have done this time. Chiz can feel a lot of things on the bike – that is something that I was not aware of when we had him last time. Having him here to test these different parts… The wordage that he uses when giving feedback is easy to translate to the people who are working on the bike and that is something that we really wanted to account for when signing Chiz to a multi-year deal. He can do all that he wants at the races as well, but he will be a really big benefit when it comes to testing and the R&D. I think that is a big plus that Chiz has. We plan on utilizing him this time.

It is funny. You say that you were not ready for Max back in 2020 and did not utilize Chisholm in 2019. It sucks to say that mistakes were made in the past, but those lessons are going to pay off in a big way now and with a big star.

Yeah. We are going into year six, so we were going to make those mistakes and learn. We knew that. We have always tried to not bite off more than we can chew and just wanted to make sure that the race team could keep on growing in the future, whilst getting the results that were needed. I do think that when you look back at it then you can see that we should have done things differently – that is all in the past now though. It is perspective. We know what we are looking for now, as well as the direction that we want to go in.

Picking up Larry Brooks was another massive signing for you. That in itself was a big move for the team and step in the right direction. How involved has Larry been? Can you already sense that his relationship with Kenny could be something very special?

You know, they have not had much time with each other. They have worked together for five or six days and those were very productive. To be honest, Ken has not changed that much on the bike. The one thing that I will say about Larry is that he barely leaves the shop – he is always doing something. That is a huge plus for us! I can take a step back from the racing side, because I am not very good at that to be quite honest. I am much better at the partnerships and stuff like that. Having someone like Larry involved takes the burden off of what I am doing and vice versa. It frees him up to solely focus on the racing and bikes. The work has been great and he is finding some new angles to make the Suzuki work better. It has been good to see.

It is up in the air whether Kenny will do WSX or Pro Motocross. Obviously, that decision will be made when it is time to do so. On your side, managing partnerships, then there must be a desire to have him in WSX with the number-one plate? That must tick boxes for you guys, but then Pro Motocross would do that as well.

They tick different boxes. It is a tough thing to talk about right now, but I will say that it is open and up in the air. We will make that decision as a team and support it when the time is right. Whatever he wants to do, the team will be prepared and fully behind him. There are partners that want him to race domestically and some that want him on the world stage. That is a decision that will need to be made shortly. We need to sort that out.

You are going to have input in that decision but, like you said there, that will ultimately come down to what Kenny wants to do.

Yeah, we want to have a good relationship with the rider. Fortunately, we are in a position where we do have our domestic team and then we are a part of WSX as well. It is really advantageous for us to be in this position and have the flexibility to race either series. I will say this: I think that Adam and the guys at WSX are going to do a really good job and I think that they are going to be successful. I know that we had a really good time at the two rounds in Cardiff and Melbourne. We are looking forward to continuing with the next six rounds and seeing the improvements that they make. From Cardiff to Melbourne was really crazy, with the transformation and gains that they made in two weeks. They were totally separate races. I was like, "We need to fix this and this" after Cardiff. I wanted to do meetings and a load of stuff like that with them. They were like, "Slow down, man! Let's do Melbourne first." I showed up there and I was like, "Oh, these guys know what they are doing." Every question that I had, they fixed and answered [in Melbourne]. It is pretty neat to see that there are guys who want to push the sport globally.

Building on that quickly: We do have a WSX calendar. It is solid and a step in the right direction. It is not as spectacular as rumoured or as they were hyping up with provisional calendars that were released a year ago. What are your thoughts on that and having six rounds in five months? That is very different.

Yeah, that is a little different. Melbourne is definitely late in the year. For us, we are a partner of the series. No matter if it is two races, six or ten… We just want to make sure that they are in locations that will be successful. That is what we look at: Where are the venues and is there a chance of being successful. If we want to do ten rounds and four of them are hit and miss, then let's do six. We fully support the series and the rounds that they want to do – that is going to grow over time. It does not really matter to us whether it is six rounds or ten. We just want to make sure that we hit all of the checkmarks.

Going back to what you said about partnerships. I have had people ask me how you got Twisted Tea and Progressive, so what is your secret there? You are definitely excelling in comparison to other teams when it comes to outside sponsorship.

Yeah. There is no real secret there, to be honest with you. There is just a lot of hard work and a lot of people saying no. Crucially, a few of them do say yes though! I have a really good support system too – a lot of the people surrounding me want to see me succeed. It is easier to get the job done when there are people who are willing to help. There is no secret, just a lot of hours and nos. That is the gist of it.

Going back to the initial test with Kenny. Again, he is the biggest star in the sport and you did not know what you were getting yourself into. I'm sure that you wondering whether he would be a bit of a rockstar and even open to the idea, right? How surprised were you by his demeanour.

Incredibly surprised. I did not know him well before this and I still do not know him very well, but I definitely thought that he would be more of a diva. Ken is the complete opposite of that! It was very, very surprising. Man, he just really wants to ride his dirtbike and that is pretty cool. That is why we are all in this sport, right? We just love riding and racing. We are very passionate about it and it is cool to see that passion from somebody at such a high level.

The team switched to Renthal handlebars and Pro Circuit pipes, so was that something that Kenny led on? I am certain that Renthal was – that is what he has been comfortable with. Talk about those technical changes.

Renthal was definitely a Ken thing. The Progressive side, PMG, will be Renthal and the Twisted Tea side will keep the same Mika Metals sponsorship as this year. We have a really, really great relationship there. They have supported the team since the very start. We'll be co-branded between the different rigs, I guess. That is something new. We were making the switch to Pro Circuit anyway, regardless of Ken. Mitch [Payton] and the guys there… I think that there are some things in the works for them to do a little more with the brand. That is the direction that we were going in regardless. It is pretty neat to see a PC pipe on a yellow bike. It is something new!

What was one thing that Kenny really wanted to fix or change in the initial test? Was he like, "Everything is great but I am going to need this one thing to be fixed in order for me to do this deal."

I think that we changed the shock once and that was it. I think that is all we have done since then. Actually, we have developed a new motor package that Ken is testing today and that is the only thing that we have worked on. We are trying to make things better – we have thrown things at him – but he has not asked for much, so he is pretty happy.

Last thing. This is a massive step forward for the team and it must be tough to temper your expectations. You want to see the team on the podium, obviously, but what would make you happy once we get to May?

Wow. That is a hard question, Lewis. I think that is an answer that we must give halfway through the season, to be honest with you. Ken brings different expectations, of course, and the reality is different to what we are used to. That is something that I should not answer now, but I will say that Ken is riding so well. I think that as long as we work our asses off and Ken puts himself in a position to do well then the results are going to come.