Richard Bernard "Ricky" Johnson Jr. (born July 6, 1964) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

former professional

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

, off-road truck and

stock car racer Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses. It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It originated in the souther ...

. He competed in AMA motocross and

Supercross The AMA Supercross Championship (commercially known as Monster Energy AMA Supercross) is an American motorcycle racing series. Founded by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) in 1974, the AMA Supercross Championship races are held from ...

during the 1980s and, won seven AMA national championships.Rick Johnson at the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame
/ref> He later switched to off-road racing. He won the Pro 2WD Trophy Truck championship in the 1998 Championship Off-Road Racing and 2010 TORC Series. He also won the Pro 4WD class at the 2011 and 2012 TORC Series. In September 2012, Johnson won the 4x4 world championship race at

Crandon International Off-Road Raceway The Crandon International Off-Road Raceway is a short course off-road racing racetrack, located near Crandon, Wisconsin, United States on U.S. Route 8. The course hosts the World Championship Off-Road Races, Red Bull World Cup, Forest County Po ...

and later that day won the AMSOIL Cup pitting the two and four wheel drive trucks. Johnson won the 2014 Frozen Rush, the first short-course off-road race on

snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

Racing career

Motocross career

Johnson was born in

El Cajon, California El Cajon ( , ; Spanish language, Spanish: El Cajón, lit. 'the box') is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajon, Rancho El Cajón, which was named for the ...

where his father was an avid motorcyclist who bought his son a mini-bike when he was 3 years old. When he turned 16 in 1980, he earned his pro license. He won his first 250cc class national championship in 1984 for the Yamaha

factory A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. Th ...

motocross team. For the 1986 season, he was offered a job with the

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

team by team manager and five time former world champion

Roger De Coster Roger De Coster (born 28 August 1944) is a Belgian former professional motocross racer and current Motorsport Director of KTM and Husqvarna North America. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1966 to 1980, most prominently as a ...

. He battled his Honda teammate

David Bailey David Royston Bailey (born 2 January 1938) is an English photographer and director, most widely known for his fashion photography and portraiture, and role in shaping the image of the Swinging Sixties. Bailey has also directed several televisio ...

throughout the 1986 season, coming away with the 250 title and the Supercross crown. De Coster picked Johnson, Bailey and another Honda teammate Johnny O'mara to represent the US in the Motocross des Nations in Maggiora, Italy. Team U.S.A. won with a clean sweep. Back home, he finished second to Bailey in the 500 class. The rivalry was short-lived as just prior to the start of the 1987 season Bailey was paralyzed in a practice crash. Johnson dominated the 1987 season, winning both the 250 and 500 crowns. In 1987, Johnson also won what is considered one of Supercross history's greatest races in the Super Bowl of Motocross at the L.A. Coliseum. After crashing in the first corner Johnson came back from near dead last to pass Jeff Ward and eventually privateer Guy Cooper on the penultimate lap to squeeze the win. Johnson followed this performance by adding the 1988 Supercross and 500 titles to his name. Johnson started the 1989 season strongly but suffered a serious injury when he broke his wrist in a practice session. He would never fully recover from the injury. He soldiered on for a few more seasons but the injury proved too debilitating. He announced his retirement at the beginning of the 1991 season. At the time of his retirement from motocross racing at age 26, he was the all-time leader in Supercross victories. Johnson was inducted into the AMA

Motorcycle Hall of Fame The AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum is an offshoot of the American Motorcyclist Association, recognizing individuals who have contributed to motorcycle sport, motorcycle construction, or motorcycling in general. It also displays motorcycles, ...

in 1999 and the

Motorsports Hall of Fame of America The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is a hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycles ...

Ricky Johnson
at the

in 2012.

Career after motocross

Johnson went on to have success in

off-road racing Off-road racing is a form of motorsports consisting of specially-modified vehicles including cars, SUVs, trucks, motorbikes, quadbikes and buggies racing in off-road environments (e.g. snow, dirt, mud, etc.). North America Desert racing D ...

and

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of Auto racing, automobile racing run on oval track racing, oval tracks and road courses. It originally used Production vehicle, production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifical ...

. He took wins in the famous

Baja 1000 The Baja 1000 is an annual Mexican off-road motorsport race held on the Baja California Peninsula, with a course of up to about 850 or more miles. It is one of the most prestigious off-road races in the world, having attracted competitors from ...

twice and was

American Speed Association The American Speed Association (ASA) is a sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States formed in 1968. The Association was based in Pendleton, Indiana, Pendleton, Indiana, and later in Daytona Beach, Florida. The ASA sanctioned asphalt a ...

stock car series Rookie of the Year in 1999, driving for Herzog Motorsports as a teammate to unrelated El Cajon, CA off-road racer

Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club. Johnson has won seven Cup ch ...

. Johnson ran twelve races in the

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

Craftsman Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck-based stock car racing, s ...

from

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

Off-road racing

Johnson founded the

Traxxas TORC Series TORC: The Off-Road Championship (TORC) was an American short course off-road racing series. It tours throughout the United States featuring professional four and two-wheel-drive Trophy Trucks along with a Pro Light class. TORC was founded by off-r ...

for the 2009 season. He sold the series after the season to the

United States Auto Club The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the List of USAC Championship Car seasons, United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the ...

(USAC) and he concentrated on being a driver. Johnson won the TORC Series Pro2wd Championship in 2010 after a season long battle with

Rob MacCachren Rob MacCachren (born March 24, 1965) is an American off-road racer from Las Vegas, Nevada. MacCachren won over 200 off-road races including seven editions of the Baja 1000. He raced the Mickey Thompson Stadium Series early in his career and ...

, the defending champ. This championship came down to the last race of the season at

with Johnson securing a second-place finish to win the championship. In 2012, Johnson won the Pro 4x4 World Championship race on Sunday at Crandon's second race weekend. Later that day, he won the AMSOIL Cup pitting the Pro 4x4 and Pro 2 drivers against each other. In 2013, Johnson joined some

Stadium Super Trucks The Stadium Super Trucks (SST), formerly known as Speed Energy Formula Off-Road, also known as the Boost Mobile Super Trucks in Australia, is an American short course off-road racing series created by off-road racer and former IndyCar and NASCAR d ...

races, with sponsorship from

Jegs High Performance JEGS High Performance is the second largest mail order company of automotive equipment in the United States. It sells performance auto parts, aftermarket accessories, tools, and race apparel. JEGS was founded by Jeg Coughlin Sr. in 1960 as a small ...

. He did not return to the series until 2021 at the

Music City Grand Prix The Music City Grand Prix, known as the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, was an IndyCar Series race held at the Nashville Street Circuit in Nashville, Tennessee. The race's most notable feature was its straightaway acro ...

. Johnson started 2014 early by competing in the

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks created and owned by the Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With a market share of 43%, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2020, and the third most valuable soft drink brand, behind Coca-Cola and ...

-sponsored Frozen Rush race. This inaugural event featured Pro 4 trucks racing with studded tires on snowy mountain slopes at Sunday River in

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

. Eight drivers from the two national series (

TORC A torc, also spelled torq or torque, is a large rigid or stiff neck ring in metal, made either as a single piece or from strands twisted together. The great majority are open at the front, although some have hook and ring closures and a few hav ...

and LOORRS) were selected to compete head to head with the victory advancing to the next round. Johnson beat Johnny Greaves in the final round for the win. In addition to short course truck racing, Johnson has competed in desert off-road races. In 2009 and 2010 he was 3rd in the Unlimited Truck class of the

SNORE Snoring is an abnormal respiratory sounds, breath sound caused by partially obstructed, turbulent airflow and vibration of tissues in the upper respiratory tract (e.g., uvula, soft palate, base of tongue) which occurs during sleep. It usually ...

Mint 400 The Mint 400 is an annual American desert off-road race which takes place near Las Vegas, Nevada. It was resumed in 2008 after a 20-year hiatus. The race was for both motorcycles, until 1977, and four-wheel vehicles ( buggies, cars and trucks ...

Personal life

Johnson now lives in Southern California with his wife, Stephanie, and their children.

Images

File:RickyJohnsonTORCOshkosh2010.jpg, Johnson after winning a

race in 2010 File:Ricky Johnson wins 2012 AMSOIL Cup.jpg, Holding check for winning 2012 AMSOIL Cup File:Crandon 2013 Pro 4 Ricky Johnson 1.jpg, 2013 Pro 4 Trophy Truck

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Craftsman Truck Series

Stadium Super Trucks

( key) (Bold – Pole position. ''Italics'' – Fastest qualifier. * – Most laps led.)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Rick 1964 births Living people Sportspeople from El Cajon, California Racing drivers from California American motocross riders American Speed Association drivers NASCAR drivers AMA Motocross Championship National Champions Off-road racing drivers Articles containing video clips Stadium Super Trucks drivers Global RallyCross Championship drivers Herzog Motorsports drivers Team Penske drivers