AMA Racing Suspends Motocross Rider Jason Lawrence
Posted on July 10, 2008
Filed Under AMA Motocross |
The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) announced today that it has suspended professional motocross rider Jason Lawrence for unacceptable behavior detrimental to the sport. According to AMA officials, Lawrence was arrested for disorderly conduct at Red Bud Track & Trail on July 4 while in Buchanan, Michigan, for round six of the AMA Toyota Motocross Series Presented by FMF. The incident follows a penalty and suspended fine issued in June for conduct detrimental to the sport at the Freestone County Raceway during round three of the series in Wortham, Texas.
“Mr. Lawrence is suspended indefinitely,” said AMA Director of Motocross/Supercross/ATV Ryan Holliday. “In addition, the $25,000 fine that was issued after the June incident and suspended contingent upon the successful completion of a one-year probation will now be imposed.” Holliday added that the AMA would not reconsider Lawrence’s status until the conclusion of the 2008 season.
Lawrence was notified of the suspension at the race on July 5, after making the following statement days earlier.
Hey everybody,
I want to start out by apologizing to everyone at RedBud, my team at Yamaha of Troy and the entire MX industry on what not only happened this past weekend, but also for the rest of the crap I’ve been involved with this past year.
Things are pretty much rock bottom for me right now. I was on top of the world when I won the Western Lites title a couple months ago and now I’m sitting here feeling like crap. I’ve got my side of the story regarding what went down at RedBud, yeah, but there’s no sense in telling it. The simple answer is I put myself into a situation that I shouldn’t have been in and because of that I’ve let a bunch of people down.
I’ve run into some problems away from the track that have affected my results and it’s become apparent that I’ve got to address them. I am taking action to deal with these issues and to make sure incidents like what happened this past weekend don’t occur again. I’m calling on people that have been there with me through thick and thin, relying on them to help me with my problems and get me on back on track as I’ve come to realize these are things I can’t handle myself.
Motocross is my life. I love the sport and don’t know where I’d be without it. And being a champion I’m constantly in the spotlight and my every move – good or bad – is discussed and debated online and in the press. It’s a lot to handle and, in all honesty, I’ve had a bad year dealing with it.
But that’s going to change. I am going to try to turn this into positive and use this opportunity to fix the things that are causing these problems in the first place.
Again, I’m extremely sorry for my actions. To guys like my agent, Scott Sepkovic, and to Scott Paul, who owns Yamaha of Troy. Also, to Chris McAvoy, my team manager, and Keith McCarty at Yamaha, plus my mom and all the guys at the AMA who’ve had to put up with my behavior, I’m sorry. Very, very sorry.
But most of all I want to apologize to my fans. If I’d have bought a ticket to see my favorite guy race at RedBud and he got kicked off the property for getting in a fight the day before I’d be mad as hell. So to all my fans and fans of motocross in general, I’m going to take the extra step to make sure we’re cool again. I promise to make amends to you guys because there’s nothing better than seeing you pumped up when I’m doing well – and still having my back when I’m not doing so well, like right now.
I’m not making any excuses. I screwed up good this past weekend and I’m prepared to do what it takes to get back where I was when I won the supercross title. I’m no angel and never will be. But what I will be is responsible for my actions, take the right measures to correct things and learn from my mistakes.
JLaw
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2 Responses to “AMA Racing Suspends Motocross Rider Jason Lawrence”
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JL,
You should be the real man and give Ryan Dungy a personal apology for all the trash talk and bs you gave him last season. I know it’s racing and a free country and blah, blah. But, that being said, it does not make such behavior appropriate or acceptable. What did he ever do to you but give you a run for your money.
I know this is my personal opinion and you certainly have yours, but it just seems like this could be an opportunity to set things right and show some adult behavior to everyone.
Your fans you speak of, I am one. You are still the king of the inside line. You have proven this over and over.
Get things cleaned up. Find God. Believe me there is power in Him. Come back so we can see you run inside again.
Kevin Murphy
I MISS SEEING YOU ON THE LINE!!!