Brett McCormick – A Rider To Watch

Brett McCormick has experienced more than his share of success for someone who’s only 17 years old. The six foot, one inch Saskatoon rider’s rise through the Canadian road racing ranks has been nothing less than sensational. A ride that started on mini road racing bikes when he was twelve and led to a Superbike ride on the Kawasaki factory team at the age of fifteen. Heady stuff for any teenager.

Like a lot of professional riders McCormick started riding at a young age. These days he does all of his racing on asphalt, but his early days were spent on dirt. He got his first bike when he was three, and started racing a 50cc motocross bike the next year. He progressed through several classes in the next few years, but quit the sport when he was ten, "It was dirt bikes from when I was ages 3 to 10. I kind of got a little bit sick of that. I quit when I was 10 and I didn't ride anything for a whole year.”

His athletic interests include hockey, golf, bicycling and basketball, but his passion for racing had him back on the track by the time he was twelve. But this time around he was competing on pavement in mini road racing series. In his first year back he took three national titles and three regional titles in the NSR50, Thunder 4-stroke and Clash classes. He followed that up the next year with four more national titles and two regional titles.

McCormick’s success in the lower classes didn’t go unnoticed, and the 2006 season saw the 14 year old running in the amateur 600 Sport Bike series and the Canadian Thunder series. He didn’t disappoint, coming away from the season with three wins, four poles and a fourth in the points on the 600 and a win, four poles and a third in the Thunder series. Not bad for someone in their third year of road racing.

Now at the ripe old age of fifteen Brett would be riding for the Kawasaki factory team in the Pro 600 Sport Bike class on a ZX-6R and the Canadian Superbike series on a ZX-10R. Moving into the Superbike series put him up against the top professional racers in Canada and his teammate would be reining Superbike champion Jordan Szoke. McCormick talked about his expectations, "I'm really excited about my rookie Pro season, and looking forward to working with Jordan and the whole crew. They proved that they have the best combination, and I want to repay their confidence with some great results. There's lots to learn." He put in a solid effort in his first pro season finishing fifth in both Pro 600 and Canadian Superbike, and was the Pro Racing Rookie of the Year. In the final event of the season he took third in the 600 race and second in Superbike.

McCormick didn’t have many set backs in his first season as a pro, but season two began with difficulty when he injured his shoulder during off-season training. Then he hyper-extended his knee in a crash at the first event of the season at Calabogie. He made it through the second meeting without incident, but crashed again while leading the 600 race at Mosport. That fall bruised his ribs and a lung, “The knee was a pretty big issue for me. I stretched some tendons and ligaments and I wasn’t able to train. And Mosport didn’t help the situation. I’ve really been chasing my tail all year.”

With the season winding down, and his injuries healing McCormick was finally able to put together some results. At the last race of the season he took his second consecutive pole and followed that up with his first Superbike win. He managed to turn around a difficult season finishing fourth in the Pro 600 Sport Bike standings and fifth in Superbike.

McCormick had talked about competing in other series like AMA and World Superbike, and earlier in the year he made his AMA debut at Barber Motorsports Park. He finished sixth in Superstock, and fourteenth and fifteenth in the two Superbike races, “That was pretty cool; it was a good experience. It was a big eye-opener. There are some pretty amazing riders down there. But I think we have a lot of talent up here too, and on the same equipment some of us Canadians could be knocking on the top five. I’d like to do some more races down there. I’m still young and I’ve only ridden so much. For me it’s more about getting track time, and getting more riding in.”

The season had been a struggle for McCormick, but his teammate, Jordan Szoke, had won the Superbike championship for the third year in a row. He was on a competitive team and he had beaten Szoke in the last race of the season so it came as a surprise to some when he jumped to the factory Suzuki team, but to McCormick it was the only choice, "Being the No. 1 guy for a manufacturer is pretty key. When I ran for Kawasaki the last two years, I was the No. 2 guy. You're always kind of in the shadow of your teammate and you don't get as much attention and all that. When you're the No. 1 guy, it gives you that much more opportunity to win. Most manufacturers have two or three riders wearing their jersey. Not Suzuki. I'm going to be their only rider.”

McCormick would be moving over to the Blackfoot Picotte Racing Team run by former Canadian Superbike champion and AMA racer Pascal Picotte. The team would be running the full schedule, but before the season started in May they went down to Daytona for Bike Week. Riding at Daytona on a Superbike for the first time is a challenge for anyone, but with the help of his teammate, five-time Daytona 200 winner Miguel DuHamel, McCormick would have an advantage, “Being at such a famous track aboard a GSX-R1000 Superbike will certainly be special. And if you add the fact that winners such as Miguel, Pascal and the rest of the team will be coaching me every step of the way, I just know that this will be a very special experience for me. I have been training hard in the gym since last September, as well as riding a lot on the ice on a track in my back yard, so I will be physically and mentally ready.” Brett finished twenty-first in the American Superbike race, and DuHamel came home sixteenth in the Daytona 200.

Running at Daytona gave McCormick more track time with the AMA riders, and Picotte thought it would help him gel with his new team, “The opportunity to put Brett on the track for the Superbike race is an excellent chance for us to get a jump on the Canadian Superbike Championship. The team will learn what Brett looks for in the bikes, and Brett will learn about riding the track and about bike set-up.” A good plan from a man with two Canadian Superbike championships and a win in World Superbike.

At the first event of the Canadian Superbike season at Calabogie the team was in mid-season form. McCormick took second in the Pro 600 race, and took the pole and finished second in the Superbike race. In the second race of the season he took pole and won the race in both the Pro 600 and Superbike races. The first double of McCormick’s career gave him the lead in both classes, but the 17 year old had other things on his mind, “This week I have a bunch of exams to finish up Grade 12 so I will be busy with that, but I will definitely spend some quality time cross-training on my motocross bike and hitting the gym.”

So far all of the Pro 600 and Superbike races have come down to a battle between McCormick and his old teammate Jordan Szoke. In the last round at Calgary Szoke won the Pro 600 race, and McCormick won the Superbike race with a last lap pass that included some contact, “It was a pretty long race and I just wanted to study him and not show him anything. On the last lap he left the door open and I had some room so I took a chance.” Szoke saw it differently, “I’m a little annoyed right now. The bike was perfect. I’m mad at my self for leaving the door open. I know rubbing is racing, but I consider that a little much.” At this point Szoke leads McCormick in the Pro 600 championship by nine points, and McCormick leads Szoke in Superbike by eleven points.

With four rounds remaining in the season Brett McCormick is a world away from the struggles he went through in 2008. Everyone knew he had talent, but it was his tenacity that got him through a difficult season that ended with his first Superbike win. When he left the championship winning Kawasaki team to be the sole focus of the Suzuki factory team people found out he had good judgment. Now he’s in a battle for two national titles, but the recent high school graduate is still going to school, “The biggest thing has been my ability to give the team feedback, and Pascal has helped me learn how to do that. But he also is very clear with me on what changes are being made and any time the crew makes an adjustment he makes sure I understand why it’s being done. So I’ve come a long way already in understanding how the bike works and how to set it up. Maybe I’m hungrier to win this year too. I know I’m in a position where I need to win races and I have a desire to learn the stuff that’s going to help me do that.”