Catching up with...Colton Facciotti

By James Lissimore

There was a lot of hype going into the 2010 Canadian National season about who was going to step up to challenge two-time defending champion, Colton Facciotti of the Red Bull Blackfoot Yamaha team. Would the big Hungarian, Kornel Nemeth, knock Colt's crown off? Could his Blackfoot teammate, Dusty Klatt, reclaim the speed that carried him to three straight championships? Would a year of familiarity give Bobby Kiniry the edge? Well, once the gate dropped we found out our answer: Colt grabbed two great starts and motored away from the pack to take another clean sweep.

We caught up with the rider who is quickly achieving the dominance in Canadian motocross that his mentor, JSR, once displayed....

Blackfoot Yamaha's Colton Facciotti swept both motos at the opening round of the 2010 Monster Energy CMRC Nationals.

DMX: Congrats on the win today! Can you take us through how your day went?

Colton Facciotti: Thanks. Yeah, it didn't start off the greatest. First practice, I didn't really feel too comfortable on the bike but we made some changes for second practice, changed up some tires, which got me a lot more comfortable on the bike and I felt a hundred times better. I practiced some starts on Friday, I knew that for this race starts would be key.

I got off to a good start in both motos, just worked hard for the first few laps and just kinda rode my own race. It was just a typical weekend I guess (laughs).

Did you think coming into this weekend that you would end up being as dominant as you ended up being?

No, not at all. I thought some of the guys were going to be really fast and they for sure kept me honest. I know a few of the guys had a bad moto here and there and I just got lucky with my starts. I just rode my own race, really. It's a lot easier when you're out front riding your own race than when you're in the back and trying to push your way to the front. I'll probably look for some guys to show me a wheel or two next weekend.

It seems like you're coming into the same thing as JSR did during his prime, where every year new guys come in, other guys step up but then you come to the first race and you just destroy them and kind of crush their confidence. Is that part of your game plan or does it just work out that way?

Yeah, that was definitely what I wanted to do. I knew there was going to be some fast guys coming up so I wanted to do my homework and be a hundred percent prepared to challenge them for the win. I just feel really great on the bike, the new 2010 Yamaha 450 is working really good, the power is there – the whole bike is just such a good package.

Facciotti looks really comfortable on his new YZ450F

We're heading to Edmonton now which is the round which, probably you could say, was not one of your best rounds last year – you did lose there. Is there anything you're going to change up to keep that from happening this year?

Yeah, it's one of those tracks that it's kind of hard to make up time. It's really fast and it doesn't really get all that rough. I don't know what the weather is like out there right now, hopefully it's somewhat warm and not snowing but otherwise I just want to get good starts again and just do what I did this weekend and have fun.

So, if this year goes well, do you have any plans to look for a ride down south or are you comfortable racing up here in Canada, with this program?

I would love to go down south, but I'm happy here. I love Canada, the sponsors are great, the fans are great and the series is great. It's so laid back and so much fun. I don't know if I would have the same kind of drive if I was in the States cause it's kind of cutthroat down there – everyone is kind of on their own and nobody really works together. I don't know, I'd definitely like to experience it, in a year or two I'd definitely like to give it a shot.

Cool. Do you have any plans to do any AMA Nationals at the end of the Canadian season like you did last year at Steel City?

Well, we haven't set it in stone yet, I have my wedding pretty much right after the Nationals, but I think I may be able to squeeze in Steel City or one of the last couple. We'll see.

Lastly, you got any words for your little buddy, Beets? He's feeling pretty down right now.

Ah, man. I think I feel just as bad for him. The kid works so hard all winter and even last year he worked so hard just to have it all wash away at the first round. It's brutal, it just gives you a bad feeling inside, it's terrible. But anyways, I love you little buddy!