First of all, congratulations to Zach Osborne on his championship Saturday night in Las Vegas. It was well earned. Not just Saturday night but his entire career. it is the culmination of a never give up attitude that is present during his entire career.
Let’s take a look back at how Zach refused to give up several times in his career ultimately ending up on the podium Saturday night in Las Vegas with his first professional championship.
An early mini bike prodigy, Osborne was once the next big thing with a factory KTM ride as an amateur but early in his career, he was hit by injuries and illness that saw him take the trip overseas on the GP tour to save his career. When things aren’t going your way it’s easy to give up, throw in the towel, and look for a “regular” job. But not Osborne.
Taking advantage of every opportunity Osborne convinced his GP team to give it a go at some early supercross races in 2012. A ninth in Anaheim was backed up with a sixth in Phoenix and a pair of thirds in Los Angeles and Oakland. He returned to the GP’s scoring moto podiums in Great Britain and Germany but it was those 4 rides in January that sparked the interest of Geico Honda and Osborne was back in America. Not giving up gave him another chance.
With Geico, Osborne began to experience some success with five podium finishes between 2013 and 2014. In 2015 he joined the newly formed Rockstar Husqvarna team. He scored three podium finishes in 2015 but 2016 is where it all started to come together. Six podiums in supercross netted him fourth in the series standings and three podiums in the outdoors, including his first professional win coming at Budd’s Creek.
The gate dropped in Minnesota for the first round of the East Coast Supercross series. Osborne finished third but then went on a roll with wins in Atlanta & Toronto that saw him carry the red plate as the points leader. A fifth in Daytona put a hiccup in the championship run but Osborne again overcame adversity with a win in Indianapolis. Then came Detroit and a first turn crash that saw Osborne on the ground with a damaged front wheel. Switching out the damaged part put Osborne at the back of the field but the never give up attitude again prevailed. He raced to an 18th place finish and three valuable championship points. A third in St Louis and a dominant win in New Jersey set the stage for a Las Vegas finale that no one will soon forget.
Osborne got wrapped up in a first turn crash, one that saw him remount in last place with the field about 1/3 of the track ahead of him. Again, Osborne did not give up. He charged through the pack making passes and doing whatever was necessary to race to the front. A crash by points leader Jordan Smith and a last lap charge by Osborne earned him enough points to take the win.
Check out the highlights below.
So again, congratulations on your championship Zach Osborne. Your never give up attitude throughout your entire career earned it.
