Page 48 - MPG18

JUSTIN HILL
IMAGE/JACKEDWARDS
Justin Hill will be lining up his Troy Lee Red Bull KTM at Hangtown. Injuries have been the headline for Hill over the past few years but he looks to be ready to compete and battle in the always-entertaining 250 class. Hill had an interesting road to stardom
compared to most. His story is quite similar to that of Malcolm Stewart’s. Both grew up in the shadows of blazing fast older brothers and had the privilege of being around faster riders and were able to pick up on the things their brothers did to succeed. That allowed them to fly under the radar as amateurs but that may be partly due to them not having the same unheralded successes as Josh and James. Don’t get me wrong, both Justin and Malcolm were very fast amateurs but they didn’t go out and win every title but they would always be right up at the front of
the pack. Hill had a solid final amateur year and was brought up to the pro ranks by Mitch Payton at Monster Pro Circuit Kawasaki and that helped him compete at the top level instantly. He had a solid first few years grabbing some supercross wins along the way. This year with KTM in supercross, he looked to be a title favorite after a great come from behind second place in Daytona and then a commanding win the following weekend in Toronto. He was on fire heading into Detroit but suffered a pretty bad concussion that kept him sidelined until now. We are hoping we see a fresh and well-rested Justin Hill to kick off the outdoor series.
48 GRITMOTO • MAY.23.16
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