Filthy Phil Nicoletti made his return to racing last week at High Point after crashing hard at Hangtown and proceeded to rip a sweet holeshot in the second moto. He wasn't happy afterward, of course, but then again, is he ever? Either way, enjoy Phil's surly answers to this week's questions on weight, High Point, and bachelor parties.
Phil
What was your ideal weight in racing 250 supercross, versus 450 outdoor? And how important is a rider’s weight in pulling a good start
-Jim
Jim,
Our sport is so different. It's so long. “Race weight” is kind of a skewed mentality in our sport. This is all my opinion. I CAN NOT stay at true race weight all year. It’s impossible. Trainers who weigh their athletes every day, or every week, and hold them accountable to that are wrong. We as athletes should not starve ourselves to make weight. If you're properly doing your motos, and logging in your time, you should not have to be a caloric deficit. My ideal race weight on a 250 is 175lbs. That’s me taking in the proper amount of calories for the energy that’s needed. Outdoor on a 450, I hover around the 183-186. That's me eating constantly, trying to keep up with the burn rate of the body. Summer eats up the body, so to stay on top of it you have to eat. Five lbs. here or there doesn’t mean shit. If your trainer thinks so, you need to rethink some stuff. No way a trainer is telling me to stay at 175lbs from January to September. I would crumble.
-Phil
Phil,
I love when you get a holeshot. Your fans , I’m one of them , shake their heads and bust out laughing. It happened again at High Point with six of us who went to the race together. We also met new moto friends, who are also fans of you, sitting next to us and had the same reaction. So now 18 of us were all digging it laughing our balls off. We all got serious though after lap oneand throw you a few eff yous, towel waves, and screams.
When you rip a holeshot and you know Jett, Ando, AP, Hunta, J-Coop, Dylan, and others are coming, what’s the anxiety level, heart rate, and BP doing? The mortal man would be cleaning up a deuce in their undies after the moto, but you look calm, cool,and collected. Nice bounce back at High Point. Top seven overall for you at Unadilla! Nice grinding so far—top 20 in SMX points and then a cool $100K on your way out.
-Boston Jim
Boston,
I appreciate the support. I wish I wasn’t so mangled to where I could barely circulate around the track. It’s easier for me to start 1-2-3 and work my way back to 8-9-10. My days of finishing 4-6 in outdoors are gone. I’ve accepted being a 8-9-10 guy now. Does it hurt my ego a bit, f@&$ yea, but there's nothing I can do. Over time, speed goes away. It’s just facts. But what doesn’t go away is the skill to read the starts, and execute the first corner. It’s still a blast to shake and bake with the boys. A lot of them respect me as I do them. I know my place. I’m not there to screw them up. I know they're coming, I hear them. But the best thing, honestly, about being up front is that it’s quiet and I can hear the fans and the air horns. That’s the best thing ever, honestly. When you're stuck in the back nine dealing with bullshit, you just hear panic revs and roost/rocks pinging of your damn helmet. Heart rate is HIGH AF no matter what place I'm in, but being up front is a helluva lot more peaceful.
-Phil
Party Phil,
A buddy of mine is getting married soon and we’re trying to plan his bachelor party and we need your assistance. We want it to be a night/day to remember, even if that means we don’t remember any of it. But, we don’t want to do the stupid, stereotypical strip-club Vegas bullshit, either. It’s gotta be something completely outside anything he’d experience in his normal life. He’s a moto guy, he likes golf, and he’s an undercover cop, if any of that matters. So what should we do? Whitewater rafting? Go streaking on the field at a professional sporting event? We can’t figure it out! He’s a big fan of you though, so if we tell him whatever we do was your suggestion, he’ll be pumped!
-Arty the Party
Party,
Honestly, I don’t care where I go with my boys. If we are all together it doesn’t matter where we are because it always turns into epic times. If you’re into moto, come to a national and buy a first class ticket at the race. Drink enough to where you think Jett Lawrence isn’t that fast and you could go 1-1. We did Alex Martin's bachelor party in Minneapolis and it was a banger weekend. We did Cooper Webb's in Charlotte and it was a banger weekend. Again, if you’re with your boys, you’ll make a good time happen regardless. Come to a national, and bring your buddies by the ClubMX rig. I’ll give you a tour.
-Phil
