In the short history of freestyle motocross, there have been quite a few riders who have made their mark on the sport. As far as the top three, that's really up for debate, because each of these riders has signature tricks, attributes, and accomplishments that make their career stand out. Here, we'll discuss the most notable of them all- Jeremy McGrath, Travis Pastrana, and Mike Metzger.
Of the three, Jeremy McGrath is probably the most popular. Born in San Francisco in November of 1971, he started his racing career as a BMX rider. He is well known in both conventional and freestyle motocross. McGrath began racing motocross when he was 15. He is a seven-time AMA Supercross and 250 National Motocross champion. His penchant for doing tricks while going over the high jumps in supercross helped create what is now known as freestyle motocross. There's basically no trick he can't do, but his signature move is the Nac-Nac.
Travis Pastrana, who was born in Maryland in October of 1983, is an X Games champion, winning gold medals in supercross, and both regular and freestyle motocross. He also represents Puerto Rico in international competition. Of all the moves that Pastrana does, his signature trick is probably the 360. In 2006, he became the first rider ever to land a double backflip in competition. Recently, Pastrana has tried his hand at rally racing, winning the Rally America championship in 2006. He also won the gold medal in the first-ever rally car competition at the X Games.
Mike Metzger, born in Huntington Beach, California in November of 1975, is an X Games gold medalist in the Freestyle and Big Air events. In May of 2006, Metzger did a world-record breaking backflip over the fountains at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. He's the first to do a backflip over the fountains, and only the second person to ever successfully complete the jump. (Robbie Knievel was the first.) He is nicknamed "The Godfather of Freestyle Motocross", and is known for his crazy antics. He invented a trick called the McMetz, a move where the rider puts both of his feet over the handlebars while in the air, moves them back toward his arms, lets go of the bars, hangs suspended in midair for a split second, and then remounts the bike before landing.
Jeremy McGrath, Travis Pastrana, and Mike Metzger all bring something unique and special to the sport of freestyle motocross. McGrath paved the way for all the great riders to come, Pastrana introduced the backflip into competitive riding, and Metzger's wild riding style not only pushes the envelope, it destroys it. These are the top 3 riders of today. Who will be the next?