Dennis Ullrich is the most successful rider in the series, having won the ADAC MX Masters championship five times so far after progressing through all the junior classes. He has been one of the best German motocross riders around for years now. He caught everyone’s attention last year with an ambitious project, fielding his own team and a two-stroke machine. Although the experiment was not very successful viewed purely in terms of results, he does not regret the move one bit and says that he has learned a great deal as a result.
Dennis, what made you field a two-stroke MX bike last year and was there ever a moment during the 2018 season when you regretted your decision?
No, I never regretted the decision. It was very enjoyable on a lot of tracks but exhausting too, because going up against opponents on their more powerful 450cc machines was sometimes a struggle on the two-stroke bike. On the whole, though, it certainly helped me progress quite a bit. It was good that I had to get out of my comfort zone and was forced to really exert myself in order to be able to keep up a little. Ultimately, it was not what my sponsors aspired to, and that’s the reason why I brought the project to a close. They, of course, wanted to see results. It’s simply not enough that you enjoy riding. You must also book plenty of great results, which was only occasionally the case last year. And so, I decided to separate business and pleasure again in 2019 and go back to lining up at the starting gate on a four-stroke bike.
You competed under your own team's banner last year, so why the switch to Bodo Schmidt Motorsport for the 2019 season?
I just wanted to make a fresh start last year and do everything myself. It was all going to be absolutely perfect, and I put a lot of time and effort into organising and running the team. So much that I was no longer able to focus one hundred per cent on racing anymore. We took a little bit of a back seat this season and began working with Bodo Schmidt Motorsport. My girl-friend Vanessa and I still did a lot of organising ourselves, but the effort we needed to put in was reduced to some extent thanks to Bodo Schmidt Motorsport.
Can you still put your ideas into practice given the current setup?
Yes, I have quite a bit of freedom in that respect and can generally select the parts I want to fit to the bike. The bike’s design is still all mine.
You are very active on social media and have lots of videos on Youtube. Do you take care of all that yourself or does someone do it for you?
We usually do it ‘in house’. Vanessa normally does the filming when I’m practising, and quite often, Jens Nausch will video races so that she can take care of other things. We sometimes have a cameraman help out with big video projects, but I then do the editing and the rest of the work myself. I see this marketing as part of the overall package and have had plenty of good feedback. However, many MX sponsors don’t really have a strong interest in how I’m progressing in this area. Well, not yet anyway.
Unlike your fellow riders, you concentrate mainly on the ADAC MX Masters and contest other fixtures only rarely. What are the reasons for that?
I just look at things from a professional and financial standpoint. It would hardly be worth my while financially to contest the German Championship, for example. I’ve had a lot to deal with over the last few years in the private sphere and realise that there’s more to life than motocross. I like to spend time with my girlfriend and enjoy getting away from the sport a little on our free weekends. Consequently, I don’t feel obliged to line up at the starting gate every weekend come what may.
You won your fifth title in the ADAC MX Masters this year. What does this victory mean to you?
Winning the title this year was terrific. It was a major coup for me. Some people had already written me off and did not think I was up to much after having had such a difficult year on the two stroke bike. However, I’ve shown that I can still win titles with my overall victory this year. It was, of course, a pity, that the championship was decided before Holzgerlingen, as Jens Getteman was injured and Tanel Leok was competing in China, but still, I really enjoyed my home fixture and was able to wrap things up in style in the championship with a win and second place.