Yesterday we spoke to Max Anstie about his new team, and what he expects from the 2019 season. Today, we talk about the Motocross of Nations and what he thought of the performance by Team Great Britain, and also the whole AMA vs FIM thing.

MXlarge: I haven’t spoken to you since the Motocross of Nations, and you mentioned you spent some time in America after it. What was your feeling from the event, for Team GB?

Anstie: I mean, on the GB side of things, it was a cool event, like it always is. Nice to be in America, although we went there, it pissed down with rain, it was foggy, it was misty, it was cold. You know, had we known, the best training for that race would have been Hawkstone Park at the pre-season International. That was how it was, the same ground, hard underneath, sloppy muck on the top. My goggles were fogging up, we had issues being able to see, it was just like that. Definitely a European style race. We were really unlucky with Tommy, who had the DNF while running fourth and that should have put us up, and I know you can see should have, would have, could have, but that changed the whole dynamic of our weekend, because we had to change our plan.

MXlarge: What was the original plan then?

Anstie: The original plan was for me to go on the inside for both my races, because I was the Open class, I had less time to recover. So I was going for results in both my races, but because that happened to Tommy, then we had to put Ben and Tommy on the inside, to give them the best opportunity, then I had to come from 27^th, on the outside to try and come through into the top ten. It is a nice event, and okay, it would have been nice to go up the inside, but I couldn’t have done better than the year before and I just had to charge as hard as possible. With a little luck it could have been different, but then again, Holland could have said that, they just needed a few points, but for us a little luck we could have been on the box again. It was nice to do it with Ben and Tommy.

MXlarge: Were you surprised by the performances of the AMA guys?

Anstie: Well, I mean, not really, I don’t know. It was tough to think. There was a lot of hype going in there, and I watched Plessinger in the 250 race on Saturday and he looked good until he crashed. I was more focused on my race, but I was a little surprised with Roczen, I think they were issues there, but I don’t know. I know with his arm its different, but it hasn’t been that long and he knows how to ride those conditions, and he knows how to go really fast. Tomac, it was interesting, because the Americans got beat, but a week later he wins a million dollars. I mean I think maybe he said it was fine and take the million dollars.

MXlarge: That’s a tough one, because the Nations is so important for the sport, but if I could make a million dollars or represent my country, I think I might take the million dollars, but then again, I don’t have a million dollars to start with, and he does. In saying that, the prestige of the des Nations is on top of my list as far as experiences would go and the Monster Cup is a bit of a joke.

Anstie: Its different, I think now, the American side they focus on Supercross.

MXlarge: But wasn’t it always like that with Carmichael, Villopoto, Stewart and Dungey? And they all did great at the Nations.

Anstie: Yes, but also the Monster Cup straight after the race. I don’t know, I wasn’t around in that RC era, or I was young. What I do know, to be perfectly honest and I am not saying this in a cocky way, or a big-headed way, but we ride Lommel, we ride sand in those kinds of conditions, all winter, all year. I am not being funny, but they have no chance. They are unlucky those conditions in America were European style. If it had been in normal conditions, it would have been a bit different. But those conditions, we know those conditions and for us its easy. While the Americans are doing their supercross, they are losing time on that. I think if you sent the Europeans to Monster Cup a week later, they Europeans would have been lapped, and smoked. It is a tough one and now its different. We are so focused on motocross and any conditions. I feel like it seems like, the Americans are focused on motocross a small portion. I don’t want to get into a debate or anything.

MXlarge: Oh, come on Max, they suck (laughing).

Anstie: I was actually at the Monster Cup, in the press room, and I kind of didn’t have my hood up and people didn’t know who I was. The American journalist were going on about it, and I was thinking to myself, I could have a right go at them now.

MXlarge: There was a lot of excuses though.

Anstie: I know, but I don’t want to get into it. It is easy to see, from a racers point of view, those boys are really good at supercross and its logical, they do it a lot, and we are really good at motocross. It’s just logic.