Back in the 1980s and 1990s, the sport of supercross really set Europe alive in the winter months. You could find yourself attending two or three major international events in a week, with spectacular names and events, but it wasn’t just Europe that saw the bright lights of supercross. Many events were run in Japan, Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

As AMA supercross really took off, leading riders like Ricky Johnson, Jeff Ward, Johnny O’Mara, David Bailey, Danny Chandler, Mike Bell, Jeremy McGrath, Jeff Stanton, Jeff Emig and so many others became worldwide stars and would pack their suitcases and head overseas for a few months.

While the hard miles of the AMA championship was where they made a lot of their money, Europe, Japan and Australia saw a lot of cash changing hands and I remember Ricky Johnson once mentioned that he earn nearly as much in Europe one year, as his Honda contract in USA. For Johnson, it wasn't just about the racing though, as he broadened his knowledge of different cultures.

“I liked every place that I travelled to,” Johnson told us a few years ago. “I love Italy for a lot of reasons. The food is amazing, and the people are passionate. They don’t pull any punches. If an Italian person doesn’t like you, then you’ll know. If they like you, then they are very welcoming. I love Paris, because it’s so crazy and foreign to me, and also because of the history. I’ve enjoyed going to Belgium and Holland to see all of the castles. England was cool, because it’s like the light version of Europe. They speak English, and though it’s different, it’s not too different from what I’ve known. Japan has such deep history, and the fans are very polite. The fans in America wanted everything from me, but in Japan, the fans actually brought me gifts!”

For me, as an Aussie, I remember names like Mike Bell, Marty Smith, Ricky Johnson, Danny Chandler, Jim Holley, Jeremy McGrath, Broc Glover, and many others racing major international events down under and taking away the large victory cheques. It grew the sport in Australia to new levels and gave the young Australian riders something to aim for.

I also remember one of the first major supercross races in Europe at the Olympic stadium in Amsterdam in 1981 and the Nijmegen supercross, south of Amsterdam in the oldest city in The Netherlands, Nijmegen.

Every year before or after the Motocross des Nations, all the MXdN riders would line up at these events, making for an amazing off-season. Unlike now, where you see Team USA do just the Nations, back in the 1980s, the whole American team would race several major events.

“To be able to race in Europe was huge for me and the sport,” Bell said after his victories in Amsterdam. “We all made some good money and also got to see parts of the world we might never have seen. I remember going to Australia for the first time and not really understanding how cool that was. Racing in America was our job and we all earnt a good living from it, but racing around the world was something else altogether.”

Of course there was also the Masters of Motocross series, run by Giuseppe Luongo, which was until now, probably the most exciting series in the history of the sport. Luongo, who had amazing relationships with the riders would invite all the top American riders and all the leading GP riders. I was fortunate enough to attend one in Belgium in 1988, and it was as close to the MXdN as anything else run.

While the only major supercross remaining in Europe is the Paris supercross, which will run on November 15 and 16, the rest of the world is enjoying a pretty exciting period. With World supercross, and Australian supercross bringing us a bunch of cool races. Also, the AusX Open will once again light up the Aussie fans.

November is going to be huge, with Romain Febvre racing in Japan on November 1. The world MXGP champion will race the final round of the All-Japan motocross championship and that event will be live streamed live on MXLarge.

The opening round of the WSX in Argentina and Buenos Aires on November 8, before the supercross World heads to Paris for the Paris Supercross a week later on November 15 and 16 and on the same weekend in Canada, the WSX riders will line-up for their second round. Also on the 15th of November is a round of the Aussie SX title.

““I can’t wait to take my racing international with World Supercross,” Haiden Deegan said of his first overseas and first 450 experiences. “It’s crazy to think my first races outside the US are coming up in Argentina and then Australia – two awesome spots with passionate fans. I’m ready to race hard and give everyone a great show. I’m stoked to get out there and experience World Supercross on the 450. It’s a big step, but I’m really just looking forward to having some fun and meeting fans from around the world.”

November 22, the Lawrence brothers fly from Paris to Australia and will be racing the Aus X Open on November 22 and on November 29 on the Gold Coast of Australia, the third round of the WSX will be run and a day November is going to be a wild month, that’s for sure.

November 28 to 30 the Aussies will have their final round of the indoor championship in Adelaide. December 6, it’s a Swedish round of the WSX, then a week later December 13 the WSX wraps up in Cape Town, South Africa, with the opening round of the AMA supercross three weeks later in the first week of January 2026.