For this edition of Classic Ink, we are going to take a look back at some Pro Circuit ads from 1993.
After two incredibly successful years partnered with Honda, Big Red made the surprising move to pull their sponsorship of Pro Circuit’s race team at the end of the 1992 season. A last-minute switch to Kawasaki delivered a 125 West Supercross title for the green brand in 1993 and started a partnership that has endured for over two decades. Photo Credit: Pro Circuit
The 1993 season was a critical one for Mitch Payton’s Pro Circuit racing team. After taking the sport by storm in 1991 and 1992 with his Peak Antifreeze team, Payton’s racing aspirations were dealt a major blow by Honda’s decision to move their 125 racing efforts back in-house. Despite delivering three 125 Supercross titles in two years, Payton and the crew were left without a manufacturing partner for 1993.
The switch to four-strokes has driven up the costs of motor work and exhaust substantially but Pro Circuit remains one of the “go-to” brands in the sport if you are looking to extract every ounce of performance out of your two-stroke or four. Photo Credit: Pro Circuit
Thankfully for the sport, however, Kawasaki was willing to step up and take Honda’s place as Pro Circuit’s racing partner for 1993. The rebranded Hot Wheels Splitfire Pro Circuit Kawasaki team took the track with Jimmy Gaddis, Jamie Dobb, and Mike Chamberlain at the controls. In addition to their motocross team, Pro Circuit continued to be a major supplier to many of the factory and support teams. Factory Kawasaki, Factory Honda, Factory Suzuki, and Factory Yamaha all used Pro Circuit pipes on their works machines in 1993. Pro Circuit’s reputation for quality and performance trumped any concerns about conflicts of interest with some of Pro Circuit’s direct racing competitors even using his products.
AXO Sport was on fire in the early 90’s and these Pro Circuit branded Gel Prints are still great looking today in my opinion. I had the orange and blue colorway and I loved it despite it being hotter than a wool parka in July. Photo Credit: Pro Circuit
Despite the last-minute move to Kawasaki, Mitch’s team was able to deliver results with Jamie Dobb capturing a motocross victory at Unadilla and Jimmy Gaddis delivering the team its fourth 125 Regional Supercross title. The success of 1993 would lead to a partnership that remains in effect to this day. Kawasaki and Pro Circuit would go on to capture countless AMA Supercross and Motocross titles, successfully navigating the ever-shifting world of title sponsors and a move to four-strokes in the mid-2000s.
It is a real testament to Pro Circuit’s quality and performance that all four Japanese factory teams and several privateer efforts ran their exhausts in 1993. Photo Credit: Pro Circuit
Today, Pro Circuit remains one of the premier aftermarket performance suppliers in the sport with a team that continues to rack up victories on the track. Pro Circuit’s unwavering commitment to innovation and performance has allowed the brand to stay at the forefront of racing technology. Four-strokes, fuel injection, and whiz-bang electronics have changed the sport in many ways, but Pro Circuit remains just as synonymous with performance today as it was in 1993.
Graphic kits were less elaborate in 1993 but these Peak and Splitfire kits were really trick for the time. The other four, however, are best left in 1993 in my opinion. Photo Credit: Pro Circuit
