Julius Mikula might be one of the quieter names in the MX2 paddock, but the young Czech rider continues to gain experience and make solid progress at the highest level. Now in his second season racing the MX2 World Championship, Mikula made the bold jump directly from the EMX125 class and has shown flashes of strong potential since making the move.
We caught up with Mikula at his home Grand Prix in Loket—just 40 minutes from where he grew up—to talk about racing in front of his local fans, adapting to the TM after switching from KTM, and what it’s really like going bar-to-bar with some of the fastest young riders in the world.
GateDrop: Julius, first of all, we’re here in Loket. What’s it like to be back home? I think you spend a lot of time in Italy, so is it nice to be back home first and foremost?
Mikula: Yeah, it’s super nice. It’s the closest GP for me, it’s 40 minutes from my home. It’s also the only race I rode this year in the Czech Republic, so I’m super excited. A lot of fans here, a lot of people, so I’m excited about this weekend.
GateDrop: Where do you spend most of your time, Italy?
Mikula: Lately, I was most of the time in Belgium, because I was training for the next races, to be on the sand… we have two in Lommel, Belgium and Arnhem in Holland. I spend most of my time now in Belgium.
GateDrop: What’s it like being in Belgium and or Italy when you’re there? Is it tough being away from home? Do you miss it or do you like it?
Mikula: I like it. I’m still young, I still have a lot of time to spend at home later on, so now I’m super happy I have the chance to live somewhere else also. You know, you can miss home after a few months or something, but I’m too young for this, so I’m always excited to be somewhere else.
GateDrop: You made the jump up to race MX2 last year, so this is your second year, but you changed brands. Just how would you talk about the last two years, stepping up and racing MX2, because most riders would go up to EMX250, but you decided to go straight from EMX125 to MX2… How did you find all that?
Mikula: I did this because at the end of 2022, I should go to EMX250 for 2023 but then there was this contract with the MJC Yamaha, so I decided to stay on the 125cc one more year. That year didn’t go so good for me, I didn’t ride so well, so then we decided to go directly on the 250cc for the MX2 World Championship. I like MX2, it’s more time on the track, you ride more, so you have more experience for the week.
GateDrop: What’s it like jumping up from the EMX125 class? I mean what’s the level like? Pretty high?
Mikula: Yeah, it’s pretty high, every race you have to really push yourself, because those guys are no joke, they are so fast. You have to try really hard to keep up with them, and so far I’m doing quite well so I’m excited.
GateDrop: You made the switch from KTM to TM this year, what’s it like riding the TM, what was your first thoughts when you got on the bike, totally different?
Mikula: Yeah, you go from a steel frame to an aluminum frame so it’s a big difference, and the weight of the bike is also a bit different, but in the end you have to adapt.
GateDrop: Are you enjoying the bike?
Mikula: Yeah, I enjoy it a lot, I have had so much fun this year, so I cannot complain.
GateDrop: What were the goals coming into the season, and how would you describe your season so far – on target, do you want more or are you happy?
Mikula: Of course we want more – always. it’s never enough but some results were quite good, some not so good. I want to make good starts, and ride with them at the front, as long as I can, like in Finland, I know it didn’t last for so long, but it was good.
GateDrop: How important are the starts in this class, and especially at some of the hard pack tracks, they’re very hard to pass, so I mean, if you start 15th, how difficult is it to come through the field?
Mikula: It depends, you know, when you start 15th you gain more experience by passing guys and learning how to pass, but if you want to make good results, the start is quite important. Almost everyone, we are riding the same speed. Okay there are a few that are a little bit faster than the others but in the end we are quite the same pace. If you make a good start there is a much bigger chance you will make good results.
GateDrop: In terms of hard pack or sand, do you have any preference, obviously your home track here is rock hard, but I remember you won an EMX125 moto at Lommel, so you seem to be pretty good in both conditions, that’s a good strength to have?
Mikula: Yeah, I don’t care actually. It depends every week, some tracks I like and some not, but I don’t prefer sand or hard pack. It doesn’t matter for me, I actually enjoy both.
GateDrop: Just on Czech Republic, do you know yet if they are going to send a team to the Motocross des Nations, or is it still a wait to see?
Mikula: We need to still wait to see, it’s quite difficult when it takes place in USA, so now we don’t know yet, I cannot say.
GateDrop: I’m sure you would really like to go though and race in America, have you ever raced in America before?
Mikula: I did RedBud for the Nations in 2022… Not for Czech Republic, but for Team Europe, and it was so nice. The tracks are so big, and RedBud was crazy nice, with the people, amazing experience.
GateDrop: Just on next year, are you on a one-year contract with TM, or is it a two year deal?
Mikula: I cannot say yet nothing about this.
GateDrop: Hopefully we’ll still see you in MX2 next year though, is that the plan?
Mikula: The plan is to stay in MX2 for next year for sure.
