Few figures in the paddock have the experience or straight-talking honesty of Steve Dixon. A constant presence in the Grand Prix paddock for nearly four decades, the British team owner has built a reputation for developing riders and taking on the factory teams with a smaller, independent structure. From running successful GP teams to organising major events such as the British Grand Prix in the past, Dixon’s influence on the sport stretches far beyond the results sheet.
With the 2026 season underway, Dixon’s team continues to focus on steady progress in the ultra-competitive FIM Motocross World Championship paddock. His MX2 effort is currently centred around Kay Karssemakers, who has been showing encouraging signs early in the campaign, while the team also supports British talent Taylor Hammal on the domestic scene.
We caught up with Dixon as he reflects on Karssemakers’ early progress, the challenges of competing against heavily funded factory teams, and his thoughts on the current state of the sport. He also discusses the mentality of British riders, Hammal’s development, the potential return of Courtney Duncan, and gives his view on the upcoming British Grand Prix heading to Foxhill.
GateDrop: Steve, that’s the first European GP in the books for Kay, 10th overall is an improvement on Argentina, you must be happy with the steps he’s making?
Dixon: I mean that was our aim for some top 10s, well it was actually some top 15s at the first couple and then progress gradually and work into the season. There’s a lot of factory bikes out there and factory riders so we just want to progress and be stable. We’ve only got one GP rider so we need him to be consistent as in not getting injured because that would sort mess the season up but it’s going good. He’s a pretty nice lad, so we’re sort of hitting our targets at the moment.
GateDrop: I was going to ask you about him, I mean what’s he like to work with? I did send you a couple of messages last year trying to convince you to sign him, you finally listened to me (laughs). I’m only joking but what’s it like to work with him?
Dixon: I mean obviously we had our obligations with Bobby Bruce. You know the target was to win the EMX250 last year with Bobby and then progress into MX2 this year with him. Obviously his injuries were sort of too bad, he tried to ride too many times injured and that sort of didn’t do him any good as the confidence going forward for next year. Then we signed Kay, well, we didn’t sign him but we had agreement to do the last rounds last year. We did all the flyaways and then carried on for this year and it’s all going well.
GateDrop: What’s he like to work with as a rider, I think he does have really good potential, he’s sort of never really had the material in the past…
Dixon: I think he’s had a few hard years with a lot of promises and everything. I’m trying to deliver on everything that I say I will do. It’s a really good structure with his training mechanic George who’s been with us since 20 years this year. He’s worked with various riders like Andrew McFarland and all those guys who are based out there like Dean Ferris and Courtney Duncan. We’re just happy that he’s training well, he’s hitting all the sort of hours that he needs to hit. They do they train a lot over there so it’s pretty hard on you that side in the terms of the equipment that gets used.
GateDrop: I mean you’ve been in the paddock for many years now, 37 to be precise, how would you describe the level on MX2? I know a lot of people are like there’s never full gates blah blah blah, but it is still fast out there.
Dixon: I mean I talked about this earlier today. It’s up a level you know, it’s hard for us to compete and we’ve won lots of Grand Prix’s and with eight different riders. There’s so much money in the sport at the moment and it’s good that Kay gets a wage and everything’s paid for. We want to attack the factories and they have a lot more staff, a lot more of everything and the level is high. I can imagine people don’t want to enter that because the level is so high. Okay, there’s 20 riders but there’s 14 factory riders – that’s more than there’s ever been before. I mean I think it’s in a good place because you’ve got two groups of EMX250 and as you see with Valin and with Reisulis coming in. They’ve really been setup well for the GP’s, that never used to happen. There are plenty of riders who could step up into MX2 and maybe it’s an easier route from 20 downwards but you’re never going to progress whereas in EMX250 if you shine then you’ll get taken on. Especially with the age group and then it roller coasts into MXGP and that’s that.
GateDrop: Just on the paddock at the minute, it’s probably not in the best place it’s ever been, do you think personally it’s getting harder for the likes of you trying to compete with the factories or is there not of a difference compared to the past?
Dixon: I mean this is the first year that I haven’t had a title sponsor. We have just got KX on the side panels. I’m not one to give in, I want to try and prove ourselves with results again. Our results have not been great over the last few years with injuries. Jack Chambers was hoping for some better results but he had injuries. You know we’re not shy to run at the top but there seems to be an anti-GPs in the British and even in the press and everything like that. With the riders, it’s not that bad if it works for countries like Latvia, Slovenia and all those places – it can work for the Brits I think as well. I keep saying that I think the British riders, they need more heart. It was good Billy (Askew) was strong this weekend – I messaged him last week after he had three DNFs in the British. I said to him to look at McLaren – they had two cars that didn’t start in China and they got three thousand workers, two constructor titles, one world title and one world champion – I said that it’s just motorsport and it is difficult.
I think we have some British coming up but the British seem to think they’ve made it before they’ve made it and I’m not afraid to say that. With the mentality they need to dig deep – I think we need some good grit.
GateDrop: One British rider that you do have under the awning is Taylor Hammal, obviously he’s focusing on the British Championship, he does love a fourth place finish! But his fourth place finish at round one is probably his most impressive one so far…
Dixon: We took Taylor on a few years ago and started on the 250cc, he started to do well and then he injured his thumb at the Dutch GP and that was sort the end of it. He then went to wherever he went and now he’s back with us again racing the 450. He’s getting a wage for racing British which is okay. I noticed that you said about stock bike but a stock 450cc nowadays is bloody good. We didn’t put a pipe on because DVR have just moved and it would be difficult for them to supply it. It was either use used equipment or a new standard. We want to get the results and he did well but it’s a huge gap to here (in MXGP).
GateDrop: That was my next question, I think I was speaking to either you or Taylor at the end of last year, I can’t remember who now but I think the plan was for him to do five or six GPs this year – is that still in the plan?
Dixon: That might change because he’s going to be a dad soon, the time comes up quicker than you think and we don’t want to be here just making up the numbers. It’s a big jump from the British Championship as in even the size of the jumps, the speed and the intensity. It’s not that Taylor can’t do it but you need to train for quite a few months on that sort of stuff otherwise you’ll get hurt and you don’t want that. He’s still young enough to have a good season racing the British and then who knows if we will then try some GPs. I mean we’ll do Foxhills and we’ll sort of try and get him going up there.
GateDrop: It’s not that long to the French GP when you think about it, what can you tell me about Courtney Duncan? Is she going to be there or not and if she will, will she be riding for yourself?
Dixon: I think she was going to race this weekend in the Oceania series. I don’t know if she raced but she needs to be satisfied that she can ride well and that she’s capable of being at the top. I have said it’s an easy calendar and we would help out for her to achieve her goal to be a world champion again.
GateDrop: What’s your thoughts on Foxhill hosting the British GP? You get a year off for a change so you can focus more on the team but just what’s your thoughts on Foxhill running the GP?
Dixon: I mean we took the first win there in 1995 with me and Malin. It was fantastic, I used to take a lot of guests there but then it was cancelled three years in a row and there was no GP. Having no British GP at that time killed us because we needed the British GP to bring our sponsors. When it wasn’t at Foxhill then it was going to Chepstow, then we had it at Mallory Park – we also had Isle of White and Matchams. But the British GP was still not secure and we needed the British GP to have a sponsorship. We used to bring 300 guests to the British GP.
Going back to Foxhills, I mean it’s hard running a GP so you need a lot of infrastructure and that’s going to be the hard part. We’re here in Spain and the paddocks not good but it dries out, this it not how it should and we need to go forward. I mean all these big trucks, you just look around and it’s a huge paddock. The date of July 19th was too close to Boomtown so they needed to find an alternative. I don’t mind and I hope it goes well, it makes no difference to me because I never make any money out of the GP anyway – it’s just my passion. We’ve done it and have a small group of people that are passionate about it and help out. We feel obliged to do it.
GateDrop: Foxhill does have a two-year contract but in the future would you be open to bringing a GP back to Matterley or maybe even another MXoN and also would the British Championship be a possibility?
Dixon: Maybe. I’m not against that but it’s a big track to get ready. We did speak about doing a British Championship or even hold an International. It always gets some good weather in the early seasons and it holds water so well. I found the place and took all the stones out and it’s really built for big events like the MXoN. When you’re around here you realize how nice it is to have a paddock right next to the start and stuff like that. It was designed thinking about the problems. Hopefully Foxhills do a good revamp and that everyone else benefits. It’s a GP style track but I don’t know if they’re going to leave it, I think as it is, it’s too fast for them. Back in those days bikes didn’t handle like they do now, now they put that much power down and if you get it wrong, it can bite you.
It makes no difference to me, I attended every GP and only started running one because we didn’t have a Grand Prix and we needed one. It’s what the crowd need and I hope it goes well. We’ll be there so I hope the facilities and everything are good and that it’s not a struggle because it would be embarrassing to be British. We need to do a good job – that’s where motocross started but people don’t realize that actually Matterley has held a lot more GP’s than Foxhill.
