For the fourth time in the last six years, Edgewood Academy junior Michael McLing will race for a national championship.
The 16-year-old McLing has qualified for the 40th annual Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship, the largest amateur motocross race in the world. The event, which is located at the historic Loretta Lynn Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., spans from Aug. 2 to Aug. 7.
He will race in two events, the Schoolboy 2 and the 250B. McLing is the only participant from Alabama out of 42 racers in his events.
This is the fourth time McLing has qualified for the championship races. He qualified as an 11-year-old in 2016, a 13-year-old in 2018, and a 15-year-old in 2020.
“The Amateur National at Loretta Lynn’s is the best of the best motocrossers in America and around the world,” director of MX Sports Tim Cotter said. “Just being here makes you an elite racer and a top athlete. A solid finish at Loretta’s would you give you instant National recognition and a possible professional career.”
McLing has spent the entire summer traveling across the United States to race in qualifying events, while also working and participating in summer football practice.
He, along with his parents, have traveled to Kentucky, Illinois, Tennessee, Michigan and Minnesota for qualifying events to the championship race.
He has been able to travel across the country due to his local sponsors, which consist of Alabama Better Built Homes, Premier Pool and Spas, M&M Construction, Parrish Air, Rock Springs Land and Timber, Levin’s Lawn and Construction, Robinson Lawn Care, Reliable Tire and Auto, Riptide Car Wash, Elite Pools, Levin’s Sand and Gravel, Kreations Homes, Quality Dirt Works, Farmers Feed Service Inc., Ben Rives, Lance and Kassi Abernathy, Shane, Vanessa & Maddy Wilson and Keith, Donna and Seth Smith.
To qualify for the championship races at the Loretta Lynn Ranch, racers must go through the national qualifying program. That program consists of placing in the Top 9 in any of the 51 area qualifiers and the Top 6 in any of the 18 regional qualifiers.
Over 20,000 participants raced in the area and regional qualifiers, with only 1,512 racers advancing to the championships.
McLing excelled in the area qualifiers, and made it to the regional races in four different categories; 250B, 250B Limited, 450B Limited and the Schoolboy 2. He even had two first place finishes in a 250B race in Alabama and a Schoolboy 2 race in Kentucky.
Once in the regional qualifiers, he placed in the Top 6 in the 250B and the Schoolboy 2 races in the Spring Creek MX NC Amateur, the regional race in Millville, Minnesota.
Due to his two impressive finishes there, he moves on to the championship races, where he hopes the fourth time is the charm. With a win, he would join a legendary list of AMA Amateur winners such as Ryan Dungey, Travis Pastrana, Ricky Carmichael and James Stewart.
McLing has found success in this race in the past. In 2016, at just 11 years old, he placed 9th and 14th overall in his classes, while he has placed 31st, 25th, 24th, and 29th in 2018 and 2020.
The race action will be broadcast live daily at www.RacerTV.com, August 2 – August 7, for a total of 40 hours of live coverage. In addition, highlight shows featuring the event will air on MAVTV in the fall.
