Bob Hannah Says Losing Is the Pits--He May Retire : Veteran Down and Out as Supercross Title Goes to O’Mara

Bob Hannah, one of the United States’ best motocross riders, is contemplating retirement. And no one is stopping him.

After all, Hannah--the all-time Supercross Series victory leader--has seen better days. He was the top rider of the 1970s, winning the 125cc Outdoor National championship in 1976 and the Supercross championship in 1977, 1978 and 1979. But at 28, Hannah is a senior citizen in the world of whoop-de-do jumps and brim turns.

“If I have a season like last season, I’ll probably retire,” Hannah said. “It’s a possibility.”

Last season, Hannah had more injuries than victories. He broke his pelvis in two places, his wrist twice, an ankle and two ribs.

“I was 75% healthy last season, but trying to ride 100%,” Hannah said. “I never got going last year.

“In 1983, I won more races than anyone. In 1984, I broke more bones than anyone. If I have another year like last year, I’m through. The only rewards are winning and money. Winning is fun.”

And winning keeps the Mission Viejo racer going even as time is quickly catching up.

With the 1984 injuries behind him, Hannah, went into Saturday night’s Miller High Life Supercross in front of 35,967 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium with renewed hope.

But after a dismal performance, his worst in almost a decade, some of the hope is gone. Hannah, once the guru of stadium motocross, failed to qualify for the Supercross main event. The last time he entered a Supercross and failed to make the final cut was 1976.

Johnny O’Mara won the 250cc title because of a tactical error by El Cajon’s Broc Glover.

In his first moto, Hannah started in fourth place, but fell on the first lap to drop to 11th. He recovered nicely, finishing fifth, but only the top three qualified for the main event.

He had a second chance to qualify in a semifinal race, but started in 15th place and finished 8th.

Then, he had one final chance in what the sport terms a last-chance moto. The nonqualifiers compete for the last two spots in the main event.

Hannah started in fifth in that last moto, moved up to third on the final lap, but despite the urging from the crowd was unable to pass second-place Jim Holley over the narrow course.

Hannah, however, isn’t through yet. He will compete Saturday night in a Supercross race at Anaheim Stadium.

While Hannah’s best performances are behind him, O’Mara, 23, is an emerging rider. Still, it took a bit of luck for O’Mara to overcome Glover.

Glover won the first moto main Saturday night, and O’Mara finished a distant second. Late in the second moto main, Glover seemed destined to win the San Diego title. He was in second place behind El Cajon’s Rick Johnson, but well ahead of third-place O’Mara. All Glover had to do was stay on his bike to win the title.

But with less than a half a lap to go and the toughest part of the course behind him, Glover fell when trying to challenge Johnson. O’Mara passed Glover to finish second in the race. Glover was fourth.

The Supercross title, which was based on the two moto mains, went to O’Mara. Glover was second and Johnson third. Other local riders were Jamul’s Scott Burnworth (6th) and El Cajon’s Ron Lecien (12th).