Josh Hansen Released from H&H

The PR is yet to come out but Josh Hansen has indeed been released from Hart and Huntington. This is the second time in as many stints with Hart and Huntington that Josh has been released before his contract expired. Though his first parting from the team was initiated by Josh himself, this time around it was the team’s decision.

As a whole, this is Josh’s third time being released prematurely from a team, the third being JGR in their entry year into the sport.

This story playing out now for the third time begs the question, will Josh attempt to make any changes in his approach to the sport he shows so much potential in? He has to realize that his actions away from the track are magnified exponentially when the results aren’t coming on the weekend. Coincidentally enough, when Josh’s results are at their best, it seems his personal life is as quiet as can be(for Josh anyway).

With Hart and Huntington making definitive moves away from mere image, toward a results based program, Josh’s reputation and off-track exploits make him more of a detriment than a value. Josh has incredible amounts of talent but with his checkered past and a team looking to come into 2013 with as drastic a facelift as we’ve seen in the sport, it’s smarter to let history speak for itself than to hope for the best and end up regretting it.

What are Josh's options at this point? He of course has Monster in his corner but being one of the last Supercross-only contract seekers in the sport, with no Supercross-only teams on the horizon in 2013, Josh's only option may be forming his own outfit. Mitch Payton is a believer, of sorts, in Hanny, so perhaps he would allow Josh to run out of his rig, though not being considered an actual PC team member. 

Whatever it is, there has to be a change in work ethic, off-track shenanigans and some serious buckling down in the work department. The lifeline of teams that want to deal with what Hansen brings was two and now it’s down to one.

Even Mitch Payton couldn’t keep Hansen focused on doing the work and putting in the effort. It’s the age old tale, you can’t force or persuade anyone to do something they are not compelled to do from within. Perhaps this is the fire Josh needed to initiate just that?