Damon Bradshaw inducted into AMA Hall of Fame, serving as SMX Columbus Grand Marshal

Two days after being inducted into the American Motorcycle Association's Hall of Fame, Damon Bradshaw served as Grand Marshal for the opening the opening round of the SuperMotocross Playoffs, Round 29 of the SuperMotocross World Championship, at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Bradshaw debuted in the 1988 Pro Motocross series with a fourth-place finish barely one month after his sixteenth birthday.

Even at such a tender age, Bradshaw had more than a decade of experience under his belt, first climbing onto a bike at the age of three. And as with most dirt bike racers, Bradshaw's career began with the dedication of his family.

"[My parents] bought me a motorcycle at such a young age and they worked multiple jobs to afford for us to go racing," Bradshaw said during the induction ceremony. "They sacrificed lots to give me the opportunity to pursue something that I really wanted to do. I never forget that first race that I had. If you had told me that weekend that someday I would have still been involved in the industry and had the success that I had, I would have never believed you. So mom and dad, thank you. Thank you for pushing me the right amount, which is very important as a young kid."

In 1989, Bradshaw won in his 125 Supercross debut at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida in the the class that is now 250s, making him one of the youngest winners in SuperMotocross history. He followed that with another victory in the next round in Atlanta. On the strength of six victories that year, Bradshaw won the 125 Eastern divisional championship by one point over Mike Kiedrowski.

Known for his aggressive riding style, Bradshaw recalled one memorable race from the early 1990s.

"During my career [Roy Jansen] was AMA official," Bradshaw said. "And one day I went down after, I think I won both of them that day. ... And Roy was standing there in the booth and I had one of a few confrontations with other riders. He decided he was going to find me that day.

"And so I think it was a $500 or $1,000 fine. I think the payout was somewhere around $2,500 bucks that money was not a life changing experience back then. But he goes pulled a thousand out for the fine. I kind of left it there and slid it across. I left him the rest of this. I'll have at least four more. So I shoved the money back across the town and I said keep that because I'm sure it's going to happen again."

"Roy likes to tell that story and does a lot better job at it than I do," Bradshaw continued. "So thank you Roy for those great moments. And also we became friends after that and have a lot of respect for him."

Bradshaw won four rounds of the 1989 Pro Motocross series and finished second in the outdoor championship.

Bradshaw moved quickly into the premier division and continued his winning ways, scoring victories in his first two Supercross starts of 1990 in Anaheim, California, and Houston, Texas.

During his career, Bradshaw would win 25 Premier Class rounds, which places him 17th on the all-time list. His 35 combined Supercross and Motocross victories are good enough for 21st all-time.