BRAD OXLEY

Steve Virgen

If speedway were comparable to basketball, Brad Oxley would be known

as a gym rat.

Perhaps, people should call him a dirt dog. However, more

appropriately, everyone knows him as, “Rad Brad.”

Oxley has been a icon of sorts at the Costa Mesa Speedway, where

he has grown up since age 10. He went from working in different jobs,

such as selling popcorn and programs, to actually racing in the

motorcycle events. He went from gopher boy to hero in a matter of six

years.

Oxley said he admired the riders he came to know throughout his

childhood and he decided at a young age that saddling motorcycles

amid wild conditions would be something he would want to do for the

better part of his life.

When Oxley turned 16, he started to compete in speedway. He had

started racing in other events when he was 14.

“I didn’t want to be a champion, I just wanted to be a rider,”

Oxley said of his ambition at a young age.

In 1987, Oxley did become a champion. He won the speedway national

championship. It was the 14th national speedway event he had competed

in.

“I was really in my prime,” Oxley said. “It wasn’t like I claimed

it because of talent. I had to hang in there and keep working at it.”

Oxley described his first national championship as a bit

controversial. Oxley and Bobby Ott ended that fateful night in 1987

in a tie in points, which are accumulated for winning races during

the event. They would have to compete in a run-off, one race that

would decide the champion.

Ott was said to be favored, as he was known for his speed. But his

bike caught some traction and he fell. Oxley went on to win the

championship. He has also won several seasonal events.

“[Ott] was faster than me,” Oxley said. “He was the opposite of

me. He was the natural and super talent. I was more of the worker,

the guy who had to work for what he got. He had me beat that night if

he wouldn’t have over-cooked it.”

Oxley won the national title again in 1999 and brought pride to

the Oxleys, who have been a fixture of the Costa Mesa Speedway, which

came about in 1969. Brad’s father, Harry, worked for the renowned

Jack Milne and became fascinated with motorcycles and speedway.

Harry Oxley and Milne, the 1937 World Speedway champion, promoted

speedway events in Van Nuys in the late 1960s and then found what

they were looking for in Costa Mesa.

“He’s the godfather of speedway,” Brad Oxley said of his father.

“He’s the one that has made all that is here at the Costa Mesa

Speedway possible.”

These days, Brad Oxley, 43, works as a promoter for speedway.

Oxley, the latest honoree of the Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame,

lives in San Clemente with his wife, Jaleen. They have three boys and

two girls.

When Oxley thinks back to his many racing highlights, the two

national titles come to mind. Yet Oxley also treasures the everyday

work that went into preparing for races.

“The beauty of speedway was that we were racing five nights a

week,” Oxley said. “There were many chances to win.”

For two years, Oxley competed in Europe. He was the London Riders

champion and the British Speedway League Rookie of the Year in 1981.

Throughout his life, Oxley is thankful for the relationships that

were formed through racing. He is also grateful that he was able to

overcome several injuries.

“Broken arms? I had three or four of those,” Oxley said. “It’s

about the same injuries you get playing football. You tweak your

neck. You get concussions. All that stuff takes its toll. By the

nature of speedway there really isn’t anything courteous to it. You

have to take advantage of your opportunities and be aggressive. The

competition is really tight. It’s exciting.”