Preparation for the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship is already well underway and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing will aim to defend their MX2 title and push for more MXGP spoils with the same rider line-up but under new management. Stepping up from his Technical Co-ordinator role, Harry Norton has assumed the position of Team Manager and the 29-year-old Australian will guide the efforts of the crew and Jeffrey Herlings, Andrea Adamo, Liam Everts and Sacha Coenen with KTM 450 SX-F and KTM 250 SX-F machinery in the 20-round series.
Words & Images: Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Norton arrived in Austria in 2019 after a long association with KTM and KTM Australia in his native country where he worked at a local dealership and then also around the national racing scene. His passion for dirtbikes and competition meant he was eager to break through to the hub of the factory’s motorsport activities in Europe. His easy-going manner and technical proficiency allowed him to forge an immediately beneficial relationship with rookie Tom Vialle; the Frenchman won a Grand Prix in his first season and the pair scooped two MX2 world championships in the following three years.
Norton quickly assumed an instrumental role inside the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing organisation and was seen as the natural successor to Dirk Gruebel in 2023 as Team Technical Co-ordinator. The crew underwent a major revamp with three new riders and a wholesale reset of technical staff as KTM looked to the future. Norton was able to marshal the squad to a fifteenth MX2 crown with the KTM 250SX-F thanks to the positive first step with Adamo, and also help Herlings reach a new all-time win record of 103 Grand Prix triumphs in the MXGP category and with the KTM 450 SX-F.
Harry’s positive growth and growing influence means he will take the reigns of the MXGP operation for 2024, backed by Gruebel, Team Co-ordinator Valentina Ragni, Team Trainer Joel Smets and other figures such as new Technical Co-ordinator Stefan Simpson (younger brother of recently-retired MXGP racer Shaun Simpson).
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing will be competing in MXGP pre-season events in Spain, Italy, France, Holland and the UK before the season begins in Argentina on March 10th.
Harry Norton, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “People have asked me how I feel about this, and the answer is simply: excited. It was a dream to work for this team, and to make it as one of the key figures and to have such an input into how we go racing is next level for me. I’ve had some of the best possible influences around me, such as Dirk, Peter [Tillerkvist], Robert [Jonas] and Pit [Beirer], and I want to thank them for their help and for sharing their experience. We’ve got another big season ahead and with the same goals we always have. We have a strong team and we’ll work with the same passion and the same dedication to achieve what we can.”
Robert Jonas, Vice President Offroad Racing: “Harry has reached this position based on qualities that we really appreciate and we really value. He is passionate about the sport and dedicated to the brand: he already has a long KTM history and made a huge change to travel across the world and chase his professional dreams. He not only has the technical knowledge but has shown a high willingness to learn and can evaluate situations very well. What is also important is his character: Harry is open, friendly and calm and these are essential qualities for a race team that needs good organisation, a good atmosphere and to face the drama that sport can bring. We really believe in him. 2023 was already a test of what he can do and now he’s directing one of our most successful Red Bull KTM teams. We are confident that he, Valentina, Dirk and all the guys have a strong 2024.”
