From backyard to big time: El Dorado teen wins national motocross title
When Brady Collins was little, he wasn’t given a basketball, baseball or football.
He was put on a dirt bike.
At the age of 3, he was learning to balance on two wheels with an engine beneath him. By 4, he was lining up at the starting gates.
“He was still in diapers and going really fast,” Nick, his father, said with a laugh. “It’s been a lot of fun and a lot of hard work.”
Now 16, the El Dorado native has turned that early start into something most amateur motocross riders dream about — a national championship at one of the sport’s iconic venues. Earlier this month, Brady won the 250C Jr. Limited title at the AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship at Loretta Lynn’s ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee.
Against a field of 42 riders from across the country, Brady finished first or second in all three motos, earning the coveted No. 1 plate from the American Motorcyclist Association.
“Everyone from around the United States comes to that one race to try to win a championship,” Brady said. “It was pretty crazy to be able to go down there and win.”
Brady, who is a triplet, was the sibling who picked up motocross the fastest.
The family’s property in El Dorado has long been his private training ground, a place where he can work on his craft.
He mostly competes in races around Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Texas with an Instagram account (@bradycollins_mx) chronicling his journey for fans and friends.
“He works at it a little bit every day,” Nick said. “Every day he is doing drills and trying to get a little bit better every day.”
Motocross outsiders might think it’s just about speed, but Brady is quick to correct that.
“A lot of people think you just twist the throttle and go, but it’s not even close to that,” he said. “It’s a lot harder than what people think it is. Hitting some of those corners, it looks easy, but then you try it and it’s not as easy as people think.”
Those technical skills and mental fortitude were put to the test during his run to a national title. The course at the AMA Amateur Nationals features a track lined with jumps, hills and tight turns that punish mistakes.
Brady has been successful in his regional races, but no one knew what to expect at his first national competition.
“It was pretty much an unknown to us,” Nick said. “We were fairly confident, but you still had no idea what to expect. We just had to go there and do what we work on and it worked out. It was definitely my proudest moment watching him win. It just shows that hard work pays off.”
Brady didn’t come in expecting to win, but once the gate dropped, instincts kicked in.
“I got some really good starts and I just tried to stay as smooth as possible and not make any mistakes,” Brady said. “I didn’t want to do anything that would ruin my championship.”
For Brady, the win at Loretta Lynn’s is a validation of years of grinding practice, long travel days and the bond between father and son.
From the dusty track in his backyard to the rutted corners at Loretta Lynn’s ranch, the kid who was still in diapers when he learned to go fast now owns a national title — and a No. 1 plate to prove it.
This story was originally published August 12, 2025 at 6:01 AM.
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