Lance Kobusch will always remember Jan. 7.

That’s when the New Florence native celebrated his first motocross victory in the professional level.

Kobusch won the Round One 450 Pro Main event of the 2022 Kicker AMA Arenacross Series at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colo. He competed in his first race since 2020.

“I came in trying to do the best that I could,” said Kobusch, who made his professional debut. “I was put in a position which I had the opportunity to win and I took it. It kind of worked out for me. It was cool because I haven’t raced in a long time. It was exciting to be on top again in my first race back.”

Kobusch, a member of the STR Honda team, had to defeat defending champion Kyle Peters to pick up the victory. Before the final lap, Kobusch surpassed Peters for first place and never looked back.

“I watched him race for a long time,” Kobusch said. “It’s somebody I looked up to in the past.”

In addition to his victory in the 450 Pro race, Kobusch also finished third in the 250 Pro Class. The following night, he came in third in both the 250 Pro Class and 450 Pro Main races and finished second to Peters in the series standings by just 12 points.

The Kicker AMA Arenacross kicked off on Jan. 7 with Kobusch winning the first heat of the qualifying races of the 250 Pro class. He placed first in the second heat in the qualifying round of the 450 Pro race.

In 2020, Kobusch won a motocross championship in Dortmund, Germany, and participated in several other races before he later decided to take a break from motocross.

“I really didn’t have any intentions of going back,” Kobusch said. “The team came to me and offered me a deal that was too good to pass up. So I took it and I started riding again. It was cool coming back. I have a completely different perspective of it versus whenever I left.”

Kobusch has been riding motorcycles since he was 3. His father, Lance, Sr., owns Lance’s Auto Body Shop in Montgomery City.

“I love the adrenaline,” Kobusch said. “I love the rush. I also love the fact that no matter what’s going on in your life or whatever stress or worry that you have, when you’re in that state of mind when you’re on that dirt bike, there’s nothing else that can throw you off. It’s just you and your dirt bike.”

The 20-year-old Kobusch said riding a dirt bike takes a lot of hard work.

“I put my heart and soul into this and so do all of the people around me,” he said. “They don’t really see the stuff behind the scenes. They see it now, but they don’t see the months and months and months of work and preparation and the work that nobody sees in the dark. It’s the countless hours of day in and day out and holding yourself accountable every single day, regardless of how you feel, and the sacrifice that we make in order to be able to show up and be competitive.”

Kobusch now lives in Malakoff, Texas, located 73 miles north of Dallas. He said he loves keeping in touch with his family back home in Montgomery County.

“I take a lot of pride in being from Montgomery County,” Kobusch said. “That’s where all of my family is from. That’s where all of my friends are from. That’s my hometown and I imagine I’ll probably find my way back someday. I visit there often and I always have a good time when I do.”