CORONA, California (January 23, 2014) – Erik Apple is launching a second career with his first love.
“Off road racing was my 4th professional sport,” he said. “I had grown up around off road racing and racing in general. It’s always been something I’ve been interested in and felt that I had something in me that fit into that sport.
“I was interested in it before I even had a driver’s license. I was interested in doing that kind of racing when I got older.”
Apple is older, if 34 fits that description, and he’s been successful. He’s got a resume that includes star status in Mixed Martial Arts competition and feature film work, and now the Huntington Beach, California, resident with “BADAPPLE” tattooed on his abdomen has turned his attention to the ultra-competitive Pro Lite class of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series presented by GEICO.
He made his debut in the class last season, competing in six races with a pair of top 20 finishes his first time out at Lake Elsinore, California, in May after a last-minute change in plans.
“I was originally going to race a Super Lite program last year, “but that went away,” said Apple, who has support for this season from West Coast Chill, Jet Performance and General Tire. “I had to figure out something else and I had no choice but to step up to a Pro Lite and go racing against the best in the world, which was good and bad.
“I am comfortable in the car, but I also feel I have a lot to learn. I’m not afraid at all. I’m not afraid of the car, I’m not afraid of racing (with others), I’m not afraid of the big jumps. I’m not afraid of any of that, but I do know I have a lot to learn. I feel that I have a natural ability for racing, but at the same time when you’re competing against the best natural ability is not going to be enough.
“I don’t have specific goals for 2014. I just want to get better every weekend. If I’m not improving, something’s wrong.”
Apple made a similar statement in February, 2011, when he was preparing to meet Ryan Larson in what would turn out to be his final fight for Strikeforce. “I never had any specific goals,” he said then. “I just want to compete against the best guys that I can and put on the best performances that I can.”
The thing is, Apple never anticipated that he would be performing in an MMA arena. Growing up in southern California he was into surfing and skateboarding. He got into Mixed Martial Arts almost by accident.
“I originally started training for fun,” he said. “I even took my first fight just for fun and I won and said ‘hey, cool; let’s do another one.’ I did another one and I won again. All of a sudden one day I realized I was 9-0. I was undefeated and I was being offered a lot of money to fight some really well-known guys on television.”
Apple said that despite appearances to the contrary “MMA is tougher mentally than it is physically. In other sports you have teammates who can help you if something goes wrong. In a race you can get third place and that’s pretty good. But in fighting there’s first place and last place. There’s no in-between. And even sometimes when you win you still have to go to the hospital.”
His performances and his persona brought Apple to the attention of Lions Gate Entertainment, which cast him as Pete “Mad Dog” Grimes in the movie “Warrior,” and enabled him to establish relationships with Mitchell Joseph of West Coast Chill and others who are helping to fund his racing.
Apple, who’s preparing for a role in another movie, said he suffered a broken neck while filming “Warrior” and has had 11 surgeries for multiple knee and wrist injuries. He said none of those injuries came in the ring, however, and they had nothing to do with his career change.
“I had 13 bouts and I’ve been fighting on TV for a long time,” he said. “I’m 34 years old so I may have one or two fights left in me, but I look at off road racing as something I can do for the next 20 years. I can’t fight much longer but I can drive a race car for a long time.”
The Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series presented by GEICO also is sponsored by
Rockstar Energy Drink, General Tire, E3 Spark Plugs, Toyota, Optima Batteries, LoanMart, Ole Smoky Moonshine, MAVTV American Real, iON Cameras, Protect the Harvest, 4 Wheel Parts, Lunarpages, Mickey Thompson, Tonka and BILSTEIN Shocks.
ABOUT THE LUCAS OIL OFF ROAD RACING SERIES:
The Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series is the evolution of the long-standing support of short course racing by Forrest Lucas and Lucas Oil Products. Steeped in the Midwest tradition of short course off-road racing infused with a West Coast influence, Lucas Oil Off Road Racing brings intense four wheel door to door action to challenging, fan-friendly tracks. Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series: This is Short Course. For more information please visit www.LucasOilOffRoad.com.
