Bad Boy No.5: Mike Goodwin

Mike Goodwin was a rock promoter in the 1960s and worked with The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and The Doors before hitting on the idea of staging motocross events in the same massive stadiums used by bands.

The result was a spectacular success as more than 70,000 people attended what Goodwin called the ‘Superbowl of Motocross’ at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1972. Goodwin brought in hundreds of tons of dirt to build spectacular jumps and motocross fans thrilled at the idea of watching their sport from the comfort of seats with hot dogs, cold beers, dancing girls, and celebrity spectators including Steve McQueen.

He single-handedly created a new form of motorcycle sport we now know as Supercross.

Mickey Thompson was a legend in his own right as an off-road car racer, drag racer and record-breaker. He was the first man to break the 400mph barrier in a wheel-driven car (as opposed to rocket or jet-powered) and set a total of 485 separate speed and endurance records - more than any other driver in history.

Thompson was also a successful race promoter and founder of Mickey Thompson Tyres. He became partners with Goodwin in 1986 but the relationship was troubled. Thompson claimed Goodwin was stealing money from him and when the matter eventually went to court, Goodwin was ordered to pay $514,000 in compensation. Goodwin pleaded bankruptcy and refused to pay.

Then things got a whole lot worse.

Goodwin openly threatened his former partner with such vehemence that Thomson lived in fear of his life – and he was even more worried about the safety of his 41-year-old wife, Trudy. He took to wearing a bullet-proof vest and kept a loaded shotgun to hand. He hired a security guard and asked local police for extra patrols.

It wasn’t enough.