Matt Hoffman - First pulled BMX 180 Backflip (aka Flair) Mansfield, UK KOV / King of Vert 1990

This video shows Mat Hoffman pulling the first ever Flair, or what it was known as at the time - a 180 Backflip.
📹 Will Evans
UK BMX - 80s to present...
www.splendidbmx.com/
BMX Stickers - Official stickers from BSD, S&M, Terrible One, Fit Bike Co, Cult Bike Co, Relic BMX, Doomed Brand and many more!!
bmxstickers.com
Get 5% off with code: SPLENDID

[@splendid-bmx]

Yes

[@twentytolife4401]

Kids have no idea how monumental that first flair was, our how big of an impact Matt Hoffman had on freestyle.

[@klebeau4]

dam they really caught the first flair on cam? thats hella sick he really created that shit in front of a whole crowd and its on film. rare shit

[@Metal-Possum]

Or they caught A flair on cam, and said it was first until proven otherwise...

[@Metal-Possum]

@@jakobbeelar Matt Hoffman.... Legendary BMX rider, had some video games made with his name on them. Nah, never heard of him.

[@splendid-bmx]

It was the first one ever pulled

[@umtomtom]

it was the first, no one else was even contemplating trying this trick it was unheard of and unthinkable. i was there in the crowd that night, slept rough in the car park outside freezing to see matt do this

[@klebeau4]

@@umtomtom thats crazyyy you witnessed history

[@RudyAguilarCapture]

dude had no concept of baby steps. big all the time! so much love for Matt and what he's done for Bmx.

[@hirthirthirt1693]

Hahahaha....had to laugh out so loud on your comment....but really....he never trained a trick...he had an idea and tought it must work right away...and sometimes I did.

[@Barrybeastmode]

He was an utter buffoon.

[@Barrybeastmode]

MEXICAN INVASION encouraging kids to take risks. Imagine how many children have been injured and maimed attempting to emulate this irresponsible “legend”...

[@Barrybeastmode]

MEXICAN INVASION you sleepy bro? Want a red bull?

[@Barrybeastmode]

MEXICAN INVASION what did I say that’s nonsense? It’s clearly true that kids injure themselves trying to imitate this irresponsible buffoon.

[@dfpguitar]

Nearly 30 years later, I dont think anyone has done such a lofty flair. People have become incredibly efficient at doing flairs on the tiniest of ramps, but its a completely different trick nowadays. You dont even see a flair this lofty on X games megaramp contest.

[@Ash1983.]

That’s what I see now ,not even flairs really, they don’t go upside down , more like a barrel roll than a flair

[@kyleheaser351boombaby]

That first flip fakie attempt is completely insane. That height, on a freaking very ramp, trying to backflip and land backwards has got to be one of the craziest things I've ever seen any bmxer attempt.

[@ShadyNJ]

Flairs were so much gnarlier back then. Full backflip to the 180 instead of that half assed corked flair you see today.

[@nathankennedy9303]

Half assed corked flair.... you go and fucking do one and tell me how half assed it is

[@Mr_Jingles_147]

I will never EVER forget this as it was waaaaaay before the internet etc but we got frame by frame pics of it in the first ever RIDE Bmx magazine.

[@juniorarj9459]

Mat Hoffman is Legend!!!

[@travisSimon365]

This is a very different trick to what you see today (i.e. what is called a flair). Notice that he goes straight up, does a backflip, and then spins a 180 on the re-entry. Today's flairs carve, and are more like a barrel roll - both safer and easier to perform. So yeah, it's possible that thefingerboarder could actually do a flair, but I would like to see him do it like this - straight up and down.

[@cwdressen]

All these years later, this video still just gave me the chills. I wish everyone could understand what they're witnessing here. This was probably the most ground-breaking set of events in BMX history. Matt Hoffman has opened more doors in the sport than probably anyone else in any sport ever. And I'm not exaggerating.

[@umtomtom]

it was indeed, all these big tricks you see on x games are impressive but all practiced on air bags etc. matt did it on the ramp , his body was the air bag. he paved the way for all you see today an thats why this moment in time was so special

[@dennfoo]

Crowds were so much more hyped back in the day. Love it

[@mumbles215]

That’s gen x for you. We’re a passionate lot

[@GFEBMX]

bring back those gnarly flairs

[@HAZMOLZ]

Mad most of the lads in this video are now in their 50's and 60's. Everyone looks and sounds so youthful.

[@jacobhaley641]

Crazy moments achieved without foam pits says it all. And to those 19 people who disliked this vid clearly have no appreciation of the history of bmx that's got us this far......and all of you must own scooters!!!

[@QXZ9027MKII]

Much obliged Sir.

[@umtomtom]

so true, without matt bmx wouldn’t be the same. a true pioneer

[@acuraturbo91]

For me the best BMX Rider back in the 90s the Condor Matt Hoffman

[@corrioliseffect]

Bones heal. Chicks dig scars. Pain is temporary. Glory is forever.

[@rob86trott]

was no pits or res ramps to learn on back then.

[@gabrielaaron]

He practiced on a mattress at the bottom of the transition ... Google "Head First"

[@acegibson9533]

@@gabrielaaron and many times he missed the mattress.

[@mynameisnotbob6369]

But also back then after this Woodward had a resi and a foam pit

[@thisall4real]

History being made. Good this was caught on vid. Great to see crowd lose their shit on seeing a flair pulled for first time.

[@pas7680]

crazy to think this happened just around the corner from me, but i was too young to appreciate it.

[@connerhartman9336]

And now triple backflips are commonplace. Crazy how sports have changed.

[@dfpguitar]

I have never seen or heard of a flair done like this since Hofmann did it. Stephen Murray probably couldve done it (pioneer of flip whip and flip 360 type tricks who ended up parapalegic) but dont think there is any rider out there today who could.

[@bikebird]

@threeballbanger - You nailed it. Back in the day, in Freestylin' magazine, a guy wrote a letter offering $100 to the first person who could pull off the backflip air, or flair. He also called the backflip fakie a "flakie." (The name and the trick never caught on.) At the time, he said he halfway expected to send the check to Hoffman; he turned out to be right. BTW--I know this because I'm the guy who wrote the letter. And sent the check.

[@edwarddooligan6408]

coolest flair ive ever seen, i like it how he does the one eighty after hes done the backflip

[@Areekkk]

And now a kid from the uk pulled 3 of those at once crazy times !

[@splendid-bmx]

Just gonna keep getting crazier!

[@zynstr]

This is a *true* 180 backflip. Flairs nowadays are more like extremely dipped 360s

[@janhoed3856]

Matt was above the limit

[@Aglassact77]

Frickin Awsome flair, He was great then, now and always will be a hero in the bmx world, "LIVE FOREVER HOFFMAN"......

[@mackybmx]

Yeah, your absolutley right, there's no way any of the BIG tricks of today would be done without the aid of pits, box resi's and vert resi's!! It's a great idea to learn in foam and resi's, but these only came about because of the riders of the late 80's/90's were doin such HUGE tricks on pipes AND concrete!! haha!

[@fiIipebarroso]

32 years later, kieran reilly pulls a triple flair. Thats the definition of "time flying".

[@alterdom]

It's so awesome to see how far flairs have come. in 2013 they're a staple in an intermediate riders bag of tricks.

[@pingofthething5446]

Mansfield 3 miles from home 💪

[@philklima5165]

That is so huge!!!!!!!

[@TosinCKE]

as a kid I always wanted a Hoffman bike. When I got a sugar baby it felt equivalent to owning an exotic car. Yes hoffman’s are the BMX version of Lamborghini back in the 90s

[@XXNACHOXXX]

He is an IDOL !!!!

[@halberkstresser]

i have a sd-4 - love that bike

[@SnootchieBootchies27]

Most people would have gone way smaller and tried to work the rotation more. Not Matt Hoffman. Like a boss!

[@Metal-Possum]

Crazy. Now all the kids are doing this like it's nothing. However, don't forget he did this with a 1" threaded headset/steerer, and was prone to snapping those every other week.

[@smackanimals]

Man this guy inspired me, and I ride a bit like him. I'm persistant and I've crashed my fair share- but dammit bmx is the greatest thing in my life!

[@WyoDirtDude]

Witnessing history

[@Seether2141]

that guy is my hero

[@joeybbbbbz]

this guy rules

[@jonerkinch]

LEGENDARY...

[@hirthirthirt1693]

A normal backflip in the halfpipe/quarter-pipe is so much more brute then everything else...that backwards landing is macho, guys!

[@drumtravelfun]

LEGEND.

[@ckyman354]

that looked sick the flip then rotation

[@nosehair3717]

That's a huge flair.

[@Fifty_bmx]

DAAMN! matt always killing himself! but because of that he is the king of bmx!

[@masterfries]

00:57 Exactly how I feel about it.

[@nittoso]

FOREVER

[@Wirwild]

respect

[@jaytagilala755]

Matt said he rushed over to give his bike away to a make a wish kid who Came to see him , thats what happens at the end. God bless that man.

[@splendid-bmx]

That's right!! 🙏

[@yupiyayeh]

ke bueno el videeeeeeo!!!! y que bueno el hombre que dice: aaaahhhh!!!

[@RicardoR5]

Matt is a legend, if he had a young body i doubt any of the new kids had the spotlight pointed on them. MATT best ever.

[@doctorsanchiz]

Back in 1990 they called it Flip out.

[@cheerskiwi]

sick

[@Illuminatti]

THE OLD BIKES ARE GOLD DON'T BROKEN

[@splendid-bmx]

Please like, comment, share and subscribe to our channel, and hit the bell icon to see the latest updates! Our websites: www.splendidbmx.com | bmxstickers.com

[@Verdeazuul93]

Memorable (Y)

[@Illuminatti]

the best ^^

[@sementee]

LooL good vid

[@MrMenghis]

wow look at that seat

[@haro82]

There were guys before Hoffman who pushed the limits (Mike Dominguez, Eddie Fiola, Josh White, Wilkerson for lip tricks, Hugo Gonzalez), but yeah I agree.. Hoffman was the guy who REALLY pushed it to what you see nowadays.

[@genellmetzler]

for real!!

[@pakestudiofilm]

grande mattt padre del bike

[@gsp1175]

@bmxersmed What's even more impressive to me is that this was way before foam pits and resi ramps were around. These guys just thought of the trick they wanted to do and took it straight to the ramp, usually eating shit a few times before sticking it.

[@TheMinusXer0]

dude i got to ride with that guy out here in reno

[@splendid-bmx]

More soon of Mat riding at the demo - Please subscribe for updates!!!

[@locksmithmuggle]

We used to sit around and debate if this was even possible. The shit they are doing now...

[@blondyboyzrok1]

man this vids old matt hoffman can do em way cleaner now and with no problem

[@mirteoda]

it's MAT!!!

[@deso687]

Makes sense.

[@dinoBMXidiot]

that shit was massive, see how much air he needed to pull that back then? holi shit ! and it was the first one ever, I must have been awsome to witnes that back then

[@Gubben1338]

he is going soo high

[@framedinblood02]

How an earth you can tell whether it looks like him or not from that video i have no idea.

[@davistheyeti]

Back before resi and foam pits.

[@daman1101]

Mat Hoffman says in Ride of My life, published in 2002, 'The first guy in the sport to pull a backflip was a cat named Jose Yanez. He used toe clips to keep his feet attached to the pedals, and then did the trick ramp to ramp.'. However apparently it was one of his only tricks. He landed his first in 1986. In the Movie 'Rad' he did the stunt riding for Cru Jones whenever he did a backflip. I hope this information is correct :) If not please say

[@mumbles215]

I loved that movie as a kid.

[@esphorizon]

SIIIIICK!!

[@Eksistenssi]

Respect. I have almost nailed the flair...

[@trevmma]

And kieran reily just did a Triple on jan 18 2022!

[@bmx098890]

that looked cooler than most flairs bc he did the flip then the spin not the flip and the spin at the same time

[@FreeMTrider]

@muzikmaniac16 What?? He landed it!

[@deztheflash]

best bmxer in the world

[@MarsupialJones]

Hoffman = god.

[@pat.scherer]

true :)

[@TheIceboy71]

@Packapuchme213 no there not there really lighter therm the ones today look them up like the SE PK ripper

[@Illuminatti]

was there that he invented the "Flair"

[@JemenemVIDEOBLOGS]

2019

[@splendid-bmx]

1990

[@blizzfool]

ahh, sweet

[@diskortion]

Anyone know where in Mansfield this was held?

[@streetjustice4287]

Why do I feel like he decided to try that for the first time on that run lol "fuck I cant land switch right now lemme see if I can land regular"

[@ssbj144]

Because essentially most riders nowadays are not going upsidedown but instead are doing more of a flatspin 540 which is way different and less scarier than going flipping upsidedown with a 180. Mirra was pretty much the last Park rider who did proper Flairs and had proper style. He dropped out from Park because he got tired of competing against 15 yr old immature kids with no style.

[@katsudon5296]

ssbj144 couldnt be more wrong

[@96uni]

Were in Mansfield I's this?

[@blizzfool]

was this the first one ever? or just his first?

[@fullboxxskater]

@bmxersmed Matt Hoffman invented the flair after he did this

[@Illuminatti]

he see "Flair" on bmx would crazy

[@RideBikes_Walkplaces]

whay? they saw one of the first flairs!

[@ChirsSmedely]

wow you'd think it'd hurt to land at the bottom from that height

[@jusncarlossilvacarvajal2187]

Maatt. Hotman. Xtremo. Del. Planeta

[@ssrider7]

niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[@chrisdvsmith999]

was this in mansfield england?