What kind of connection method are you using? Are the other stick channels recognized correctly?
As you go through the Calibrate Controller procedure in Freerider, keep an eye on the little circles above the OK button. You should be able to move four of the little circles smoothly up and down using your controller sticks. Sometimes the automatic stick detection gets it wrong - you can manually click on the circle that you see is the correct one for each stick (instead of clicking "OK"). (You will still need to hold the stick fully in the direction shown in order for the calibration to work correctly).