Smarty’s Moto Wrap for June 10, 2014
Troy Bayliss has won the Pro 250, Pro 450 and Pro Open classes at the 2014 Australian Dirt Track Championships held at Taree on the weekend. The former World Superbike Champion could well have won a fourth championship if he entered the Over 35 class but that wasn’t necessary, the young guns of the dirt track racing scene had already succumbed to Bayliss’ superior speed and race craft.
Justin Barcia has injured his ankle and missed the Thunder Valley round of the AMA Motocross Championships and despite the absence of the aggressive Factory Honda rider the racing at the pointy end of the field was no less spectacular. In fact, in both the 250 and 450 classes, the racing in this year’s Championship is ferocious. I mean, these riders are going balls out right from the drop of the gate through to the checker flag…it is border-line insane but great to watch!! See full report and results of the Thunder Valley round below.
There has been some talk around the traps that the Green Park, Conondale facility will not be available for the seventh round of the MX Nationals but as of this week we will all be heading up through the green hills of the Sunshine Coast hinterland for the event on the 13th of July. The long term future of the iconic venue is still up in the air but I will get to the bottom of the dramas over the next week or so.
Oh man, the rumours are flying thick and thin. Jeffrey Herlings is the master of dropping the twitter bomb and over the weekend he tweeted: ‘I got some big news coming’.
Now, since that tweet there have been rumours ranging from a factory Honda ride in the 250 class in America, an MX1 ride in the World Motocross Championships to a new dog he wants to call ‘Ken’ (I made that last part up). I only hope that the news is worth the wait or I will block him from my twitter account :^)
Tasmania’s Matthew Philips is in red hot form and after dominating the E3 class at round four of the FIM World Enduro Championships held last weekend in Finland the KTM pilot is now just 12 points back from teammate, Enduro legend and championship leader Ivan Cervantes.
Our Aussie World Enduro Championship girls Jessica Gardiner and Jemma Wilson had a tough weekend in Finland with both riders encountering several problems over the weekend but still, they toughed it out and are sitting third and fifth respectively in the championship points. See the full results and report below.
Josh Strang scored a solid come from behind second place at round eight of the GNCC held in Millfield, Ohio on the weekend. With former championship points leader Charlie Mullins out with injury it was a perfect opportunity for Strang to try and get on top of the new championship leader Kailub Russell but the poor start put pay to a much awaited Josh Strang win…..for now. See the full results and report below.
Takeshi Katsuya scored 3-7 seven results for fourth overall in the mud bath Sugo round of the All-Japan Motocross Championships but the Queenslander still holds a solid 26 point lead in the 250cc championship. See the full championship points below.
Chris Hollis made the trek across to Austin, Texas to contest round two of the AMA Endurocross Championship which was by the way also part of the annual X-Games and Hollis made it to the final and was in contention early until a crash put pay to a solid finish. See the full report and results below.
Moto Wrap for the weekend of Jun 7/8 includes:
- – Round 8 of the GNCC (John Penton) at Millfield, OH
- – Round 6 of the Dutch Motocross Championships at Oldebroek
- – Round 4 of the World Enduro Championships at Heinola, Finland
- – Round 4 of the All Japan Motocross Championships at Sugo
- – Round 3 of the AMA Motocross Championships at Thunder Valley, Lakewood, Colo.
- – Round 2 of the CMRC Canadian Motocross Championships at Kamloops
- – Round 2 of the AMA Endurocross Championships at Austin, Texas
- – X-Games from Junes 5 to 8 at Austin, Texas
- – 2014 Tatts Finke Desert Race
- – 2014 Pro Nationals MX Festival
GNCC (John Penton) – Round 8 – Millfield, Ohio
Through the first seven rounds of the 2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis, an AMA National Championship, it’s been a head-to-head battle for the XC1 National Championship between Factory FMF/KTM teammates Kailub Russell and Charlie Mullins. However, with Mullins removed from championship chase due to a recent injury, the reigning champ Russell was poised to take over the points lead on Sunday and he did so in a dominant fashion at the 25th running of the Wiseco John Penton GNCC.
The stage was set at Sunday Creek Raceway in Millfiled, Ohio for a beautiful and dry day of racing. The day began with sunny skies and warm temperatures but a few rain showers in the hour leading up to 1 p.m. start made for an interesting afternoon of racing.
It was the N-Fab AmPro Yamaha ride of Paul Whibley who got off to a great start with the $250 All Balls Racing XC1 Holeshot Award but the two-time champ quickly fell back to eighth place on the opening lap. Russell capitalized on a mistake by Whibley and took control of the pace right away, where he led flag to flag of the three-hour race.
While Russell seemed to have the lead position on lock, it was an all-out battle for second place all afternoon. N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Jordan Ashburn put himself in a favorable position early on, as he jumped in behind Russell for the second place position. Johnny Campbell Racing Honda’s Chris Bach joined the battle, with Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Josh Strang close behind. The trio exchanged places several times throughout the three-hour battle, making for an exciting spectacle for the race fans in Ohio.
But the battle didn’t come only from the front row, as reigning XC2 Pro Lites Champion Grant Baylor joined the front-runners on the adjusted time clock where he threatened a spot on the overall podium all afternoon. Not only were the physical battles full of excitement, but the adjusted time came down to the final moments, where the young Baylor finished nine seconds ahead of Strang to capture second overall for the day.
Strang, who was forced to come from behind on the opening lap, pushed through to second at the end of the five-lap race, where he led a three-way battle into the final moments of the Sunday Creek motocross track. Despite a valiant effort by Ashburn, and also Whibley in the final moments, the 2010 GNCC Champion was able to hold them off to capture a season-best second place finish in the XC1 Pro Class and third overall for the day.
Whibley and Ashburn were bar-to-bar in the final turns but this time it was Ashburn who edged out the two-time champ of Whibley to take third place in the XC1 Class and fourth overall for the day.
Factory FMF/KTM’s Steward Baylor Jr. struggled on the opening lap but the South Caroina native slowly picked up the pace as the race went on. After missing the last round due to injury, Baylor fought his way back to a fifth place finish in the XC1 Class.
After running inside the top three for a majority of the afternoon, Bach lost a substantial amount of time when he crashed on the final lap while running second. Bach ended up just three seconds behind Baylor for sixth place in the class.
RideMPS.com/AMSOIL/Honda’s Thad DuVall returned to action after missing the previous round with injury. DuVall managed a seventh place finish in the class as he continues to recover.
Factory Husqvarna’s Andrew Delong finished in seventh, followed by HR Motorsports-backed Takeshi Koikeda, and Maxxis/KLIM/DirtWise KTM Race Team’s Jason Thomas rounded out the top ten.
In the XC2 Pro Lites action, Grant Baylor got off to a great start to kick off the afternoon and things only got better for the KTM Support rider as he continued to pick his way through the overall pack on time adjustment. In his quest for an overall position, Baylor put a sizable gap on the rest of the XC2 Pro Lites field.
In just his third XC2 race of this season, KR4 Performance-backed Nick Davis put forth an impressive ride at the eighth round. Davis overcame a couple of big crashes early on to secure a season-best second place finish in the XC2 Class.
Raines Riding University/Atlas Cycles’ Ricky Russell began the afternoon outside the top ten but was quickly made his way into podium contention. Russell got into the third place position on the final lap, where he finished third place in the class. Baylor now holds a three-point lead over Russell in the XC2 Pro Lites championship standings.
XC1 Pro Results: 1. Kailub Russell. 2. Josh Strang. 3. Jordan Ashburn. 4. Paul Whibley. 5. Steward Baylor Jr. 6. Chris Bach. 7. Thadd Duvall. 8. Andrew Delong. 9. Takeshi Koikeda. 10. Jason Thomas.
XC2 Pro Results: 1. Grant Baylor. 2. Nick Davis. 3. Ricky Russell. 4. Trevor Bollinger. 5. Layne Michael
XC2 Series Standings: 1. Grant Baylor (202). 2. Ricky Russell (199). 3. Trevor Bollinger (160). 4. Layne Michael (116). 5. Shane Hufford Jr (105). 6. Callan May (93). 7. Jesse Groemm (90). 8. Sam Evans (88). 9. Chris Douglas (84). 10. Jedediah Haines (74).
XC1 Series Standing: 1. Kailub Russell 208. 2. Charlie Mullins 181. 3. Josh Strang 161. 4. Jordan Ashburn 138. 5. Paul Whibley 133. 6. Chris Bach 103. 7. Andrew Delong 102. 8. Steward Baylor 101. 9. Thadd Duvall 98. 10. Takeshi Koikeda 95.
Overall National Championship Standings (XC! And XC2 Pro Combined): 1. Kailub Russell (203). 2. Charlie Mullins (180). 3. Josh Strang (153). 4. Jordan Ashburn (129). 5. Grant Baylor (116). 6. Paul Whibley (115). 7. Ricky Russell (99). 8. Andrew Delong (98). 9. Steward Baylor (86). 10. Chris Bach (79).
Dutch Motocross Championships – Round 6 – Oldebroek
There were plenty of GP regulars at the final round of the Dutch Motocross Championship and it was a welcome return to form for Tyla Rattray to take out the 450 class while predictably Jeffrey Herlings won the 250 class. Marc de Reuver won the MX1 championship with 4-1 results on the day while Romain Febvre took out the MX2 title without even turning up.
MX1 Moto 1: 1 Tyla Rattray Z-A Husqvarna. 2 Shaun Simpson GB KTM. 3 Ceriel Klein Kromhof NL KTM. 4 Marc de Reuver NL Honda. 5 Herjan Brakke NL Kawasaki. 6 Ryan Houghton GB Yamaha. 7 Jeffrey Dewulf B Yamaha. 8 Rick Satink NL KTM. 9 William Saris NL Kawasaki. 10 Stefan Hage NL Husqvarna.
MX1 Moto 2: 1 Marc de Reuver NL Honda. 2 Tyla Rattray Z-A Husqvarna. 3 Shaun Simpson GB KTM. 4 Herjan Brakke NL Kawasaki. 5 Ryan Houghton GB Yamaha. 6 Jeffrey Dewulf B Yamaha. 7 Santtu Tiainen SF Husqvarna. 8 Rick Satink NL KTM. 9 Rene Albers NL KTM. 10 Rob van Vijfeijken NL Yamaha.
MX1 Overall: 1 Tyla Rattray Z-A Husqvarna 1-2. 2 Marc de Reuver NL Honda 4-1. 3 Shaun Simpson GB KTM 2-3. 4 Herjan Brakke NL Kawasaki 5-4. 5 Ryan Houghton GB Yamaha 6-5
MX1 Championship Points: 1 Marc de Reuver NL Honda 237. 2 Ceriel Klein Kromhof NL KTM 192. 3 William Saris NL Kawasaki 155. 4 Herjan Brakke NL Kawasaki 153. 5 Jeffrey Dewulf B Yamaha 149.
Mx2 Moto One: 1 Jeffrey Herlings NL KTM. 2 Petar Petrov Bul Yamaha. 3 Pauls Jonass Let KTM. 4 Brian Bogers NL KTM. 5 Brent Vandoninck B KTM. 6 Luca Nijenhuis NL Kawasaki. 7 Lars van Berkel NL Honda. 8 Eric Leijtens NL Yamaha. 9 Michael Hool NL KTM. 10 Sven van der Mierden NL Husqvarna
MX2 Moto Two: 1 Jeffrey Herlings NL KTM. 2 Petar Petrov Bul Yamaha. 3 Brian Bogers NL KTM. 4 Pauls Jonass Let KTM. 5 Lars van Berkel NL Honda. 6 Luca Nijenhuis NL Kawasaki. 7 Freek van den Vlist NL KTM. 8 Mike Gijsbertsen NL Kawasaki. 9 Eric Leijtens NL Yamaha. 10 Michael Hool NL KTM
MX2 Overall: 1 Jeffrey Herlings NL KTM 1-1. 2 Petar Petrov Bul Yamaha 2-2. 3 Brian Bogers NL KTM 4-3. 4 Pauls Jonass Let KTM 3-4. 5 Lars van Berkel NL Honda 7-5
All Japan Motocross Championships – Round 4 – Sugo
It was a dead-set mud bath at the Sugo round of the All-Japan Motocross Championships last weekend but when it was all said and done defending champion Akira Narita and Aussie Takeshi Katsuya extended their points lead in the 450 and 250 classes respectively.
All-Japan 450 Points (After 4 of 9 Rounds): 1. Akira Narita – 178. 2. Makoto Ogata – 160. 3. Yoshi Atsuta – 141. 4. Hiroaki Arai – 121. 5. Yohei Kojima – 111. 6. Koh’ichi Fukaya – 107. 7. Takuya Mihara – 94. 8. Yui Hoshino – 91. 9. Masanori Itoh – 81. 10. Masaaki Suzuki – 74.
All-Japan 250 Points (After 4 of 9 Rounds): 1. Takeshi Katsuya – 177. 2. Toshiki Tomita – 151. 3. Jun’ya Takenaka – 146. 4. Chihiro Nohtsuka – 120. 5. Nozomu Yasuhara – 113. 6. Shin’ichi Inque – 110. 7. Takashi Okano – 109. 8. Gota Ohtsuka – 98. 9. Masami Tanaka – 78. 10. Lucas Santana – 71.
FIM World Enduro Championships – Round 4 – Heinola, Finland
Day 1 Race Report: TM’s Eero REMES secured an important home victory on day one at round four of the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship GP of Finland to take the top step of the Enduro 1 podium. At the end of a tough and challenging opening day in Heinola there was also success for Pela RENET (Husqvarna) and Matt PHILLIPS (KTM) as they won their respective Enduro 2 and Enduro 3 categories. Danny MCCANNEY (Beta) returned to the top step of the Enduro Junior podium while Laia SANZ (Honda) won the Women’s Cup.
However, the biggest news from day one in Heinola was the early exit by Enduro 2 class leader Antoine MEO (KTM). Despite nursing a broken thumb entering Heinola, the Frenchman was holding onto third position until a crash on the third enduro test forced him to retire.
After his victory in the super test, KTM’s Christophe NAMBOTIN led early in the Enduro 1 classification. But an on-form Eero REMES (TM) quickly took the fight to the Frenchman. Hungry to secure a home win, REMES battled back and forth with NAMBOTIN before eventually claiming the top step of the podium.
“It’s brilliant to win my home race,” told REMES. “It took a couple of tests to get going but once I found my rhythm I fought hard with Nambotin and took the victory.” Facing his toughest challenge of the series, NAMBOTIN finally conceded defeat to Remes when he crashed on the final enduro test and placed second. In the race to claim the bottom step of the podium, Spain’s Cristobal GUERRERO (KTM) steadily worked his way clear of France’s Anthony BOISSIERE (Sherco) to finish third. Italy’s Thomas OLDRATI (Husqvarna) ended his day in fifth.
In the Enduro 2 class France’s Pela RENET (Husqvarna) secured a start-to-finish victory. Intent on capitalising on MEO’s injury, RENET did exactly that and stormed ahead to record a convincing win. “It’s been a good day, I had no major problems and I’m happy to win,” commented RENET. “But it’s also disappointing to see Antoine start with an injury and then crash out. I was hoping for another good battle with him. I hope he’s ok.”
Behind RENET the fight for the final two spots on the podium was played out between MEO and Italy’s Alex SALVINI (Honda) until the Frenchman crashed out. With a good cushion over the chasing Johnny AUBERT (Beta), SALVINI placed second. Benefitting from MEO’s early exited, AUBERT improved one position to take third. Delivering his best ride of the series to date, Spain’s Lorenzo SANTOLINO (Sherco) ended his day two tenths shy of a podium result in fourth while Oriol MENA (S-Beta) completed the top five.
Claiming his second victory on the bounce, Australia’s Matt PHILLIPS (KTM) led home the Enduro 3 class on day one. Highly motivated following his win last time out at the GP of Greece, PHILLIPS secured an important victory over point’s leader Ivan CERVANTES (S-KTM). “It feels to great to get another win in the bag,” smiled PHILLIPS. “I’m beginning to find my feet in this class. I felt comfortable with my speed and didn’t make any real mistakes that cost me a lot of time.”
On damage limitation duty following his ankle injury from Greece, CERVANTES dug deep to stay within range of PHILLIPS. Holding off the hard charging Finn Matti SEISTOLA (Sherco), CERVANTES secured a much needed runner-up result. Unable to split the KTM duo, SEISTOLA had to settle for third. France’s Mathias BELLINO (Husqvarna) had a lonely ride for fourth while Portugal’s Luis CORREIA (Beta) recorded another top five result in fifth.
Returning to the top of the Enduro Junior rankings, Britain’s Danny MCCANNEY (Beta) claimed a confident race win on day one in Heinola. Just off the pace set by McCanney, it was France’s Loic LARRIEU (Husqvarna) who ended the day with the runner-up result. Favouring the rugged Finnish terrain, Sweden’s Oliver NELSON (KTM) recorded his debut EJ podium with third and pushed Jamie MCCANNEY (GB-Husqvarna) back to fourth. Struggling to find his winning form from Greece, Italy’s Giacomo REDONDI (Beta) rounded out the top five.
Finally claiming his first victory since the 2013 season ending GP of France, Sweden’s Albin ELOWSON (Husqvarna) placed an impressive 67 seconds clear of runner-up Davide SORECA (I-Yamaha) in the 125 Youth Cup. Finishing eight seconds behind SORECA, Italy’s Matteo BRESOLIN (KTM) was third. Sweden’s Jesper BORJESSON (Husqvarna) and Jeremy MIROIR (F-Yamaha) placed fourth and fifth.
In the Women’s category Spain’s Laia SANZ (Honda) eased her way to a commanding victory. Britain’s Jane DANIELS (Husqvarna) placed as runner-up to SANZ albeit finishing nearly two minutes behind the Spaniard. Sweden’s Emelie KARLSSON (Yamaha) capitalised on a big mistake from Jessica GARDINER (AUS-Sherco) to take third.
Day 2 Race Report: Pela RENET (Husqvarna) and Matt PHILLIPS (KTM) made it two wins from two starts with victory in their respective classes on day two at round four of the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship GP of Finland in Heinola. With tight racing across all classes the rugged and rocky Finnish terrain pushed the competitors of the EWC their maximum. With RENET and PHILLIPS winning the Enduro 2 and Enduro 3 categories, Christophe NAMBOTIN (KTM) returned to the top of the Enduro 1 class while Danny MCCANNEY (Beta) hung on to win the Enduro Junior classification. Laia SANZ (Honda) was best of the Women’s Cup and Albin ELOWSON (Husqvarna) led home the 125 Youth Cup for the second day in a row.
Firmly squashing Eero REME’s hopes of a double home win in Heinola, France’s Christophe NAMBOTIN (KTM) claimed the Enduro 1 class win on day two. Capitalising on a crash by REMES on the opening enduro test, NAMBOTIN took control of the race lead and was never headed.
“It’s fantastic to get back on the top step of the podium,” told NAMBOTIN. “Yesterday I made too many mistakes, today was much better.”
A big mistake on lap one from REMES knocked the Finn off his rhythm and handed the lead to NAMBOTIN. Unable to regroup, the TM rider was forced to settle for second place. In the fight for the final step of the podium, Spain’s Cristobal GUERRERO (KTM) held off France’s Jeremy TARROUX (Sherco) by three seconds to take third. With TARROUX fourth, France’s Anthony BOISSIERE ensured a successful end to the GP of Finland for Sherco by placing fifth.
Making it two wins from two starts in the Enduro 2 category, France’s Pela RENET took the victory on day two. But the Husqvarna rider didn’t have an easy time of things. Challenged by a highly motivated Johnny AUBERT (F), the Beta rider looked on course to take his first win of the season until a crash on the penultimate special test allowed RENET to sneak through for the win.
“Johnny was riding really strong and I didn’t have an answer for him this morning,” admitted RENET. “But in the afternoon I found some more speed and clawed the time back to win. I’m really happy for this victory.”
With AUBERT dropping back to second on the final lap, Italy’s Alex SALVINI (Honda) ended his day 31 seconds behind AUBERT in third. The battle for the final top five positions was a Spanish affair with Beta’s Oriol MENA holding off an attack by Jonathan BARRAGAN (Husqvarna) to take fourth. Continuing to adapt well to EWC life by recording his debut special test win, BARRAGAN finished six seconds behind MENA in fifth.
Fastest out of the traps, Australia’s Matt PHILLIPS (KTM) blitzed the first five special tests to take an early lead in the Enduro 3 classification. Opening up a 22-second cushion over Ivan CERVANTES (S-KTM) in second place, PHILLIPS controlled the race lead to secure his third consecutive victory.
“I’m delighted to take three wins on the bounce,” commented PHILLIPS. “Today went better than I expected. I attacked hard from the beginning to build up a lead and then made sure I rode steady in the afternoon to win.”
Despite struggling in the rocky terrain with an injured ankle, CERVANTES delivered another solid ride to finish second and kept his championship lead intact. Spurred on by topping three of the final five tests, France’s Mathias BELLINO (Husqvarna) returned to the podium with third. Matti SEISTOLA’s hopes of another podium result at his home race took a dent when he crashed on the second cross test. The Sherco rider recovered to finish fourth. Securing yet another top five result, Portugal’s Luis CORREIA (Beta) ended his race in fifth.
Topping the Women’s Cup for the second day in a row, Spain’s Laia SANZ (Honda) left the GP of Finland with maximum points. Placing as runner-up to SANZ – but this time reducing the deficit to her rival – Britain’s Jane DANIELS (Husqvarna) finished just over one minute behind. Making amends for her previous day’s misfortune, Australia’s Jessica GARDINER (Sherco) claimed the final step of the podium.
E1 Saturday Results: 1. Eero Remes. 2. Christophe Nambotin. 3. Cristobal Guerrero. 4. Anthony Boissiere. 5. Thomas Oldrati.
E1 Sunday Results: 1. Christophe Nambotin. 2. Eero Remes. 3. Cristobal Guerrero. 4. Jeremy Tarroux. 5. Anthony Boissiere.
E1 championship Standings: 1. Christophe Nambotin 154. 2. Cristobal Guerrero 118. 3. Eero Remes 117. 4. Anthony Boissiere 102. 5. Jeremy Tarroux 91.
E2 Saturday Results: 1. Pierre Alexandre Renet. 2. Alex Salvini. 3. Johnny Aubert. 4. Lorenzo Santolino. 5. Oriol Mena.
E2 Sunday Results: 1. Pierre Alexandre Renet. 2. Johnny Aubert. 3. Alex Salvini. 4. Oriol Mena. 5. Jonathan Barragan.
E2 championship Standings: 1. Pierre Alexandre Renet 146. 2. Johnny Aubert 118. 3. Antoine Meo 114. 4. Alex Salvini 98. 5. Oriol Mena 87.
E3 Saturday Results: 1. Matthew Phillips. 2. Ivan Cervantes. 3. Matti Seistola. 4. Mathias Bellino. 5. Luis Correia.
E3 Sunday Results: 1. Matthew Phillips. 2. Ivan Cervantes. 3. Mathias Bellino. 4. Matti Seistola. 5. Luis Correia.
E3 championship Standings: 1. Ivan Cervantes 151. 2. Matthew Phillips 139. 3. Mathias Bellino 111. 4. Matti Seistola 105. 5. Luis Correia 92.
Women Saturday results: 1. Laia Sanz. 2. Jane Daniels. 3. Emelie Karlsson. 4. Samantha Tichet. 5. Marita Nyqvist. 6. Jemma Wilson. 7. Jessica Gardiner.
Women Sunday Results: 1. Laia Sanz. 2. Jane Daniels. 3. Jessica Gardiner. 4. Samantha Tichet. 5. Emmily Smalsjo. 6. Jemma Wilson.
Women championship Standings: 1. Laia Sanz 80. 2. Jane Daniels 68. 3. Jessica Gardiner 54. 4. Samantha Tichet 44. 5. Jemma Wilson 41
The FIM Enduro World Championship continues with the GP of Sweden in Enköping on June 14/15.
AMA Motocross Championships – Round 3 – Thunder Valley, Lakewood, Colo.
450 Moto 1 Race Report: In the opening 450 Class moto, Toyota/Yamaha/JGRMX’s Josh Grant raced to the Motosport.com Holeshot Award but his spot at the front of the field was short lived as Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart assumed the lead just a short time later. Stewart set a fast pace in the opening laps to open a small margin while Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey worked his way into second and set his sights on catching the Suzuki rider out front. Behind them, Team Honda Muscle Milk’s Trey Canard and Roczen also made their way past Grant to take over third and fourth, respectively.
A short time later, a four-rider breakaway put the battle for the moto win amongst Stewart, Dungey, Canard and Roczen. Dungey pressured Stewart throughout the first half of the moto, even making a brief pass for the lead, but was unable to take control of the position. As the battle continued out front, Roczen passed Canard for third and was soon putting pressure on the lead duo. While looking for a way around Stewart, Dungey was passed by Roczen for second on Lap 13. On the following lap, Dungey fell while chasing Stewart and Roczen, losing a position to Canard and slotting into fourth. Out front, Roczen put the pressure on Stewart coming to the white flag but the former champion held him at bay to lead the entire moto and capture his first win of the 2014 season. Roczen followed in second, with Canard third, Dungey fourth, and Grant fifth.
450 Moto 2 Race Report: As the gate dropped for the second moto, it was Canard who made the first move by grabbing the Motosport.com Holeshot Award with Dungey, Grant, Roczen and Stewart in tow. Canard and Dungey took control early on, but Roczen was able to surge past his teammate into second by the end of the opening lap and proceded to battle with Canard for the lead the next couple laps before ultimately taking control of the moto on Lap 3. Canard then fell into the clutches of Dungey, who eventually made the pass for second and attempted to reel in Roczen. Dungey closed in to just about 2 seconds at the halfway point of the moto, but lapped riders ultimately kept the distance between the two KTM riders consistent throughout the remainder of the race. Roczen crossed the finish just over six seconds ahead of Dungey, while Stewart passed Canard halfway through the moto to finish third.
In the overall classification, Roczen’s 2-1 moto results helped him edge out Stewart (1-3) for the win by just two points. Dungey’s strong second moto effort helped secure third overall (4-2). Canard (3-4) and Grant (5-6) rounded out the top five.
“It’s early to really say anything [about the championship],” said Roczen, who won his first career 450 Class race one week ago. “I feel like I’m riding good right now and I feel strong. I got a good jump [in the first moto] but didn’t get up the hill well and had to fight my way through. I made some adjustments to the bike [in between motos] to make it easier to ride and it paid off. I just want to keep clicking [races] away like I’ve been doing and stay healthy.”
Roczen extended his lead in the 450 Class standings and now holds a 12-point edge over Dungey. Stewart moved into third, 30 points behind Roczen, while Canard sits fourth, 31 points out of the lead.
450 Overall: 1. Ken Roczen – (2-1). 2. James Stewart – (1-3). 3. Ryan Dungey – (4-2). 4. Trey Canard – (3-4). 5. Josh Grant – (5-6). 6. Brett Metcalfe – (9-5). 7. Malcolm Stewart – (7-8). 8. Andrew Short – (6-9). 9. Weston Peick – (10-7). 10. Jake Weimer – (8-12). 11. Chad Reed – (13-10).
AMA 450 Points Standings (After 3 of 12 Rounds): 1. Ken Roczen – 141. 2. Ryan Dungey – 129. 3. James Stewart – 111. 4. Trey Canard – 110. 5. Brett Metcalfe – 89. 6. Malcolm Stewart – 78. 7. Weston Peick – 77. 8. Josh Grant – 74. 9. Jake Weimer – 74. 10. Chad Reed – 61.
250 Moto 1 Race Report: The start of the first 250 Class moto featured a surprise early leader as Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil Honda’s Jessy Nelson captured the Motosport.com Holeshot Award and proceeded to open a multi-second gap over the field, with GEICO Honda’s Justin Bogle and the Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha duo of Cooper Webb and Jeremy Martin in chase. Nelson maintained a comfortable gap until Martin and Webb took over second and third, respectively, on Lap 4 and closed down the deficit to the lead. Nelson paced the field for the first 20 minutes of the moto but went off the track, allowing Martin to take first on Lap 8. Webb then took over second from Nelson on Lap 9.
The battle for victory appeared it would come down to the Star Yamaha duo as they were separated by mere bike lengths, but as he pushed for the lead Webb crashed and lost several positions. With his teammate no longer a threat, Martin rode comfortably out front for the remainder of the moto to keep his undefeated streak intact. Nelson held on for a career-best second-place finish, while Bogle secured the third spot. Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Blake Baggett was fourth with Rockstar Energy Racing KTM’s Jason Anderson in fifth. Webb dropped to ninth following his crash.
250 Moto 2 Race Report: As the second moto got underway, all eyes were on Martin to see if he could continue his unbeaten start to the season. Out of the first corner Martin had his work cut out for him as GEICO Honda’s Zach Bell claimed the Motosport.com Holeshot Award, with Anderson and Valli Motorsports Yamaha’s Christophe Pourcel alongside. Martin started outside the top five.
Bell’s time out front didn’t last long as Pourcel took over the lead on the opening lap. On the ensuing lap Baggett began his push towards the front, eventually taking over second and setting his sights on Pourcel out front. After a couple laps of pressure Baggett made the pass and never looked back, leaving Pourcel to battle with a hard-charging Bogle. As Baggett pulled away, Martin tracked down Pourcel and Bogle, needing a podium finish to secure his third straight overall win. At the halfway point Martin crashed while chasing third place and fell deep inside the top 10. That misfortune allowed Baggett to solidify the overall with a win in the second moto. Bogle fought to finish second, while Pourcel finished third. Martin rebounded to finish sixth.
Baggett’s 4-1 results gave him a one-point edge on Bogle (3-2) for the overall win, while Martin’s resiliency after his crash ensured third overall (1-6).
“I wasn’t prepared coming into the season due to an injury right before the opening round, but we’ve been testing and getting to where we want to be,” said Baggett, who last won at the fifth round of the championship last season. “When you haven’t won in a while it starts eating at you, and I wanted to stop [Martin’s] dominance, so I just went for it. We’re headed in the right direction and there’s still 18 motos left, so anything can happen.”
Martin retained control of the 250 Class standings, holding a 26-point lead over teammate Webb. Pourcel sits third, 47 points behind, while Baggett moved into fourth, facing a 49-point deficit. Bogle rounds out the top five, 50 points behind Martin.”
“I really had to work hard for [the podium] today,” said Martin, who has won five of the first six motos. “I didn’t get off to the best start [in Moto 1], but I knew I just needed to start clicking off the laps. Nelson went off the track and made it easy on me, so it was a good first moto. I was trying to hunt those guys down [up front] in the second moto and switched my line up, and it just didn’t work out for me. I’m where I expected to be coming into the season, but it just took a little bit for everyone else to get up to speed. Clearly, after today, they’re there.”
250 Overall: 1. Blake Baggett – (4-1). 2. Justin Bogle – (3-2). 3. Jeremy Martin – (1-6). 4. Jessy Nelson – (2-9). 5. Marvin Musquin – (7-4). 6. Jason Anderson – (5-5). 7. Christophe Pourcel – (11-3). 8. Cooper Webb – (9-7). 9. Cole Seely – (8-8). 10. Justin Hill – (10-10). 22. Jackson Richardson – (18-37).
AMA 250 Points Standings (After 3 of 12 Rounds): 1. Jeremy Martin – 140. 2. Cooper Webb – 114. 3. Christophe Pourcel – 93. 4. Blake Baggett – 91. 5. Justin Bogle – 90. 6. Jessy Nelson – 85. 7. Marvin Musquin – 82. 8. Jason Anderson – 81. 9. Justin Hill – 65. 10. Matt Bisceglia – 63. 16. Jackson Richardson – 26.
AMA Endurocross Championships – Round 2 – Austin, Texas
Red Bull KTM Factory rider Taddy Blazusiak earned his fourth gold medal at the 2014 X-Games and second round of the AMA EnduroCross Series held at the Circuit of the Americas Grand Prix facility in Austin, TX. His teammate Factory FMF/KTM rider Taylor Robert finished 6th.
Robert was placed in the first heat race and rounded out the first turn in 3rd. He quickly moved into 2nd after making a pass on Cody Webb in the matrix. Unfortunately, he made a mistake on the last lap in the rock section that allowed Webb by. Robert held on to 3rd through the checkers to qualify for the main event.
In the second heat race Blazusiak slid-out in the first corner, but was able to pick up his bike without losing much time, exiting the turn in 8th place. He then made up substantial ground to finish the first lap in 3rd. On lap 2 he was able to pass both Mike Brown and Geoff Aaron in the rock section to take over the lead. Blazusiak led the remaining 4 laps to transfer into the main.
At the start of the main event Blazusiak came out of the first turn in 2nd place behind Mike Brown. He made an impressive pass on Brown by doubling through the water obstacle to take over the lead on lap 1. Without pressure from the rest of the field Blazusiak continued to lead until the mid-point when he went down in the rock section, allowing Colton Haaker to jump in right behind him. The two riders battled wheel to wheel for a few laps before lapped traffic allowed Blazusiak to put time on Haaker. With two laps to go Blazusiak continued to stretch out his lead and cross the finish, earning his fourth X-Games gold medal.
“It feels great to win another X-Games gold,” stated Blazusiak. “I struggled a little! this morning with some of the jumps in practice, but the main is where it counts.” Blazusiak has now taken over the points lead in the AMA EnduroCross Series.
Meanwhile, Robert was off to a mid-pack start in the main. He was consistently staying with the lead pack and was in 5th place through the half-way mark. Unfortunately, he made a mistake that allowed Max Gerston by and was unable to get back around him. Robert finished the race in 6th.
Overall Results Men’s Enduro X: 1. Taddy Blazusiak. 2. Cody Webb. 3. Alfredo Gomez. 4. Colton Haaker. 5. Max Gerston. 6. Taylor Robert. 7. Cory Graffunder. 8. Ty Tremaine. 10. Geoff Aaron. 11. Kyle Redmond. 12. Chris Hollis. 13. Mike Brown.
Overall Point Standings Men’s AMA EnduroCross Series: 1. Taddy Blazusiak – 47. 2. Cody Webb – 46. 3. Colton Haaker – 43
Round 3 of the AMA EnduroCross Series is scheduled for Sacramento, CA on June 21, 2014.
CMRC Canadian Motocross Championships – Round 2 – Kamloops
KTM’s Colton Facciotti has won the second round of the Canadian Motocross Championships held at Kamloops on the weekend after American Mike Alessi was docked five spots for cutting the course on the way to winning the first moto.
Honda’s Vince Frise convincingly won the 250 class at Kamloops from Kaven Benoit and Jeremy Medalgia.
450 Results – Kamloops: 1. Colton Facciotti (KTM) – 2-1. 2. Josh Hill (Kaw) – 3-3. 3. Mike Alessi (Suz) – 6-2 (penalized 5 places). 4. Tyler Medaglia (KTM) – 3-6. 5. Bobby Kiniry (Yam) – 5-4. 6. Teddy Maier (Kaw) – 4-8. 7. Kyle Chisholm (Yam) – 8-5. 7. Dylan Kaelin (Yam) – 7-7. 9. Morgan Burger (Yam) – 9-10. 10. Matt Davenport (Yam) – 10-12.
450 Championship Points (After 2 of 10 Rounds): 1. Colton Facciotti (KTM) – 95. 2. Josh Hill (Kaw) – 83. 3. Mike Alessi (Suz) – 82. 4. Teddy Maier (Kaw) – 68. 5. Bobby Kiniry (Yam) – 66. 6. Tyler Medaglia (KTM) – 65. 7. Kyle Chisholm (Yam) – 60. 8. Dylan Kaelin (Yam) – 53. 9. Morgan Burger (Yam) – 45. 10. Austin Kouba (Kaw) – 38.
250 Results – Kamloops: 1. Vince Friese (Hon) – 1-1. 2. Kaven Benoit (KTM) – 4-3. 3. Jeremy Medalgia (Kaw) – 2-5. 4. Topher Ingalls (Hon) – 7-4. 5. Shawn Maffenbeier (Yam) – 5-7. 6. Brock Hoyer (Yam) – 6-8. 7. Austin Politelli (Kaw) – 16-2. 8. Kyle Swanson (Hon) – 10-6. 9. Dylan Schmoke (Yam) – 8-9. 10. Jesse Wentland (KTM) – 3-19.
250 Championship Points (After 2 of 10 Rounds): 1. Kaven Benoit (KTM) – 88. 2. Shawn Maffenbeier (Yam) – 72. 3. Vince Friese (Hon) – 66. 4. Austin Politelli (Kaw) – 65. 5. Topher Ingalls (Hon) – 62. 6. Jeremy Medalgia (Kaw) – 62. 7. Jesse Wentland (KTM) – 60. 8. Brock Hoyer (Yam) – 43. 9. Dylan Schmoke (Yam) – 42. 10. Kyle Swanson (Hon) – 40.
2014 X-Games – Austin, Texas
Moto X Step-Up: Ronnie Renner earned his sixth gold medal in Step-Up at the 2014 X-Games held at the Circuit of the Americas Grand Prix facility in Austin, TX.
Renner entered his sixteenth X-Games appearance confident from the start of the afternoon practice session, to clearing the first height of 24 feet in the final. Renner cleared the bar in the next two rounds with ease with all riders remaining. Without difficulty, Renner made it over 30 feet and then 32 feet where three of his top competitors were eliminated.
“I was pumped when we made it over 32,” said Renner. “I knew I was at least in medal contention at that point, but at the same time knew I could keep going higher.”
It was down to three riders at 33 feet and Renner was able to move on and Libor Podmol was eliminated. The bar was then raised to 33 feet and 6 inches in which both Renner and Bryce Hudson comfortably cleared. In the last round, Renner was able to beat out Hudson by clearing 34 feet, clinching the 2014 X-Games gold in Step-Up.
Moto X Step-Up Final: 1. Ronnie Renner. 2. Bryce Hudson. 3. Libor Podmol. 4. Josh Hansen. 5. Massimo Bianconcini. 6. Matt Buyten
Moto X Best Whip Final: 1. Tom Parsons. 2. Jeremy Stenberg. 3. Josh Hansen. 4. Lance Coury. 5. Vicki Golden. 6. Beau Bamburg.
Speed and Style Final: 1 Mike Mason. 2. Blake Williams. 3. Jarryd McNeil. 4. Kris Foster. 5. Beau Bambur.
2014 Tatts Finke Desert Race
415 motorcycle and quad competitors fronted up to the start line for the 2014 Tatts Finke Desert Race and as one would expect Toby Price dominated the event – here is as much info as is available at the time of writing.
Day 1 Report: Maitland NSW rider Toby Price on his #299 KTM 500 EXC has been relentless in pursuing another victory on Day 1 of the bike competition at the 2014 Tatts Finke Desert Race.
The KTM star had a battle royal with David Walsh from Alice Springs riding the #X94 Honda CRF450, but steadily pulled ahead as the race progressed.
At the first checkpoint at Deep Well (68 kms from the start) the gap between the two was 14 seconds.
At the second check point at Rodinga (98 kms from the start) the gap was 27 seconds in favour of Price, and at Bundooma (140 kms from the start) Price had extended the gap to 54 seconds.
By the Mount Squires check point (172 kms from the start) the gap was 1 minute and 16 seconds and at the overnight stop at Finke, Price’s KTM was 2 minutes and 4 seconds ahead of the Honda of David Walsh.
Toby Price’s total time for the trip was 1 hour 58 minutes 43 seconds. He is a two time Tatts Finke Desert Race winner (2010, 2012).
By comparison last year’s (2013) leading Day 1 time was 2 hours and 23 seconds recorded by Todd Smith.
David Walsh placed second in the 2012 event and finished today’s run in 2 hours and 47 seconds in third position in Finke today was Ivan Long from Tanunda in SA on #5 KTM 500 EXC in a time of 2 hours 1 minute and 35 seconds.
Josh Green #3 Yamaha YZ450F from NSW came in 4th with a time of 2 hours 2 minutes and 47 seconds followed by Daymon Stokie from Alice Springs on the #X97 Honda CRF450 (2 hours four minutes and 19 seconds).
Last year’s winner Todd Smith from NSW on the #1 Honda CRF450R secured 6th spot today taking 2 hours 5 minutes and 44 seconds for the 226 kilometre journey.
Four time Finke winner Ben Grabham from Bathurst in NSW was seventh at the overnight stop with his #11 KTM 500 EXC in a time of 2 hours 7 minutes and 42 seconds.
Day 2 Report: It was only this time last year that Price was in the spectator area and supporting his KTM team mates while wearing a neck brace as a result of breaking three bones in his neck while practicing for the Baja 500 in the USA.
Today’s victory was especially sweet, not only adding to his victories in 2010 and 2012 but by in his own words, ‘getting the monkey off my back after the accident….if I hadn’t done well, people would say I was done’.
Aboard his #299 KTM EXC, Price finished today’s leg from the Finke overnight start to the Alice Springs finish in a time 1 hour 57 minutes and 45 seconds with a total event time of 3 hours 56 minutes and 29 seconds.
Price said his race weekend had been made more difficult by prologuing late in the day with the track cut up by both the cars and the bike field but he had done the job by setting this fastest time.
‘This was about quarter of the job done (to win the event), then I got good pace on the way down (yesterday) and made sure I finished, and then I got in the groove on the way home today and my KTM bike was awesome’, he added.
Local Alice Springs rider David Walsh took second place on the #X94 Honda CRF450 completing today’s leg in a time of 1 hour 57 minutes and 24 seconds for a total event time of 3 hours 58 minutes and 12 seconds finishing 1 minute 43 seconds behind Price.
Walsh said the track yesterday was very tough and it was difficult to see the whoops.
Third position went to Ivan Long from Tanunda in South Australia riding the #5 KTM500 EXC.
Long blitzed the ride home today with the fastest time, a highly impressive 1 hour 56 minutes and 48 seconds to keep the pressure on Walsh who only had an 11 second gap on him at the finish line.
His overall time for the event was 3 hours 58 minutes and 23 seconds. This was Long’s fourth ride at the event with his previous best placing being 5th last year.
Despite track conditions being described by many riders as among the toughest they had experienced, the winning time of Toby Price (3h 56m 29s) was considerably faster than the winning time set by Todd Smith at last year’s event (4h 2m 8s).
Pos Class Number Competitor Town Bike Overall Time
1 2 299 PRICE, TOBY MAITLAND, NSW KTM 500 EXC 03:56:29
2 5 X94 WALSH, DAVID ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF450 03:58:12
3 2 5 LONG, IVAN TANUNDA, SA KTM 500 EXC 03:58:23
4 5 3 GREEN, JOSH SOLDIERS POINT, NSW YAMAHA YZ450F 04:02:38
5 5 X97 STOKIE, DAYMON ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF450 03:37
6 5 6 DOOLEY-MCD, JACK ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF450 04:11:38
7 5 1 SMITH, TODD CONDOBOLIN, NSW HONDA CRF450R 04:11:49
8 5 13 WALSH, MICHAEL ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF 04:12:17
9 2 294 EWIN, JARED ALICE SPRINGS, NT KAWASAKI KX450 04:15:38
10 5 7 AURICHT, CALEB ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF450R 04:16:11
11 2 11 GRABHAM, BEN BATHURST, NSW KTM 500 EXC 04:20:45
12 5 2 SMITH, JACOB CONDOBOLIN, NSW HONDA CRF450R 04:21:53
13 5 X31 RALSTON, BEAU SEAHAMPTON, NSW YAMAHA YZF450 04:24:04
14 4 401 CARTER, WAYDE EDEN PARK , VIC KTM 250 EXC 04:28:29
15 5 9 SUMMERS, Lachlan ALICE SPRINGS, NT KX450F 04:28:36
16 5 18 TURNER, WILLIAM ALICE SPRINGS , NT HONDA CRF 450 04:28:58
17 5 X92 OBST, AARON ALICE SPRINGS, NT HONDA CRF450R 04:30:30
18 3 399 TRIGG, NATHAN OUYEN, VIC KTM 250 SX 04:34:00
19 5 16 ARMSTEAD, KENNY ALICE SPRINGS, NT KTM 450 SX-F 04:34:21
20 5 X98 BRANFORD, RYAN ALICE SPRINGS, NT KTM SX-F 04:35:08
2014 Pro Nationals Motocross Festival – Weston super Mare
Never heard of it before but the Pro Nationals Motocross Festival is reportedly one of the biggest motocross meetings in the UK and last weekend there were literally hundreds of amateur and pro motocrossers, FMX, quad and side-by-side competitors competing over two days of racing on two separate tracks.
As you can see from the results from the Pro MX1 class some of the UK’s fastest motocrossers turned up for the event.
MX1 Results: 1. Nathan Watson. 2. Kristian Whatley. 3. Graham Irwin. 4. Gert Krestinov. 5. Alex Snow. 6. Steven Lenoir. 7. Brad Anderson. 8. Alfie Smith. 9. Priit Ratsep. 10. Luke Hawkins.
Moto Wrap for the weekend of June 14/15 includes:
- Round 10 of the World Motocross Championships at Maggiora, Italy
- Round 5 of the UK MX Nationals at Foxhills
- Round 5 of the World Enduro Championships at Enköping, Sweden (includes Women)
- Round 5 of the FIM Speedway Championships in (Malilla) Sweden
- Round 4 of the AMA Motocross Championship at the High Point National, Mt. Morris, Pa.
- Round 3 of the Canadian Motocross Championships at Calgary
