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Moto News Weekly Wrap
September 12, 2023

What’s New:

• WSX cancel three 2023 rounds
• Liam Walsh conquers 2023 Don River Dash
• 2023 FIM Flat Track World Championship – Final Two Report
• Top-10 result for Aussies at 2023 Trial des Nations
• Spain wins TdN 2023
• Central Coast Cup 2023 run and won
• 2023 New Zealand Hard Enduro Championships Opener
• Jay Wilson’s Japan MX success continues at Round Six
• Matt Moss to Empire Kawasaki for Australian Supercross
• Jeremy Seewer to join KRT for MXGP season 2024
• Jared Mees celebrates ninth career Grand National Championship
• Tarrés & Botturi top 2023 TransAnatolia
• Daniel Milner wraps up Italian Enduro in eighth overall
• 2023 SMX World Championship – Play-Off 1
• 2023 Racing Calendars

WSX cancel three 2023 rounds

SX Global, the promoters of the FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX), today announced revisions to their 2023 calendar.

The 2023 WSX Singaporean, German and Canadian Grands Prix will not proceed as planned this year; however, the 2023 WSX Abu Dhabi & Australian Grands Prix will still run as scheduled.

For the full run down see:
WSX cancel Singaporean, German and Canadian rounds (link)

Liam Walsh conquers 2023 Don River Dash

Competitors pitted themselves against each other along the southern bed of Bowen’s Don River over the weekend in the fifth running of the Don River Dash.

Navigating their way through a mixture of sand, rocks, and jumps, riders run a 50 km return loop on the river bed across two days. The total distance covered is more than 300 kilometres.

Darwin’s Liam Walsh won the event for the second year in succession on his KTM 500 EXC-F, Samuel Handley was runner-up and Nathan Trigg third.

Rounding out the top-10 were Jesse McMillan-Moore, Jackson McGrath, Zachary Watson, Dusty Clem, Jack Larter (as the only non-Pro class rider in the top 10, Clubman Over 255 cc class), Simon Cox and Thomas Kruger.

2023 Don River Dash Results – Top 10

2023 FIM Flat Track World Championship – Final Two Report

The pecking order has changed atop of the 2023 FIM Flat Track World Championship standings following a dramatic afternoon at Debrecen in Hungary where the second of this year’s five Finals was staged in the Perenyi Pal Salakmotor Stadion.

There is still a Czech rider at the top of the points table, but it is now Ervin Krajčovič (KTM) – who was second at the season opener in Great Britain at the start of last month – who is setting the pace after finishing third in the Grand Final in Hungary.

Consistency wins titles and with his back-to-back podium finishes Krajčovič is now two points clear. However, there is still a long way to go before the championship is decided and Debrecen saw the return to top form of Italy’s Matteo Boncinelli (GASGAS) and defending champion Gerard Bailo (KTM) from Spain.

The pair battled it out last year with Bailo narrowly beating Boncinelli to the crown and, after both failed to make the podium at round one in Manchester, it was the Italian on top today with Bailo finishing runner-up. The result lifts them into a three-way tie for second with the Czech Republic’s Ondřej Svědík (Yamaha) who won in Great Britain and was sixth this afternoon.

With the first ten riders following the sixteen Heat races going directly into the Grand Final, Boncinelli’s progress throughout the afternoon’s programme was untroubled and he qualified on top tied with Australia’s Jarred Brook (Husqvarna) after both dropped just one point.

Bailo also enjoyed a relatively smooth ride through his four Heat races with three wins and a third and Krajčovič, Italy’s Daniele Moschini (GASGAS), Matias Lorenzato (Zaeta) from Argentina, French rider Sebastien Jeanpierre (Kawasaki) and German veteran Markus Jell (KTM) all posted four solid rides to qualify.

Italy’s Vittorio Emanuele Marzotto (Fantic) and American star ‘Slammin’ Sammy’ Halbert also went straight through to the Grand Final despite both being disqualified from the results of a Heat race with Marzotto taking three wins and Halbert two wins and a second.

The final two places behind the startline for the Grand Final were decided in the Last Chance race for riders who finished the Heats positioned from eleventh to twentieth and Svědík, who was struggling to find his form following a five-week break after round one, booked his place with victory ahead of Italy’s Daniele Tonelli (TM).

By running one-two in the Grand Final, Boncinelli and Bailo have posted a clear warning to their rivals that they mean business again this year, while Krajčovič and Svědík remain firmly in the hunt to become the Czech Republic’s first-ever FIM Flat Track World Champion.

Halbert and Jell saw their title hopes suffer a serious blow when they were both disqualified from the Grand Final and Jarred Brook will also be seriously disappointed after retiring from the main race of the afternoon, however with the third Final scheduled for this coming Saturday (16 September) at Boves in Italy all three will have the chace to bounce back quickly.

2023 FIM Flat Track World Championship – Final Two Results

Top-10 result for Aussies at 2023 Trial des Nations

Team Australia produced a tenacious performance in the 2023 Trial des Nations (TdN), which was held in challenging conditions at the French ski resort of Auron on Sunday, September 10.

Auron, located 1700 metres above sea level, was not only stifling – a continuation of a brutal European summer – but the sections were heavily characterised by huge rocks and steep, loose climbs.

In the 18-country International Trophy division, the Australian men’s trio of Kyle Middleton (TRRS), Connor Hogan (Gas Gas) and Chris Bayles (TRRS) finished fifth for the second year in succession.

It was Australia’s 27th top-10 finish in the International Trophy, which included a stirring victory in 2017.

Meanwhile, Lillie Yiatrou (Vertigo) and Kaitlyn Cummins (TRRS) recovered from a slow start in the women’s open category to complete the two-lap 30-section TdN in eighth position – a result even more meritorious considering that Australia was one of only two teams to compete with a minimum two-rider roster. The balance of the 11 countries had three riders, with only the best two scores counted in every section.

Spain wins TdN 2023

Toni Bou and Gabriel Marcelli, together with Jaime Busto, formed this year’s Spain team after the results obtained by them in the 2023 TrialGP World Championship. They once again prevailed over the rest of the participating countries and beat France, who were second, and Italy, who closed out the podium.

Great Britain and Norway rounded out the World Championship field, in fourth and fifth respectively.

Toni Bou

“I’m very happy with this victory in the Trial des Nations. We have a great team and as always we had a great time competing together. It was Gabri’s first year and he did a brilliant job, as did Jaime. I want to thank the Spanish Federation for trusting in me for another year and I am very happy with the new title. It is a great way to end the season and now we are focused on the three remaining rounds of the X-Trial World Championship.”

Jaime Busto

“It is an incredible feeling to close the season with a result like this. We are really happy and we had a very strong team so we could concentrate on having fun and just enjoying the whole experience. Of course, we took the race very seriously, but it has been an amazing weekend and we had such a great time – taking the win is great. It couldn’t have been any better to be honest.”

The International Trophy was won by Japan, with Germany not far off in second, followed by the Czech Republic and United States, with only four-points separating third from fourth, and a podium step.

Australia was fifth, two-points clear of Finland, followed by Andorra and Austria, with five-points in total between the four teams. A more distant ninth and 10th were Poland and Sweden.

Great Britain won the Women’s Championship, heading off Spain, while Norway was a more distant third, with France and Italy not far off in fourth and fifth.

Germany and United States claimed sixth and seventh, Australia’s two-women line-up eighth, ahead of Poland who also ran a two-woman team. Switzerland and Canada rounded out the field in 10th and 11th.

2023 Trial des Nations Results – World Championship

2023 Trial des Nations Results – International Trophy

2023 Trial des Nations Results – Women’s Championship

Central Coast Cup run and won

With Peter Baker

Host club member David Smith became the most successful rider in the history of the Central Coast Cup long track meeting when he won the Senior Cup for a record-breaking fourth time on Sunday, September 10.

The Allen Park track at Somersby was the scene of two days of quality close-fought action with tense finales in all classes to resolve the outcomes. The Central Coast Cup events for juniors and seniors came at the end of the Sunday programme, but there was plenty of excitement in the races decided before then.

The MX Open final was won by defending Senior Cup winner Luke Bush ahead of fellow young guns Blake Wilby and Cody Lewis and that result fired up David Smith after he copped a few severe checks in running.

Next up Smith won the Pro 450 final, with Wilby and Lewis again in the minor placings.

The eight-lap Senior Cup final was dominated by Smith who scored an emphatic victory while most eyes were fixed on the battle for the minor placings which was only resolved at the last corner when Brayden Gay pulled off a stunning pass to grab second place ahead of Bush, Lewis, Jayden Rodgers and Angus Hutchinson.

The Pro 250 class had earlier produced a win for Angus Hutchinson.

The Over 35s again turned on their shares of thrills with Anthony Farrell outpointing Josh McCosker after close battles in all five rounds.

Sharnelle Sipple was the only entrant for the Pro Womens class and she actually raced among the Over 35s and clearly enjoyed some of her battles.

There was always going to be a new name inscribed on the honour roll for the Junior Cup and it was always going to be one of a number of very promising young talents.

Gold Coast rider Bodie Paige got to the lead early in the 8-lap Junior Cup race and although Lachlan Russell stayed close to him for several laps Paige was ultimately a clear winner. Jayden Holder, Max Earl, James Wood and Hugh Hope-Hodgetts followed Paige and Russell home.

Bodie Paige had earlier won the four-stroke class for the 13 – Under 16s while Jayden Holder won the 2-stroke class.

The most dominant rider on the weekend was recently crowned Australian champion Cohen McCosker (7-U/9s) who won all three classes he entered, winning in all five rounds in each of those classes despite a few close battles.

Even with a small field the junior girls’ races were as good as any action on the weekend and it took an overtaking move by Holly Hope-Hodgetts late in the last round to get the better of Amelia Kotze and recent Australian champion Romee Flewell-Smith.

Other junior class winners were Jake Paige, Hayden Duggan, Jed Fyffe and Zac Brady meaning there were plenty of long-distance travelers to the meeting who were taking home some more luggage in the form of trophies.

Saturday’ programme wrapped up with a series of Shoot-Out one lap dashes for both seniors and juniors which were well received as a variety from longer races. The winners were David Smith and Bodie Paige in what was an omen for bigger successes for both on Sunday.

The local St Johns First Aid benefited from the gate takings from the meeting and most pleasingly had only a few racing incidents to attend to.

2023 Central Coast Cup Results

2023 New Zealand Hard Enduro Championships Opener

The 2023 New Zealand Hard Enduro Championships has kicked off just north of Wellington over the weekend, marking the first two rounds.

Combined results saw Ryan Hayward take the overall, 47-seconds clear of Jake Whitaker, while Luke Corson rounded out the top three, a further nine-minutes in arrears.

Filling out the rest of the top-10 were Sam Parker, Tom O’Brien, Arhcer Pascoe, Mark Horwell, Angus Wakeman, Campbell Easton and Caleb Adlam.

The next round takes place in Canterbury, November 17-18.

2023 New Zealand Hard Enduro Gold Class Results

Jay Wilson’s Japan MX success continues at Round Six

Yamaha Factory Innovation team rider, Jay Wilson, extended his winning streak to 13 races in the Japanese Motocross Championships when he dominated round six on the weekend, in the IA1 division.

Wilson just completed a stint in the US racing two rounds of the AMA Motocross Championship and working closely with the Star Yamaha team, returned to Japan and picked up where he left off, in winning form.

Despite carrying an ankle injury sustained while in the US, Wilson was still able to win both events contested at the Nara circuit. The sandy based track carved up nicely and become rough, bumpy and challenging for the riders not to mention Wilson’s dodgy ankle but was able to manage his weekend and get through with two more race wins.

His only blemish came in Saturdays qualifying race when he struggled with both the bike, the body and the conditions but he was able to rebound strongly on Sunday and stretch his win streak to 13 in 2023.

Jay Wilson

“Of all the tracks to have an ankle issue, this wouldn’t be at the top of my list. It’s a loose, sandy surface with a hard base in spots that gets ruts as well as whoops, so it was a tough weekend in some ways to manage my ankle through it. Fortunately, I was able to get some good starts and get to the front quickly and stay out of the opening lap chaos. There are a lot of turns on this track and a lot of pushing and shoving going on in the pack, so it was important I stayed out of it and avoided the trouble. It’s been a hectic month with racing and testing in the US and then straight back here for this round but it’s good to be back and racing again and nice to see such a big crowd turn out for the round.”

The next round of the championship fires up on October 8 at Kumamoto where Wilson will be looking to increase his lead and possibly lock down his second championship if the cards fall his way.

Matt Moss to Empire Kawasaki for Australian Supercross

Empire Kawasaki has signed Matt Moss for the upcoming Australian Supercross Series. No stranger to the Australian motocross and supercross scene, most will know Moss from the nine championship victories that he has previously claimed.

Team Manager Tyson Cherry revealed that Moss will be competing in the highly competitive SX1 category aboard the mighty Kawasaki KX450.

Tyson Cherry – Empire Kawasaki Team Manager

“I am absolutely thrilled about our signing of Matt Moss for the upcoming Supercross series. Empire Kawasaki is returning to the premium SX1 class. It is exciting to collaborate with this awesome athlete, and we can’t wait to get started.”

Moss seemed to echo Cherry’s excitement, recalling his recent win with Kawasaki on the world stage.

Matt Moss

“I am thrilled to be part of Empire Kawasaki for the upcoming Australian SX series. After achieving success with Kawasaki, winning the Prince of Paris last year, I eagerly anticipate building on that success with this fantastic brand and team.”

Regular Empire Kawasaki rider Haruki Yokoyama will round out the team’s 2023 supercross entry on the KX250 in the SX2 class. Yokoyama comes off the back of an eventful season with Empire Kawasaki, where the Japanese racer managed to claim 10th in the SX2 class of the 2023 ProMX championship.

The 2023 Australian Supercross Championship is scheduled to kick off at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on October 7. The second round will take place at the McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle on November 11. The third and final round of the series will take place at the Marvel Stadium in Melbourne on November 24.

Jeremy Seewer to join KRT for MXGP season 2024

The Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP will welcome Jeremy Seewer to the official Kawasaki factory squad for the 2024 FIM Motocross World Championship season next year.

A racing pedigree that includes 11 visits to the top of the podium as race winner, seven overall GP victories and no less than 28 MXGP podiums is an impressive record for the 29 year old Swiss rider who is determined to secure overall Championship honours in MXGP where he has previously taken the silver medal in 2019, 2020 and again in 2022.

Antti Pyrhönen – Team Manager of KRT

“On behalf of KRT I want to express how excited we are to have Jeremy on board for 2024. Romain Febvre has shown that the factory KX450-SR is a race winning machine and we are sure it is capable of winning the Championship. With Jeremy as part of KRT in 2024 we have a formidable rider line up and a very real prospect to achieve our goal of overall Championship success.”

Jared Mees celebrates ninth career Grand National Championship

Before the 2023 Progressive American Flat Track season began, the prospect of tying Scottie Parker’s all-time career championship record loomed large.

Despite fierce competition against the ultra-consistent, young talent of Dallas Daniels, Jared Mees reminded everyone that he’s still at the top of his game. With each checkered flag, Mees and his Indian FTR750 inched closer and closer to his career goal of tying Scottie Parker’s historic all-time championship record.

Through more than three-quarters of the season, Mees trailed Daniels, as back-to-back wins to start the season and a podium streak of 13 races kept Daniels at the top of the leaderboard.

Mees had a strong run for himself, winning six of eight races between the Senoia Short Track and the Orange County Half-Mile and securing a 14-race podium streak starting at the Dallas Half-Mile until the season’s finale at Springfield Mile II.

Mees finished the season with nine wins. In addition to 2023 marking Mees’ ninth-career championship, it also was a historic seven-consecutive AFT SuperTwins championships for Indian Motorcycle Racing and the FTR750.

Jared Mees

“It’s what you wake up for every day. It’s what you train for. Hats off to Scottie Parker – that’s the guy that keeps me going. He kept me going year after year, race after race. He’s still the best in my book, and it’s an honor to match something that he did.”

This year’s championship marked Mees’ fifth aboard the FTR750 – winning titles in 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Briar Bauman owns the FTR750’s other titles, winning in 2019 and 2020 as a member of the Indian Wrecking Crew.

Gary Gray – VP Racing, Service & Tech, Indian Motorcycle

“Since our return to professional flat track racing in 2017, there has been no greater pairing in the sport than Jared Mees and the Indian FTR750. There’s no questioning Jared’s drive and dedication, as he’s truly one of the hardest working athletes in the paddock but jumping on an FTR750 proved to be a major unlock in his career, as he’s captured five of his nine career titles aboard that bike.”

Tarrés & Botturi top 2023 TransAnatolia

The Yamaha Ténéré World Raid Team continues to rip up the record books, this time after Pol Tarrés secured his maiden rally raid victory and a stunning first win for a twin-cylinder adventure bike at the TransAnatolia with his teammate Alessandro Botturi ensuring they created more history by making at a 1-2.

The 2023 TransAnatolia saw competitors ride over 2,300km in seven days as they traversed from the east to the west coast of Turkey, starting at the Black Sea port of Samsun before ending in Izmir on the Aegean Sea. After the first six days, Tarrés had opened up an advantage of 12 minutes and 14 seconds at the head of the overall general classification over Botturi in second, with a four-minute and 22-second buffer to the rider in third.

The duo were on the verge of re-writing the record books as they aimed to be the first riders on a twin-cylinder adventure bike competing in the B2 class to win the rally against the 450cc prototypes in the B1 category, but there was all still to play for on the final day.

Saturday’s schedule involved a 18.22km liaison from the bivouac in Simav to the beginning of the 54.94km 14th stage on the Raiders Road. The riders then had a long 198.40km liaison to the start of the final 39.69km special of the rally before a 22.39km liaison to the official podium ceremony.

Having taken the lead in the general classification on Day 3, Tarrés had the unenviable task of leading out the day’s first special, as he has on many of the stages during the event. Despite the pressure, the 29-year-old showed no nerves and managed to maintain a good pace without taking any unnecessary risks to finish the stage in fifth. While it was the first time he had not been on the overall stage podium during the rally, his time of 53 minutes and 53 seconds meant he only conceded two minutes and 24 seconds to the winner of the special.

After a long liaison, Tarrés went into stage 15, knowing precisely what he had to do to win his maiden rally. The Andorran rode superbly, once again ensuring he made zero errors to record another fifth-place finish with a time of 40 minutes and 29 seconds, conceding just one minute and 22 seconds to the stage winner.

This meant that Tarrés, who was not 100% fit coming into the TransAnatolia after suffering a leg injury, had achieved his dream of winning a rally at only the fifth attempt in his fledgeling career. His combined time of 16 hours, 10 minutes, and 10 seconds saw him finish with an 11-minute and seven-second advantage over his teammate in second. Tarrés secured the overall victory in impressive style on his GYRT-kitted Ténéré 700 World Rally, with two special stage victories and a further nine podiums to his name, leaving no doubt he is one to watch in the world of rally raid.

Pol Tarrés – P1

“It is a dream come true! I still cannot believe I have won my first rally. I was leading since the third day, and I think I managed well at the front. I was opening the stage again today, so it was a real test of my navigation. I tried not to take any risks, and I am happy that I managed to bring it home and won the race by over 11 minutes in the end. We had some strong competition here in Turkey, so it means a lot to me, and to have Botturi in second is amazing for the team, Yamaha, and the entire project. I want to say thank you to everyone in the team for doing such a brilliant job, giving me such a good bike every day, and making it possible. Honestly, this is what dreams are made of!”

Daniel Milner wraps up Italian Enduro in eighth overall

The Italian Enduro season has wrapped up in Boario Terme, Lombardy, with Steve Holcombe and Andrea Verona battling it out for top honours.

With 20 special tests to compete, Holcombe head into the final with a 14-point lead and five consecutive wins, but Verona wasn’t going to make it easy.

By rounds end however, it was Holcombe claiming the title, Verona having to concede for the runner-up position. Hamish McDonald was a distant third, while Thomas Oldrati and Nathan Watson tied in fourth.

Steve Holcombe

“It started a little slow, but then it got better and better, you can see that I needed more confidence after two difficult years, let’s say not too good for me. I believe that the decisive improvement came just before the summer, then sensations and confidence began to grow. The last race in Boario was a little different from the others in the Championship, more sprint, but in England there are those of this type and I like them. Great ending, great match against Verona, and now maximum concentration on the World Cup!”

Aussie Daniel Milner was also competing in the Italian Enduro Championship and wrapped up the season in eighth overall in the Assoluti D’Italia class, and fourth in the ‘Stranieri’ class, which was won by Ben Herrera.

Daniel Milner

“Pace fuori campionato italiano. Stoked that’s over! P4 class and P8 overall for my last ever Italian championship. Thanks for getting me through it legend Scott Lillis.”

Wil Ruprecht finished his season in 11th overall.

2023 SMX World Championship – Play-Off 1

For the full report, results and rider quotes see:
Sexton & Shimoda top opening SuperMotocross play-off

The first of two play-offs that are part of the inaugural 2023 SuperMotocross World Championship kicked off at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The SuperMotocross World Championship is composed of two Playoff rounds and one Final, raced over the three consecutive weekends. The points payout will double at Playoff 2 and be awarded at triple their normal payout at the Final.

When the dust has settled, the 450 Class SMX Champion will earn a cool $1,000,000 championship win bonus and the 250 Class SMX Champion will take home $500,000. The riders competing were seeded based on their combined points of the two 2023 race seasons and allotted points equivalent to one race prior to the start of the post-season.

HRC’s Chase Sexton earned two convincing Moto wins to take the overall 450 victory.

Ken Roczen returned to racing after taking most of the AMA Pro Motocross season off to finish second overall thanks to consistent 3-3 moto scores.  Dylan Ferrandis took third overall off the back of 2-4 moto finishes.

Jett Lawrence carded fourth after a poor seventh placed result in the opening moto before bouncing with a second place in the second encounter to out-score Jason Anderson.

Jo Shimoda earned the 250 event win with 4-1 Moto scores in the highly competitive and aggressive 250 class. Tom Vialle the runner-up on 3-2 results with Haiden Deegan completing the top three after winning the opening moto and taking fifth in the second bout. Hunter Lawrence carded 9-7 results for eighth overall.

2023 Racing schedule

Revised 2023 MXGP Calendar (Remaining Rounds)

2023 FIM EnduroGP World Championship Calendar

2023 American Flat Track Calendar

2023 FIM World Supercross Calendar