Moto News Weekly Wrap for October 6 by Darren Smart
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Australasian News
Australian Supercross Championship Kicks Off: On Saturday, October the 10th the Supercheap Auto-sponsored opening round of the 2015 Australian Supercross Championship will kick-off at Bathurst Showgrounds and with the event taking place on the same weekend as the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 there should be a huge crowd on hand to see Australia’s best supercross riders do battle.
I won’t bet against Matt Moss continuing his winning run in the MX1 championship but who will win the MX2 class is anyone’s guess – I will have a full report and results next week.
Milner Returns to CDR Yamaha for A4DE – World number two and former multi-time Australian Off Road champion, Daniel Milner, will return to Australia in the coming weeks to compete at the prestigious Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE) with the CDR Yamaha team. Milner, who has been based in the US for the past 12 months racing for the Randy Hawkins managed, Am-Pro Yamaha team, is set to take the A4DE by storm and look to make it four consecutive victories after his success in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
And he lands in Australia in good form after coming off his magnificent second place finish in the International Six Day Event in Slovakia. Milner went bar to bar with US rider Ryan Sipes in a six day duel that will long be remembered in which he eventually finished second and was part of the Trophy and the Yamaha manufacturer teams which also finished second. It will be a reunion of sorts with Milner hooking up with his old CDR Yamaha team who will take care of his bike and all the technical duties while here in Australia and both hope to relive the success of previous years.
“I’m really excited about coming home to see all my friends and family and it also coincides with the A4DE in Tasmania so the timing couldn’t be better,” Milner enthuses. “The A4DE has always been a favourite event of mine and even when discussing my contract in the US, it was an event I wanted to be a part of and it’s great that my US team, Am-Pro Yamaha and CDR Yamaha have been able to work together to make this happen.
“CDR Yamaha have again stepped up to help me and it will be awesome working with Craig and the team again. I have great memories and plenty of race wins because of them so it will be good to get among the crew again and have some fun times,” Milner ends.
Joining Milner will be usual CDR Yamaha off road racer, Chris Hollis. After an injury interrupted season, Hollis has hit his stride at the right time of the year and stormed home in the final rounds of the AORC and climbed all the way back to third outright despite missing two rounds.
“The A4DE is a great event and riding in Tasmania is always good as the conditions are usually near perfect,” Hollis explains. “Having Dan back is also good as we both get on so well and it makes for a great atmosphere both on and off the trail.”
Both riders will compete on the Yamaha YZ450F and be chasing outright and E2 class success.
Brett Metcalfe Returns: Speaking of the Australian Supercross Championships, Brett Metcalfe has confirmed that he will ride the Wayville round on October 31. “It’s awesome that supercross is returning to Adelaide,” Metcalfe said. “I grew up watching it there before I had the chance to race. The venue is massive and will allow for a proper full-sized supercross track, and I am excited to be a part of its return. I have already started training, and I plan to race the Red Bull Rhythm again, which will help with my preparations.”
More Stars for All-Japan Final Round: It has already been confirmed that Honda riders Trey Canard and new MX2 World Champion Tim Gajser will compete in the final round of the All Japan Motocross Championship series being held at Sportsland Sugo on 25 October. Well, after a cracker year so far Yamaha refuses to be out-done in 2015 and have convinced three of their hottest riders to race at the eventso MXGP world champion Romain Febvre, AMA 250cc champion Jeremy Martin and Team USA rider Cooper Webb will be on hand to try and put plenty of blue on the podium.
Head2Head at Sydney Showgrounds: The 2015 Sydney Motorcycle Show presented by InsureMyRide at Sydney Showgrounds on November 20-22 will host some of Australia’s best motorcycle racers competing in the Honda Motorcycles Head2Head EnduroCross.
The Honda Motorcycles Head2Head EnduroCross will see riders duel on a 2500sqm purpose built track located within the 3000 seat Charles Moses Stadium. Riders will compete on a track that incorporates all the standard endurocross obstacles including logs, rocks, tyres and sand.
A4DE: Final Full Rider list for the 2015 A4DE can be downloaded here.
American News
2016 AMA Motocross Schedule Announced: The 2016 AMA Motocross Championship will once again consist of twelve rounds of competition in its forty-fourth season, composed of twenty-four motos that will take the riders to eleven different states, including the highly anticipated return of the Southwick National in Southwick, Massachusetts, for the first time since the 2013 season.
- Rd1: May 21 – Hangtown Motocross Classic – Prairie City SVRA – Sacramento, California
- Rd2: May 28 – Glen Helen National – Glen Helen Raceway – San Bernardino, California
- Rd3: June 4 – Thunder Valley National – Thunder Valley MX Park – Lakewood, Colorado
- Rd4: June 18 – High Point National – High Point Raceway – Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania
- Rd5: June 25 – Tennessee National – Muddy Creek Raceway – Blountville, Tennessee
- Rd6: July 2 – RedBud National – RedBud MX – Buchanan, Michigan
- Rd7: July 9 – Southwick National – Southwick MX Park – Southwick, Massachusetts
- Rd8: July 16 – Spring Creek National – Spring Creek MX Park – Millville, Minnesota
- Rd9: July 23 – Washougal National – Washougal MX Park – Washougal, Washington
- Rd10: August 13 – Unadilla National – Unadilla MX – New Berlin, New York
- Rd11: August 20 – Budds Creek National – Budds Creek MX Park – Mechanicsville, Maryland
- Rd12: August 27 – Ironman National – Ironman Raceway – Crawfordsville, Indiana
Strang, Milner and Jones Top Ten in GNCC: Josh Strang, Daniel Milner and Tayla Jones have put in stellar rides at round 11 of AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) held in Pennsylvania last weekend. In muddy conditions Strang was able to claw his way up to fourth place after a mediocre start while Milner continues his hot form from the ISDE to finish a credible 7th place overall and Jones ended the day in third place in the Women’s class. See the full report and results below.
Martinez Stays on Yamaha: Barn Pros Racing/Home Depot Yamaha have agreed to a deal with Cole Martinez for the 2016 season, the team announced resently. Martinez, entering his fourth professional season, spent last year with Strikt-Slaton Yamaha finishing fourteenth in the 250SX West Region.
Martinez spent the summer racing the Canadian Nationals with Monster Energy/Thor Kawasaki, finishing tenth overall in MX2 after missing three rounds with a shoulder injury. “Cole has a lot to prove in 2016 and after a solid 2015 season and after his hard work during the off-season we are expecting big things,” said team manager Scot Steffy who also announced that the team would consist of three riders this year, with more announcements coming as deals are finalised.
Bell Defends His WORCS Title: Robby Bell reclaimed the number one plate with second-place finish at the final round of the 2015 Rocky Mountain MC World Off-Road Championship Series (WORCS) held at Glen Helen. Gary Sutherlin dominated the hilly course for the win, followed by Bell and Justin Jones.
Supercross – Straight and Bent: There is plenty of action in the USA over the next two weekends with the Red Bull Straight Rhythm being hosted at Pomona, California on the 10th of October then the following weekend we have the 2015 Monster Energy Cup in Las Vegas.
Euro News
2015 World Enduro Championship – It’s Over!: The final two rounds of the 2015 World Enduro Championships was held in France last weekend and all of the champions have finally been crowned. Eero Remes (TM) wrapped up the Enduro 1 World Championship ahead of Christophe Nambotin and Danny McCanney with a win in France while newly crowned Enduro 2 champion Antoine Meo opted not to race the final round so behind Meo in the championship standings were Alex Salvini, Pela Renet, Jamue Betriu and Loic Larrieu rounding out the top five.
Matt Phillips won the penultimate round of the Enduro 3 championship but crashes on Sunday put pay to a perfect end to an imperfect season with the Aussie handing his E3 championship to Mathias Bellino who took the title over Phillips and Matti Seistola.
Phillips had this to say on his FB page: ‘Well that ends my 3rd season of EWC, two championships and a second place finish this year. Can’t complain! Had some great times with awesome people along the way.’
Doyle Second at Torun: Aussie Jason Doyle reach his maiden SGP final last weekend at the SGP of Torun and his 18-point haul has pushed him up to fifth place in the World Championship. Fellow Aussie Chris Holder finished the night in 5th with 11 points and still sits in the all-important 8th place in the series while Troy Batchelor continues to struggle to garner any serious points.
Gorzow to host SGP Till 2018: Polish speedway city Gorzow will continue to host the FIM Speedway World Championships for the next four seasons after SGP and SWC rights holders BSI Speedway agreed a new deal with the Stal Gorzow club and City of Gorzow to keep the Gorzow FIM Speedway Grand Prix of Poland at the Edward Jancarz Stadium until 2018.
Desalle to Kawasaki: This is big!! Long-time factory Suzuki pilot Clement Desalle will join Jordi Tixier in the Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team on the brand new KX450F-SR Kawasaki for the next two years. Both riders will soon start testing with the team.
Clement has been a star of the MXGP World Championship over the last seven years with nineteen GP wins and five series medals so he is one of the most sought-after riders in the paddock. Having shared a good relationship with several members of the KRT staff in the past, Clement has been in close contact for several years and has finally decided to join the team for the next two seasons.
Paulin Knee Surgery: Gautier Paulin has had knee surgery which will force him to miss the Monster Cup and Bercy Supercross.
Gajser to 2016 MXGP?: Tim Gajser may join 2014 MX2 World Champion Jordi Tixier in the MXGP class for 2016 with a decision to be announced after the 2015 World MX2 champion visits Japan in two weeks’ time to race the final round of the Japanese championship where he will test the factory CRF450 and CRF250 machines.
British Motocross Championships: Steven Lenoir has won the 2015 British MX2 Motocross Championship after three solid rides at the final round held in Doncaster last weekend. The Frenchman went 3-4-6 over the three motos to score enough points to pass former red-plate owner Max Anstie who missed the round thanks to his crash at the MXoN in France. Lenoir ended up beating Anstie by nine points in the series.
Shaun Simpson has already wrapped up the MX1 championship and he continued his dominance by winning the overall at Doncaster with 2-1-1 results. Second overall was Kristian Whatley and Gert Krestinov in third.
New International Race In Europe? This is ridiculous – Youthstream have added another race to the already mega-crowded Euro motocross calendar – these people are idiots!! Anyway, below is the official press release of a new MXoN style race to be added to the 2016 international motocross calendar:
Mr Giuseppe Luongo, Youthstream’s President recently announced the ‘Riders and Manufacturers Cup’ in 2016. This event that will take place in the well-known Veltins Arena in Germany on the 8th October 2016 and every manufacturer will take part with their two best MXGP riders and their single best MX2 rider.
The concept will be similar to the MXoN but instead of the riders riding for their country they will ride for their manufacturer. The format will be 3 races with the 3 riders per manufacturer in each race, and the race track will be built with riders’ safety as priority while providing a great show for the fans. The event will be televised worldwide with a television coverage similar to the MXGP World Championship while financial support will be given to the manufacturers and substantial prize money will be available for riders and manufacturers.
Smarty’s Race Report and Results from Last Weekend
AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) – Round 11 – Somerset, Pennsylvania
Round eleven of the 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC), presented by Maxxis, an AMA National Championship, took place in Somerset, Pennsylvania, on Sunday with the Car-Mate Mountain Ridge GNCC. The weather may have cooled down with the threat of Hurricane Joaquin, but the racing action only heated up going into the last three rounds of the season with Thad Duvall securing his first overall win of the 2015 season while Jason Thomas claimed the XC2 championship with his second place class finish.
Chris Douglas led the way through the first turn and took the early lead followed closely by Jordan Ashburn on the opening lap. Ashburn was able to quickly capitalize on the weather conditions (MUD) and move to the front of the pack.
“My goal today was to get a good start and to get out front,” said Ashburn. “A gap on the rest of the pack always helps out, and after I had my rear tire replaced I knew I needed to get back to the front because I had the speed to be there. I plan to be on the podium for the rest of the year.”
Grant Baylor got off to a not-so-favorable start, where he tipped over in the first corner. Baylor was able to rebound from the trivial mistake and work his way up to the front-runners checking in second on the first lap.
Within the second lap Ashburn had extended his lead by thirty-seven seconds, but the running order tightened up immensely on the third lap when Duvall closed the gap by less than ten seconds. Duvall would immediately move into the lead when Ashburn had to exit the track to make an extra pit stop due to his rear wheel’s bib disintegrating. The N-Fab AmPro team was able to make a quick change and Ashburn re-entered the track where he left off still holding onto a top-five position.
Ashburn’s misfortune opened the doors not only for Thad, but also Baylor, to gain a position in the overall running. Baylor’s race management skills allowed him to catch up to Duvall, only trailing by ten seconds. Baylor eventually passed Duvall as he stopped to get a splash of gas, but Duvall would not stay behind for long.
“Going into today’s race I was already excited because I tend to ride good in conditions like these,” reported Duvall. “I don’t necessarily like riding in the mud, but I always seem to do good. Baylor caught back up to me with two laps remaining and we battled it out, but I felt like I had a lot to give and I ended up in the middle of the box.”
Duvall’s stellar performance vaulted the West Virginia native into the lead for the final four laps, and also second into the overall points championship chase. Ashburn finished out strong, capturing third place in the XC1 Pro class and overall.
Josh Strang proved that he is still in the game by getting fourth overall ahead of Chris Bach, Ryan Sipes, Daniel Milner, Cory Buttrick, Douglas and Adam Bonneur. Despite missing the event, Kailub Russell still holds an 83 point lead in the championship.
Nick Davis was able to jump out to the quick lead claiming the holeshot in the XC2 class but struggled with holding the lead on the first lap to Thomas and Ricky Russell. However, as the race wore on, Davis picked up his pace drastically, where he rode on uncontested for yet another win in the class, as well as an impressive fifth-place overall finish.
“It was really hard to see at the start, and all I could think was, ‘This is going to be a long three hours’,” reported Davis. “Then everything just started clicking, and I got back ahead of Thomas and Russell, and started pulling away.”
Thomas was able to hold on for a second-place finish, which was a good enough placement to result in being crowned the 2015 XC2 Pro Lites champion. Thomas will remain in the XC2 division throughout the end of this season, but will move up to the premier XC1 Pro division starting in 2016.
“It’s been a long year, and we’ve done a lot of hard work behind the scenes. Everyone has been a big part of this; it wasn’t just me,” said Thomas. “My dad was able to make it this weekend, and it’s a big deal because he isn’t here every round like majority of the other guys’ dads. It really meant a lot to me that he could be here.”
Following behind Thomas was Connecticut’s Benjamin Kelley in the third-place position. Kelley first made an appearance this season at the previous Unadilla round where he finished eighth in the XC2 class.
XC1 Event Results
- Thad Duvall (HSQ)
- Grant Baylor (YAM)
- Jordan Ashburn (YAM)
- Josh Strang (HSQ)
- Chris Bach (HON)
- Ryan Sipes (HSQ)
- Daniel Milner (YAM)
- Cory Buttrick (BET)
- Chris Douglas (SUZ)
- Adam Bonneur (KTM)
Overall National Championship Standings
- Kailub Russell (283)
- Thad DuVall (200)
- Grant Baylor (198)
- Chris Bach (173)
- Josh Strang (166)
- Ryan Sipes (154)
- Jordan Ashburn (132)
- Jason Thomas (132)
- Trevor Bollinger (94)
- Ricky Russell (93)
XC2 Event Results
- Nick Davis (HSQ)
- Jason Thomas (KTM)
- Benjamin Kelley (KTM)
- Trevor Bollinger (HON)
- Austin Lee (YAM)
- Mike Witkowski (KTM)
- Ricky Russell (YAM)
- Jedediah Haines (YAM)
- Ryder Lafferty (HSQ)
- Callan May (YAM)
XC2 Series Standings
- Jason Thomas (277)
- Ricky Russell (190)
- Trevor Bollinger (182)
- Nick Davis (180)
- Craig Delong (175)
- Layne Michael (142)
- Tegan Temple (130)
- Cory Buttrick (122)
- Austin Lee (121)
- Callan May (105)
Torun FIM Speedway Grand Prix of Poland
In an emotional moment Great Britain’s new double FIM Speedway World Champion Tai Woffinden dedicated his second world speedway championship to two friends in injured motocross rider Mickael Musquin and Speedway rider Darcy Ward, both riders picking up serious back injuries in the last couple of months.
“I would like to dedicate this win to Mickael Musquin and Darcy Ward, two guys who have life changing injuries.”
The 25-year-old missed out on the FST Grupa Brokerska Torun FIM Speedway Grand Prix of Poland semi-finals with eight points on the night triple world champion Nicki Pedersen won his third SGP of 2015.
But with nearest rival and defending champion Greg Hancock failing to reach the final, Woffy is now certain of being crowned at the final round of the season, the DON Smallgoods Australian SGP at Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium on October 24.
“After the last three years, I think I’ve proved I’m one of those riders who is going to be at the top for a long time. I’ll just get my head down, focus and see how many titles we can get.”
Woffinden joins Freddie Williams and Peter Craven in the elite club of British double world champions and is the 16th rider in history to lift the sport’s biggest prize multiple times.
The Scunthorpe-born star defied odds of 500/1 to claim his first title in 2013 and has been a firm favourite ever since. And he’s certain he has found the winning formula needed to become a permanent fixture at the very top of world speedway.
He said: “I have worked hard this season and it paid off. I made a pretty big mistake in 2014. I didn’t do what I needed to do and I needed that to level me a bit so that I could start again this year. After the last three years, I think I’ve proved I’m one of those riders who is going to be at the top for a long time. I’ll just get my head down, focus and see how many titles we can get.”
“I said before the meeting that I’d like to wrap it up in Torun. It didn’t happen the way I wanted it to. I would have liked to score the points to win it. It’s not really ideal to watch someone come last in a race for me to win the championship. But hey, that’s the way it is. I said to Greg when I gave him the trophy last year, ‘don’t get too comfortable because you’re giving me that back next year!’ That’s exactly what happened and we’ll see what happens in 2016.
“I want to say a massive thank you to my engine tuner Peter Johns, Monster Energy and all my sponsors, and my team mostly. I have the best mechanics in the world. They work so hard and we have proved that over the last three years.”
Pedersen was elated to get back to winning ways after recording seven points in three of the previous four rounds. He sat out Friday’s practice session in favour of some private testing at his Polish club Leszno. It paid dividends for the world No.3 and he’s setting his sights on snatching World Championship silver in Melbourne in three weeks.
Pedersen, who is third on 124 points and just two behind Hancock in second, said: “We made small changes and finally I have the speed back. It paid off with a win, so I’m happy. I’ve been really, really struggling with speed for the last two months. It hasn’t been going the way I wanted it to, but I’m not blaming anybody.
“We tested a lot in Leszno on Friday. We had a few engines we tested and figured out what to use in Torun. Luckily it worked and I’m happy with my team’s performance over the last week. I wanted to finish off in Europe the best way possible. I want to get in the picture and at least be third in the world this year.
“I did the job I felt I should in Torun, and now I can concentrate on maybe getting a second place. I can go all in for that; I have nothing to lose – only something to win.”
Torun runner-up Jason Doyle was over the moon to reach his maiden SGP final after a catalogue of near misses this season. His awesome 18-point haul pushed him up to fifth place in the World Championship and the Aussie No.1 is determined to end his season on a high at the Etihad Stadium.
He said: “I’ve kept telling people I needed to get this monkey off my back with the semi-finals and finally make a final. To make a final and come second in my first year is an unreal experience. I’m over the moon with second. It’s like a win for me. What a night!”
“To top the season off in Melbourne is great. I can’t wait to ride in front of my family, friends and the Australian public. It’ll be a memory never to forget. My main goal this year was to make the top eight and we are still going in the right direction. Hopefully I’m secure in there now and can go to Melbourne with no pressure.”
Third-placed Maciej Janowski says he’s learning fast in the SGP series as he closes in on securing the top-eight spot he needs to earn qualification for the 2016 FIM Speedway Grand Prix competition. After reaching a second straight final, he said: “I’m so happy I was in the final. We all know how hard it is in the GPs. If you make a small mistake, you come last. I’m learning from my mistakes and I’m using everything I have. Sometimes I make some mistakes, but everything went well in this one, so I’m very happy.”
FST GRUPA BROKERSKA TORUN SGP SCORES: 1 Nicki Pedersen 19, 2 Jason Doyle 18, 3 Maciej Janowski 11, 4 Niels-Kristian Iversen 10, 5 Chris Holder 11, 6 Andreas Jonsson 11, 7 Peter Kildemand 11, 8 Greg Hancock 8, 9 Tai Woffinden 8, 10 Piotr Pawlicki 7, 11 Matej Zagar 7, 12 Michael Jepsen Jensen 5, 13 Tomas H Jonasson 5, 14 Troy Batchelor 3, 15 Chris Harris 3, 16 Krzysztof Kasprzak 1, 17 Bartosz Zmarzlik DNR, 18 Pawel Przedpelski DNR.
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: 1 Tai Woffinden 151, 2 Greg Hancock 126, 3 Nicki Pedersen 124, 4 Niels-Kristian Iversen 105, 5 Jason Doyle 103, 6 Matej Zagar 100, 7 Maciej Janowski 95, 8 Chris Holder 93, 9 Peter Kildemand 79, 10 Michael Jepsen Jensen 77, 11 Andreas Jonsson 76, 12 Troy Batchelor 57, 13 Chris Harris 55, 14 Tomas H Jonasson 51, 15 Krzysztof Kasprzak 36, 16 Jaroslaw Hampel 31, 17 Antonio Lindback 20, 18 Bartosz Zmarzlik 17, 19 Piotr Pawlicki 8, 20 Craig Cook 7, 21 Mikkel Michelsen 6, 22 Tomasz Gollob 4, 23 Timo Lahti 3, 24 Kasts Puodzuks 3, 25 Vaclav Milik 2, 26 Robert Lambert 1, 27 Adrian Cyfer 1, 28 Aleksander Conda 1, 29 Denis Stojs 1.
Red Bull Sea To Sky Enduro – Turkish Riviera
Husqvarna Factory Rider Graham Jarvis (UK) clinches his first victory in 2015 by winning the main event of the most enjoyable Extreme Enduro – the Mountain Race at Red Bull Sea to Sky at the Turkish Riviera. Finishing second Jonny Walker’s (UK, KTM) whose hope to secure the Grand Slam in Extreme Enduro by winning all of the 6 major events within one year has been destroyed. KTM’s Wade Young from South Africa secures the podium coming in third.
After a spectacular motocross-like Beach Race on Friday and an Enduro style Forest Race on Saturday it was the main event – the Mountain Race – that gathered thousands of spectators. They started at 09:00AM right from the beach in Kemer and the 67km track took them through the canyon, into the forest and all the way up to the very top of the mountain Olympos at an altitude of 2.365 m. The riders had 7 hours maximum riding time to make it to the Red Bull arch at the finish line on the summit of the mountain.
The results of yesterday’s Forest Race determined starting rows of ten riders in each row for the Mountain Race. All top riders were present in the first start row: Jonny Walker (UK, KTM), Graham Jarvis (UK, Husqvarna), Andreas “Letti” Lettenbichler and his son Manuel Lettenbichler (GER, KTM), Husqvarna), Paul Bolton (UK, KTM), Philipp Scholz (GER, KTM) and Wade Young (RSA, KTM) just to name a few. Red Bull Sea to Sky continues to attract not only the top riders but also more and more ambitioned amateurs who want to race an extraordinary race at the highest international standards – situated in a beautiful landscape at the Turkish Riviera. A total of almost 300 riders from 30 countries were up for the challenge and started their mission.
It was South Africa’s Wade Young who got the holeshot at the start, closely followed by Jonny Walker on his KTM who had won all of the 5 major Extreme Enduro races in 2015 and was on a mission to become the first rider ever to get the Grand Slam nailed by also winning Red Bull Sea to Sky. Graham Jarvis – who dominated in previous years couldn’t score a major win this year – had come to Kemer with the clear intention to take the top spot on the podium, thus defending his 1st place at Red Bull Sea to Sky in 2014.
It’s been Graham’s – successful – approach in the past editions of Red Bull Sea to Sky to take it easy in the first and rather fast sections of the track. Today he played it safe until the last, technical and tiring sections of the race to attack Jonny Walker who had the lead for quite some time.
When getting to the second tank stop the 40 year old man from Ripon in the UK decided to gamble and pass Jonny without fueling up, knowing that he would find it difficult to pass the 24 year old Walker in the single trails later on. His move worked out in the end, Jarvis was able to pull a gap on Walker and pushed to the max. Despite going flat out Walker wasn’t able to close the gap and came in 2 minutes and 45 seconds behind Jarvis.
Jarvis clearly dominates the history of Red Bull Sea to Sky by scoring 4 out of 6 wins. He was the one who delivered the tagline in 2012 by making this statement: “Red Bull Sea to Sky is not the hardest race but it’s definitely the most enjoyable!”
Looking back at the 5th Edition in 2014 Wade Young was seeking redemption for Andreas Lettenbichler stealing his podium position on the last uphill right before the finish. The 19 year old South African – who won the Roof of Africa twice – actually had to battle with the seasoned German KTM Factory rider but eventually pulled away and secured the 3rd place.
Paul Bolton from the UK was more than pleased coming in 4th: “It was a really good track this year with some new and really tough sections. I was able to pass Letti in one of the last switch-backs and kept pushing to maintain the position. I’m really happy with this result!”
Letti’s Mountain Race had mixed emotions. In the lead in the early part of the race he had to give in and let Jonny Walker pass. After Red Bull Romaniacs he had surgeries and virtually no training before Red Bull Sea to Sky: “I’ve had a big crash in the forest section and after that the shoulders did hurt. I got tired quite early in the race but after two months of not being able to train I’m happy with the 5th position.”
His 17 year old son Manuel Lettenbichler had actually beaten his father in the Forest Race the day before and wanted to improve his result from 2014 when he finished 12th. Manuel started in the first row and had a good first half of the race but was stuck with only the first gear for the last sections of the race. Still he finished 9th and set a clear signal that he has what it takes to fight for the podium sooner rather than later.
Graham Jarvis: “I got a terrible start, the bike just didn’t fire first time. I relaxed a little for the first half hour or so to save a bit of energy, prevent arm pump and played it safe overall. I was able to pass a few riders who made some mistakes and then I got into a good rhythm and played it hard towards the end. I gambled on the fuel because I saw Jonny at the second tank stop and decided to skip it because I knew it would have been difficult to pass him in the single trails after the tank stop. I managed to get a little bit of a gap then and so here I am. I’m very happy now, at least one win at the end of the season here at Red Bull Sea to Sky!”
Jonny Walker: “I made a good start, rode with Wade for a while but pushed hard, got into the rhythm but Wade caught me. Still I managed to pull away from him. But on the high-speed section my front wheel hit a rock or something and jolted my handlebars. My shoulder hurt like hell after that. I tried to shake it off but the pain never left. Graham caught me not bothering to fuel up, he managed to pull a gap and I just couldn’t stick with him. I really tried to catch him but it didn’t work out in the end. 5 out of 6 wins, it was a good year and I can’t complain even though I certainly wanted to win Red Bull Sea to Sky. Now I’ll concentrate on the training for the SuperEnduros coming up.”
Wade Young: “I got the holeshot so the first part was good. But later in the race I made too many stupid mistakes, Graham passed me and I stayed in third position pretty much for the rest of the race. Letti was closing in quite a bit so I really had to put my head down and push to the end. The track was great, I liked it a lot. Certainly a bit more challenging and tiring towards the end, my tire is worn out but I’m really happy having made the podium position – especially after last years devastating experience losing the podium on the last meters!”
Top 10 Results – Mountain Race – Red Bull Sea to Sky
1. Graham Jarvis (UK, Husqvarna) – 3 hours 8 minutes 35 seconds
2. Jonny Walker (UK, KTM) – 3:11:10
3. Wade Young (RSA, KTM) – 3:19:13
4. Paul Bolton (UK, KTM) – 3:20:19
5. Andreas Lettenbichler (GER, KTM) – 3:20:59
6. Blake Gutzeit (RSA, Husqvarna) – 3:26:13
7. Jonathan Richardson (UK, KTM) – 3:30:43
8. Philipp Scholz (GER, KTM) – 3:37:57
9. Manuel Lettenbichler (GER, KTM) – 3:38:35
10. Ben Hemingway (UK, Beta) – 3:47:54
GEICO AMA EnduroCross Championships – Round 6 – Denver’s National Western Complex, Colorado
It was another Webb/Haaker showdown in the GEICO AMA EnduroCross Championship (round six) at Denver’s National Western Complex in Colorado, October 3. The two title contenders went at it again for the win, this time the spoils going to Colton Haaker. Last week in Sacramento, Cody Webb got the upper hand.
Unfortunately for Haaker, after all of his hard work, the Rockstar Husqvarna rider gained just one point on series leader Webb. Earlier in the program, Webb won both his heat race, giving him a championship point, and the evening Hot Lap, giving him another point, which kept the damage of losing to Haaker in the main event to a minimum. (The difference between first and second is three points.) Webb’s lead over Haaker in the championship dropped from seven to six points.
The main event was an exciting one, with Haaker grabbing the holeshot and Webb settling into second before eventually passing Haaker for the lead on lap three and it appeared it was going to be another win for Webb.
Haaker found himself in a battle for second place with FMF KTM’s Taylor Robert. The two traded positions several times before Haaker took control and started reeling Webb back in. Haaker eventually got alongside Webb when Webb momentarily slid out three laps from the end. This ended up giving Haaker the advantage he needed to take over the lead, which he held to the finish.
At that point, Webb chose not to go after Haaker. He instead spent the rest of the race concentrating on defending the second-place position from Robert, which he did successfully. “That was a long 15 laps and I kind of pumped up,” Webb said. “It is hard to be up front for that long.”
“Cody has been so solid in the heats and hot laps, so I have been losing points,” Haaker said. “So I knew it was important to get the win in the main and gain a point for the night.”
For Robert, it was his third straight podium finish since returning to the series from injury.
Beta’s Kyle Redmond finished fourth, while Gas Gas rider Geoff Aaron, Max Gerston (Beta), Brown (Husqvarna), Nick Thompson (KTM), Eric Rhoten (Yamaha) and Destry Abbott (Kawasaki) rounded out the top ten.
Final Results: 1. Colton Haaker. 2. Cody Webb. 3. Taylor Robert. 4. Kyle Redmond. 5. Geoff Aaron. 6. Max Gerston. 7. Mike Brown. 8. Nick Thompson. 9. Eric Rhoten. 10. Destry Abbott.
2015 Australian Motocross Championships – Bunbury, WA
The future of Australian motocross is looking extremely bright after 100s of young hopefuls and their families stepped up to the plate to show true passion and speed at the 2015 Australian Motocross Championships held in Bunbury of a full week.
After five days of furious racing 13 champions were crowned but behind them there are a plethora of worthy combatants that will have to wait another year to stake a claim on an Aussie title – here are the top five from every championship contested in Bunbury and what each winner had to say – congrats to not only these riders but every rider and their families who were on hand for this event.
Kayden Minear: 50cc Division 2 7-u9 years & 65cc Solo 7-u9 years Australian Champion – “The best thing about being an Australian champion in two classes this year is probably just winning. Today was my favorite moment from the week; I won both of my classes so it was easily my favorite day.”
Noah Smerdon: 65cc Solo 9-u11 years Australian Champion – “The best thing about this year was good competition, and this was my second time getting an Aussie title. It was really tough and the track was hard to ride, so my favorite thing was getting the win in such hard conditions.”
Cody Chittick – 65cc Solo 11 years Australian Champion – “Winning the championship on home soil this year was definitely the best thing about this year, it helped a lot having so much support. My favorite moment this year was in my first moto when I was racing against Jett Lawrence and I caught him, which was a big achievement.”
Jett Lawrence – 85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4-stroke std wheel 9-u12 years Australian Champion – “I’m really happy to get the win on the 85, because I had a bit of a bummer on the 65, but I managed to comeback in this one. I have to thank all of the boys for the competition, because if I didn’t have them it wouldn’t have been as fun for me. My favorite moment was when I had a bike that was playing up and I had really bad luck but then I came back from dead last to first and that was pretty surprising for me.”
Regan Duffy – 85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4-stroke std / big wheel 12-u14 years Australian Champion – “I was pretty surprised to come away with the win this year, the guys in my class have all been there and done it, and they’re all Australian Champions already so I’m so happy. For me my favorite moment was when I got a bad start and I came from nearly last back to second so I was pretty happy with that.”
Mitchell Outram – 85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4 stroke std / big wheel 14-u16 years Australian Champion – “This title was so important for me, because all of the other years I haven’t done very well and I keep crashing, so after that first race for the week I was really happy with what I did, and I just kept the momentum going. My favorite moment without a doubt was getting that win in that first race; it kept the confidence up for the rest of the week. It helped a lot having W.A behind me – I would see them all over the fence cheering me on and that helped me to keep pushing.”
Taj Marshall – 128cc – 150cc 2-stroke & 200cc – 150cc 4-stroke 13-u15 years Australian Champion – “I didn’t really expect much coming over here, I was just hoping to have a clean run, and have some fun with a good team behind me, so this was a big surprise. My favorite moment was when I got my first race win. I was so pumped and I didn’t really know what to think at the start because I hadn’t really won that many races this year but because it was sand I really loved it, and it’s made it so much more fun for me. “
Matt Fabry – 100cc to 125cc 2-stroke 13-u15 years Australian Champion – “I didn’t really expect to get the title, but I think I’ve just got to believe in myself a lot more – dreams really do come true and to come away with a National title I couldn’t be happier. I felt pretty confident all week so to be honest the whole event was my favorite moment. I just stayed consistent and got the job done, so it feels awesome.”
Hunter Lawrence: 100cc to 125cc 2-stroke 15 years & 128cc – 150cc 2-stroke & 200cc – 250cc 4-stroke 15 years Australian Champion – “My favorite championship I took this year was the on the 250. I enjoy the 250 a lot more. There’s more power, it’s a bit heavier and the setup on it is sweet so I think it makes it a bit more fun. It was a good week for me, the bike is handling awesome so a massive shout out to Mike Ward and Scott Bishop. I had a bit of a squid moment and binned it after the whoops and had to come back, so that was a pretty cool race, but the whole week was a lot of fun. Another fun moment was hanging out with a few of the Yamaha boys, I got to know a few more of them over here pretty well and they’re all good kids, so props to them.”
Danielle Foot – 100cc – 150cc 2-stroke / 200cc – 250cc 4-stroke Girls 13-u16 years & 85cc 2 –stroke / 150cc 4 stroke all wheel Girls 12-u16 years Australian Champion – “It was difficult the whole week. I had been training for six weeks on a sand track at home but it was nothing like it ended up being here. The track got real rough but my bikes were handling perfectly and I pushed through, so I’m so happy to come home with the number one for Victoria. For me, the whole week was the highlight of my year. I learnt a lot and suppose the last race was the best. I actually didn’t win the last race on the 85; I cruised and had a good time, and knew I had wrapped up the championship.”
128cc – 150cc 2-stroke & 200cc – 250cc 4-stroke 15 years – Championship Standings
1. Hunter Lawrence
2. Wade Kirkland
3. Justin Hart
4. Cooper Pozniak
5. Ryan Kenney
128cc – 150cc 2-stroke & 200cc – 250cc 4-stroke 13-u15 years – Championship Standings
1. Taj Marshall
2. Callum Norton
3. Mason Semmens
4. Michael Driscoll
5. Trent Collins
100cc to 125cc 2-stroke 15 years – Championship Standings:
1. Hunter Lawrence
2. Justin Hart
3. Wyatt Chase
4. Wade Kirkland
5. Cooper Pozniak
100cc to 125cc 2-stroke 13-u15 years Championship
1. Mat Fabry
2. Caleb Grothues
3. Callum Norton
4. Riley Dukes
5. Regan Duffy
100cc – 150cc 2-stroke / 200cc – 250cc 4-stroke Girls 13-u16 years Championship
1. Danielle Foot
2. Tahlia O’Hare
3. Lily Kent
4. Chelsea Carter
5. Tanesha-Rose Harnet
85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4 stroke Std / big wheel 14-u16 years Championship
1. Mitchell Outram
2. Liam Walsh
3. Riley Dukes
4. Thomas Bell
5. Patrick CEH
85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4-stroke Std / big wheel 12-u14 years Championship
1. Regan Duffy
2. Rhys Budd
3. Corben Weinert
4. John Bova
5. Bailey Malkiewcz
85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4-stroke Std wheel 9-u12 years Championship
1. Jett Lawrence
2. Alex Larwood
3. Levi Rogers
4. Cody Chittick
5. Seth Manuel
85cc 2-stroke / 150cc 4-stroke all wheel Girls 12-u16 years – Championship Standings
1. Danielle Foot
2. Tahlia O’Hare
3. Tanesha-Rose Harnett
4. Britney Boyce
65cc Solo 11 years – Championship Standings
1. Jett Lawrence
2. Cody Chittick
3. Tyran Tomich
4. Benny Novak
5. Alex Larwood
65cc Solo 9-u11 years – Championship Standings
1. Noah Smerdon
2. Deegan Mancinelli
3. Zachary Watson
4. Liam Atkinson
5. Lewis Callow
65cc Solo 7-u9 years Championship
1. Kayden Minear
2. Seth Burchell
3. Tyler Collins
4. Braden Plath
5. Reece Weissel
50cc Division 2 7-u9 years Championship
1. Kayden Minear
2. Seth Clark
3. Seth Burchell
4. Deacon Paice
5. Taj Moore
