Matt Moss tops AUSX Round Three in Newcastle

2022 Australian Supercross Championship – Round 3 Newcastle

The 2022 Australian Supercross Championship rolled into Newcastle for Round Three, with BBR 102 Motorsports’ Matt Moss and Team Honda HRC Australia’s Max Anstie coming away victorious, posting three strong results across the three main event format each for their respective wins.

The Triple Crown generated great racing across the night, while the technical Newcastle track reached up and bit its fair share of racers.

In what was a strong return to form, nine time Australian Supercross Champion Matt Moss took P1 after winning main event’s one and three, whilst Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Dylan Wills posted strong results to land second overall and notch a career first SX1 podium.

Dylan Wills – P2

“I’m really happy with this result and to enjoy it with the Husqvarna Racing Team! Today started rough when I went a little long in the rhythm section and smacked my head on the ‘bars on the up-ramp of the triple, so receiving five stitches in my chin wasn’t an ideal way to start the day… I have a saw jaw and my face is a little puffy, but I decided to go out and ride smart in the night show. After a third in my heat, I went 3-3-4 in the finals to finish second overall on the night. I’m so stoked! The team and I have been working all year for this and after a tough outdoors in the MX2 class, I’ve turned it around for my home race here in supercross.”

With Justin Brayton and Aaron Tanti entering the night tied on points, Brayton employed a calculated approach to the show, while a few mistakes from Tanti ended in a big crash during the second main event and a DNF for the third, significantly hampering his 2022 title hopes.

Justin Brayton – P3

“It was a good night! I was second in the first main and then I won the second one. I was looking good to take the overall, but we had some misfortune in the final race and had to salvage what we could. The most important thing is that my championship lead has grown, so we will see what we can do in Wagga Wagga.”

Brayton ended the night third overall, ahead of Josh Hill, Kyle Webster and Dylan Wood. Robbie Marshall, Cory Watts, Blake Cobbin and Joel Cigliano completed the round top-ten.

Kyle Webster – P5

“This was definitely a step in the right direction for me. I am progressively getting better at each round. I went 4-5-3 in the motos for fifth overall, which was definitely better. I am looking forward to the final round now and hoping to take another step forward to make it onto the podium.”

GASGAS SX1 class hopeful Hayden Mellross had an unfortunate night. After qualifying fourth and finishing a promising P2 in his heat, he fell heavily in the first of three finals. Mellross’ DNS results have seen him slip to eighth overall in the SX1 championship standings. He has been transported to the local hospital for further medical evaluation.

Jackson Richardson retired, after struggling with illness, aiming to regroup for the final.

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Jackson Richardson

“It was a rough day, I struggled with an illness all day – I rode the heat race, but we just weren’t in a position to compete tonight – so myself and the team decided to sit out the main events. My health’s got to come first, so we decided to play it safe and sit tonight out. We’ll try to recover and recoup in time for next weekend.”

Brayton carries a eight-point lead over Matt Moss into Round 4, with Dylan wills a further seven-points back.

SX2

The SX2 Class belonged once again to the Englishman Max Anstie, who recorded a 1-1-3 scorecard for his third overall in a row, followed by teammate Wilson Todd in second position, and New South Wales local Rhys Budd in third.

Max Anstie – P1

“It was a great day! I managed to take the win, after some good battles. The races were short and intense, with this ‘Triple Crown’ format, and it was tough to make up time on track, especially as the other guys were pushing hard. Let’s finish strong in Wagga Wagga!”

Wilson Todd – P2

“Fairly good day in Newcastle! I got three good starts. I won my heat race, which meant that I had a good position on the starting line. I just rode around and played it safe, for the most part. I made it to the end and took second overall on the night, so it was a solid day for us! I’m going to come out swinging in Wagga Wagga now.”

Col Thompson missed third despite tying on triple-header points to Budd, while Kaleb Barham was fifth.

Rhys Budd – P3

“I’m a bit lost for words right now. The first two rounds of the championship has been frustrating as I haven’t been able to get a good result so it was awesome to be able to get back on track and get on the podium tonight. I had lots of friends and family here in the stadium and it was cool to be able to ride well and get a great result tonight but it certainly didn’t feel like it started out that way after I crashed in my heat race and then got a ninth in the first final. But the last two races were good and it was such a relief to finally get a race win. I had worked so hard for it and it was just nice to see that work get rewarded. Thanks to the team for another awesome job, I kept them busy with my bike tonight with those crashes, but they always were able to get it turned around and back to the start line for me. I’m now third in the championship with one to go so I want to keep the momentum going from this weekend and take it into Wagga for the final round.”

Ferguson qualified seventh-fastest earlier in the day, but looked set for a promising evening after he worked his way through the pack to a second-place result in his heat race. The night saw young Queenslander post 5-10-6 results for sixth overall.

Noah Ferguson – P6

“It was an up and down night. The Triple Crown format was really good and it kept the racing tight… Six laps didn’t give you much time to get yourself sorted, but I really enjoyed it. Aside from that, I’m definitely not happy with the end result. I know where I should be and I believe I should be on that podium, but the results didn’t show it tonight, unfortunately. I’m really determined to finish the season strongly next weekend and look forward to lining up again!”

Luke Davis was seventh, finishing the night ahead of Crawford who was second-fastest time in practice, then finished his SX2 heat with a solid P3 result. However, things became more difficultin the first of the three-race Triple Crown finals when he crashed hard on the opening lap. A damaged bike meant he was unable to continue and was forced to DNF the race.

The team worked hard to repair the bike and ensure Crawford could line up for the second encounter and, despite suffering from an injured arm sustained in his first crash, he worked hard to finish sixth. In the last final of the evening, Crawford got a great start and led for the majority of the race, before a couple of late passes saw him drop to a hard-fought third and somewhat salvage his round in eighth overall.

Nathan Crawford – P8

“It was a really rough day today, but I felt pretty good in practice and in qualifying. I got third in my heat race, which on paper was okay, and the three finals were all very eventful, different races. I DNF’d the first race after crashing in the second corner and my bike was unrideable afterward. The team hustled hard to get the bike ready for the second final and I was able to finish sixth. In the last race I was in the lead until two laps to go when my arm got really fatigued and I faded back to third. My arm isn’t seriously injured – it’s just a bit sore – so we should be ready to go next weekend in Wagga Wagga.”

Yokoyama finished the Triple Crown event in 10th overall despite a big crash in the whoops and DNF during his heat race. Putting the pain of the crash behind him, Yokoyama finished the three-race finals with a 12-5-10 scorecard.

Haruki Yokoyama – P10

“We’d worked hard on my bike set-up and suspension over the break, and the day started off decently, but I had a big crash in the whoops in my heat race. I struggled with them tonight as they got cupped out. I’m happy with the good start I got to my second moto, but mistakes in the mains cost me a good result tonight.”

Fellow Empire Kawasaki SX2 rider Constantinou finished the round in 11th overall. After a standout second-place result in his heat race, the Victorian experienced a mixed evening in the three-race finals, finishing the night with P7, P13 and P11 results.

Jai Constantinou – P11

“It was a rough day, but we kept pushing and the results were okay in the end. Taking P2 in the heat was a positive, but I got caught up in the chaos in the finals. I feel like I’ve got the pace to run up the front, but I need to get good starts and stay out of trouble. When that happens, I’ll be able to get those top five results and hopefully land on the podium.”

Max Anstie leads the SX2 standings on a distant 75-points, with Col Thompson 54, and Rhys Budd tied with Noah Ferguson on 51-points.

SX3

The SX3 Class saw a heated battle between Jack Mather and Cole Davies, who split race wins with the former taking the overall win. Davies finished second with a 1-2 scorecard, while Jake Cannon took the final position on the podium.

Mather and Coles are now tied on 47-points, with Connor Towill is third on 34-points.

The series now heads to the final round in Wagga Wagga on December the third, where each championship will be decided in a thriller at the Wagga Wagga International Speedway.

SX1 Round Result & Standings

SX2 Round Result & Standings

SX3 Round Result & Standings