Moto News Weekly Wrap
May 22, 2018 – By Darren Smart
Proudly brought to you by Dunlop Geomax
Latest News & Reports
- Tomac and Osborne Dominate Hangtown AMA MX
- Herlings and Prado Win German MXGP
- Guadagnini Gets Career First Win in German EMX125
- Kiwi Duncan Dominates German WMX
- Ferris Four from Four at Wonthaggi
- Webster and Todd Share Wonthaggi Spoils
- Kiwi Purvis Wins Wonthaggi MXD
- Bou Wins Opening TrialGP
- Central Coast Cup returns this weekend
Tomac and Osborne Dominate Hangtown AMA MX
The highly anticipated Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship got underway last Saturday under clear and sunny skies for the 50th running of the Red Bull Hangtown Motocross Classic and it was Eli Tomac and Zach Osborne who swept to duel moto wins in the 450 and 250 classes respectively.
450 Class Report
Tomac is the first rider since Chad Reed in 2010 and 2011 to win back-to-back Hangtown Classics despite the challenges of less than stellar starts in either moto and dealing with Marvin Musquin in both motos AND a small crash in moto two to score his 10th AMA National win of his career.
Eli Tomac
“It’s awesome (to start with a win), but it wasn’t an easy day at all. The second (moto) start was not good at all, but luckily I was able to get to the front quick. I had a little tip over too, but overall, I felt really good on my motorcycle. It’s easy to have days like today when you’re that comfortable on the bike.”
The technically challenging track was at time made look easy by Musquin but the French star couldn’t match Tomac’s speed – this time.
Marvin Musquin
“The first round, to get a second-place is a good start. The second moto I got squeezed off the start, Eli and I were a little in the back, and I thought it was going to be a tough one but I was able to come back to the lead, which is awesome. I’m really happy about my riding today. It’s the first race with a new bike setup and we’re not too far off of being 100 percent, so I’m looking forward to next weekend and I’m glad I started the year off right, I would say. We’ll try to get better next weekend.”
Yamaha will be wrapped with Justin Barcia’s effort of two third placed finishes to earn the final podium finish ahead of Anderson (4-6) and Blake Baggett who suffered poor starts to finish the day with 7-4 finishes while Ken Roczen’s return to racing earned the factory Honda rider 11th overall with 6-14 moto finishes.
Ken Roczen
“That’s a wrap for the first one. It was such an exciting day it’s hard to describe. Felt foreign out there but hey we got the first one out of the way. Honda and I are working hard to get things a bit more dialled and looking forward to be climbing up the ladder each and every round moving forward. I love the feedback I get from fans on how stoked they are that I am back out there.”
Christian Craig scored the holeshot in the opening moto as did Phil Nicoletti in the second moto while multi New Zealand motocross champion Cody Cooper had a great start to the championship with 15-12 moto results to finish 13th overall for the round, just six points shy of a top ten finish.
450 Overall Results
- Eli Tomac (1-1)
- Marvin Musquin (2-2)
- Justin Barcia (3-3)
- Jason Anderson (4-6)
- Blake Baggett (7-4)
- Weston Peick (5-7)
- Benny Bloss (10-5)
- Christian Craig (8-8)
- Phil Nicoletti (9-9)
- 1Bradley Taft (11-10)
450 Class Point Standings
- Eli Tomac, 50
- Marvin Musquin, 44
- Justin Barcia, 40
- Jason Anderson, 33
- Blake Baggett, 32
- Weston Peick, 30
- Benny Bloss, 27
- Christian Craig, 26
- Phil Nicoletti, 24
- Bradley Taft, 21
250 Class Report
Osborne became the third rider in the past eight seasons to win back-to-back Hangtown Classics, and it’s his second straight 1-1 sweep at the season-opening round while Jeremy Martin’s pair of runner-up scores gave him second overall ahead of Aaron Plessinger finished third at this event for the second consecutive season (3-4).
Zach Osborne
“It ended up being a good day. I was super nervous this morning for some reason, but I got more comfortable in practice and then in the motos I was able to make some good passes. I actually had two solid starts so it was good to capitalize on those and come away with two moto wins and the overall. My confidence is definitely much higher heading into next weekend.”
Jeremy Martin
“Got to be happy with two-two results. Way ahead of where I was last year on the Honda so we just have to get the bike a little bit better, get myself a little bit better, we are one round into 12 rounds and nothing but positive thoughts at getting better in the future.”
Aaron Plessinger
“I am happy with the way I rode, gotta work on sprint speed but all up I can’t complain, this is my third year to end up on the podium at Hangtown so I am pretty pumped right now.”
Austin Forkner started the season with a holeshot in the opening moto before young Justin Cooper took over and got to lead a heap of laps while Jeremy Martin scored the holeshot in the second moto ahead of his brother Alex who ended the day in fourth overall with 7-3 results.
After finishing a solid fourth in the opening moto, Forkner was forced to pull out of the second moto and according to a post on his Instagram, Forkner’s holeshot device released out of the gate and the bars came up and slammed his chest.
Austin Forkner
“Hangtown 2k18. First moto was solid all around for my first race back I thought I rode good. Second moto my holeshot device released out of the gate and the bars came up and slammed my chest and kinda popped some ribs out of place which made it hard to breath and then they just started to hurt more and more as the moto went on. Didn’t wanna risk crashing again and really wasn’t worth it since I was like mid pack. Bummer on that one but we’ll be back for Glen Helen.”
Aussie Hayden Mellross was running well inside the top 20 in the opening moto before crashing out of the race which resulted in not lining up for the second moto.
Hayden Mellross
“Well Hangtown wasn’t the outcome I wanted. I was feeling great on the bike all morning and qualified 14th with some good times. Unfortunately, when it came race time I tightened up and was making many mistakes. I ended up having a pretty big crash late in the race which ended my day. I will be seeing the doctor tomorrow to see what we are dealing with. Hopefully everything checks out good but I’ll keep you guys updated when I know more.”
The 2018 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues next Saturday, May 26, with its second round from Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California.
250 Overall Results
- Zach Osborne (1-1)
- Jeremy Martin (2-2)
- Aaron Plessinger (3-4)
- Alex Martin (7-3)
- Justin Cooper (5-9)
- Chase Sexton (11-5)
- Jordon Smith (8-8)
- Joey Savatgy (6-10)
- RJ Hampshire (10-7)
- Garrett Marchbanks (12-6)
250 Class Point Standings
- Zach Osborne, 50
- Jeremy Martin, 44
- Aaron Plessinger, 38
- Alex Martin, 34
- Justin Cooper, 28
- Chase Sexton, 26
- Joey Savatgy, 26
- Jordon Smith, 26
- RJ Hampshire, 25
- Garrett Marchbanks, 24
Herlings and Prado Win German MXGP
Germany hosted the 8th round of the FIM World Motocross World Championship’s with the MXGP of Germany in Teutschenthal and it was the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing riders of Jeffrey Herlings in MXGP and Jorge Prado in MX2 who took out the overall wins.
You can read the full report here:
Jeffrey Herlings & Jorge Prado win MXGP of Germany
MXGP Report
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings continued to add to his winning ways this weekend with double race wins and both were by substantial margin over Team HRC’s Tim Gajser and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Gautier Paulin.
Jeffrey Herlings
“Both races the riding was really good, I couldn’t wish for anything else, I led every single lap both today and this weekend, so I’m very pleased…it was a dream come true kind of weekend.”
Tim Gajser who took his second podium of the 2018 season:
Tim Gajser
“I’m feeling good, I’m happy with the weekend actually, I was quite consistent and also I like the track here so I was looking forward to this race. It was actually the first race I was feeling comfortable this year…so hopefully we can continue to work hard.”
Gautier Paulin
“The racing went consistent, of course I want to be more up front, I got the Fox Holeshot in both races but then Jeffrey passed me directly after. But it was good, I’ve tried to improve myself but the bike was working awesome and finally we’ve improved our start so it was good.”
As for Cairoli, the Italian just didn’t have things go his way this weekend to score his worst weekend of the year with 6-5 results for 6th overall and he now trails Herlings by 48 points – Antonio needs to start taking moto wins from Herlings at the very next round if he seriously wants to add to his championship tally.
MXGP Overall Top Ten
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 50 points
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 44
- Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 40
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 34
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 32
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 31
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 27
- Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, SUZ), 23
- Maximilian Nagl (GER, TM), 22
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 21
MXGP Championship Top Ten
- Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 386 points
- Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 338
- Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 278
- Gautier Paulin (FRA, HUS), 258
- Romain Febvre (FRA, YAM), 255
- Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 221
- Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 207
- Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 193
- Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 176
- Julien Lieber (BEL, KAW), 149
MX2 Report
Championship leader Pauls Jonass scored a narrow win in the first moto over Prado, Calvin Vlaanderen, Ben Watson, Henry Jacobi, Michele Cervellin and Jed Beaton but in the second moto Prado won by 5 seconds over Jonass who in turn had a fair margin back to Vlaanderen, Watson, Thomas Kjer Olsen and Beaton.
Jorge Prado
“The first race was quite tough and in the second race I knew the start was really important, I don’t know what happened off the gate… but I went into to Pauls a little bit and we kind of fought into the first corner to see who would get the FOX Holeshot but I was on the inside and after that I could just lead every lap so I’m pretty happy.”
Pauls Jonass
“Actually I’m feeling good, I didn’t gain anything but I didn’t lose anything so it is still positive.”
Calvin Vlaanderen reached his first podium of the 2018 MX2 season.
“It was a good weekend overall, I had a good feeling on the bike. It was good to hold on for third with 3-3 for the day and it is good to give back to the team for all their hard work and to get on the podium.”
Despite a crash in the first moto involving Thomas Ker Olsen who, in his infinite stupidity, decided to scrub a jump while they were side-by-side bringing both riders to the ground, the Aussie hard charger Jed Beaton ended the day with fifth overall to maintain the same position in the championship.
Jed Beaton
“My starts were not so great this weekend; I really need to go back home and work on that aspect of my game. Today my riding was good but I had a crash in the first race with another rider; that dropped me a few positions but I could recover back to seventh so I was pretty happy with that. My lap times were good all through the race, so there’s a lot of positives about that race. I felt good in the second moto too, but I had used a lot of energy in the first race and I started to make a few mistakes towards the end of the race. But I managed to finish fifth overall from a difficult weekend, so I’m pretty happy with that.”
MX2 Overall Top Ten
- Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 47 points
- Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 47
- Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 40
- Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 36
- Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 29
- Michele Cervellin (ITA, HON), 29
- Henry Jacobi (GER, HUS), 29
- Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 22
- Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), 22
- Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 20
MX2 Championship Top Ten
- Pauls Jonass (LAT, KTM), 351 points
- Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 329
- Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 288
- Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 246
- Jed Beaton (AUS, KAW), 203
- Calvin Vlaanderen (RSA, HON), 196
- Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 160
- Henry Jacobi (GER, HUS), 157
- Davy Pootjes (NED, KTM), 140
- Michele Cervellin (ITA, HON), 139
Guadagnini Gets Career First Win in German EMX125
The MXGP of Germany at Teutschenthal hosted the European Motocross Championship’s EMX125 class and topping the 88 riders who entered at the end of the weekend was Team Maddii Racing Husqvarna’s Mattia Guadagnini with unbeatable 2-1 finishes.
KTM Junior’s Rene Hofer won the opening moto over the Husqvarna of Guadagnini and Jezyk Racing team’s Eddie Wade but in moto two Guadagnini took his first ever race win over Hofer and Meico Vettik so Guadagnini scored the overall win while Hofer extended his points lead to 48 points over Thibault Benistant who was fourth overall in Germany.
EMX125 Presented by FMF Racing Overall Top 10
- Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, HUS), 47 points
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 47
- Meico Vettik (EST, KTM), 34
- Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 33
- Tom Guyon (FRA, KTM), 32
- Eddie Wade (GBR, KTM), 30
- Emil Weckman (FIN, KTM), 29
- Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 26
- Matheo Miot (FRA, KTM), 21
- Filip Olsson (SWE, HUS), 18
EMX125 Presented by FMF Racing Championship Top 10
- Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 180 points
- Thibault Benistant (FRA, YAM), 132
- Emil Weckman (FIN, KTM), 111
- Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), 104
- Tom Guyon (FRA, KTM), 104
- Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 93
- Raf Meuwissen (NED, KTM), 84
- Lion Florian (GER, KTM), 79
- Filip Olsson (SWE, HUS), 72
- Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), 71
Kiwi Duncan Dominates German WMX
The third round of the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship played out over two days on the German circuit of Teutschenthal last weekend and it was Altherm JCR Yamaha’s Courtney Duncan who provided a masterclass for her competitors taking double race wins.
Duncan won the opening moto by six seconds over Kiara Fontanesi, Nancy Van De Ven and Larissa Papenmeier then in the second moto Duncan ended with a winning margin of 15 second ahead of Fontanesi, Papenmeier and Van De Ven.
Courtney Duncan, who is now 15 points up in the championship, stated: “Overall the weekend went pretty good, I think when you go 1-1 you have to be happy and I am. I’m also really excited for Ottobiano!”
WMX Overall Top Ten
- Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 50 points
- Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 44
- Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 38
- Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 38
- Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 30
- Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 30
- Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 28
- Shana van der Vlist (NED, KTM), 27
- Anne Borchers (GER, SUZ), 25
- Justine Charroux (FRA, YAM), 21
WMX Championship Top Ten
- Courtney Duncan (NZL, YAM), 140 points
- Larissa Papenmeier (GER, SUZ), 125
- Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, YAM), 118
- Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 118
- Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 88
- Natalie Kane (IRL, HON), 81
- Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KTM), 78
- Anne Borchers (GER, SUZ), 69
- Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 66
- Shana van der Vlist (NED, KTM), 62
Ferris Four from Four at Wonthaggi
Dean Ferris has completely dominated the proceedings at the first of two MX Nationals double headers that was held in the Victorian town of Wonthaggi last weekend and in doing so the Yamaha pilot has extended his championship lead to an incredible 58 points over MX1 class rookie Mitch Evans.
Ferris, Mitch Evans, Luke clout, Caleb Ward and Kiwi Rhys Carter rounded out the top five on Saturday then on Sunday it was Ferris, Evans, Kade Mosig, Kirk Gibbs and Dylan Long who earned top five overall finishes.
Ferris posted this on his Instagram on Saturday night: “1-1 today at Wonthaggi. Track was rough and technical which I enjoyed. No points for how much you win by but I pushed hard in moto 1 to win by 35 seconds. Moto 2 was clean also and I won by 15 seconds. Double header this weekend so a little recovery tonight and more action tomorrow”
2018 A4DE winner Daniel Milner turned up to Wonthaggi on his enduro model KTM with the headlight still installed to earn 9th overall on the Saturday and 11th on Sunday – very impressive – here is what Daniel wrote on his Instagram: “Another fun day at round 4 of the @mxnationals going 10, 10 for 11th overall. Was awesome practice at high intensity and good to battle with the moto boys”
MX1 Round 3 Overall Results
- Dean Ferris 70
- Mitch Evans 58
- Luke Clout 58
- Caleb Ward 54
- Rhys Carter 52
- Dylan Long 48
- Kade Mosig 47
- Brett Metcalfe 46
- Daniel Milner 42
- Connor Tierney 41
MX1 Round 4 Overall Results
- Dean Ferris 70
- Mitch Evans 64
- Kade Mosig 58
- Kirk Gibbs 56
- Dylan Long 54
- Luke Clout 49
- Brett Metcalfe 47
- Caleb Ward 44
- Connor Tierney 44
- Rhys Carter 43
- Daniel Milner 42
MX1 Championship Standings (After Round 4 of 10):
- Dean Ferris 285
- Mitch Evans 227
- Kirk Gibbs 223
- Luke Clout 216
- Dylan Long 207
- Kade Mosig 206
- Caleb Ward 197
- Rhys Carter 191
- Brett Metcalfe 182
- Connor Tierney 170
Webster and Todd Share Wonthaggi Spoils
Honda’s Kyle Webster topped the overall points on Saturday ahead of then championship leader Nathan Crawford, Wilson Todd, Jay Wilson and Egan Mastin then on Sunday Todd bounced back for the overall win ahead of Mastin, Kiwi Hamish Harwood, Aaron Tanti and Jy Roberts.
Bike issues and a shoulder injury forced former points leader Crawford out of the final moto on Sunday early, effectively gifting a 16-point championship lead to his team-mate Todd while Jackson Richardson crashed out of the second moto on Saturday and dislocated his shoulder.
Richardson posted this on his Instagram: ‘Unfortunately in moto 2 yesterday I dislocated my shoulder I was lucky to have the @racesafe crew there to put it back in for me. I will be sitting out for today’s racing and will get scans this week to see what the extent of the injury is. Thank you to my whole team for supporting through this rough patch I hope to be back soon’
MX2 Round 3 Overall Results
- Kyle Webster 65
- Nathan Crawford 64
- Wilson Todd 59
- Jay Wilson 58
- Egan Mastin 51
- Hamish Harwood 51
- Dylan Wills 47
- Aaron Tanti 42
- Jy Roberts 42
- Jayden Rykers 42
- Kale Makeham 42
MX2 Round 4 Overall Results
- Wilson Todd 70
- Egan Mastin 60
- Hamish Harwood 58
- Aaron Tanti 58
- Jy Roberts 53
- Dylan Wills 49
- Kale Makeham 45
- Jay Wilson 43
- Cooper Pozniak 40
- Joel Evans 33
MX2 Championship Standings (After Round 4 of 10)
- Wilson Todd 238
- Nathan Crawford 222
- Aaron Tanti 210
- Jay Wilson 209
- Hamish Harwood 209
- Egan Mastin 206
- Kyle Webster 188
- Dylan Wills 188
- Kale Makeham 168
- Jy Roberts 166
Kiwi Purvis Wins Wonthaggi MXD
Kiwi Max Purvis has won both days of racing in the MXD class while championship leader Bailey Malkiewicz scored second place in both days to extend his championship lead over Morgan Fogarty to 20 points with Callum Norton, who scored fourth overall on both days is a further seven points back.
MXD Round 3 Top Ten Overall
- Maximus Purvis 67
- Bailey Malkiewicz 67
- Morgan Fogarty 55
- Callum Norton 54
- Jye Dickson 54
- Hugh Mackay 50
- Brodie Ellis 48
- Mat Fabry 48
- Rhys Budd 44
- Mason Rowe 43
MXD Round 4 Top Ten Overall
- Maximus Purvis 67
- Bailey Malkiewicz 67
- Morgan Fogarty 54
- Callum Norton 51
- Rhys Budd 51
- Brodie Ellis 49
- Riley Dukes 49
- Mason Rowe 48
- Mat Fabry 45
- Hugh McKay 45
MXD Championship Standings (After Round 4 of 8)
- Bailey Malkiewicz 248
- Morgan Fogarty 228
- Callum Norton 221
- Hugh McKay 21
- Maximus Purvis 217
- Riley Dukes 212
- Brodie Ellis 200
- Rhys Budd 183
- Mason Rowe 168
- Jye Dickson 162
Bou Wins Opening TrialGP
Despite finishing back in 11th during Saturday’s qualifying round, defending champion Toni Bou opened the TrialGP campaign with a predictable win in Camprodón.
Sunday’s trial was held over an eight-kilometre, fifteen-section course which proved to be a tough ride given the intermittent but intense rain, with riders forced to negotiate delicately through the perilously muddy conditions but the difficulties brought out the best of Toni Bou whose triumph establishes him as the season’s first overall leader.
The next TrialGP World Championship round will be held at the Motegi circuit in Japan, over two days. Qualifying is scheduled for June 1st, with the main event over the two following days.
Toni Bou
“I am very happy for the victory because yesterday I had a pretty bad qualifying session and today I had to start among the first riders in the category. The trial was very complicated, but from the beginning I felt comfortable and I made very few mistakes. The second lap was more complicated with rain and mud, where I fived a couple of times due to lack of confidence in the terrain. Physically I felt good; on the second lap my back hurt a bit, but it was better than I had expected. It is a great start to the championship and I want to congratulate the organizers, as it has been a very complete trial with very authentic areas.”
Trial GP Rider Standings
- BOU Toni – 20
- BUSTO Jaime – 17
- FAJARDO Jeroni – 15
- CASALES Jorge – 13
- RAGA Adam – 11
- DABILL James – 10
Central Coast Cup returns this weekend
The 2018 Central Coast Cup dirt track motorcycle meeting is on this weekend (May 26 and 27) at the Allen Park track at Somersby. In terms of the number of competitors and its prestige this is arguably the biggest motorsport event on the Central Coast this year.
The Central Coast Cup meeting has in its short history established itself as one of the major non-championships meetings on the dirt track calendar. One reason for the on-going significance of the meeting is the honour roll of winners in both the senior and junior (13 to Under 16s) classes since its inception in 2005. The senior class has invariably been won by previous, or future, Australian champions and even a future world champion.
This weekend will see four previous winners of the Senior Cup among the entry list. Luke Gough won the inaugural staging of the event back in 2005 and is still a force to be reckoned with as he takes on dual winner from 2015 and 2016 David Smith, and the only two riders who have won both the Junior and Senior Cup events – Sean McLellan and Jarred Brook.
Defending champion Brook has been concentrating on road racing this year but success in the recent Queensland Championships showed he is the rider to beat. If there is to be a new name added to the honour roll of senior winners this year the stand-out contender is teenager Mackenzie Childs who came out on top of meetings at Kurri Kurri and Raymond Terrace earlier this year.
With last year’s Junior Cup winner Jordan Ussher now moved in to the senior ranks there will definitely be a new name on the Junior honour roll. Leading contenders appear to be the very in-form Singleton rider Ryan Smith, local Harry Ryan and a duo from Melbourne, Max Berry and Zane Kinna.
The younger age brackets will have to wait to be able to chase Central Coast Cup honours but their racing invariably provides plenty of close, hard-fought racing which augers well for the future of the sport.
All junior riders will use this weekend as a shakedown for the New South Wales Junior Dirt Track Championships at the Somersby track on September 15 and 16. The 8-lap finals of both the Junior and Senior Cup will wrap up the program on Sunday afternoon, but racing through both days will cater for all categories in the seniors and all age groups in the juniors.
Entry fee for spectators this weekend will be $5 per vehicle payable at the gate as a tax deductible donation to the St Johns First Aid. Proceedings get under way with State MP Mr. David Harris officially opening the meeting, prior to practice, at 9.30am on Saturday with the first round of competition to follow, while racing gets underway at 10 am on Sunday. The Allen Park track is situated at Debenham Road North, Somersby.
For more information about the Central Coast Junior Motor Cycle Club check out the club’s website www.ccjuniormotorcycleclub.org.au (link).
