Moto News Wrap for Jan 20, 2015 by Darren Smart
Australasian Moto News
Toby Price, you are a bloody ripper mate!!!! It was only a few months ago that Toby Price was over in Spain hanging out with Marc Coma as he tried to learn how to navigate and ride fast at the same time and here we are looking back at the 2015 Dakar Rally shaking our heads in wonder. Toby Price rode to third outright and actually won a stage of the rally as a debutante.
Sure, not everything went perfect for the KTM star, he did have some navigation difficulties in stages 4 and 6 but other than that Price finished inside the top five eight times including a sensational win in Stage 12. See full Report and Results below.
Over in NZ, Kiwi Yamaha rider Scott Columb has topped 32 hard charging locals to win the 2015 King of the Mountain held at the Taranaki Motorcycle Club’s motocross facility last weekend.
American Moto News
Yet another night of mixed results for the Aussie riders contesting round 3 the AMA Supercross Championships held in Anaheim last Saturday night.
Matt Moss crashed during the week and sat out A2. He posted this on his FB page: ‘Just to let everyone know I will not be racing A2 due to a practice crash yesterday should be ready to go for next round I hope, thanks everyone for your support’
Brett Metcalfe qualified in a credible 13th place, finished 7th in his heat, 4th in his Semi before crossing the line in 12th place in the main event. Metty sits 16th in the points and he has only three more rounds to break into the top ten before he heads to Canada for their MX Nationals.
Chad Reed’s Two-Two Motorsport team missed the mark for set-up of Chad’s KX during qualifying leaving the Aussie with the 18th fastest lap time but as per usual Chad bounced back to score fourth in his qualifying race before storming up to third in the early part of the 20 lap main event.
After Eli Tomac got by, Chad was looking solid in fourth place behind Roczen, Dungey and Tomac until Trey Canard caught Chad and literally jumped onto the back of the Aussie’s Kawasaki, taking both to the ground. Both riders got up and rode towards the next corner but Chad wasn’t happy with the move so he gave Canard a shove off the track causing Canard to hit a tuff box and go over the bars.
Chad was then sensationally black flagged by the AMA and FIM officials and eliminated from the main event. No points, no prize money….nothing!!
Social media has gone off since the incident and the opinions are far too varied to put a summary together but for mind the AMA and FIM have over-reacted. Mike Alessi blatantly and maliciously t-boned Broc Tickle during the heats at one of the rounds last year and was given a $4000.00 fine and allowed to race the rest of the night…..inconsistent? Yes!!
“In my mind, obviously I went over the jump there before the mechanics’ area, I was on the inside, and obviously the next minute I’m cartwheeling down the track and Trey landed right on the back of me,” Reed explained to RacerX.
“So yeah, at that point I’m pretty mad and confused about what went down. So we both pick it up and get going, I throw an elbow, and I get going. I didn’t look back to see if he went down or anything like that. Then I immediately see the black flag and I was just like, kind of just like at a loss for words.
“I’ve never been black-flagged before and especially in a situation like that in a half a lap [after the incident]. Yeah, I admit I threw an elbow, but it was kind of a ‘what the f#$&?’ kind of thing, you know? That’s really about it. I was just confused that I was black flagged for something that I didn’t think was that bad.”
Jackson Richardson qualified 13th place and pulled the holeshot in his heat before he got side-swiped by Tyler Bowers leaving the Aussie off the track and back in 15th place at the end of the opening lap but the plucky FNQ rider blitzed his way up to the final transfer position of 9th place.
In the 15 lap main event Jackson started in 8th place and battled hard throughout to end up 11th place, just 1.5 seconds behind TLD’s Shane McElrath and now sits 17th outright after 3 of 8 rounds.
Adam Monea ended qualifying in 38th place with a 1.08.886 lap time (the fastest was Barcia with 1.02.326) before finishing 13th in his heat, 9th in his Semi then 8h in the LCQ. Not a bad effort for his first ever AMA Supercross.
See the full Report and Results from A2 below.
Weston Peick underwent surgery early last week to have a screw inserted in his foot to stabilize a broken bone suffered late in the main event in Phoenix. Weston attempted to ride in untimed qualifying early in the afternoon before pulling off and heading to the Asterisk Medical rig. He is expected to miss a couple of rounds before returning.
Justin Brayton went over the bars during his heat race and was forced out with a broken collarbone. JB will be out for at least a month while his BTO KTM teammate Andrew Short crashed hard in the main event but has reported nothing broken and will be back next week.
Ryan Villopoto spent last weekend at Glenn Helen as he continues testing for the 2015 MXGP World Motocross Championships and if you watch the footage he is absolutely flying. According to RV, the bike he will race on the world championship will be a combination of what he has run in America over the last couple of seasons coupled with some of what the Euro Kawasaki team has to offer.
“I’ve been at factory Kawasaki for four or five years now and everything has been pretty similar, setup-wise there. I had an open mind going into the team and I wanted to try what they had to offer. And they had some good things, but then there were also some other things that I kind of had to switch over to my settings, so to say, just to get me comfortable. Also, it’s like you don’t want to teach an old dog new tricks this last year. I’m trying to just run what I’m comfortable with and with what I know I’ll be the best with.”
Race Reports and Results for the Weekend of the 17th and 18th of January
- – Monster Energy Supercross Championships – Round 3 – Anaheim
- – 2015 Garmin UK Arenacross Tour – Rounds 2 and 3 – Belfast
- – AMSOIL Arenacross Championship Round 2 – Grand Rapids’ Van Andel Arena – Michigan
- – 2015 Troy Bayliss Classic – Old Bar, Taree
- – 2015 Dakar Rally – Argentina
Monster Energy Supercross Championships – Round 3 – Anaheim
450SX Report: In front of 40,718 Southern California fans, Monster Energy AMA Supercross made its second of three visits to Angel Stadium on Saturday night.
Motosport.com/Arma Energy Yamaha’s Jimmy Alberston grabbed the SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award, but was quickly overtaken by BTO Sports KTM’s Andrew Short, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Davi Millsaps and Roczen. On a hectic opening lap where the entire field jockeyed for position, Roczen seized the opportunity to take the early lead and sprint away. Roczen first worked his way by Millsaps and then made the pass on Short on Lap 1. From there he opened a multiple-second advantage that would last the entirety of the 20-lap Main Event.
With Roczen out front, several riders put themselves in contention for a podium result. Short crashed out of second, which in turn collected Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson, which allowed Millsaps to assume second and Discount Tire Racing/TwoTwo Motorsports’ Chad Reed to take over third. Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey, who was running fourth, then passed Reed for third on Lap 3 and proceeded to surpass Millsaps for second one lap later.
That same lap Millsaps fell into the clutches of Reed, who then passed him for third. As these battles took place, GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac, last week’s winner, was fighting his way forward from an eighth-place start. Tomac made quick work climbing his way into the top five and then made a pass on Reed for third on Lap 4.
Shortly thereafter, Team Honda’s Trey Canard and Reed came together while battling for fourth on Lap 7, when Canard misjudged Reed’s line and ran into the back of him. Both riders remounted quickly and Reed retaliated by pushing Canard off the track and forcing him to the ground. Reed was subsequently black flagged and disqualified from competition.
Once the field settled in, Roczen, Dungey and Tomac asserted themselves in top three and pulled away. Dungey slowly gained ground on Roczen and was consistently posting faster lap times, but once the leaders encountered lappers, it slowed Dungey’s progress and allowed Roczen to easily take the win and stay undefeated inside Angel Stadium this season.
“That was an awesome race. I fought hard the whole way,” said Roczen, who earned his fourth career victory. “It was a tricky tack but I was able to get a good start, get into the lead early and ride my own race. I’m so happy.”
Dungey was the fastest on the track for throughout the middle part of the main event. “It was a good night and we gave a hard push,” said Dungey. “The first lap was chaos with everyone fighting for position, so Kenny [Roczen] got away a bit. I tried to close down the best I could, but lappers got in the way. The track was really difficult and you could only do so much. I’m excited and we’ll build from this.”
“The main event time wasn’t quite there on the start,” said Tomac. “I made a couple passes and dodged a few bullets early on. Got into third and then basically just kind of stayed like that. I tried to make a little bit of a push here and there, but it was a slick track, a little bit funky. There were crashes all night, so I think it was a sleeper track that could come up and bite you, so I was somewhat satisfied with third.”
Yamaha’s Justin Barcia finished fourth for his best finish of the season, while RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s Factory Suzuki’s Broc Tickle did the same in fifth. Team Honda’s Cole Seely was sixth, Anderson seventh, Red Bull KTM’s Dean Wilson eighth, Millsaps ninth and Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Blake Baggett 10th.
Canard fought back to finish 11th and here is what he had to say about the Reed incident. “I followed Chad the lap before and he went outside and I figured he was going to go outside again, I carried too much momentum and my air brakes didn’t work. I landed right on the back of him and went down really hard. I got back up and was adjusting my goggles—I hit my head on the ground pretty good so my goggles were all sweat filled and was pulling a tear-off—[and] out of nowhere I got hit and crashed again.”
“I just went to him after the race and said, ‘why would you do that?’ He said that I was an idiot for jumping on him. ‘Dude, I didn’t mean to do that.’ He was still ranting and raving, so I just told him that he was a crybaby—the biggest crybaby in the sport and went away.”
Roczen extended his advantage in the 450SX Class championship standings, and now sits 12 points ahead of Dungey in second. Anderson retained control of third, 21 points behind, with Tomac and Canard rounding out the top five.
250SX Report: In the Western Regional 250SX Class Main Event, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne captured his second straight SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award in front Lucas Oil/Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM’s Jessy Nelson and Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Chris Alldredge. Nelson put the pressure on Osborne early and was able to move into the lead as the field came to complete the opening lap. Once out front, Nelson sprinted away and opened a multiple-second advantage.
While Nelson led comfortably, Red Bull KTM’s Justin Hill put himself into podium contention, followed by Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Tyler Bowers, who started in fifth. As things took shape out front, Webb was on a charge through the field after starting 12th.
Nelson appeared to have control of the 15-lap Main Event, but he crashed out of the lead on Lap 6 and dropped to sixth. That allowed Bowers to assume the lead, just a short time after passing Hill for second. By this time Webb had fought his way into the top four and took over third on Lap 7. While Bowers pulled away, Hill and Webb engaged in an exciting battle for second, with Webb ultimately prevailing. Once in second Webb consistently chipped away at a four-plus second deficit to Bowers and put himself within striking distance on the final lap. As the two riders went to turn down the stadium’s first base line one final time and hit the home stretch, Webb cut inside Bowers, forcing contact that pushed Bowers off the track. Webb slipped by and took the win while Bowers recovered to finish second, his best finish of the season so far. Hill finished third.
“That was crazy. I got a bad start and had to come through the pack, so I was just trying to get into the top five,” said Webb, who raced to his first career win a week ago. “Then I got into second and realized I had a shot at the win. On the last lap I had to just put it in there, so I did and I was able to get by.”
“I got a decent start, but I rode better with people in front of me than out front by myself,” said Bowers, the reigning four-time AMSOIL Arenacross Champion. “I didn’t get tight or anything, I just made a lot of small mistakes. We’re looking good in the championship with a third, a fourth and now a second, so it’s hard to be angry with that. If we can get a couple wins we’ll really be in this [championship at the end].”
On the final corner pass Bowers had this to say. “You’ve got to do it. It’s for the win, it’s the last turn and it’s racing. I could have came into that turn and blocked the inside, and Cooper would have ran around me and hit the triple still, or I could have did what I did and hopefully got out of there before he was there. Unfortunately I was just a hair too late. We’ll just come into next weekend smarter. Bottom line is I gave up a lot of time mid-race and I just can’t do that anymore.”
Webb passed Nelson for control of the Eastern Regional 250SX Class championship standings and now sits four points ahead. Bowers moved into a tie with Nelson for second.
450SX Class Results: Anaheim
- Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda
- Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha
- Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki
- Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna
- Dean Wilson, Wesley Chapel, Fla., KTM
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
- Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki
450SX Class Season Standings
- Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki, 72
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 60
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna, 51
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 46
- Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda, 43
- Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha, 43
- Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki, 38
- Weston Peick, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha, 32
- Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM, 31
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki, 30
Western Regional 250SX Class Results: Anaheim
- Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha
- Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki
- Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM
- Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna
- Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM
- Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
- Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM
Western Regional 250SX Class Season Standings
- Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha, 64
- Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM, 60
- Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki, 60
- Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna, 54
- Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM, 53
- Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha, 40
- Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda, 39
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM, 39
- Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki, 34
- Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda, 30
Monster Energy Supercross continues next weekend with its fourth stop of the 17-race season from Oakland, California, signifying the first of two visits to the Bay Area in 2015.
2015 Garmin UK Arenacross Tour – Rounds 2 and 3 – Belfast
Rounds two and three of the 2015 Garmin UK Arenacross Tour was held in Belfast last weekend and it was Adam Chatfield and Angelo Pellegrini who won the Friday and Saturday night main events respectively.
Friday produced an incredibly dramatic evening at the Odyssey Arena where Brit Adam Chatfield took the win in the main event ahead of LPE Kawasaki’s Florent Richier and round one winner Thomas Ramette.
No action for Adam Chatfield on Saturday night, after an impressive win in round two on Friday night, the Brit unfortunately fell victim to the whoops in practice and so was unable to ride leaving the win to Angelo Pellegrini ahead of Thomas Ramette and Loic Rombaut.
‘Tonight I am very happy, it’s a very good night for me,” said Pellegrini. “I got a really good start and followed Thomas Ramette but he made a mistake and crashed with two laps to go. I took the lead in the main race and had good speed. I feel I rode really well. I’m very happy for me, for my Oakleaf team and all my sponsors.”
Friday – Pro Main Event: 1. Adam Chatfield. 2. Florent Richier. 3. Thomas Ramette. 4. Harri Kulas. 5. Angelo Pellegrini. 6. Romain. 7. Greg Crater. 8. Nev Bradshaw. 9. Elliott Banks-Browne. 10. Cyrille Coulon. 11. Gary Gibson.
Saturday – Pro Main Event: 1. Angelo Pellegrini. 2. Thomas Ramette. 3. Loic Rombaut. 4. Harri Kulas. 5. Romain Biela. 6. Elliott Banks-Browne. 7. Florent Richier. 8. Greg Crater. 9. Cyrille Coulon. 10. Matthew Bayliss. 11. Ashley Greedy. 12. Franklin Nogueras.
AMSOIL Arenacross Championship Round 2 – Grand Rapids’ Van Andel Arena, Michigan
Friday Night Report: The second round of the 2015 AMSOIL Arenacross began on Friday with the first of two nights of thrilling competition from Grand Rapids’ Van Andel Arena. After a pair of action-packed Main Events, Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jacob Hayes earned his first overall win of the season in the Arenacross Class. In the Arenacross Lites Class, Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green rider and Road to Supercross competitor Darian Sanayei raced to his second consecutive victory to remain undefeated this season.
The night began with misfortune for the Babbitt’s squad after title contender Zach Ames crashed in practice and was forced to miss the evening’s action. Ames entered Friday second in the Arenacross Class standings, just two points out of the lead.
In his teammate’s absence, Team Babbitt’s rider Chris Blose took control of the opening Main Event in search of back-to-back wins to start the season. Blose’s early advantage allowed him to open a healthy lead ahead on Hayes and fellow Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Matt Goerke. Soon enough Hayes began to narrow his deficit to Blose, and on Lap 6 he was able to take advantage of a bobble by the points leader to assume the lead. Once out front, Hayes and Blose put on a show for the fans, going bar-to-bar all the way through to the finish. In the end Hayes earned his second straight Main Event win, with Blose second and Goerke third.
With the win Hayes had the opportunity to select the inversion for the second Main Event, ultimately opening the box that said zero, meaning riders would start where they finished in the first Main Event.
Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Kyle Regal put himself into the early lead in the second Main Event, ahead of Blose and Babbitt’s Online Suzuki’s Cory Green. On the second lap Blose encountered trouble crashing just after the finish line. The points leader took his time getting up and soon walked off the track, resulting in a DNF and taking him out of contention for the win. With a little less pressure behind him, Regal was able to take control of the Main Event and open a comfortable margin.
Behind him, the battle for second heated up between Green and ThermoTec Yamaha’s Bobby Kiniry for second. At the start of Lap 9 Kiniry made an aggressive move on the inside of Green just after the finish line and took both riders to the ground. That opened the door for Hayes, who started seventh, to complete a charge through the field and move into second place ahead of Goerke. The top three remained unchanged through to the finish with Regal earning his first Main Event win of the season, Hayes capping off a stellar night in second and Goerke bringing home another podium result.
Hayes’ 1-2 finish was simply unbeatable and allowed him to secure his first win for Team Babbitt’s. Regal brought home a runner-up finish (5-1), while Goerke became the only rider to earn multiple podium finishes this season in third (3-3).
In RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge action, Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Gavin Faith took the win in his first AMSOIL Arenacross start of the season, claiming the additional bonus point up for grabs.
With the shakeup, Hayes moves into a tie with his teammate Goerke atop the Arenacross Class standings. However, by virtue of his two Main Event wins, Hayes sits atop the standings. Blose dropped to third, six points out of the lead.
Slaka Wear KTM’s Steven Mages controlled the second Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event, just ahead of Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Mitchell Harrison. Harrison looked to pressure Mages up front, but then crashed on Lap 2. That allowed FCC Motorsports Honda’s Dylan Walker to assume the position ahead of Lakehill Motors Yamaha’s Josh Cartwright. Things settled down for the next six laps before another shakeup occurred on Lap 9 when Cartwright moved into second, Sanayei third, and Walker fourth, with A&Y Racing Honda’s Daniel Herrlein lurking in fifth.
Once in podium position, Sanayei methodically worked his way forward, overcoming a fifth-place start, and made the winning pass with two laps remaining after Mages crashed out of the lead just after the finish line. Herrlein made a late surge on the final lap to steal second, while Cartwright landed third. Walker experienced misfortune in the final five laps and dropped out of contention, while Mages recovered from his crash to finish fifth.
Sanayei added to his lead in the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship standings and now sits three points ahead of Herrlein, who moved into second. TZR Woodstock KTM’s Dave Ginolfi is third, four points out of the lead.
Saturday Night Report: One night after Zach Ames was forced to sit the weekend out after a practice crash, the Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy Kawasaki team endured more misfortune. Opening round winner and former championship point’s leader Chris Blose was sidelined on Saturday after a crash last night left him with severe bruising and trauma to his side and back. That left Babbitt’s with two riders on the gate, championship-co leaders Jacob Hayes, who won on Friday, and Matt Goerke.
Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Darian Sanayei took control of the first Arenacross Class Main Event, ahead of Goerke and Spinechillers KTM rider Willy Browning. Faith, who started fourth, made quick work moving his way to the front and was into third before the completion of Lap 2. That same lap Goerke made the pass on Sanayei for the lead. The top three paced one another for five laps until Sanayei went down in the whoops on Lap 7 and out of competition. With a clear path to Goerke after assuming control of second place, Faith began to close in on the Kawasaki out front. On Lap 11 Faith made his move and held off Goerke through to the checkered flag. Browning rounded out the top three.
Faith then selected the inversion for the second Main Event, opening the box with eight, meaning half the field would be inverted before determining who would walk away victorious.
Slaka Wear KTM’s Steven Mages took advantage of his improved starting spot in the second Main Event to grab the early lead over Browning and Faith. The top three stayed in line for the majority of the 15-lap Main Event until Faith made his way around Browning on Lap 10, ensuring his position in the overall classification. Mages was relatively unchallenged and went on to win, with Faith second and Browning third. Goerke rode to an impressive fourth-place finish, overcoming an 11th-place start to just miss out on a podium finish.
Faith’s 1-2 finishes secured the overall, while Mages’ victory in the final Main Event vaulted him to the runner-up spot (5-1) in what was ultimately a three-way tie for the position. By virtue of his pair of third-place results, with the second Main Event finish serving as the tiebreaker, Browning (3-3) claimed the final spot on the overall podium ahead of Goerke (2-4).
In the RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge, the Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing tandem of Faith and Kyle Regal faced off in the final. Regal edged out his teammate and earned the additional bonus point towards the Arenacross Class Championship.
Goerke’s strong evening allowed him to take control of the Arenacross Class standings, moving ahead of Hayes, who finished 11th after a pair of tough Main Events. Goerke holds a 16-point lead over Hayes, while Mages and TZR Woodstock KTM’s Travis Sewell sit in a tie for third, 20 points back.
The early advantage in the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event went to Harrison, who quickly assumed control of the race ahead of GEICO Honda’s Tristan Charboneau and Lakehil Motors Yamaha’s Josh Cartwright. While Harrison worked to open a gap, Charboneau and Cartwright engaged in an intense battle for second. The two riders went bar-to-bar for several laps, bringing the Grand Rapids crowd to its feet, but on Lap 4 the pair came together and both riders fell to the dirt, eliminating them from contention. That allowed A&Y Racing Honda’s Daniel Herrlein to assume second and Spinechillers KTM’s Dave Ginolfi to take over third.
While Harrison maintained his advantage out front, Harrison asserted himself into second, but Ginofli soon came under fire from Motosport.com/Haeseker Racing KTM’s Daniel Blair. The KTM riders raced side by side before Blair was able to make the pass stick. From there on the out the front of the field remained unchanged with Harrison earning the win ahead of Herrlein and Blair. Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green remains undefeated through three Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Events.
As a result of an unfortunate crash by points leader Sanayei, Herrlein took control of the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship points lead. Ginofli took over second and sits three points out of the top spot, while Sanayei dropped to third and faces an 11-point deficit.
Arenacross Class Results – Friday Night Overall (Main Event Finishes)
Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (1-2)
Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (5-1)
Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (3-3)
Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (4-4)
Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (8-7)
Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (7-8)
Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (11-5)
Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (2-15)
Robert Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (6-12)
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda (10-10)
Arenacross Class Results – Saturday Night Overall (Main Event Finishes)
Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (1-2)
Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (5-1)
Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (3-3)
Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (2-4)
Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (4-6)
Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (7-8)
Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (6-9)
Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (14-5)
Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM (9-10)
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda (8-11)
Arenacross Class Points (After Rounds 3 of 20)
Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki – 84
Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki – 68 (2 Main Event wins)
Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki – 64 (1 Main Event win)
Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM – 64
Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM – 63
Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna – 60 (1 Main Event win)
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda – 50
Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki – 49 (1 Main Event win)
Robert Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha – 49
Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki – 44
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class – Friday Final Results
Darian Sanayei, Orting, Wash., Kawasaki
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda
Josh Cartwright, Tallahassee, Fla., Yamaha
Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki
Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
Jake Locks, Dixon, Calif., KTM
Josh Struebig, Crown Point, Indiana, KTM
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites – Saturday Final Class Results
Mitchell Harrison, Cairo, Georgia, Kawasaki
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda
Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki
Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
Christian Telker, Brownsville, Ind., Yamaha
Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM
Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 3 of 10)
Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda – 44
Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM – 41
Darian Sanayei, Orting, Wash., Kawasaki – 33 (2 Main Event wins)
Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasak – 29
Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM – 26
Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki – 24
Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki – 20
Mitchell Harrison, Cairo, Georgia, Kawasaki – 18 (1 Main Event win)
Josh Cartwright, Tallahassee, Fla., Yamaha – 18
Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM – 18
2015 Night of the Jumps and Freestyle MX European Championships – Round 1 – Linz, Austria
A double bill of FMX at Linz, Austria reached its climax on Saturday night as the Tips Arena hosted a second exemplary display of extreme sport by the twelve-strong field of freestyle motocross stars.
First out was Hannes Ackermann, who has fond memories of a previous podium finish at this same venue in 2013. After botching his run on Friday, the German staged a great comeback, showcasing his full repertoire of tricks. But the inherent disadvantage of leading off was once again a factor as he missed out on the final.
Melero made up for his failure on Day One, when he omitted a trick, by going through in the Top Six. This time, the run went to plan, and the world champion qualified in third place.
Luc Ackermann, the youngest contestant on the night, also made the cut. However, this was only after the 17-year-old first pulled out of his Cordova Flip and then managed it at the second attempt with time almost running out. In the final, he surprised and delighted the judges and fans with the first Nac 360 ever performed by German FMX rider, but in such a high calibre field, it was still only enough for fifth place overall.
Someone else pulling off a trick premiere was Petr Pilat with a Dead Body Flip, the first time this jump has featured on a NIGHT of the JUMPs track. With his sequence of flips and triple combos, the Czech claimed pole position, from which neither reigning world champion Maikel Melero nor former world champions David Rinaldo and Remi Bizouard would be able to dislodge him.
Rinaldo straight-aired a Dead Sailor on his first jump of the final and then played safety first for the rest of the run. Melero executed a perfect Doublegrab Flip to thrill the Austrian spectators, but still fell short of victory by a narrow three-point margin.
Bizouard came even closer to ousting Pilat from the hot seat with his usual bag of tricks and assured delivery. In fact, the two of them tied on points, but Petr Pilat deservedly prevailed by virtue of the scratch score. So it was that the Czech rider celebrated his maiden NIGHT of the JUMPs triumph.
In the LifeProof Best Whip contest, US pinup James Carter made it a double by securing his second trophy of the weekend. For the first time in the history of NIGHT of the JUMPs, one of the judges also competed in a sideshow. Massimo Bianconcini – in full racing gear – raised his score card then ran from the judges’ tribune to jump on his bike ready for both the Best Whip and the Maxxis Highest Air. In Saturday’s high jump competition, the Italian picked up the Maxxis Cup.
Victory in the freestyle contest puts Pilat on level pegging with competition leader Bizouard in the Freestyle MX European Championship. Both have 36 points.
Qualification Results: 1. David Rinaldo – 355 Points. 2. Remi Bizouard – 345 Points. 3. Maikel Melero – 341 Points. 4. Petr Pilat – 338 Points. 5. Jose Miralles – 308 Points. 6. Luc Ackermann – 308 Points. 7. James Carter – 306 Points. 8. Hannes Ackermann – 301 Points. 9. David Rossi – 289 Points. 10. Leonardo Fini – 261 Points. 11. Steve Sommerfeld – 257 Points. 12. Brice Izzo – 253 Points.
NIGHT of the JUMPs Night 2 – Final Results: 1. Petr Pilat – 379 Points. 2. Remi Bizouard – 379 Points. 3. Maikel Melero – 376 Points. 4. David Rinaldo – 339 Points. 5. Luc Ackermann – 334 Points. 6. Jose Miralles – 314 Points.
Freestyle MX European Championships Ranking After Two Rounds: 1. Remi Bizouard – 36 Points. 2. Petr Pilat – 36 Points. 3. David Rinaldo – 34 Points. 4. Luc Ackermann – 26 Points. 5. Maikel Melero – 25 Points. 6. Jose Miralles – 20 Points. 5. Brice Izzo – 17 Points. 8. James Carter – 17 Points. 9. Leonardo Fini – 14 Points. 10. Hannes Ackermann – 12 Points. 11. Steve Sommerfeld – 11 Points. 12. David Rossi – 6 Points.
Results Lifeproof Best Whip Contest:
1. James Carter
2. David Rossi
Maxxis Highest-Air:
1. Massimo Bianconcin – 8,50 Meter
2. Jose Miralles – 8,00 Meter
3. Marc Puniol – 7,50 Meter
The next two rounds of this series will be contested in one week’s time at NIGHT of the JUMPs in the Graz Stadthalle (24th/25th January).
2015 Troy Bayliss Classic – Old Bar, Taree
With race favourite Michael Kirkness spectacularly crashing out during practice it was up to the rest of the Aussie superstars to keep the Troy Bayliss Classic trophy in local hands and it was the veteran Paul Caslick who bounced out of the gate in the 21 lap final to lead Josh Hook and Jared Mees in the early laps.
On lap five Mees bumped Hook out of the way leading onto the straight and started putting pressure on Caslick but the fastest rider on the track was Troy Herfoss who has made his way up to the leading duo by lap six but slid out on the first corner while trying to get around Mees on lap 10.
Mees finally dove up the inside of Caslick on lap 14, as did Henry Wiles a few laps later, then all eyes were on the battle for the final podium position between last year’s winner Troy Bayliss and Caslick with Caslick just holding on for third behind Mees and Wiles.
“I didn’t do well in the heat races, I fell then chased setup all day,” Mees explained. “In the Americana I did well in the first round then got a flat tyre. I set the fastest qualifying time in Superpole and then won the main event. It was very cool to be the first international rider to win the Troy Bayliss Classic. I had so much fun I really hope they ask me back next year.”
“I love this event it is incredible how much it is grown since last year,” Wiles said. “It was really good to improve on last year and get on the podium. I don’t know what the deal was tonight, I had a little trouble getting off the gates so I made it hard for myself having to pass so many guys to get to the front.”
Caslick posted this on his FB page: ‘With last year’s start line debacle behind us, it was time to put it all down and what a holeshot that was to compliment the my first few gates. To lead that race for 12 laps was awesome but to then think about getting swamped allowed the gap to be closed, I should’ve believed I was worthy and continued to charge to the chequered! Still sharing the podium with those 2 young guys and probably the best the USA has, I was pretty damn pleased. Still a little overwhelmed by all the support, the crowd went off and hope the haters loved it even more, you guys keep me going. Thank you, beer and prawns are on us!!’
“It was a fantastic event,” Bayliss said. “It really does just keep getting better and better. Everyone had a great time and it was awesome to see one of our international guests take out the Troy Bayliss Classic for the first time.
“As far as my own results go I was pretty happy with how I raced. It was intense out there, everyone was riding on the limit. I have to say a huge thanks to Taree Motorcycle Club, all of our sponsors, volunteers and the Racesafe Medical team for all their hard work over the weekend,” Bayliss added.
Troy Bayliss Classic Final: 1. JARED MEES – 08:01.839. 2. HENRY WILES +00.887. 3. PAUL CASLICK +02.458. 4. TROY BAYLISS +02.850. 5. SAMMY HALBERT +09.386. 6. MATT DAVIES +10.201. 7. CHRIS VERMEULEN +11.353. 8. LUKE GOUGH +13.848. 9. JOSHUA HOOK +14.558. 10. DAMON BUCKMASTER +19.898. DNF. TROY HERFOSS. DNF. BROC PARKES.
Troy Bayliss Classic – ALL Stars Final Results: 1. TROY HERFOSS – 72 Pts. 2. SAMMY HALBERT – 62 Pts. 3. HENRY WILES – 61 Pts. 4. PAUL CASLICK – 60 Pts. 5. TROY BAYLISS – 59 Pts. 6. BROC PARKES – 58 Pts. 7. LUKE RICHARDS – 56 Pts. 8. JARED MEES – 53 Pts. 9. MARTY MCNAMARA – 52 Pts. 10. MATT DAVIES – 50 Pts. 11. CHRIS VERMEULEN – 48 Pts. 12. JOSHUA HOOK – 44 Pts. 13. CHRIS HOLLIS – 42 Pts. 14. DAN REARDON – 41 Pts. 15. GLENN ALLERTON – 41 Pts. 16. DAMIAN CUDLIN – 39 Pts. 17. JACK MILLER – 38 Pts. 18. ROBERT MENZIES – 38 Pts. 19. JAY MARMONT – 35 Pts. 20. MASATOSHI OHMORI – 35 Pts.
Troy Bayliss Classic – Legends Final Results: 1. CHRIS WATSON – 63 Pts. 2. DAMON BUCKMASTER – 58 Pts. 3. STEPHEN GALL – 57 Pts. 4. SHAWN GILES – 56 Pts. 5. JEFF LEISK – 55 Pts. 6. JASON CRUMP – 47 Pts. 7. PETER GODDARD – 46 Pts. 8. VAUGHAN STYLE – 40 Pts. 9. PHIL LOVETT – 37 Pts. 10. KEVIN HORTON – 37 Pts. 11. ANTHONY GUNTER – 32 Pts.
2015 Dakar Rally – Argentina
Out of the 168 motorcycle competitors that started Dakar 2015 just 79 made it to the finish and it was Marc Coma who drew upon his experience to take his fifth Dakar and bring home the 14th Dakar success for KTM despite the massive effort from HRC and the ultra-talented Joan Barreda and Paulo Goncalves.
If not for the 17 minute penalty against Goncalves for an engine change the result may have been different but Dakar is not just about riding prowess and navigational skills, but also on how to preserve your machine to ensure it makes it to the end with as few technical problems as possible.
Goncalves finished just under 17 minutes behind Coma but the penalty applied to his result placed him second outright but to be fair, Coma rode well within himself and no doubt could have upped the pace if it was deemed necessary.
“I’m happy and proud. As usual it was a gruelling rally. We had to overcome a problem on the second day that slowed us down a bit in the rankings. So from then on we had to change the strategy a little and push to recover that time. We knew that the marathons would be key stages and they were. I am happy with the team and the people we have around us. This fifth win says a lot about all of us.” Coma also congratulated his two rivals Joan Barreda and Paolo Goncalves who he said were tough opponents. “The level was very high and this also makes the win very valuable,” he added.
Barreda took four stage wins to prove the speed of the Honda package but it was Coma that made the least errors and like third place Toby Price, also rode smart enough to ensure they could complete the entire 13 stages without an engine change.
Toby Price went to Dakar with only one rally under his belt and was new to road-book style navigation. The Australian did have some navigational confusion in stages four and six but towards the end of Dakar 2015 he had taken his first stage win, an amazing feat for a Dakar rookie, and managed to climb from fifth to third outright in the rankings across the final days of competition.
Add to that the fact that the ‘factory supported’ Price finished amongst a gaggle of ‘full factory’ riders only further underlines the enormity of his achievement. “Being here in third place is insane! I’m at a loss for words. When I decided to sign up three or four months ago, I was quite nervous, I didn’t know what I was getting into. And now I’m on the finish line… happy.”
Click on the video for this interview with FoxSports
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Dakar Rally 2015: Overall Ranking After Stage 13 of 13:
1. Marc Coma, ESP (KTM) 46:03:49
2. Paulo Gonçalves, PRT (Honda) 46:20:42
3. Toby Price, AUS (KTM) 46:27:03
4. Pablo Quintanilla, CHL (KTM) 46:42:27
5. Stefan Svitko, SVK (KTM) 46:48:06
6. Ruben Faria, PRT (KTM) 48:01:39
7. David Casteu, FRA (KTM) 48:04:03
8. Ivan Jakes, SVK (KTM) 48:22:07
9. Laia Sanz Pla-Giribert, ESP (Honda) 48:28:10
10. Olivier Pain, FRA (Yamaha) 49:12:58
11. Hans Vogels, NLD (KTM) 49:35:39
12. Helder Rodrigues, PRT (Honda) 50:04:04
13. Xavier De Soultrait, FRA (Yamaha) 50:24:07
14. Paolo Ceci, ITA (KTM) 51:02:03
15. Frans Verhoeven, NLD (Yamaha) 51:17:29
