Moto News Weekly Wrap
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July 21, 2015 by Darren Smart
Australasian News
Are You Kidding?: Since the very first motorcycle race was held and right through to this very day, motocross racers all over the world have entrusted the race/event promoters, their numerous race officials and all of the track side flag marshals to ensure a clear and safe track to compete on.
Well, last Sunday that trust was broken, and Matt Moss became the victim of a series of events that no-one could have predicted.
Moss landed into the side of a Bobcat that was doing track maintenance during ‘Superpole’, at round seven of the MX Nationals in Shepparton last weekend.
The multiple Australian Champion remains in hospital, his injuries still being assessed, and the prognosis far from clear.
Matt and his family are shattered.
No one person is to blame, but you have to shake your head in wonder, how could this Bobcat operator have possibly got onto the track without SOMEONE, be it an official or otherwise, not raising the alarm. How could so many people not take notice? There are a plethora of ‘why’ scenarios but for what it is worth if I was Matt’s father Greg, and Jay Foreman from Team Suzuki, right now I would ropeable and looking for blood – this was the last thing the Moss family needs right now.
Here is what Chad Reed Twittered after seeing the accident: ‘This has been disturbing me all day! So unacceptable! Hope Mossy takes them to the cleaners!! Praying for you mate”
Oh Well, At Least It’s FREE: NRGTV’s coverage of round seven of the MX Nationals was a series of blunders and technical cock-ups. I was so looking forward to a Sunday of watching the racing, yet right from the get-go the internet based coverage continually froze, had poor camera angles and the commentators were obviously being hindered by the fact that they were calling the racing from what was obviously a poor camera feed – often guessing who was who on the track – then again, I shouldn’t complain, it is free….
Team Australia Score Third: Hunter Lawrence, Rhys Budd, John Bova and Bailey Malkiewicz all chipped in to earn Team Australia a credible third place behind France and Great Britain at the 2015 Junior World Motocross Championships held in Spain last weekend. Lawrence was the star for the team with a third overall in the 125cc class while Budd finished 8th overall in the 85cc class with 12-7 race results.
Hunter Lawrence had this to say after the race: “I am happy, El Molar was good to us, I worked my ass off so it was good, definitely happy. All the hard work that goes in behind the scenes has paid off a little bit. So it is good, I am happy. Not exactly the goal, but hey it is better than going home with a 10th or a 12th or something like that. It was good, I felt that I was the fastest on the track in both motos, I pulled the leaders in.”
Rhys Budd had this to say. “I rode really good, just didn’t get the starts I wanted and I kept pushing through the pack for a good finish.”
See the Official race report and FULL results further down the page.
Michael Byrne Master Class: Entries are now live for the MXstore Moto Master Class being held on 31st Aug and 1st Sep at Coolum, QLD – go to www.motodevelopment.com/moto-master-class – Michael Byrne will once again head the coaching staff and there are only 50 spots available.
American News
2016 AMA Supercross Calendar Announced: For 2016 there will only be two Anaheim rounds and Atlanta returns to a single race while Toronto, Glendale, and Foxboro are back in play.
- Rd1: Jan. 9 – Anaheim, CA
- Rd2: Jan. 16 – San Diego, CA
- Rd3: Jan. 23 – Anaheim, CA
- Rd4: Jan. 30 – Oakland, CA
- Rd5: Feb. 6 – Glendale, AZ
- Rd6: Feb. 13 – San Diego, CA
- Rd7: Feb. 20 – Arlington, TX
- Rd8: Feb. 27 – Atlanta, GA
- Rd9: March 5 – Daytona, FL
- Rd10: March 12 – Toronto, CAN
- Rd11: March 19 – Detroit, MI
- Rd12: April 2 – Santa Clara, CA
- Rd13: April 9 – Indianapolis, IN
- Rd14: April 16 – St. Louis, MO
- Rd15: April 23 – Foxboro, MA
- Rd16: April 30 – East Rutherford, NJ
- Rd17: May 7 – Las Vegas, NV
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2016 Amsoil Arenacross Calendar Announced: The small stadiums throughout USA get a work-out once again in 2016.
- Rd1: January 9-10 – US Bank Arena, Cincinnati
- Rd2: January 15-17 – Royal Farms Arena, Baltimore
- Rd3: January 22-24 – PPL Center, Allentown, Pa.
- Rd4: January 30-31 – Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.
- Rd5: February 4-7 – Broadmoor World Arena, Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Rd6: February 13-14 – CenturyLink Center, Omaha, Neb.
- Rd7: February 20-21 – Amalie Arena, Tampa, Fla.
- Rd8: February 27-28 – BJCC Complex, Birmingham, Ala.
- Rd9: March 12-13 – Cajun Dome, Lafayette, La.
- Rd10: April 2-3 – Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, Calif.
- Rd11: April 9-10 – Salinas Sports Complex, Salinas, Calif.
- Rd12: April 16-17 – Tacoma Dome, Tacoma, Wash.
- Rd13: April 22-24 – Ford Idaho Center, Nampa, Idaho
- Rd14 :May 6-8 – Orleans Arena , Las Vegas
MXGP Rider IN For Unadilla: Scotsman Shaun Simpson is heading to the USA to race the Unadilla round of the AMA Nationals which is just a week after the Lommel round of the MXGP series. Clement Desalle did the same thing a few years ago and spent the whole day battling with Ryan Dungey for the lead so it will be interesting to see how the British champion goes.
Seely Out After Practice Crash: Honda HRC’s Cole Seely missed round 8 of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross held at Millville, Minnesota last weekend after sustaining a shoulder injury in practice. Millville was Seely’s first race back after missing Budds Creek and RedBud with a leg injury.
Milner Beats Russell: Daniel Milner has done what no other rider has been able to do in 2015, beat Kailub Russell in a one-on-one battle but that is exactly what the Aussie did at round three of the Enduro Sprint Series last weekend – see the full report and results below.
Metcalfe Wins in Canada – Dowd Top Ten: Some people simply don’t stop going fast no matter their age – Veteran Brett Metcalfe has won round six of the Canadian Motocross Championship last weekend while MEGA-Veteran John Dowd turned up and scored a top ten overall finish – see the report and results below.
Euro News
Former World Champion Suffers a Stroke: Six-time 250 World Motocross Champion Joel Robert suffered a stroke while on vacation in the south of France. Robert, 72, had a cerebral vascular accident (CVA) and was hospitalized in Montauban, France. Robert said, from his hospital bed that he got to the hospital very fast and the doctor recognized him because the doctor had seen Joel race many years ago. Joel will stay in France for two weeks before returning to his home in Lambusart, Belgium.
The Next Jeffrey Herlings: KTM has its eyes set on the future, KTM Factory Racing reached a deal with Jorge Pardo that will keep him with the brand until 2020. Prado, 14, won the World and European 65cc championships in 2011, and the 85cc European Championship in 2014. The Spanish sensation is currently racing the EMX125 Class with a move into MX2 with the team expected to happen shortly.
Phillips Picked for 2016 EnduroGP Class: Australian Matthew Phillips has been named as one of the sixteen riders who will make up the newly announced EnduroGP class when the 2016 MAXXIS World Enduro Championship commences in 2016.
The new category that will see 16 of the world’s best Enduro riders go head to head on the bike capacity of their choice. The EnduroGP class will bring together the top 4 riders in the general standings of E1, E2 and E3 as of the conclusion Grand Prix of Italy that was held at Rovetta on 21 June 2015.
This list of 12 riders has been completed by 4 wild card entrants, each having previously won either an FIM Enduro or SuperEnduro World Championship. Depending on the places available the FIM Enduro Commission may register one or more additional wild card entrants.
2016 EnduroGP Selected Riders: Eero Remes – FIN. Christophe Nambotin – FRA. Daniel McCanney – GBR . Lorenzo Santolino – ESP. Antoine Meo – FRA. Pierre-Alexandre Renet – FRA. Alex Salvini – ITA. Jaume Betriu – ESP. Mathias Bellino – FRA. Matthew Phillips – AUS. Matti Seistola – FIN. Aigar Leok – EST. Johnny Aubert – FRA. Ivan Cervantes – ESP. David Knight – GBR. Taddy Blazusiak – POL.
British Motocross Championships – Foxhill: Shaun Simpson and Max Anstie have dominated the MX1 and MX2 classes respectively by remaining undefeated at the Maxxis British Motocross Championship round held at the Foxhills circuit in the south of England last weekend.
Swedish Motocross Championships – Tomelilla: 24MX Honda’s Filip Bengtsson dominated the fourth round of the Swedish Motocross championship held in Tomelilla last weekend. Bengtsson rode his CRF450R to victory in both moto’s and in Saturday’s qualifying race. The championship points look like this after round 4: 1. Rasmus Sjöberg (SWE-Suzuki) 152 pts, 2. Jesper Jönsson (SWE-Husqvarna) 145, 3. Filip Bengtsson (SWE-Honda) 140.
Aussie Speedway Riders on Fire: Troy Batchelor, Chris Holder and Jason Doyle all put in great rides at the rain shortened round of the 2015 Speedway World Championships held in Latvia last weekend. Batchelor scored three race wins and 11 points from five rides for third overall while Holder scored 10 points for fourth overall and Boyle 8 points for sixth overall. See the full report and results below.
Smarty’s Race Reports and Official Results from last Weekend
2015 AMA Motocross Championships – Round 8 – Millville, MN
450 Moto 1: It was the familiar sight of the JGR duo of Barcia and Phil Nicoletti leading the charge early until Barcia appeared to tuck the front end in the mud on the first lap, allowing Dungey to close on the lead, and eventually make the pass. Dungey’s lead was never in danger as he stretched it to over four seconds by race end.
Suzuki led the charge behind Dungey and Barcia with Ken Roczen finishing ahead of Blake Baggett and teammate Broc Tickle while a hard charging Jason Anderson finished sixth with Nicoletti, Fredrik Noren, Christophe Pourcel and the returning Josh Grant rounding out the top ten.
450 Moto 2: Justin Barcia pulled a half a wheel on Jason Anderson to capture his second holeshot of the day but Dungey quickly moved past Anderson to pull to the rear wheel of Barcia and using the big brakes of the factory KTM on one of the steep downhills Dungey was able to gain time on Barcia before finally making a pass.
Dungey slowly put distance between himself and Barcia and would win the moto by just over 5 seconds ahead of Barcia and Blake Baggett who passed Ken Roczen late in the moto to secure the final podium position. Fredrik Noren, Anderson, Broc Tickle, Christophe Pourcel, Josh Grant and Phil Nicoletti would round out the top ten.
Dungey now has a 56 point lead over Roczen with four rounds remaining and he had this to say to RacerX: “We got off to a good start and got into the lead the first moto and just tried to be consistent. Put down good laps. It was really tricky because there was a lot of soft spots and hard spots, so the bike wanted to get sucked up a lot in the soft areas. And then the second moto I had a good start but then got shuffled there in the first turn. Kind of got back, made some passes, and then got up to Barcia, and then was able to make the pass and just really tried to push it from there. Opened up a gap and then came in for the win. Overall it was good. I was looking for that 1-1. I had won that first moto, but I really wanted that 1-1 just because I hadn’t done that all year, and I really feel like it was time to get that done as well. Not greedily or anything like that, but that was my goal today regardless of being at the hometown race.”
Justin Barcia (RacerX): “I felt pretty good all day. Good starts. That was good. Even before that, practice times I ended up fourth I think. So it was okay, nothing special. I’m not the best practicer ever. Went into moto one wanting a win, and Ryan [Dungey] had a little bit more than me of course. It was tough. I was trying to get him, but I just couldn’t do it, so it was a little frustrating. Second moto, holeshot, and I don’t remember where Ryan passed me, but he got around me. He pulled away. I closed the gap up, and then he pulled away again.”
Blake Baggett (RacerX): “I’m trying to get better and better each weekend. Some weekends definitely don’t show it, but just trying to learn and get better and eventually be able to be up front with [Ryan] Dungey and Barcia and be battling for wins like I did on the Lites bikes. Just still figuring out the big bike and trying to eliminate mistakes. Of course I still make a lot in a thirty-minute moto, but just trying to get better and improve. Taking each weekend and each moto one at a time.”
450 Overall: 1. Ryan Dungey (KTM) 1-1. 2. Justin Barcia (Yam) 2-2. 3. Blake Baggett (Suz) 4-3. 4. Ken Roczen (Suz) 3-4. 5. Jason Anderson (Hus) 6-6. 6. Broc Tickle (Suz) 5-7. 7. Fredrik Noren (Hon) 8-5. 8. Christophe Pourcel (Hus) 9-8. 9. Phil Nicoletti (Yam) 7-10. 10. Josh Grant (Kaw) 10-9.
450 Points (After 8 of 12 races): 1. Ryan Dungey – 353. 2. Ken Roczen – 297. 3. Justin Barcia – 284. 4. Blake Baggett – 250. 5. Jason Anderson – 227. 6. Broc Tickle – 220. 7. Christophe Pourcel – 211. 8. Phil Nicoletti – 176. 9. Weston Peick – 171. 10. Fredrik Noren – 161.
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250 Moto 1: Rookie RJ Hampshire snuck around the tight right hand corner to take the holeshot over Marvin Musquin and Alex Martin but neither Martin nor Musquin would complete the opening lap without doing some soil testing.
Alex was left on the ground after clipping the back of an out of shape Musquin who recovered to take the lead from Hampshire only to get his front wheel stuck in a muddy berm and go down then take ages to pull his bike free of the goop. Another mistake later in the race led to an eighth place finish for Musquin—and the loss of valuable points.
Cooper Webb got to the lead over Joey Savatgy and never looked back but something must be said for Jeremy Martin’s performance. Jeremy lost his clutch on the third lap and managed to pull to the rear-wheel of Savatgy for second on the final lap, before falling short of the runner-up spot.
Alex Martin, Hampshire, Aaron Plessinger, Zach Osborne, Musquin, Peters, and Matt Bisceliga would round out the top ten.
250 Moto 2: Jeremy Martin blasted around the right hand start to claim the holeshot and even with his teammate Webb breathing down his neck, Martin pulled away early in the moto, pushing his lead to over fourteen seconds at the halfway point in the moto. Martin would go on to win the moto by 25.182 seconds.
The moto was Martin’s, but the overall belonged to Webb, who rebounded from mistakes late in both motos at RedBud to win his first overall since the Tennessee National a year ago. Martin may have lost the overall, but he gained twelve more points in the championship on Musquin and now sits nineteen clear heading into Washougal.
Joey Savatgy held on the rear-wheel of Musquin for much of the second moto, but could never find his way back around. He held on for fourth over Jordon Smith in the moto to claim third overall on the day. Shane McElrath, Zach Osborne, Chris Alldredge, Aaron Plessinger and Jessy Nelson would round out the top ten.
Aussie Hayden Mellross managed to score one point with a 20th in the opening moto and just missed out on a top 20 in moto two.
Cooper Webb (RacerX): The day went really well for me. In qualifying we were right there where we needed to be. I felt solid all day. Then the first moto, I actually didn’t get that great of a start, but came around and made some good passes those first couple laps. Got around Jeremy [Martin], and there was about two guys in front of me. I had a little time to catch them and pass them. Tried to pull away as much as I could once I got into the lead, and just kind of maintained that gap the whole time. Worked out good in the first one. Then second one, I actually got my best start but unfortunately it was behind a not-so-happy J-Mart. He was riding good. I tried hanging with him as much as I could. He was definitely going fast out there. I knew 1-2 would get the job done. For me, I’m not in the points. It’s always nice to win, and that’s what our goal is, but I want to be smart as well.”
Joey Savatgy (RacerX): “It was a good day. We’re up here again. I don’t think you can really complain a whole lot when you’re up here. Obviously, that first moto was good. I felt good. Felt like a few mistakes cost me that win, but we were right there at the end. For me that’s awesome. Been working hard down at the farm with Ricky and Jeannie Carmichael and just putting in laps.”
Marvin Musquin (RacerX): “I was like, Man, that’s awesome. I’m leading the race! The track was good. They did a lot of work between the motos. And then I got into the lead, and I was actually doing pretty good until I went outside and I tucked the front end so bad and stopped and went over the bars. I was like, Are you serious? I was bummed. I was like, Man, no way. I’ve been struggling with my wrist since right before RedBud. I took a full week off the bike. It was tough not being on the bike and not training because I know if you take a week off, you’re resting, but at the same time you’re not training. So I was looking for a good day and I’m like, Man, I was doing good. And then it took me a lot of energy to get the bike off that hole. And then I was tired after that. Actually, I was doing pretty good after that, and then unfortunately I went down again.”
250 Overall: 1. Cooper Webb (Yam) 1-2. 2. Jeremy Martin (Yam) 3-1. 3. Joey Savatgy (Kaw) 2-4. 4. Marvin Musquin (KTM) 8-3. 5. Zach Osborne (Hus) 7-7. 6. Aaron Plessinger (Yam) 6-9. 7. Jordan Smith (Hon) 12-5. 8. Shane McElrath (KTM) 11-6. 9. R.J. Hampshire (Hon) 5-12. 10. Alex Martin (Yam) 4-15.
250 Points (After 8 of 12 races): 1. Jeremy Martin – 343. 2. Marvin Musquin – 324. 3. Zach Osborne – 235. 4. Joey Savatgy – 231. 5. Alex Martin – 213. 6. Jessy Nelson – 205. 7. Adam Cianciarulo – 178. 8. Aaron Plessinger – 169. 9. Matt Biscelgia – 163. 10. Jordan Smith – 157.
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2015 Australian Motocross Championships – Round 7 – Shepparton, Vic
MX1 Race Report: In moto one, it was Dan Reardon who claimed the first hole shot of the day, before going head to head with CDR team mate Kade Mosig and Lawson Bopping. Reardon held the race lead until Bopping charged by the CDR riders for the race lead but it wasn’t long before Mosig inheriting second place when Reardon went down at the 15 minute mark.
With a clear track ahead of him, Mosig set his sights on Bopping and in one swift move the lead was his. Mosig then carried his confident momentum to the finish line, claiming the opening race honours ahead of the KTM duo Luke Styke and Kirk Gibbs.
In race two, the battle of the day was had with Adam Monea and Dan Reardon swapping the lead half a dozen times throughout the race but in the end it was Monea who eventually crossed the line first ahead of Reardon and a fast finishing Mosig.
When the overall points for round seven were calculated Mosig earned his second overall win for 2015 ahead of Monea and series leader Kirk Gibbs who struggled with a shoulder injury all day.
Kade Mosig: “I couldn’t be happier, the last few rounds have been up and down and it had really affected our results so today the focus was on limiting the mistakes and getting the best result possible out of each race. It was a tough track today as the ruts were long and deep with plenty of soft spots in them so you had to be patient and not over ride it. The CDR Yamaha team had the bike working great and it’s good to get back up here on the box and put this team up where it belongs.”
Kirk Gibbs: “That’s probably the toughest day pain-wise that I’ve had – ever, probably. That first moto nearly had me in tears at the end of it, that’s how bad the pain was. I just thank God for the adrenaline – once it kicks in. I could have done a lot better today, it was the sort of track that suits me with big deep ruts and all that. But in the condition that I was in, I’m easily happy to come away with third overall today. Now I just want to go away and get this thing back two 100% and just come out at Nowra injury-free and have a good go.”
Luke Styke: “I was riding real good today, it’s a shame the result doesn’t show it. I was really happy with the first one, I passed all the good guys for second and made a good late charge at the end of the moto. I had a terrible second race though; I got a good start but then I got cleaned out in the first turn and pushed off the track. I came from dead last, only to have some turkey T-bone me half way through the moto. A lapper too! I would have gotten a fifth, and that would have given me the podium for the day.” But we are healthy and we are rolling out, and I’ve got my home track for the next round.”
Adam Monea: “I was so determined for a good result after the first race. In the second race I started off well and I picked up the pace by finding a couple of good lines. I just had to keep calm and ride some clean laps. I tipped over though and made it harder for myself, but I finished on top in the end. After the first moto I was a bit over not getting a podium so to come out like that in the second race, it was great to prove to myself again that I can do it. I couldn’t have done it without the team and everyone involved including the fans and my family who all made the effort to come out, especially my mum who makes the most noise and is my number one believer. The win has given a great boost of confidence in myself and the team who made the right decisions with adjustments made to the bike for the second moto.” Adam commented.
Dan Reardon: “Coulda, woulda, shoulda! It’s been the story of my season so far and I need to stay focused and put a full day of racing together, the frustrating thing is that I’m putting myself in the right positions to do well, only to make a mistake and throw it all away. We have three rounds left and my goal is to have all remaining six races inside the top three.”
MX1 Overall: 1. Kade Mosig 65. 2. Adam Monea 60. 3. Kirk Gibbs 58. 4. Luke Styke 57. 5. Daniel Reardon 54. 6. Jesse Dobson 52. 7. Lawson Bopping 51. 8. Dylan Long 47. 9. Cody Cooper 46. 10. Kale Makeham 41.
MX1 Points: 1. Kirk Gibbs 471. 2. Luke Styke 408. 3. Kade Mosig 397. 4. Adam Monea 394. 5. Lawson Bopping 375. 6. Daniel Reardon 340. 7. Jesse Dobson 338. 8. Dylan Long 331. 9. Cody Cooper 313. 10. Kale Makeham 262.
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MX2 Race Report: In moto one, series point’s leader Jay Wilson scored the holeshot before Luke Arbon applied pressure on the red plate holder for the race lead but it was Kawasaki Australia’s Takeshi Katsuya managed to pass Wilson and Arbon for the race lead and eventual win.
The 35 year old former Japanese champ collected his first ever MX Nationals race win ahead of KTM’s Caleb Ward who was catching Katsuya mid moto only to slide out while Husqvarna’s Nathan Crawford came from a first lap crash to charge through the field for third place.
Luke Clout also crashed on the opening lap and managed to climb back to well inside the top ten to minimise the point’s deficit to Wilson.
In race number two, it was once again Wilson who scored his second hole shot of the day but it was Luke Clout who launched to the race lead and for the next 20 minutes the former teammates Clout and Wilson went head to head. It was thrilling duel but when the chequered flag flew it was Clout who crossed this line ahead of Wilson who in turn was followed by KTM’s Caleb Ward who claimed third after a poor start.
There was only five points separating the top five for the round overall with Ward once again taking the win, this time ahead of Katsuya, Wilson, Clout and Crawford.
Caleb Ward: “The track was pretty technical with a lot of different lines and stuff, pretty rough. First moto I spun on the concrete a bit, and I think I was in 12th on the second lap. I made my way through to second, up to Takka, and I was going for the pass for the lead, and I sort of dropped it in the corner. I managed to get back up for second, but Takka was gone. Second moto I got off the concrete okay, but when I hit the dirt I wheelied a bit and had to pull the clutch in. It took me longer to make my way through the pack in that one, but it turns out that was good enough for the overall win, by one point, so I can’t really complain.”
Takeshi Katsuya – “The results in the second moto weren’t what I was looking for after a win in the first race. The track was pretty rough out there so I struggled getting the same lines as in that first race. The ruts were getting too deep so I was more just trying to stay on the bike than anything else. But you know, I’m still comfortable with where I am overall and how I’m performing and I got a second place overall, so I’m happy with that. We’ve got 3 rounds to go so I just want to keep on the bike and stay consistent.”
Nathan Crawford – “Fifth wasn’t too bad for me today. A better weekend than the last couple I’ve had that’s for sure, but I guess I definitely wanted to be on the box. The points on the day were pretty tight, so third and fourth was okay. It was pretty rutty and technical here, but it was something different and I adapted pretty quickly. The concrete start was a bit of a challenge but my start a pretty decent. That was good in the first Moto, I felt like I could maybe have done better in the second Moto but we’ll take the positives and move on.”
MX2 Overall: 1. Caleb Ward 62. 2. Takeshi Katsuya 61. 3. Jay Wilson 60. 4. Luke Clout 59. 5. Nathan Crawford 58. 6. Jed Beaton 49. 7. Dylan Wills 49. 8. Luke Arbon 48. 9. Riley Graham 43. 10. Wade Hunter 41.
MX2 Points: 1. Jay Wilson 403. 2. Luke Clout 397. 3. Takeshi Katsuya 384. 4. Jed Beaton 349. 5. Wade Hunter 329. 6. Luke Arbon 327. 7. Caleb Ward 311. 8. Nathan Crawford 292. 9. Geran Stapleton 277. 10. Dylan Wills 273.
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Canadian Motocross Championships – Round 6 – Sand Del Lee
Brett Metcalfe and Kaven Benoit have taken out the MX1 and MX2 classes respectively at round six of the Canadian Motocross Championships held at Sand Del Lee last weekend.
Metcalfe went 3-1 to just out-point championship leader Matt Goerke who went 2-2 so Metcalfe now has a 17 point deficit to Goerke in the championship while Benoit continues to dominate the MX2 class with a pair of wins stretching his points lead to 44 points over another local Jeremy Medaglia.
Interestingly, former AMA National Champion John Dowd turned up and despite giving between 20 to 30 years on his opposition he managed a top ten finish – incredible.
MX1 Overall: 1. Brett Metcalfe. 2. Matt Goerke. 3. Colton Facciotti. 4. Cole Thompson. 5. Tyler Medaglia. 6. Bobby Kiniry. 7. Teddy Maier. 8. Kyle Keast. 9. Kyle Swanson. 10. John Dowd.
MX1 Series Standings: 1. Matt Goerke – 321pt. 2. Brett Metcalfe – 304pts. 3. Colton Facciotti – 298pts. 4. Cole Thompson – 264pts. 5. Tyler Medaglia – 259pts.
MX2 Overall: 1. Kaven Benoit. 2. Shawn Maffenbeier. 3. Jeremy Medaglia. 4. Dylan Wright. 5. Jimmy Decotis. 6. Blake Savage. 7. Liam Ofarrell. 8. Morgan Burger. 9. Cole Martinez. 10. Shawn Rife.
MX2 Series Standings: 1. Kaven Benoit – 337pts. 2. Jeremy Medaglia – 293pts. 3. Jimmy Decotis – 287pts. 4. Shawn Maffenbeier – 232pts. 5. Blake Savage – 229pts.
Speedway World Championships – Round 5 – Latvia
Polish champion Maciej Janowski charged to his first FIM Speedway Grand Prix triumph in Daugavpils tonight, and pledged to forget all about it! The two-time FIM Speedway Under-21 world champion topped the Rietumu Bank Latvian SGP rostrum on 12 points when the meeting was curtailed due to heavy rain after heat 20.
Triple world champ Nicki Pedersen was second, pipping third-placed Troy Batchelor after they tied on 11 points with three wins and two third places apiece. This meant the Dane got the verdict, having won their head-to-head battle in race 16.
Despite his speedway CV getting more impressive by the week, the 23-year-old remains firmly grounded and focused on his next meeting, pledging to forget any celebrations until the winter. “Of course this is a big success for me and my team. Winning a GP is something I have wanted and tried to do my whole career. I hope this is not the last GP I win. For sure this will make me put in more hard work.
“I’m happy I have this trophy. I was looking at it on the presentation and thinking ‘maybe one day.’ Today is the day and I’m very happy.” Janowski said. “I feel pretty normal, though. I’m really happy with my points, but this meeting has gone already. I want to prove I can stay in the top eight and start thinking about next season. I will celebrate, but after the season.
“This is the middle of the season. I’ll stay focused on the next few rounds, the Polish league and the British league. Now there is still so much to do. But I want to say thank you to all my fans, my team and my sponsors. I had big support before the meeting, so I thank everyone.”
No shortage of SGP experts tipped Janowski to win a round in his debut season and some have even suggested he has the class for a top-three finish. Janowski is glad to be rated so highly, but knows there is still work to do.
“Of course I hear this, but I don’t want to think about it.” Janowski continued. “Even if someone says I can do it, it does not make any difference to me. I have to score the points. I just focus on myself and that’s it. I’ll just try to have some good fun. Chris Holder told me never to think about the points, so I don’t want to think about them. I just want to have good fun.”
Janowski backed the FIM Jury’s decision to abandon the meeting without running the semi-finals and final as the rain got harder and harder. “The most important thing is safety and after we had the rain, it would have been difficult to control the bike. It wouldn’t have even been good fun for the fans. I’m glad we’re all safe and going home in one piece, ready for the next meeting.”
Runner-up Pedersen was more than happy with his sixth Latvian SGP top-four finish in Daugavpils. He is now just nine points adrift of World Championship leader Tai Woffinden in second place after cutting the deficit by three. “I wasn’t as happy as I wanted to be in Cardiff.” Pedersen commented. “I didn’t have the equipment how I wanted. But this track is a bit longer and I enjoyed it. The rain coming in was a little bit disappointing because I had the speed tonight, but that’s one of those things. I want to stay positive. I’m getting closer and this is the fifth time on the rostrum for me in Latvia. I’m taking all the positives and looking forward to coming to Malilla in less than a week. I just need to recharge the batteries again and spend some time with my kids and stuff like that. I’ll do a bit of running and exercise, maybe one practice and then get ready for Malilla. It’s one of those places I should know, though.”
Australian Troy Batchelor endured a nightmare Adrian Flux British SGP in Cardiff on July 4, crashing out of the meeting with back and shoulder injuries so he was elated to storm back into top form in Latvia tonight. “What a way to come back from Cardiff!” he said. “I went home in an ambulance and that wasn’t my night. Everything was going well in Cardiff before my crash. I feel I’m in the right place and it showed tonight. I had three good wins and some good speed. I tailed off a bit towards the end when the rain started coming. But it was a good GP. I’m probably going to spend tomorrow recovering. I’ll go home and have a few days’ rest. But everything is in the right place – we’ll just keep it there.”
Overall – Latvia: 1 Maciej Janowski 12, 2 Nicki Pedersen 11, 3 Troy Batchelor 11, 4 Chris Holder 10, 5 Greg Hancock 10, 6 Jason Doyle 8, 7 Tai Woffinden 8, 8 Peter Kildemand 8, 9 Niels-Kristian Iversen 8,10 Michael Jepsen Jensen 7, 11 Tomas H Jonasson 7, 12 Andreas Jonsson 7, 13 Matej Zagar 6, 14 Chris Harris 4, 15 Kasts Puodzuks 3.
World Championship points Standings after Round 5: 1 Tai Woffinden 63, 2 Nicki Pedersen 54, 3 Greg Hancock 49, 4 Niels-Kristian Iversen 43, 5 Chris Holder 41, 6 Matej Zagar 40, 7 Maciej Janowski 38, 8 Jason Doyle 37, 9 Michael Jepsen Jensen 34, 10 Andreas Jonsson 33, 11 Jaroslaw Hampel 31, 12 Troy Batchelor 28.
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AMA Sprint Enduro Series – Round 3 – Indiana
A mere 2.624 seconds was the margin of victory for N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Daniel Milner after two days of racing special test racing at round three of the 2015 Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro Series at Staunton MX in Brazil, IN.
FMF/KTM’s Kailub Russell came out swinging on day one taking the win on the first test of the weekend, the cross test, by 2-seconds. Milner struck back taking the second test win by 4 seconds, a trend that would continue throughout the weekend with the pair going back and forth with test wins and ultimately taking 10 out of 11 wins for the weekend. After the first five tests on day one Milner held a 2.623-second lead over Russell setting the stage for an intense second day of racing.
Milner headed into day two in familiar territory, he had won the first day of racing at round one in South Carolina only to be bested the second day of racing by Russell, losing the overall. With that surely in the back of his mind, the Australian laid down a blistering first test putting nearly 3-seconds on the KTM rider to give himself a 5-second cushion.
Russell struck back in the second test of the day, the enduro test, to take the win by just one second, only to see Milner put 2.5 more seconds on him in the following run of the cross test. With the event looking to be securely in Milner’s grasp, Russell laid down the fastest time (at that point of the weekend) on the enduro test to cut 3.1 seconds into Milner’s lead, then took another second off in the following run of the cross test, although he lost that test to Sipes.
Heading into the final test of the weekend, the enduro test, the tension was palpable as Milner held just a 3-second lead over Russell. Knowing that the FMF/KTM superstar had beaten him in the last run of the cross test Milner let it all hang out as he took off onto the test first. Russell, mounted on a 2015 KTM 250-XCF could be heard bouncing off the rev-limiter for the majority of the test, obviously pushing and wanting the test win and the overall as well.
Milner crossed the test of the finish and registered a 7:23.012 time on the enduro test, two seconds faster than Kailub’s previous time on the enduro test which was the fastest at that point of the weekend. Kailub Russell came flying into the finish almost exactly at the 15-second gap he left the test behind Milner and rushed to the timing and scoring screen only to see that he had lost the test by .4 of a second giving Milner the overall win, and the win for the day by an insanely close one-thousandth-of-a-second.
The only rider able to steal a special test win away Milner and Russell was Rockstar Energy AirGroup Racing’s Ryan Sipes who finished the weekend in a solid 3rd-place including a win in the last time on the cross test on day two.
“The weekend was awesome, the tracks were the most fun I have ridden here in the U.S so far, and the racing between myself, Kailub, and Ryan was awesome and would have made it not just interesting for us guys but everyone there and at home watching,” said overall winner, Milner.
Russell still leads the championship by 47 points over Layne Michael with two rounds remaining.
Overall Results: 1. Daniel Milner 1:12:39.419. 2. Kailub Russell 1:12:42.043. 3. Ryan Sipes 1:13:15.313. 4. Thad DuVall 1:14:21.258. 5. Layne Michael 1:15:08.684. 6. Russell Bobbitt 1:15:17.930. 7. Cory Buttrick 1:15:41.960. 8. Jordan Ashburn 1:16:02.729. 9. Triston Landrum 1:17:12.900. 10. Mike Witkowski 1:17:23.293.
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2015 Red Bull Romaniacs – Sibiu, Romania.
Jonny Walker on finished overall winner of the Red Bull Romaniacs after a very tough final dash to the finish when perpetual rival Graham Jarvis stole the last day line honors. It was Walker’s second consecutive Romaniacs title with Jarvis taoking second place ahead of Alfredo Gomez of Spain.
Jonny Walker: “Getting my second win at Red Bull Romaniacs feels amazing. I reckon that was probably the hardest race I’ve ever done here. With the #1 plate there was always pressure to defend it. I was confident in myself and what I could do but the level has stepped up massively since last year. There are so many guys going fast now it’s crazy. Everyday I had to push like hell and any mistake whatsoever was costly. Starting today with about a three minute gap I couldn’t really afford to relax. I pushed as hard as I can and aside from losing time at the very end I’ve been able to win. It’s incredible.”
After five days of exhausting days over rugged terrain in Romania’s Carpathian Mountains riders were confronted with a very difficult run to the finish. They had to tackle a very steep climb of soft sand, ironically named “Highway to Heaven” by the organizers, and an unbelievable series of obstacles before they passed under the Red Bull Finishing Bridge to record their final time.
Walker slipped several meters before the crest of the climb and had to take the detour, which gave Jarvis the edge as they charged into the final obstacles. And while Walker got stuck in the mud hole, Jarvis was the first over the line to take the day’s honors. Walker, a Red Bull athlete was the overall winner by just one minute 10 seconds.
The 2015 edition was an event of many spectacular parts. Walker, deploying his trials skills, got off to a great start as the winner of the challenging prologue on Tuesday through the streets of the city of Sibiu with obstacles that would be daunting even for experienced SuperEnduro riders.
But in Day One of the Offroad competition it was Walker’s Red Bull KTM Factory teammate Andreas Lettenbichler who excelled, finishing second to veteran Jarvis. Walker had some problems with a steep climb after the service point and also made several uncharacteristic navigational errors. He was third on the podium at the end of the day but still wrote it off as a ‘bad day’.
Day Two saw Walker start with a six-minute deficit to Jarvis but with enough fire in his belly that he managed to convert to a win, saying: “Today was a much better day. After my rookie errors from yesterday I had my race face on today and was fired up to close the gap to Graham. I got handed a bit of a gift right off the start when I was the only one of the front-runners to find the correct route for the gold class. That immediately reduced my disadvantage to Graham and after a couple of checkpoints I was right with him. Then I managed to pass him before the service check and claw back the six-minute starting advantage he had on me. I knew then that was most of the hard work done. We both left the service at the same and rode together for most of the afternoon. At times I tried to break away and so did he, until finally with about 30 minutes to go I went for it and gapped him before the finish line.”
Day Two also saw Lettenbichler pick up a nasty time penalty after a high-speed crash. It also drew a line under the event for New Zealand KTM veteran Chris Birch who crashed out and had to retire. But Lettenbichler returned like a demon possessed on Day Three and was the stage winner, while Walker as back at fifth, even though he did hang onto the overall lead to take the fight with Jarvis to the finish.
Lettenbichler wrapped up his Romaniacs in overall sixth, a great effort from this veteran rider. In front of him in fifth and sixth were two KTM riders – Paul Bolton (GBR) and young South African talent Wade Young, who took third place last year.
Andreas Lettenbichler: “Red Bull Romaniacs is always full of surprises. I felt like I rode very strong all week. I had the speed to finish on the podium – maybe more – but my navigational error on Day Two ruined my chances. But like I said I’m pleased with how I rode and getting a win on Day Three was also nice too!”
Red Bull Romaniacs Final Overall Results: 1, Jonny Walker, GBR, KTM, 23 hours 49.42. 2, Graham Jarvis, GBR, Husqvarna, 24:21.22. 3, Alfredo Gomez, ESP, Husqvarna, 24:48.03. 4, Paul Bolton, GBR, KTM, 25:00.10. 5, Wade Young, RSA, KTM, 25:10.39. 6, Andreas Lettenbichler, GER, KTM, 25:44.50. 7, Philipp Scholz, GER, KTM, 26:24.37. 8, Blake Gutzeit, RSA, Husqvarna, 26:26.59. 9, Lars Enoeckl, AUT, KTM, 26:39.38. 10, Brett Swanepoel, RSA, Yamaha, 26:44.01
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2015 World Junior Motocross Championships – El Molar, Spain
World Junior Championship – Saturday Qualifying Results
Open 65cc Qualifying Practice Top Ten: 1. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), 2:07.397; 2. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), +0:01.207; 3. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), +0:01.474; 4. Raul Sanchez (ESP, KTM), +0:01.688; 5. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), +0:01.922; 6. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), +0:01.978; 7. Liam Everts (BEL, KTM), +0:02.891; 8. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), +0:03.148; 9. Pablo Gutierrez Solis (ESP, KTM), +0:04.194; 10. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), +0:04.808.
85cc Qualifying Practice Top Ten: 1. Moreau Brian (FRA, Kawasaki), 1:56.530; 2. Elzinga Rick (NED, KTM), +0:00.552; 3. Boegh Damm Bastian (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:01.335; 4. Hofer Rene (AUT, KTM), +0:01.368; 5. Polak Petr (CZE, KTM), +0:01.483; 6. Scuteri Emilio (ITA, KTM), +0:02.022; 7. Budd Rhys (AUS, KTM), +0:02.258; 8. Petrashin Timur (RUS, KTM), +0:02.556; 9. Malkiewicz Bailey (AUS, Husqvarna), +0:02.691; 10. Beninstan Thibault (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:02.782.
125cc Qualifying Practice Top Ten Group B: 1. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Yamaha), 1:51.047; 2. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, KTM), +0:00.373; 3. Anthony Bourdon (FRA, Yamaha), +0:00.459; 4. Gianluca Facchetti (ITA, KTM), +0:01.124; 5. Glen Meier (DEN, KTM), +0:01.157; 6. Alessandro Lentini (ITA, Husqvarna), +0:01.768; 7. Jan Pancar (SLO, Yamaha), +0:01.895; 8. Cyril Genot (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:02.293; 9. Noud van Kraaij (NED, KTM), +0:02.503; 10. Jakub Barczewski (POL, KTM), +0:02.839.
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NOTE: Below is the official race report for the 2015 Junior World Championship:
The soaring temperatures had nothing on how hot the battle for junior motocross supremacy was.
Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux and HSF Logistics Motorsport Team’s Raivo Dankers overcame the heat and the chewed up hard pack track of El Molar to be crowned the respective 2015 FIM Junior 125cc and 85cc Motocross World Champions, while young Dutch sensation Kay Karrsemakers was crowned European Open 65cc winner.
Junior 125cc Race One
The depth of talent in the premier junior class is absolutely mind blowing and this weekend was a good example of how exciting the future of motocross is. When the gates fell it was the youngest rider in the class, KTM Factory Juniors Jorge Prado who got off to a killer start and claimed the first Fox Holeshot but was pushed wide and instantly dropped outside of the top five.
At the end of lap one it was Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux who emerged in the lead with Spain’s heavy hitter Ruben Fernandez hot on his heels. Fernandez showed a wheel to Renaux on a number of occasions and was flying the flag high for his home nation but couldn’t make a pass stick.
KTM Factory Juniors Conrad Mewse didn’t get off to the best start but was absolutely hauling and soon found himself vying for the opening race win after passing Fernandez with a few laps to go. France’s Stephen Rubini and Australia’s Hunter Lawrence also put in strong performances to finish within striking distance of the winner Renaux and round out the top five.
Junior 125cc Race Two
As an epic end to what was an amazing 2015 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship, both of the race one front runners Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux and KTM Factory Juniors Conrad Mewse fought tooth and nail for the final race win and championship overall.
When the gate dropped Conrad Mewse was right where he wanted to be, up front and ruling the roost. That turned out to be briefer than he expected as surprise contender Richard Sikyna from Slovakia blitzed past him for the early lead. Mewse responded almost immediately but didn’t get a chance to enjoy the lead as the race one winner Maxime Renaux was already on him.
Without wasting anytime Renaux put the pass on Mewse, but it was clear Mewse wasn’t going to go down without a fight and responded immediately. In a demonstration of motocross at it’s finest, Renaux and Mewse went bar to bar, not only for the race win, but the 2015 FIM Junior 125cc motocross world title.
The race went down to the wire, and was hands down one of the best races the FIM Junior 125cc World Championship has ever witnessed, but it was Maxime Renaux who held on ever so tightly for the race win and the gold plate.
Meanwhile in the shadow of that awesome battle, Sikyna rode home in a lonely third while Australian Hunter Lawrence crossed the line in an unchallenged fourth. Yesterday’s Group B top qualifier Mathys Boisrame rounded out the top five.
Junior 125cc Overall
Taking home the most prestigious youth title of the year was Kemea Yamaha Yamalube’s Maxime Renaux who did so with a hard fought double race victory. KTM Factory Junior’s Conrad Mewse came so close but had to settle for second while Australia’s Hunter Lawrence rounded off the podium.
Junior 85cc Race One
It was a dramatic start to the day for the Junior 85’s. Right from the first gate drop it was evident these boys were going to lay it all on the line.
Italy’s Mattia Capuzzo took the early advantage with his claim of the Fox Holeshot ahead of France’s Thibault Benistan who wasted no time in taking the lead. On the opening lap, yesterday’s top qualifier Bud Racing Kawasaki Monster Energy’s Brian Moreau was all over Benistan but a slip up on lap two saw him drop back to third.
The decision to attack or defend was a hard one to make for the top three, Benistan, HSF Logistic Motorsports Raivo Dankers and Moreau as they all took turns leading the race. Eventually, Moreau got his lines sorted and in one fell swoop went from third to first.
Initially Moreau dropped the hammer and checked out, but ended up throwing away his hard earned advantage with a late race high side. Dankers then inherited the lead and gapped everyone for the first race win.
Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Basitan Boegh Damm put in an impressive charge for second ahead of Austria’s Rene Hoffer. Moreau salvaged fourth despite snapping his rear fender when he crashed out of the lead while Benistan rounded out the top five.
Junior 85cc Race Two
The heat and humidity didn’t seem to phase the super talented youngsters competing for the Junior 85cc crown as they fought all the way to the finish for world championship glory. Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Brian Van Der Klij took the final Fox Holeshot and led the opening lap before being dropped back by Czech Republic’s Petr Polak who was riding at a blindingly quick pace.
Polak layed in an early charge while race one winner Raivo Dankers closed the gap on his fellow countryman Van Der Klij. In a battle for second and for the pride of The Netherlands, Dankers and Van Der Klij went head to head for a lap before Dankers made the pass stick in an outright uphill drag.
A few laps later, both Netherlanders were dropped back as the top qualifier Brian Moreau clocked a bunch of fast laps and blitzed pass them with ease. With four minutes plus two laps to go, Moreau opened fire on the race leader Polak and ran away for what turned out to be an easy race win. Polak, who was only tenth in race one, rode impressive for second ahead of Dankers and Boegh Damm while Holland’s Rick Elzinger was gifted fifth after the holeshotter, Van der Klij, stacked it with two laps to go.
Junior 85cc Overall
After a scorching hot day in the office HSF Logistics Motorsport Team’s Raivo Dankers added the 2015 FIM Junior 85cc World Championship gold plate to his dazzling resume, which already consists of two European Championship titles. The top qualifier Bud Racing Kawasaki Monster Energy’s Brian Moreau stood on the second step of the podium while Stabilo Kawasaki MX Team’s Bastian Boegh Damm rounded out the top three.
Junior Nations
Team France proved to have the fastest pro riders in the world when they won the 2014 Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations and now they have proven to have the fastest juniors with their team of young talents winning the title junior nations title ahead of Team Great Britain and Team Australia.
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World Junior Championship – Results
Junior 125cc Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), 29:27.127; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), +0:00.395; 3. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:04.278; 4. Stephen Rubini (FRA, KTM), +0:04.933; 5. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, KTM), +0:05.421; 6. Josiah Natzke (NZL, KTM), +0:07.225; 7. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Yamaha), +0:19.499; 8. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:24.600; 9. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), +0:30.694; 10. Glen Meier (DEN, KTM), +0:33.504.
Junior 125cc Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), 29:11.140; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), +0:01.014; 3. Richard Sikyna (SVK, KTM), +0:06.012; 4. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, KTM), +0:07.064; 5. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Yamaha), +0:36.138; 6. Davide Cislaghi (ITA, TM), +0:38.293; 7. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), +0:41.315; 8. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:45.199; 9. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), +0:48.987; 10. Nathan Renkens (BEL, KTM), +0:49.737.
Junior 125cc Overall Top Ten: 1. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 50 points; 2. Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), 44 p.; 3. Hunter Lawrence (AUS, KTM), 34 p.; 4. Ruben Fernandez Garcia (ESP, KTM), 33 p.; 5. Mathys Boisrame (FRA, YAM), 30 p.; 6. Richard Sikyna (SVK, KTM), 26 p.; 7. Miro Sihvonen (FIN, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Jorge Prado Garcia (ESP, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Davide Cislaghi (ITA, TM), 24 p.; 10. Nathan Renkens (BEL, KTM), 21 p.
85cc Junior Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 25:26.208; 2. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:09.628; 3. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), +0:10.838; 4. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:13.168; 5. Thibault Benistant (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:25.737; 6. Raf Meuwissen (NED, Honda), +0:27.345; 7. John Bova (AUS, KTM), +0:29.814; 8. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), +0:34.935; 9. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), +0:38.184; 10. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), +0:43.744.
85cc Junior Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, Kawasaki), 24:55.758; 2. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), +0:06.113; 3. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), +0:09.265; 4. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, Kawasaki), +0:21.731; 5. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), +0:25.675; 6. Marcel Stauffer (AUT, KTM), +0:36.847; 7. Rhys Budd (AUS, KTM), +0:41.111; 8. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), +0:42.633; 9. Raffaele Giuzio (ITA, Honda), +0:43.177; 10. Pierre Cantournet (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:43.929.
85cc Junior Overall Top Ten: 1. Raivo Dankers (NED, KTM), 45 points; 2. Brian Strubhart Moreau (FRA, KAW), 43 p.; 3. Bastian Boegh Damm (DEN, KAW), 40 p.; 4. Petr Polak (CZE, KTM), 32 p.; 5. Rick Elzinga (NED, KTM), 29 p.; 6. Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 28 p.; 7. Christopher Mills (GBR, KTM), 24 p.; 8. Rhys Budd (AUS, KTM), 23 p.; 9. Marcel Stauffer (AUT, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Emilio Scuteri (ITA, KTM), 21 p.
European Open 65cc Race 1 Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 19:22.427; 2. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), +0:16.394; 3. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), +0:28.672; 4. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), +0:34.701; 5. Pablo Gutierrez Solis (ESP, KTM), +0:35.525; 6. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), +0:43.010; 7. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), +0:49.215; 8. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), +1:13.324; 9. Raul Sanchez (ESP, KTM), +1:23.224; 10. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), +1:36.107
European Open 65cc Race 2 Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 17:59.258; 2. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), +0:01.357; 3. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), +0:04.277; 4. Adria Monne Viles (ESP, KTM), +0:26.250; 5. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), +0:29.440; 6. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), +0:37.182; 7. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), +0:42.036; 8. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), +0:53.545; 9. Xavier Cazal (FRA, KTM), +0:56.639; 10. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), +1:01.342
European Open 65cc Overall Top Ten: 1. Kay Karssemakers (NED, KTM), 50 points; 2. Adam Zsolt Kovacs (HUN, KTM), 42 p.; 3. Radek Vetrovski (CZE, KTM), 37 p.; 4. Florian Miot (FRA, KTM), 34 p.; 5. Matvey Vopilov (RUS, KTM), 34 p.; 6. Martin Venhoda (CZE, KTM), 29 p.; 7. Zakhar Osmolovskiy (RUS, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Pablo Gutierrez Solis (ESP, KTM), 25 p.; 9. Vinnie Guthrie (GBR, KTM), 22 p.; 10. Adria Monne Viles (ESP, KTM), 18 p.
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AORC season reaches make or break point
The 2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) reaches a critical juncture in the context of the series when it heads to Kyogle, New South Wales this weekend.
The race to the top of the overall season podium remains up for grabs in all but one class, with a number of riders having the opportunity to seal their respective class victories in Rounds 9 and 10.
On the back of securing a permanent KTM Red Bull Rally Factory Racing Team ride for the next two seasons, Motorex KTM Off-Road Racing’s Toby Price will be especially determined to make sure his farewell to the Australian Off-Road Championship scene is a successful one.
The four-time champion is the runaway leader in both the overall and E3 class standings, and two victories in Rounds 9 and 10 this weekend in Kyogle will all but engrave his name on yet another AORC champion’s trophy.
However, he won’t have it all his own way, with the man primed to take over Price’s mantle in the Motorex KTM Off-Road Racing stable Daniel Sanders snapping at his heals in the E3 class.
Price leads the class on 197 points, with Sanders on 177 and veteran Husqvarna Off-Road Team’s Glenn Kearney on 160.
The E2 class is also proving to be hotly contested, with Active8 Yamaha’s Beau Ralston (170 points) holding out Husqvarna Off-Road Team’s Lachlan Stanford (156). Motorex KTM Off Road Racing’s Tye Simmonds (151) and CDR Yamaha’s Chris Hollis (139) are also expected to make a frantic dash to the line and put pressure on the top two in the remaining rounds.
The E1 class is being dominated by Active8 Yamaha’s Josh Green (also second in the overall standings), who has gone through the season undefeated in the class to record 200 points.
Tom Kite (Honda Privateer) and Riley Graham (KTM Privateer) round out the podium in the E1 class.
The Transmoto 19 and Under class is a four-way log jam at the top of the standings, with Yamaha Privateer Peter Daniel Allen (146), Kawasaki KX Junior Squad’s Lyndon Snodgrass (145), Bolton’s KTM rider Tom Mason (144) and Suzuki’s Wil Ruprecht (130) all in contention at the pointy end of the season.
Much like Toby Price and Josh Green in their respective classes, Yamaha Racing’s Tayla Jones (200 points) will go a long way to claiming the Women’s class championship if she can secure another two wins this weekend.
Jones currently leads fellow Yamaha duo Jemma Wilson (158) and Emelie Karlsson (146), while ShercoAus Ballards Motorex Off-Road rider Jess Gardiner (132) sits in fourth place after missing the Aratula round last month courtesy of a broken wrist.
Yamaha’s Kirk Hutton (200) has also gone through the series undefeated, however he can relax knowing he has already secured the Veteran’s class title with an unassailable lead ahead of the final four rounds.
The Masters class remains a closely fought battle at the top of the standings, with Suzuki Privateer Trent Lean (184) looking to secure the class title over the remaining two AORC weekends which are held in his home state of New South Wales.
Yamaha Privateer Robert Day (167) is well and truly within striking distance and sits just 17 points adrift of Lean.
In the juniors, the J4 class is down to a two-horse race between Husqvarna Privateer Fraser Higlett (194) and KTM Privateer Ben Kearns (180), while Kawasaki KX Junior Squad’s Joshua Brierley will make it very difficult for his nearest rivals to rein him in if he can extend on his 47 point lead in the J3 class.
Brierley’s twin brother and fellow Kawasaki KX Junior Squad rider Mitchell (194) also leads in the J2 class, but he will have young KTM Privateer Corey Hammond (182) to contend with in the final rounds.
