Moto News Wrap for January 3, 2017 by Darren Smart
Proudly brought to you by Dunlop Geomax
News Headlines:
- AMA Supercross MEGA Report with the Latest News from California
- Dakar 2017 Kicks Off!
- TPJ Returns for AMA Supercross
- Redsands Kicks Off Euro MX Season
- MXD Class Changes for Australian MX Nationals
- Horsham MCC ready for MX Amateurs
- Summercross 2017 ready to unleash WA motocross racing season
Race Reports:
- 2017 Dakar – Stage 1
- Honda Summercross – Whakatane, NZ
- FMF Indoor Winter Series – Round 5 & 6 – Asheville, North Carolina
AMA Supercross Mega Report with the Latest News from California
This Saturday night in Anaheim, California, the 2017 AMA Supercross Championship kicks off and here is the latest news from California where the teams are burning the candle at both ends in an effort to be 100 per cent ready for the biggest show on our moto calendar!
JGR Suzuki: JGR Suzuki 250 class riders Matt Bisceglia and Phil Nicoletti have swapped the series they were originally signed to ride after Bisceglia over-jumped a triple at Milestone MX Park yesterday and fractured a bone in his foot.
Nicoletti will now be on the line this Saturday night for the opening round of the 250 West Coast series while Bisceglia is expected to be 100 per cent when the East Coast series kicks off in February.
Justin Barcia and Weston Peick are both reporting to be 100 per cent comfortable on their new Suzuki’s and ready to go!
HRC Honda: The Honda test track has seen Ken Roczen, Cole Seely and Justin Brayton testing together and from the looks of the GoPro footage Roczen and Seely are pretty close to being the same speed while Brayton is only a mila-second per lap slower.
Team Kawasaki: Similar things are going down at the Kawasaki test track with Eli Tomac and Josh Grant pumping out very similar lap times with Grant in particular looking very sharp after getting both of his ankles operated on during the motocross season.
RCH Suzuki: Broc Tickle and Justin Bogle have finally taken delivery of the factory parts they have been waiting for and are in the final throws of getting their package in shape for this weekend. Both riders are reported to be injury free and as fit as a fiddle.
Team Yamaha: Cooper Webb and Chad Reed have finalised their testing at the Yamaha test track with both riders reporting that they are wrapped with their set-up and are 100 per cent fit with not even a sore muscle going into Anaheim. Hayden Mellross has spent some time with Chad as well.
Team KTM: Marvin Musquin and Trey Canard have been matching the lap times of Ryan Dungey during their race simulations and Roger DeCoster is reportedly over the moon with where they are at leading into the opening round – for the record, their 2017 450s are very similar to their 2016 race bikes so it was just a matter of finite tuning for Musquin and Dungey while Canard had to start from scratch after a career with Honda.
Team Husqvarna: Jason Anderson and Christophe Pourcel have also been putting in the hard yards and according to their team manager Bobby Hewitt both riders are looking remarkably sharper than this time last year.
Rocky Mountain KTM: Blake Baggett, Davi Millsaps and Benny Bloss have been carving laps at any track they can find available around Cali and from all accounts they are flying! Baggett is relieved to be away from the Suzuki team that has held him back over the last few seasons while Millsaps is looking to get among the leaders right from the get-go at A1! Bloss is riding 250SX East so he will be chomping at the bit by the time that series starts.
The ‘Box Van’ Crew: Malcolm Stewart and Dean Wilson have told anyone who will listen that they will be at A1 in a box van in true privateer form – probably on Yamaha machinery for different reasons.
What? Who? It is a mystery what Jake Weimer and James Stewart are doing….or thinking.
250 West: The 250 West series is as hot as it can get with Joey Savatgy and Austin Forkner leading the Monster Energy/Pro-Circuit Kawasaki team with both riders equal favourite for the title BUT Mitchell Oldenburg, Martin Davalos, Shane McElrath, Phil Nicoletti, Christian Craig, Tyler Bowers, Chris Alldredge, Hayden Mellross, Scott Champion, Josh Hansen and Ryan Surratt will all be looking to take their share of wins and podiums.
Teams for the 2017 AMA Supercross Championships:
- Red Bull/Factory KTM: #5 (#1 SX) Ryan Dungey – 450 | #25 Marvin Musquin – 450 | #41 Trey Canard – 450
- Rocky Mountain ATV/BBRMX/KTM/WPS: #4 – Blake Baggett – 450 | #18 – Davi Millsaps – 450 | #34 – Benny Bloss 250SX East / 450MX
- Yamaha/Monster Energy/Factory Yamaha: #2 – Cooper Webb – 450 | #22 – Chad Reed – 450 – SX Only
- Monster Energy/Factory Kawasaki: #3 – Eli Tomac – 450 | #33 – Josh Grant – 450
- HRC/Factory Honda: #14 – Cole Seely – 450 | #94 – Ken Roczen – 450
- RCH/Yoshimura/Factory Suzuki: #19 – Justin Bogle | #20 – Broc Tickle – 450
- Toyota/Monster Energy/JGRMX/Suzuki: #32 – Weston Peick – 450 | #51 Justin Barcia – 450 | #37 Phil Nicoletti – 250SX West – 450MX | #43 – Matt Bisceglia 250SX East
- Smartop/MotoConcepts Racing Team: #10 – Justin Brayton-450 | #61 – Vince Friese – 450 | #800 – Mike Alessi – 450 | #11 – Kyle Chisholm – 250SX West | #TBA – Cameron Macadoo – 250SX East
- Rockstar Energy Racing/Factory Husqvarna: #21 – Jason Anderson – 450 | #377 – Christophe Pourcel – 450 | #16 – Zach Osborne – 250SX East | #30 – Martin Davalos – 250SX West
- GEICO/Honda: #6 – Jeremy Martin – 250SX East | #31 – RJ Hampshire – 250SX East | #48 – Christian Craig – 250SX West | #? – Chase Sexton – 250SX West | #57 – Jimmy Decotis (SX only)
- Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha: #23 – Aaron Plessinger – 250 | #39 – Colt Nichols – 250 | #45 – Mitchell Harrison – 250 | #TBA – Dylan Ferrandis – 250 | #122 – Dan Reardon – 250
- Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki: #17 -Joey Savatgy – 250SX West | #24 – Austin Forkner – 250SX West | #36 – Adam Cianciarulo – 250SX East | #46 – Justin Hill – 250SX East
- Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/Lucas Oil/KTM: #26 – Alex Martin – 250SX East | #28 – Mitchell Oldenburg – 250SX West | #38 – Shane McElrath – 250SX West | #44 – Jordon Smith – 250SX East | #TBA – Sean Cantrell – 250 motocross
- Fasthouse Racing/The Viewing: #79 – Darryn Durham – 250SX
- CycleTrader/Rock River/Yamaha: #85 – Tommy Hahn – 450 | #74 – Bradley Taft – 250 | #TBA – Lorenzo Locurcio – 250
- Team MicroBilt/PRBC.com: Ronnie Stewart – 450
- Traders Racing: #50 – Luke Renzland – 250 | #78 – Nick Gaines -250
- Barn Pros Racing/Yamaha: #58 – Chris Alldredge – 250 | #76 – Scott Champion – 250
- BUD Racing Kawasaki: #60 – Tristan Charboneau – 250SX West | #TBA – Marshall Weltin – 250SX West
- LVN100/Nut Up / Munn: #100 – Josh Hansen – 250SX
- Former Rocky Mountain ATV team – Looking for new title: #TBA – Braken Hall – 250
- 51Fifty Energy Drink/Yamaha: #51 – Tyler Bowers – 250SX West | #64 – Hayden Mellross – 250SX West
- Jimmy Albertson Racing/Merge Racing/FMF: #67 – Jimmy Albertson – 450
- Munn Racing/Husqvarana: #42 – Kyle Cunningham – 250
- Slaton Racing/KTM: #71 – Justin Starling – 250
- Team K1 Speed/BWR Engines/SSi Decals: #80 – Cade Clason – 450 | #291 – Kyle White – 450
- Legends & Heroes Racing: #54 – Gannon Audette
- Rockwell Watches/PHNX Racing Co/Kawasaki: #86 – Trevor Reis – 250 | #TBA – Zac Commans – 250
- JMC Motorsports: #59 – Noah McConahy – 250 | #87 – Chris Howell – 250
- Nash Motorsports: #309 – Jeremy Smith – 250 | #527 – Matt Hammer – 250
- Rocket Exhaust: #66 – Michael Leib- 250SX
- Blue Buffalo/Slater Skins/Yamaha: #95 – AJ Catanzaro – 250
Below is the full 2017 AMA Supercross schedule:
- Rd1: Jan. 7 – Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd2: Jan. 14 – Petco Park, San Diego, CA – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd3: Jan. 21 – Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA – 450SX/50SX West
- Rd4: Jan. 28 – U. of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd5: Feb. 4 – O.Co Coliseum, Oakland, CA – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd6: Feb. 11 – AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd7: Feb. 18 – U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd8: Feb. 25 – Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd10: Mar. 4 – Rogers Centre, Toronto, ON – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd11: Mar. 11 – Daytona Speedway, Daytona, FL – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd12: Mar. 18 – Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd13: Mar. 25 – Ford Field, Detroit, MI – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd14: Apr. 1 – The Dome at America’s Center, St. Louis, MO – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd15: Apr. 8 – CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd16: Apr 22 – Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, UT – 450SX/250SX West
- Rd17: Apr. 28 – MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ – 450SX/250SX East
- Rd18: May. 6 – Sam Boyd Stadium, Las Vegas, NV – 450SX/250SX East/West
Dakar 2017 Kicks Off!!
The 39th edition of the Dakar Rally kicked off yesterday afternoon (our time) in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay and at the time of writing the opening stage of the 9000km race has been completed and I have the full results below.
143 motorcycle competitors fronted up to the line this year but we will be watching how the Aussie riders in Toby Price, Rod Foggatter, Todd Smith and Matthew Hart fair.
For the first time in Dakar’s history Paraguay’s capital hosted the start of the event before the competitors encounter tracks the event has never visited before.
Following a short detour into Argentina, the rally will head towards Bolivia, for the fourth consecutive year. The 2017 Dakar will include five stages in Bolivia, with riders and crews enjoying their rest day in La Paz at nearly 4,000 metres above sea level.
The second week will take on an Argentinean accent of twists and turns and contrasts in terrain. This will be the ninth visit of the rally to Argentina. The third capital city on the 2017 route, Buenos Aires will host the finish of the rally for the fifth time.
TPJ Returns for AMA Supercross
TPJ (The Privateer Journey) Racing will return for the 2017 Monster Energy AMA Supercross season and will feature “TPJ Racing Team Riders,” as well as “TPJ Racing Support Team Riders.”
The team riders will all compete on Suzuki machinery with Dustin Pipes and Nick Schmidt competing in the 450 Class while John Short will contest the 250 Class.
The riders on the support team will ride Hondas and KTMs. The Enticknap brothers, Adam and Tyler, will both race the 450 Class aboard Hondas. Chad Cook and Chad Gores, also racing the 450 Class, will ride KTMs.
Redsands Kicks Off Euro MX Season
Redsands International Motocross is set for January 16 in the heart of Spain with almost $100,000 in prizemoney bringing the cream of the sport to the event.
Names like Max Nagl, Gautier Paulin, Max Anstie, Jordi Tixier, Shaun Simpson, Arnaud Tonus, Jeremy Seewer, Thomas Covington, Conrad Mewse, Adam Sterry, Jake Nichols, Jose Butron, Ben Watson, Bas Vaessen, Zach Pichon, Thomas Kjer Olsen and the flying Aussie Hunter Lawrence among many have signed for the event.
MXD Class Changes for Australian MX Nationals
It appears that the MXD class in the 2017 MX Nationals will be reduced to eight rounds to allow MXD riders the opportunity for wildcard appearances in the MX1 or MX2 classes at the final two rounds of the series.
2017 MX Nationals support classes will include 125cc Gold Cup Senior, 125cc Juniors, 250cc Juniors, the 85cc Cup, Amateur Cup, Vets and Womens.
Revised 2017 Motul MX Nationals calendar:
- Rd1 – 2 April – Wonthaggi, VIC (MX1, MX2, MXD, 125 Juniors)
- Rd2 – 23 April – Appin, NSW (MX1, MX2, MXD, 250 Juniors)
- Rd3 – 7 May – Conondale, QLD (MX1, MX2, MXD, 125 Gold Cup Seniors)
- Rd4 – 21 May – Horsham, VIC (MX1, MX2, MXD, 250 Juniors)
- Rd5 – 28 May – Murray Bridge, SA (MX1, MX2, MXD, 125 Juniors)
- Rd6 – 2 July – Nowra, NSW (MX1, MX2, MXD, 85 Cup 9-12 years)
- Rd7 – 16 July – Shepparton, VIC (MX1, MX2, MXD, 125 Gold Cup Seniors)
- Rd8 – 30 July – Port Macquarie, NSW (MX1, MX2, MXD, 125 Gold Cup Seniors)
- Rd9 – 13 August – Toowoomba, QLD (MX1, MX2, 250 Juniors, Amateur Cup)
- Rd10 – 19-20 August – Coolum, QLD (MX1, MX2, Vets 30 plus, Vets 40 plus, Women’s, Amateur Cup, SXS)
Horsham MCC ready for MX Amateurs
The Horsham Motorcycle Club’s annual Two Day Open racing event known at the MX Amateurs will play host to a new class in 2017.
The 11/12 March 2017 will have a new feature Senior 125cc 2-Stroke class, the 125cc Cup. On behalf of Sue, Brendan and Grady Holland and the Horsham Motorcycle Club, the naming of the 125 Cup will now be run as the ‘Bronte Holland Memorial 125 Cup.’
It’s an honour to be given the blessing for the Holland family to run the first ever ‘Bronte Holland Memorial 125 Cup’ which just happens to be the 17th anniversary of the first ever 125cc bike to race a national event at Horsham which was won by none other than Bronte Holland, running the famous number of 17.
For 2017, the ‘Bronte Holland Memorial 125 Cup’ will be run as the feature senior race over both days of the MX Amateurs, and in 2018 will be the juniors turn to race it in the lead up to the World MXJuniors.
Summercross 2017 ready to unleash WA motocross racing season
The Coastal Motorcycle Club’s annual Summercross event is back this February. Juniors are competing on Friday February 17th and seniors on Saturday the 18th of February, and it will be two action packed evenings under lights featuring the state’s best riders all vying for their piece of the prize money pie on offer.
The race that has all on their toes is the Super Shootout, where the top riders all try to out race each other for first across the line in a series of elimination heats before coming down to the final Shootout race, where big prizemoney on offer adds to the extra incentive for ultra slick-competition.
The supplementary regulations and entries are out now, so riders are advised to get their entries in quick to secure their gate. For entries visit: Junior Entries | Senior Entries
To take advantage of the club’s promotional and sponsorship packages, please contact Publicity & Media Officer: Cheryl Hooper via the Club’s Facebook page or the Summercross Facebook page.
Coastal Motorcycle Club are also offering businesses unique and exciting advertising and promotional opportunities to become part of the racing fever. Event sponsorship is available from $500, which will cover one race, promotional space in the vendor alley to promote a shop or business, sponsors entry to the event, advertising in the programme and more.
Check out the official Summercross Facebook Page or CMCC Facebook Page.
Smarty’s Race Reports:
2017 Dakar – Stage 1 – 39km – Asuncion to Resistencia – Paraguay
The opening stage of the 2017 Dakar Rally has been run with French Yamaha rider Xavier De Soultrait coming away the early leader, but suffering a penalty to leave Joan Pedrero Stage 1 winner, while defending champion Toby Price took a measured approach to the mega short stage to finish 1.25 minutes behind the leader.
Todd Smith climbed up to 20th outright while Rod Faggotter also rode a steady race to end up in 26th and Privateer Mathew Hart climbed from his 120th starting position to 64th.
Xavier De Soultrait
“I want to win the Dakar. I went on the attack, even if the tracks were a bit bumpy. It was nice of Ivan Jakes to let me past, because I was in his dust for 6 or 7 kilometres. Apparently, I’ve got the necessary speed because that was an exercise in pure speed. However, it’s not my ultimate goal: I want to win the Dakar. Why not this year? I’m putting the pieces of the puzzle in place little by little and things are starting to take shape! This year, Yamaha have given me a second chance after my withdrawal last year. I hope I can repay that trust”.
Michael Metge was happy to get stage one done and dusted.
Michael Metge
“This stage was fast with a lot of danger and as the first stage of the rally there was a lot of stress and a lot of tension. It was difficult to take the good rhythm. But I’m happy, I’m here and I’ve finished third for the moment. For me it’s a really good result for tomorrow because we will have a long stage in the dust. The place is really good. I will keep good memories of Paraguay with my good stage today. I’m happy to be here. The people are really good around the rally – a lot of people came to see the stage and it was a really good day”.
Toby Price
“It was good, it was a short day on the stage, but now we’ve got a three-hundred and fifty kilometre ride to get to the end of it. It’s going to be a long day this afternoon, but all in all we just managed to get through that bit and it was nice and smooth. Being the first one on and it being the first day, everyone gets excited. There were a lot of people right near the track and a bit of wildlife, so I just took it nice and easy and we’re through day one so far. The way the start the Dakar, it’s nice with a bit of a road and an easy-going section, so there was no navigation today meaning that Marc could get it all sorted for us and we were ready to go. It’s good to be back on the bike, it’s good to be back here on the Dakar and we’re looking forward to what this week will bring. We’ll just take each day by each day and we look forward to seeing where we end up in the following week.
“It’s going to be a tough week, but we’re looking forward to it. It wasn’t too hot and we started nice and early before it started to heat up too much. We’re now through the stage so we can just cruise back to the bivouac tonight. It was a good way to start the day and we can’t complain. It’s part of the history there now, so we’re ticking a couple of boxes off along the way. We’re glad to have started here in Paraguay and the people here have been amazing, welcoming us with open arms. We can’t thank everyone enough. Unfortunately we’re not here long, but we’re ready to continue the rest of the week. Tomorrow, it just depends on where we are. It’s going to be a bit of a difficult day. We’ve just got to keep our heads switched on and keep on moving through and trying our best so it should be pretty good”.
Posting the fastest time during the day’s short special, Frenchman Xavier de Soultrait was later hit with a one minute penalty that dropped the WR450F mounted rider to 10th overall.
2017 Dakar – Stage 1 Results:
- Pedrero, Joan – SPA – Sherco TVS Rally Factory – Sherco – 00:28’22
- Brabec, Ricky – USA – Monster Energy Honda Team – Honda – +00’12
- Goncalves, Paulo – POR – Monster Energy Honda Team – Honda – +00’26
- Sunderland, Sam – GBR – Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team – KTM – +00’28
- Barreda, Joan – SPA – Monster Energy Honda Team – Honda – +00’30
- Walkner, Matthias – AUT – KTM Factory Racing Team – KTM – +00’40
- Farres, Gerard – SPA – Himoinsa Team – KTM – +00’46
- Metge, Michael – FRA – Monster Energy Honda Team – Honda – +00’46
- Cervantes, Iván – SPA – Himoinsa Team – KTM – +00’54
- De Soultrait, Xavier – FRA – Yamaha Racing – Yamaha – +00’58
- Van Beveren, Adrien – FRA – Yamaha Motor Europe – Yamaha – +01’00
- Quintanilla, Pablo – CHI – Husqvarna Factory Rally Team – Husqvarna – +01’01
- Botturi, Alessandro – ITA – Yamaha Motor Europe – Yamaha – +01’11
- Svitko, Stefan – SLO – Slovnaft Team – KTM – +01’14
- Duplessis, Martín – ARG – MED Racing Team – KTM – +01’19
….
17. Toby Price – AUS – Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team – KTM – 00:29’45
20. Todd Smith – AUS – KTM – 00:30’38
26. Rodney Faggotter – AUS – Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team – Yamaha – 00:30’45
64. Mathew Hart – AUS – Husqvarna – 00:34’18
Honda Summercross – Whakatane, NZ
Multi National New Zealand Champion Cody Cooper has finally won the annual Summercross held in Whakatane recently and in doing so puts himself squarely in the firing line as the favourite for the up-coming New Zealand Motocross Championship which starts in a few week’s time.
Aussie Dean Ferris turned up for Summercross for the JCR Yamaha team and was looking fast until a crash early in the opening moto saw the Aussie carted off to hospital with an eye injury which has turned out to be relatively superficial so the 2016 MX Nationals Champion will be fit and ready to go for the NZ Champs.
But nothing stood in Coppers way with the Honda star ripping his way around the undulating layout with ease leaving all comers behind to earn his first MX1 Summercross title ahead of Rhys Carter and John Phillips.
Cody Cooper
“I am happy with that. I knew I needed to do some work on my starting technique and although I only got two of the five holeshots I was up front pretty quickly. This has always been a weak event for me because it has so many different variables… a concrete start pad, a difficult sand track and back-to-back sprint races a unique part of the day’s programme. I’ve had a few minor health complaints lately too and my doctor said I probably should rest up and not ride at all. But I guess I passed the test today eh?”
Josiah Natzke took care of the MX2 class and is looking like he is in good form for his return to Europe while Courtney Duncan is back to her best and will be a force when she returns to the World Motocross Championships – in fact, if she stays healthy she could well dominate the Woman’s Championship in 2017 before taking on the MX2 class in 2018 – she is that good!
FMF Indoor Winter Series – Round 5 & 6 – Asheville, North Carolina
Tyler Swain and Marshall Weltin have won the two 450 class main events while Kyle Bitterman and Weltin did the same in the 250 class at rounds five and six of the FMF Indoor Winter Series held at Asheville, North Carolina last weekend.
Living legend Mike Brown turned up for his second crack at the series and finished on the podium in two of the four main events but despite all of that Bitterman still holds the points lead in both classes with six rounds remaining.
450 Pro Round 5
- Tyler McSwain
- Kyle Bitterman
- Mike Brown
- Nathan Winegar
- Robbie Horton
- Marshall Weltin
- Tyler Chavis
- Shane Hall
- Davey Sterritt
- Chandler Lindsay
450 Pro Round 6
- Marshall Weltin
- Kyle Bitterman
- Chandler Lindsay
- Mike Brown
- Cody Gragg
- Nathan Winegar
- Tyler McSwain
- Kyle Dillin
- Robbie Horton
- Tyler Chavis
450 Pro Points after Round 6:
- Kyle Bitterman – 129 Points
- Tyler McSwain – 122 Points
- Marshall Weltin – 103 Points
- Robbie Horton – 101 Points
- Cody Gragg – 84 Points
- Isaac Teasdale – 76 Points
- Cody Gragg – 76 Points
- Kyle Dillin – 67 Points
- Taco Short – 50 Points
- Nathan Winegar – 50 Points
250 Pro – Round 5
- Kyle Bitterman
- Mike Brown
- Tyler McSwain
- Cody Gragg
- Robbie Horton
- Marshall Weltin
- Tyler Chavis
- Chandler Lindsay
- Kyle Dillin
- Shane Hall
250 Pro – Round 6
- Marshall Weltin
- Kyle Bitterman
- Chandler Lindsay
- Tyler McSwain
- Mike Brown
- Shane Hall
- Robbie Horton
- Tyler Chavis
- Cody Gragg
- Kyle Dillin
250 Pro Points after Round 6:
- Kyle Bitterman – 133 Points
- Tyler McSwain – 120 Points
- Marshall Weltin – 108 Points
- Robbie Horton – 108 Points
- Mike Brown – 81 Points
- Cody Gragg – 76 Points
- Kyle Dillin – 73 Points
- Isaac Teasdale – 66 Points
- Taco Short – 62 Points
- Tyler Chavis – 47 Points