Moto Wrap – Holder & Batchelor sacked by King’s Lynn

Moto News Wrap for Aug 1, 2017 by Darren Smart

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Latest News

• Conondale Classic THIS Weekend
• Transmoto 6-Hour Almost Here
• 2018 Yamaha YZ450F Tested
• Honda unveil 2018 CRF250R – New DOHC engine
• Aussie Speedway team second at 2017 World Games
• New Zealand announce 2107 MXoN team
• Suzuki and RCH Racing Partnership Ends
• Irwin and Watson Win British Motocross Championship
• Anderson, Barcia, Webb and Martin miss Washougal
• Tomac Opts out of MXoN
• Holder and Batchelor Sensationally Sacked!
• Toni Bou king of Kingman
• 2017 Australian FIM SGP wildcards announced
• WAMX Seniors Head to Bunburry
• WAMX Junior State MX Championships heads to Hendley Park

This Week’s Race Reports

• Rd 11 – AMA Flat Track – Calistoga Half-Mile, Calistoga, Calif.
• Rd 9 – AMA Motocross Nationals, Washougal, Washington
• Rd 8 – Australian Motocross Championship, Port Macquarie, NSW
• Rd 8 – Canadian Motocross Nationals – Moncton, New Brunswick
• Rd 7 – British Motocross Championship, Preston Docks
• Rd 3 – Championnat de France d’enduro , Bar-sur-Seine
• FIM Junior World Motocross Championships – Estonia
• Red Bull Romaniacs – Poland

Conondale Classic THIS Weekend

We are now just a few sleeps from the annual Conondale Classic that will be held over the weekend of August 4^th and 5^th at the iconic Green Park motocross facility at Conondale, in the hinterland of Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and it looks like it is going to once again be the biggest single motocross event in the Sunshine State.

There will be a full field of riders lining up to vie for glory in the premier Pro-Class while the Pre-1995 Open Class will once again be one of the biggest fields on the day and don’t forget the 30 odd hard chargers lining up for the new 125cc GP class where the first five place getters will receive a free set of Michelin tyres.

On top of that there will be over 40 and over 50 age group classes, a Woman’s class as well as classes for the older rigs so if you are even remotely interested in dirt bikes this is the place to be this weekend.

Transmoto 6-Hour Almost Here

Just one week after the Conondale Classic the Transmoto 6-Hour will be held at the very same location over the weekend of August 12^th and 13^th where the team-based dirt bike event will see 100s of competitors take on sections of the world-famous motocross track, creek crossings, lush rainforest, hill climbs, grass track and flowing bush tracks crafted by the Sunshine Coast MCC crew.

The Transmoto 6-Hour is somewhere between a recreational trailbike rally and an enduro race. It’s a shorter, punchier, less challenging version of the notorious Transmoto 12-Hour, which has been running since 2011, but still caters to riders of all levels. And, in keeping with the 12-Hour’s successful recipe, the 6-Hour focuses on fun-factor rather than officialdom.

2018 Yamaha YZ450F Tested

MCNews.com.au sent Todd Jarratt along to the launch of the 2018 Yamaha YZ450F and he’s reported in his findings from two full moto days aboard the “bLU cRU” flagship motocross model.

To read the full test see – 2018 Yamaha YZ450F Tested (Link)

Honda unveil 2018 CRF250R – New DOHC engine

Honda’s next generation CRF250R is on its way with a December arrival and plenty of exciting upgrades including a new DOHC powerplant – the wait for this all-new race beast is worth it!

For the full preview of the new for 2018 Honda CRF250R arriving in Decemeber see – Honda unveil 2018 CRF250R – New DOHC engine (Link)

Aussie Speedway team second at 2017 World Games

Seven teams all with massive Speedway names, lined up on the start for The World Games (TWG) 2017 medals – only one took gold and it was Poland, who proved best on the Saturday evening. Australia took second place and Sweden claimed third. For the full report see – Australia Speedway runner-ups | 2017 World Games (Link)

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New Zealand announce 2107 MXoN team

New Zealand have announced their team that will contest the 2017 Motocross of Nations which will take place on October 1st at Matterley Basin in the UK.

Seasoned MXoN campaigner Cody Cooper will once again be in the team along with Rhys Carter and Josiah Natzke.

Howard Lilly – Motorcycling New Zealand motocross commissioner 

“It has taken a lot of discussion and we are happy with the team that we have selected. I’m looking forward to seeing how the team performs this year and I believe they are capable of achieving a finish among the top 10 countries,” said Lilly.

New Zealand has been on the MXoN podium on three memorable occasions in recent times – at Foxhills, in England, in 1998; at Namur, in Belgium, in 2001 and at Matterley Basin, in England, in 2006.

New Zealand MX1 champion Cooper and national MX1 class No.3 Carter to ride 450cc bikes while Natzke will race the MX2 (250cc) class and he is a two-time former national 125cc champion who currently races in the European 250cc Motocross Championships, featuring among the top five title contenders.

Suzuki and RCH Racing Partnership Ends

Suzuki Motor of America, Inc., (SMAI) and RCH Racing have announced the mutual decision to conclude their partnership agreement at the end of the 2017 AMA Supercross and AMA Motocross championship series.

Kerry Graeber – Suzuki’s Vice President MC/ATV Sales and Marketing

“It’s been a privilege to work with such a driven group of individuals and Suzuki is very appreciative of the hard work and efforts the team has put forth culminating in the 2016 AMA Pro Motocross Championship. The team and Suzuki achieved their respective goals of winning a championship and it’s gratifying to conclude this partnership successfully. 

RCH team co-owner Ricky Carmichael

“As defending AMA Pro Motocross Champions, it’s tough to get to the point where plans evolve and tough business decisions must be made. My partner Carey Hart and I are very proud of our guys and grateful we were able to achieve the success we did as a team. I am also personally looking forward to continuing my long relationship with Suzuki in another capacity as we wind down RCH.”

Carmichael will continue his role as Suzuki Brand Ambassador representing the company, hosting the Camp Carmichael event for Suzuki’s amateur racers, as well as working with Suzuki’s Racing programs and assisting with future product development.

Suzuki will announce further plans for its 2018 Supercross and Motocross Racing efforts in the coming weeks.

Irwin and Watson Win British Motocross Championship

Graeme Irwin and Ben Watson have won the British MX1 and MX2 Motocross Championships respectively at round seven of the series at Preston Docks on Sunday.

The 24-year-old from Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland sewed up the MX1 title with one round still to go thanks to a commanding performance that saw him take his eighth consecutive moto win aboard the CRF450R.

Graeme Irwin

“It’s awesome, fantastic, amazing, I can’t believe it. This year everything’s just clicked. The team, the bike, everything. I’ve been given the tools to do the job and I can’t thank everybody enough. My wife, my whole family, the team, all my sponsors – it’s amazing.”

In the MX2 class Darian Sanayei swapped moto wins with Watson but the championship was already locked away with Watson ending round seven with a 53 points lead over rival Martin Barr.

Ben Watson

“I am completely overwhelmed with it all at this very moment, but it’s great to release the pressure of winning the championship with a round still to go – as it would have been terrible to have to wait another month to win it. Riders always say this after a win, but I have to say it to because it’s true; that I couldn’t have done it without the team effort and I must say a big thank you Hitachi KTM, Red Bull, and the Contract Furniture Group – and all those who stood behind me and had faith in me after spending most of last year being out of racing with a broken foot. And, of course, I have to thank my Mum and Dad who travel the world with me supporting and encouraging me and I wouldn’t be here today without them.”

Anderson, Barcia, Webb and Martin miss Washougal

Four of the biggest stars of the American motocross scene in Jason Anderson, Justin Barcia, Cooper Webb and Alex Martin all missed the Washougal round of the AMA Motocross Championships due to injuries.

After missing the previous round thanks to a practice crash Anderson was looking good for Washougal until he crashed his road bike (push bike) a couple of days out and despite trying to ride the Husqvarna rider was forced out of the event while Justin Barcia crashed hard during practice to end up in the local hospital with injuries that ended up being minor.

Webb sat out Washougal due to a left knee injury sustained in the second 450 moto in Millville, Minnesota while Martin was out due to an injured collarbone and scapula sustained while practicing down in Florida.

Tomac Opts out of MXoN

At the post-race press conference following the Washougal National, Eli Tomac implied that the long season and scheduling issues could well see him opt out of competing for Team USA at this year’s Motocross of Nations at Matterley Basin in England on October 1.

Due to contractual obligations, Tomac is scheduled to race the USGP at WW Motocross Park the week after the end of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross and the Monster Energy Cup on October 14.

“Right now, it’s looking like a no. It’s schedule, we have to go race USGP and then you have two weekends off then you make your way to England and then a couple weeks after that you have Monster Cup. For us, and for me, it’s like…. we’ve been racing since the first weekend in January and you’re basically putting yourself through the meat grinder all the way through the middle of October. Right now, it’s probably a no.”

With Tomac out for this year, and with Blake Baggett and Cooper Webb currently injured, Jason Anderson is the obvious choice for the MXGP class while the MX2 spot has to go to Zach Osborne but rider number three is going to be a tough choice. Jeremy Martin on a 450? Joey Savatgy on a 250 and Osbourne on a 450? Team manager Roger DeCoster is expected to announce the team at the Unadilla National on August 12.

Holder and Batchelor Sensationally Sacked!

In what has been seen by some as a spiteful move, Aussie internationals Chris Holder and Troy Batchelor have been sensationally sacked by SGB Premiership side King’s Lynn just one day after the cut-off date for club interchanges and signings.

The Stars have drafted in former Swedish champion Tomas H Jonasson, Michael Palm Toft and Josh Auty, with the currently injured Nicklas Porsing sharing a spot with Simon Lambert.

Axed 2012 world champion Holder is currently serving a 28-day UK ban after being deemed to have refused to ride in two of Stars’ heats against Poole at the Adrian Flux Arena on July 13 due to concerns over track conditions. Meanwhile, Troy Batchelor withdrew from the meeting with an injury, only to guest for Swindon the following evening.

Speaking to the club’s official website, club owner Keith Chapman said he hopes the changes will lift the gloom at the club.

Keith Chapman

“I felt our season was heading towards a brick wall and had to do something. I would like to place on record my thanks to Chris Holder and Troy Batchelor for riding for the club and I’m sad it hasn’t worked out with them this season. Having said that, I feel we now have an environment within the King’s Lynn team where everyone has the right attitude and they want to get out there and do their best for the club. Tomas H Jonasson has moved heaven and earth to get himself ready to come over from Sweden. Josh Auty and Michael Palm Toft are well liked by the fans and I sincerely hope this can be the news we need to get our flagging season back on track. We don’t have an out-and-out No.1 but we have strength in-depth with a team full of riders with a good, positive attitude towards the club and towards the sport in general. They are all desperate to get started and do well for the club. Whenever Josh and Michael have been at King’s Lynn they have always entertained and given their best. Let’s see how the season goes from here and I would urge all King’s Lynn fans to turn out and back our play-off push, starting on Wednesday against Swindon.”

Batchelor politely declined to comment at this stage. But shortly after the news was released, Holder tweeted: “Well that pretty much sums up the boss of British speedway… releasing me and Troy a day after the cut off date for signings… cheers.”

Toni Bou king of Kingman

The great dominator of the weekend in Kingman, Arizona, once again proved to be the king of trial over the last decade: Toni Bou. The Repsol Honda Team rider continues to edge closer to the eleventh title. Jaime Busto meanwhile clinched a fantastic runner-up stop.

After last night’s rainfall, the sections had become somewhat more complicated than the previous day, although the organization had also decided to change some steps in the sections although without raising significantly the difficulty level.

In these conditions, Toni Bou found himself far more at ease and was able to cruise around without the added pressure of having to avoid mistakes. On the first lap he was penalized just three points and six on lap two, clearly stamping his authority on the trial and coming away victorious once more.

It was a double-headed Repsol Honda Team success with Jaime Busto finishing in second position and strengthening his overall third position in the championship general standings. The Basque rider finished ahead of his teammate Takahisa Fujinami who today, like yesterday, was out of the battle for a podium spot, eventually having to settle for seventh place.

The weekend’s results give Toni Bou the opportunity to go into the next trial with a twenty-eight point advantage, which means the Repsol Honda Team rider could mathematically seal the championship title before arriving at the season’s final date.

Toni Bou

“I’m really happy about how the trial went. It seemed that with last night’s rain it would be a bit more delicate, but soon it got easy. Three points on the first lap are too few. I am very happy with my riding in an easy trial, and it’s a big step forward in the championship because this has been a fantastic weekend. Now we can enjoy a very well-deserved summer break. We’ve had a great season so far in all three of the championships, so now, let’s play hard and enjoy the summer!”

2017 Australian FIM SGP wildcards announced

Reigning Australian Speedway Champion, Sam Masters has been named as Wild Card for the 2017 QBE Insurance Australian FIM Speedway Grand Prix at Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium, October 28.

The New South Wales (Newcastle) born racer will once again compete against the world’s best at the FIM Speedway Grand Prix Australian Round. Masters will be a force to be reckoned with, after winning the Australian Championship back in January.

As Wild Card, Masters will join the already competing Jason Doyle and Chris Holder on Speedway’s grandest stage. In what has already been a sensational year for the discipline, the inclusion of Masters makes what promises to be an excellent event, even more enticing.

Masters will be joined in Melbourne by First Reserve Justin Sedgmen and Second Reserve, Davey Watt after the duo finished second and third respectively in the 2017 Australian Senior Solo Championship. 24 year-old Mildura man Justin Sedgmen, is the 2015 Gillman Div 1 Solo Champion and 2012 Victorian State Champion.

Hailing from Queensland, 39 year-old Davey Watt’s honours include being the 2012 Jack Young Solo Cup Winner and 2005 Queensland State Champion.

Sam Masters

“I am so happy to have a Wild Card for the GP at home. My season so far is going pretty good over here (Europe). Every Speedway rider wants to race in a GP at some stage, so to be able to race in the Australian one, for the third time, is such an honour and a privilege!”

Peter Doyle

“It’s great to see Sam once again representing Australia on the world stage. Providing these sort of Wild Card opportunities is all part of Motorcycling Australia’s commitment to the sport and competitors, whenever possible, especially to represent our country. We’re thrilled for Sam and his large group of supporters and look forward to welcoming everyone to Melbourne for what is going to be a truly memorable night of Speedway.”

Tickets are still available for the Southern Hemisphere’s biggest indoor motorsport event. Visit Ticketmaster.2017 QBE Insurance Australian FIM Speedway Grand Prix

WAMX Seniors Head to Bunburry

The Make Smoking History Senior Championships head to Bunbury on August 27th for their Penultimate Round at the Shrubland Park circuit – famous for it’s feral section in this small, tight & thrilling track.

This round is also our PINK round in support of Breast Cancer – So you will see a lot of colour for this round, with riders showing their support of this cause by wearing pink or purple gear, helmets, boots, ribbons and pink bikes too!

The Shrubland Circuit will have plenty of thrills as this track is fast, tight & twisty but can also, if wet, be really deep and push these motocross machines & riders to their limits.
Our ladies in the Cullys Yamaha Women’s Championship return for this sand round and will be thrilling to watch.

After two hardpack rounds who will come out on top? Jess Moore still leads the Championship but with only 18 points separating Hannah Bagnall in 2nd place, Chelsea Blakers in 3rd place and Lily Kent in 4th anyone of these hardcharging ladies could come out on top.

The second and final heat of the Amateur Cup for Clubman riders will also be run and this Mini Series will be declared at Bunbury. Currently James Hughes leads on 99 points from Gary Cook 98 points and Jaxon Turner in 3rd place 92 points. So who will come out to play in the sand and come out the victor?

After a thrilling round at Beverley which saw Shaun Woodhead take the win for the day and Chris Bosnakis’ machine blow up, the Make Smoking History Quad Championships will also take to the track. Will Luke Gaisford take his place on the starting gates? No doubt there will be some high flying 4-wheeled action.

Action is starting to seriously heat up and there will be some no-holds bar-banging action in both the Shannons Insurance MX1 and the Motul Oils MX2 Championships.

Michael “Irish” Mahon is showing some excellent racing form in MX1 and seems to get better each and every round and is taking it up to our current champ Dean Porter constantly. The top 10-12 riders are all hard hitting riders and will take on this track with delight, some love it more than others.

Josh Adams & David Birch are a constant battling duo in MX2 and there is no doubt to anyone, that the battle royale will continue!! Third place contender, Dylan Sexton will continue his consistent style and take it up to these two. Youngsters, Mitchell Outram and Kurt Oinn are lurking and have proven themselves to real contenders in this class.

So… Lock in the date – August 27th – and do not miss out on one second of this thrilling Championship Series and watch our big boys fly!

Wear you best pink or purple gear and come join us at Shrubland Park, Bunbury Motorcycle Club on the Bunbury-Donnybrook Road! Racing starts by 9am. Canteen and Bar facilities are available

WAMX Junior State MX Championships heads to Hendley Park

Hendley Park is the place to be for the penultimate round of the WAMX Make Smoking History Junior State MX Championships on August 13th, home of Lightweight MCC, located on Southwest Highway, Byford.

Will Mother Nature be kind? With two weeks to go, all our riders are busy preparing for another hard-pack round which could turn into a mud fest! The track at Hendley Park has some technical sections with the tight off camber corner after the finish straight catching some riders out last year.

Our Demo 50cc riders will re-join us for this round and as these little guys & girls love to strut their stuff for everyone, we hope to see the future champions of motocross with some good numbers out there having fun.

With the Series now heading towards the pointy end of the season, there are sure to be some serious battles and bar-banging action happening all over the track.

Seth Shackleton will be keen to keep his Championship lead in the 50cc Auto Class but Sonny Pellicano will be keen to make up for the DNF at Chidlow and stay in ahead of Connor Wiese, who is in 3rd place currently.

With the return of Kayden Minear fresh from the World Championship, will Dylan Walsh retain his series leader status in the 85/150cc 9-U12 years Championship, currently 13 points ahead of Deacon Paice and 21 points from Seth Clark? Seth was on fire at Chidlow but suffered a big crash in the second moto, so expect him to be battling hard with these boys.

The 85/150cc 12-U16 Years Class has shown some fantastic close racing and no doubt it will come down to the wire. Seth Manuel leads 16 points clear of Conan Forrester and Brock Flynn is holding onto third place, but with Liam Atkinson back from injury – racing will be fast and furious on the day.

Watch out for the young guns in the 100-125cc Classes as there is bound to be some heart thumping action as the likes of Jacob Daniels, Troy Austin and Tahlia O’Hare, in the 15 years and Regan

Duffy, Corben Weinert, Seth Manuel and Conan Forrester in the 13-U15 years hit the track trying their best to secure podium positions.

So make sure you don’t miss out and get down to the track on Sunday 13th– Racing starts 9am. FREE Entry for spectators – full canteen and bar facilities.

Smarty’s Race Reports:

Rd 11 – AMA Flat Track – Calistoga Half-Mile, Calistoga, Calif.

Seemingly out of sorts during qualifying and even into his heat race, Jared Mees proved to be unstoppable around Calistoga Speedway throughout the Main Event aboard his Indian Scout FTR750 where he was consistently four- to five-tenths superior each lap compared to his nearest pursuer.

As a result, he worked up 3.254 seconds worth of padding by lap 9 of a scheduled 25 when the race was temporarily halted due to a red flag.

Rather than be discouraged after seeing that huge lead erased in an instant, Mees simply went back to work. He proceeded to rip open an even larger 3.476-second margin during the first nine laps that followed the restart, and the title leader’s drama-free march at the front saw him as much as 4.548 seconds out in front as the race neared its conclusion.

Mees ultimately cruised to a 3.571-second margin of victory, sailing by the chequered flag in a one-handed wheelie. The three-time Grand National Champion now boasts an 18-point championship advantage and has clearly turned the tide of momentum in his favour with four wins in his last five outings.

Jared Mees

“It was a great night. It was a little hectic in the last qualifier, and in the Heat race I was off the pace. We came back and rethought things. I have such a good team and they work so hard. We gel really well together and when we’re down, we have a lot of tools in the toolbox with this Indian Scout FTR750 to make changes.”

Second place went to Sammy Halbert (No. 69 Estenson Logistics Yamaha FZ-07) in convincing fashion, coming on the heels of his vastly impressive X Games gold medal performance a couple weeks back.

Sammy Halbert

“We had a great bike right from the get-go. We were really fast in qualifying, but the track was changing a lot, going from really hooked up to a bit slick. It’s a little more challenging for me on this bike when it’s slick. But we still made huge gains today, and my boys had it working good for the Main Event where I was able to run a solid second. It was a little nerve-racking because I had to hit my marks perfectly every time. And obviously, I couldn’t hang with Jared. His bike was so on point he could put it wherever he wanted.”

The most spirited battle in the top 10 was waged by teammates to decide the final spot on the podium. In the end, Brad Baker (No. 6 Indian Motorcycle Racing backed by Allstate Scout FTR750) kept Bryan Smith (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle Racing backed by Allstate Scout FTR750) at bay by a meager 0.067 of a second to finish in third.

While Baker was happy enough to edge Smith out and land on the box for the eighth time in 2017, he admitted his frustration at still seeking his first win aboard the potent Scout FTR750.

Brad Baker

“It was a good battle… I’ve had a lot of good battles this year, but only a couple of them for the win. Tonight it was for the wrong position; fighting with my teammate is fun but not for the last podium spot. Hats off to Sammy, and especially Jared – he really put it to us tonight.”

For Smith, the close fourth was an encouraging uptick in form following consecutive sixth- and seventh-place runs. However, it also marked his third straight finish off the podium and his fifth in a row without a win after powering to four successive victories earlier this season.

Lima Half-Mile winner Briar Bauman (No. 14 Zanotti Racing Kawasaki Ninja 650) rounded out the top five, taking the checkered flag less than a second behind Smith. Fifth-ranked Jeffrey Carver Jr. (No. 23 Carver’s BBQ Kawasaki Ninja 650) finished one further spot back in sixth.

AFT Twins Results

1. Jared Mees (Ind)
2. Sammy Halbert (Yam)
3. Brad Baker (Ind)
4. Bryan Smith (Ind)
5. Briar Bauman (Kaw)
6. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Kaw)
7. Jarod Vanderkooi (Kaw)
8. Chad Cose (Yam)
9. Brandon Robinson (H-D)
10. Ryan Wells (H-D)

AFT Twins Point Standings

1. Jared Mees (227/6 wins)
2. Bryan Smith (209/4 wins)
3. Brad Baker (166)
4. Sammy Halbert ( 165)
5. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (121)
6. Briar Bauman (110/1 win)
7. Brandon Robinson (86)
8. Davis Fisher (85)
9. Ryan Wells (77)
10. Jarod Vanderkooi (69)

Rd 9 – AMA Motocross Nationals, Washougal, Washington

Marvin Musquin and Joey Savatgy have won the 450 and 250 classes at the ninth round of the AMA Motocross Championship held at the famous Washougal facility in Washington last weekend.

2017 Washougal 450 MX

With Marvin Musquin wrapping up a four moto win streak at Washougal, Eli Tomac has the 450cc championship well in-hand with his closest rival Blake Baggett riding with a badly injured thumb that will require surgery, and the rest of the 450cc field much too far behind in points to be considered a real threat.

In moto one, Musquin got the holeshot while Tomac had to work through several riders in the first couple of laps before he passed the fast starting Martin Davalos for second place on lap three before he chased Musquin down for the lead. As he was trying to pass Musquin, the two came together exiting a left-hand corner and although neither rider went down, Tomac could never reel Musquin back in again.

Musquin took the win over Tomac while Cole Seely, Davalos, Dean Wilson, Weston Peick, Baggett, Justin Bogle, Christian Craig, and Matt Bisceglia rounded out the top ten.

In moto two, Davalos was the quickest out of the gate and he led the first three laps until Musquin was on rails and found his way by Davalos up Horsepower Hill while Tomac soon joined the chase out front when he also fought his way by Davalos.

For the next few laps, Tomac tried what he could, but he couldn’t cut into Musquin’s lead, and Davalos held off Baggett for most of the moto to come home third. Behind Baggett came Seely in fifth, then Wilson, Honda privateer Freddy Noren, Peick, Craig, Bogle, and Baggett’s lanky teammate Benny Bloss.

Musquin has now won four motos in a row, but Tomac continues to extend his points lead over Baggett. That lead now stands at 32 with three rounds left to run.

450 Class Overall Results (Moto Finish)

1. Marvin Musquin, La Reole, France, KTM (1-1)
2. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (2-2)
3. Martin Davalos, Quito, Ecuador, Husqvarna (4-3)
4. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda (3-5)
5. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., KTM (7-4)
6. Dean Wilson, Glasgow, Scotland, Husqvarna (5-6)
7. Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki (6-8)
8. Christian Craig, El Cajon, Calif., Honda (9-9)
9. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Suzuki (8-10)
10. Dakota Alix, Jay, Vt., KTM (12-12)

450 Class Championship Standings

1. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 373
2. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., KTM – 341
3. Marvin Musquin, La Reole, France, KTM – 319
4. Dean Wilson, Glasgow, Scotland, Husqvarna – 269
5. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda – 228
6. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna – 216
7. Justin Bogle, Cushing, Okla., Suzuki – 212
8. Martin Davalos, Quito, Ecuador, Husqvarna – 208
9. Weston Peick, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki – 197
10. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha – 177

2017 Washougal 250 Class

In the first moto, Aaron Plessinger grabbed the holeshot over Sean Cantrell and a gaggle more Yamahas, including Dylan Ferrandis and Mitchell Harrison. By the end of the first lap, Plessinger already held over a two-second lead, and he would grow it to over 13 seconds by the finish.

Behind him, though, fast qualifier Adam Cianciarulo was pushing hard until he took second before the halfway point, where he’d stay. At the finish, Cianciarulo barely held off Ferrandis, and immediately behind the Frenchman came point’s leader Zach Osborne and Harrison. Osborne just nicked Harrison at the line for fourth, and given another lap or two conceivably could’ve caught up as far as second after starting outside the top 20.

Behind Harrison came RJ Hampshire, Cianciarulo’s teammate Joey Savatgy, Cantrell, Hampshire’s teammate Jeremy Martin, Plessinger’s teammate Colt Nichols, Cantrell’s teammate Shane McElrath, and the rest of the field.

In moto two, Savatgy snatched the holeshot and spent the first few laps fighting off the attacks of Hampshire until Hampshire took advantage of a minor mistake by Savatgy to take the lead, which he held for four laps before Savatgy managed to sneak back by.

Savatgy went on to win the moto, but the 7-1 score wasn’t good enough for the overall until the final lap, as Cianciarulo’s 2-4 score would’ve been enough to secure the win. However, on the final circuit, Ferrandis fought his way by Cianciarulo for fourth, and the overall win went to Savatgy, who finished the moto less than three seconds in front of Hampshire, with Osborne, Ferrandis and Ciancairulo all hot on his tail.

Then came Martin, Nichols, McElrath, and Plessinger, who crashed early in the race as he battled with Osborne and could only muster ninth at the finish.

Savatgy won the overall over Osborne and Ferrandis, and Osborne heads into the final break in the series with a 74-point lead over Jeremy Martin with three rounds and six motos left to run.

250 Class Overall Results (Moto Finish)

1. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki (7-1)
2. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna (4-3)
3. Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Yamaha (3-4)
4. Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki (2-5)
5. RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Honda (6-2)
6. Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha (1-9)
7. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Honda (9-6)
8. Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha (10-7)
9. Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM (11-8)
10. Mitchell Harrison, Brighton, Mich., Yamaha (5-15)

250 Class Championship Standings

1. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna – 377
2. Jeremy Martin, Millville, Minn., Honda – 303
3. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., KTM – 296
4. Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki – 281
5. Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Yamaha – 264
6. Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha – 256
7. Adam Cianciarulo, Port Orange, Fla., Kawasaki – 254
8. Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha – 213
9. Mitchell Harrison, Brighton, Mich., Yamaha – 212
10. Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM – 192 

Rd 8 – Australian Motocross Championship – Port Macquarie, NSW

Dean Ferris, Egan Mastin and Cooper Pozniak have won the MX1, MX2 and MXD classes respectively when the Australian MX Nationals hit the tight and technical Port Macquarie circuit last weekend.

THOR MX1: Ferris won the opening moto ahead of Kade Mosig, Nathan Crawford and Todd Waters and in the second moto Ferris repeated the win this time ahead of Todd Waters, Brett Metcalfe and Luke Clout to extend his championship lead to a staggering 75 points.

Ferris secured his seventh Thor MX1 round win while second overall went to Waters with teammate Clout securing his first MX1 podium with a third overall.

Dean Ferris

“The feeling of winning doesn’t wear off, it feels just as good every time, I love it, this is what I work for. It’s not just the winning on the weekend, it’s during the week, I’m ticking off my motos and every day I do my best to achieve my goals. I was thankful that I could get some good starts, and be quick in those first couple of laps here. The track today was awesome, and it was nice to have a new venue on the calendar, so hopefully we can come back to Port Macquarie in the future. At the moment I’m just doing my thing and taking it one race at a time. I definitely couldn’t slack off today, and it was awesome to share the podium with Luke (Clout) who got his first MX1 podium, and also Todd who belongs up here.”

Despite finishing 7^th overall at Port Macquarie Kirk Gibbs still sits second in the championship.

Kirk Gibbs

“That’s just how it goes, we knew looking at the track yesterday it was pretty tight, pretty juniorish – it was going to be one of those tracks where you’d struggle if you didn’t get good starts. First start we got a little bit of wheel spin and I was trying to make places up but crashed trying to get around Kyle Peters and lost a lot of ground. I charged through to the back of Clouty and I couldn’t find anywhere to get around him. I was frustrated with that, but I got a good jump in the second. Then Mosig crashed just to the side of me, but as he crashed, his bike sort of flicked out and I had nowhere to go but into it. I played catch-up from there. I rode really well, so I’m not disappointed with the way I’m riding. We’re going to try a few different things between now and Toowoomba and hopefully that can help. I know I can go for those wins if I get the starts. I’m looking forward to the hills of Toowoomba, and I feel like I can do well there, once I iron out those starts. That’s where I got my first moto win in 2013.”

Thor MX1 Go Pro Superpole

1. Dean Ferris Lap Time – 01:45.908 – Yamaha YZF450F
2. Luke Styke +00.789 Lap Time – 01:46.697 – KTM SX 450
3. Kirk Gibbs +01.398 Lap Time – 01:47.306 – KTM SXF450
4. Luke Clout +01.471 Lap Time – 01:47.379 – Honda CRF450R
5. Brett Metcalfe +07.534 Lap Time – 01:53.442 – Husqvarna TC 449

Thor MX1 Moto 1

1. Dean Ferris – Yamaha YZF450F
2. Kade Mosig – Yamaha YZF450
3. Nathan Crawford – Kawasaki KX450F
4. Todd Waters – Honda CRF450R
5. Luke Clout – Honda CRF450R
6. Kirk Gibbs – KTM SXF450
7. Luke Styke – KTM SX 450
8. Brett Metcalfe – Kawasaki KX450F
9. Kyle Peters – Suzuki RMZ450
10. Hamish Harwood – KTM 450SFX 

Thor MX1 Moto 2

1. Dean Ferris – Yamaha YZF450F
2. Todd Waters – Honda CRF450
3. Brett Metcalfe – Kawasaki KX450F
4. Luke Clout – Honda CRF450R
5. Kirk Gibbs – KTM SXF450
6. Luke Styke – KTM SX 450
7. Dylan Long – Yamaha YZF450
8. Nathan Crawford – Kawasaki KX450F
9. Kyle Peters – Suzuki RMZ450
10. Kade Mosig – Yamaha YZF450

Thor MX1 Round 8 Overall

1. Dean Ferris 70 Points
2. Todd Waters 60 Points
3. Luke Clout 54 Points
4. Brett Metcalfe 53 Points
5. Nathan Crawford 53 Points
6.  Kade Mosig 53 Points
7. Kirk Gibbs 51 Points
8. Luke Styke 49 Points
9. Kyle Peters 44 Points
10. Dylan Long 43 Points

Thor MX1 Championship Standings after Round 8

1. Dean Ferris 562 Points
2. Kirk Gibbs 487 Points
3. Kade Mosig 436 Points
4. Todd Waters 421 Points
5. Luke Styke 408 Points
6. Luke Clout 378 Points
7. Kyle Peters 371 Points
8. Brett Metcalfe 350 Points
9. Nathan Crawford 304 Points
10. Joel Green 267 Points

Motul MX2

Egan Mastin dominated the MX2 class at Port Macquarie by winning the opening moto from Wilson Todd, Kyle Webster and Mitchell Evans then in the second moto Mastin took the win again this time from Todd, Evans and Hamish Harwood.

Two race wins saw Mastin awarded with the round victory and the top step of the Motul MX2 podium while second overall went to championship leader Todd with Serco Yamaha’s Evans concluded the Port Macquarie outing in third so Todd now carries a 13 point lead in the Motul MX2 Championship with two rounds remaining.

Egan Mastin

“For me this year I didn’t want to peak too early, I train to peak at the right time during the season and I think at the moment that’s what we are doing. To come away with the win in both motos today we’re stoked. Port Macquarie is only three hours away from home for me, so I have all my friends and family here and it’s nice to get a win in front of an audience like that. This is a round I definitely wanted to win. At this stage the championship is still within reach. I want to go out every weekend and win every race, so we’ll be aiming to do that over the next two rounds.” 

Motul MX2 Moto 1

1. Egan Mastin – KTM SX 250
2. Wilson Todd – Yamaha YZ 250F
3. Kyle Webster – Honda CRF 250F
4. Mitchell Evans – Yamaha YZ 250F
5. Hamish Harwood – KTM SX 250
6. Jayden Rykers – KTM 250 SX-F
7. Dylan Wills – Husqvarna FC250
8. Richie Evans – Yamaha YZ 250F
9. Tomas Ravenhorst – Yamaha YZ 250F
10. Jay Wilson – KTM SX 250

Motul MX2 Moto 2

1. Egan Mastin – KTM SX 250
2. Wilson Todd – Yamaha YZF250
3. Mitchell Evans – Yamaha YZ 250F
4. Hamish Harwood – KTM SX 250
5. Jayden Rykers – KTM 250 SX-F
6. Kyle Webster – Honda 250F
7. Richie Evans – Yamaha YZ 250F
8. Dylan Wills – Husqvarna FC250
9. Jay Wilson – KTM SX 250
10. Connor Tierney – Yamaha YZ250f

Motul MX2 Round 8 Overall

1. Egan Mastin 70 Points
2. Wilson Todd 64 Points
3. Mitchell Evans 58 Points
4. Kyle Webster 55 Points
5. Hamish Harwood 54 Points
6. Jayden Rykers 51 Points
7. Richie Evans 47 Points
8. Dylan Wills 47 Points
9. Jay Wilson 43 Points
10. Connor Tierney 41 Points

Motul MX2 Championship Standings after Round 8 – Top 20

1. Wilson Todd 490 Points
2. Egan Mastin 477 Points
3. Mitchell Evans 476 Points
4. Hamish Harwood 427 Points
5. Kyle Webster 399 Points
6. Dylan Wills 381 Points
7. Jayden Rykers 371 Points
8. Jackson Richardson 365 Points
9. Richie Evans 350 Points
10. Joel Evans 281 Points

Pirelli MXD

The MXD Championship was officially wrapped up at Port Macquarie with this year’s champion crowned after the opening when the red plate holder Jy Roberts was ruled out of racing after sustaining a shoulder injury during qualifying.

Kaleb Barham won the opening moto from Cooper Pozniak, Cody Dyce and Callum Norton but in the second moto Norton took the win from Pozniak, Hugh McKay, Riley Dukes and Barham so when the points from both motos were calculated the 2-2 finishes saw Pozniak take the round overall ahead of Norton and Barham.           

But it was the championship podium that was the biggest celebration at the conclusion of today’s racing, Dyce wrapping up his first ever Pirelli MXD Championship, runner up for 2017 was awarded to Husqvarna’s Roberts, despite not racing at the final round, while Pozniak’s impressive 2-2 finishes at Port Macquarie saw the Yamaha rider claim third overall in the Championship.

Cody Dyce

“It was awesome to get the title in the first moto here at Port Macquarie – with Jy out, it was in the back of my mind, but I actually didn’t know coming over the finish line that I’d got it done. It was a shame that Jy wasn’t here to race today, but unfortunately that’s just our sport sometimes, and I’m just glad that I was able to get the job done. This is my first year in the MXD class, so I don’t think I could have asked for a better result. I didn’t have too many expectations of myself when I headed in to the season so to get the title is awesome. Now I’ll just switch my attention to Supercross and finish off the year strong.”

Pirelli MXD Moto 1

1. Kaleb Barham – Husqvarna FC250
2. Cooper Pozniak – Yamaha YZ 250F
3. Cody Dyce – Yamaha YZF250
4. Callum Norton – KTM 250cc
5. Hugh McKay – Yamaha YZ 250F
6. Riley Dukes – HUSQVARNA
7. Brodie Ellis – Yamaha YZ250F
8. Alex Watt – Husqvarna FC250
9. Dylan Wood – Kawasaki KX250
10. Isaac Ferguson – KTM
    …DNS. Jy Roberts 13L – Husqvarna 250

Pirelli MXD Moto 2

1. Callum Norton – KTM 250cc
2. Cooper Pozniak – Yamaha YZ 250F
3. Hugh McKay – Yamaha YZ 250F
4. Riley Dukes – HUSQVARNA
5. Kaleb Barham – Husqvarna FC250
6. Morgan Fogarty – KTM 250 SX-F
7. Alex Watt – Husqvarna FC250
8. Dylan Wood – Kawasaki KX250
9. Hayden Matterson – KTM SXF 250
10. Jye Dickson – KTM SXF 250
    …DNS Jy Roberts – Husqvarna 250

Pirelli MXD Round 8 Overall

1. Cooper Pozniak 64 Points
2. Callum Norton 63 Points
3. Kaleb Barham 61 Points
4. Hugh McKay 56 Points
5. Riley Dukes 53 Points
6. Alex Watt 47 Points
7. Cody Dyce 46 Points
8. Dylan Wood 45 Points
9. Brodie Ellis 44 Points
10. Morgan Fogarty 42 Points

Pirelli MXD Championship Standings Final

1. Cody Dyce 453 Points (2017 CHAMPION)
2. Jy Roberts 412 Points
3. Cooper Pozniak 395 Points
4. Hugh McKay 388 Points
5. Isaac Ferguson 385 Points
6. Morgan Fogarty 372 Points
7. Kaleb Barham 368 Points
8. Callum Norton 357 Points
9. Brodie Ellis 329 Points
10. Riley Dukes 279 Points

Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup

The Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup class provided plenty of entertainment from the minute bikes hit the track at Port Macquarie, and with the championship decided at Round 8, as two action packed races paved the way for former racer turned Hollywood stuntman Cody Mackie to be crowned this year’s champion.

After three rounds of racing for the Motul MX National’s all new support class, Mackie concluded his 125cc Gold Cup Championship campaign undefeated at Port Macquarie, putting in two smart and consistent rides and claiming his fifth and sixth race wins of the season.

In qualifying, Mackie set the pace with a 1:51.029 lap time and secured the first pick of the grid for when racing kicked off later in the afternoon, second fastest was Yamaha Veteran Cameron Taylor (1:54.560), while Enduro rider Geoff Braico clocked the third quickest qualifying time (1:56.685).

When racing got underway, spectators had poured through the gates of the Port Macquarie venue, giving the Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup class one of the biggest audiences of the season.

Husqvarna mounted Mackie shot off the start and in to first position, a position where he would remain until the remainder of the first moto.

Behind Mackie, second fastest qualifier Taylor slotted in to second place, followed by Joel Hall and Braico. After a handful of laps, Braico made the move on Hall for third, relegating the Yamaha rider a position.

And when there chequered flag flew after 15 minutes, it was no surprise to see Mackie cross the finish line with his fifth win of the season. Second place went to Taylor (Yamaha) while Braico secured third.

Zac Towill and Steven Powell completed the top five, followed by Kerrod Morrissy, Cory Watts, Hall, Darcy Cavanagh and Bradley Rankmore who all wrapped up race one inside the top ten.

In race two, once again it was Mackie who launched off the start and in to a commanding race lead. Behind him, KTM mounted Powell was locked into his own battle for second with Braico, followed by race one runner up Taylor (Yamaha) in fourth.

Being the final race of the day, the Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup competitors had the toughest track of the weekend to contend with, however drawing on his racing experience was Mackie, who continued to lead by five seconds after three laps on track.

Despite not getting the start that he wanted, Taylor found his form mid-way through the second moto, passing Braico and then beginning to close in on Powell’s rear wheel. And it wasn’t long before Taylor was elevated to second after making a clean pass on KTM mounted Powell.

But it was all about Mackie at Port Macquarie, the Husqvarna rider crossing the finish line after 15 minutes to once again claim victory. Second place went to Taylor, followed by Powell, Morrissy, and Cory Watts who completed the top five.

When the Round 8 podium was calculated, Mackie’s 1,1 results saw him finish on the top step, second place overall went to Taylor, while Morrissy concluded the Port Macquarie leg of the championship in third.

But it was the championship podium that really counted yesterday afternoon, and thankfully it was the same three riders who were handed the championship trophies when racing had wrapped up.

Mackie who won an incredible six out of six races was crowned the 2017 Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup Class Champion, Taylor finished runner up in the title chase, followed by Morrissy who concluded the three rounds for the support class third in the points.

Cody Mackie – Husqvarna Australia – 2017 Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup Champion

“Two wins today, so it was another productive day. Cam Taylor wicked it up in the second and kept me on my toes and I really had to concentrate. It was great fun to battle with him, and to come out with the win was even better. It was good fun out there and I think everyone who did it would agree. Kevvie Williams seems to think he will keep at it with this series. I think it has potential to grow. I see a lot of people beating a dead horse around the tracks on 250s, when for a lot of them a 125 would be a lot cheaper and a lot safer. It’s a no-brainer to me. We’re really the only place around the world that hasn’t pushed a 125 series prior to this year. They do it in Europe and they’ve been doing it in America the last couple of years. I think it’s a good thing. With my Husky I changed the rear shock spring and put an FMF pipe on it, and it pulled two holeshots today, as well as holeshots at the other rounds – and I didn’t even change the jetting! Hopefully that proves to people that you don’t need all the bells and whistles to make it go. They’ve got a good motorcycle there for sure. I need to thank Husqvarna Australia, Moto Development, Terra Firma Equipment Sales and Mac Track who put this whole package together for me.”

Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup Results – Port Macquarie

1. Cody Mackie – 70 points – Husqvarna
2. Cameron Taylor – 64 points – Yamaha
3. Kerrod Morrissy – 55 points – KTM
4. Geoff Braico – 55 points – Husqvarna
5. Steven Powell – 54 points – KTM
6. Cory Watts – 50 points – Honda
7. Joel Hall – 47 points – Yamaha
8. Darcy Cavanagh – 45 points – Honda
9. Bradley Rankmore – 43 points – Husqvarna
10. Sam Lyttle – 41 points – Kawasaki

Yamaha 125cc Gold Cup Championship

1. Cody Mackie – 210 points – Husqvarna
2. Cameron Taylor – 188 points – Yamaha
3. Kerrod Morrissy – 173 points – KTM
4. Steven Powell – 153 points – KTM
5. Joel Hall – 143 points – Yamaha
6. Geoff Braico – 105 points – Husqvarna
7. Steve Sweeney – 101 points – Yamaha
8. Darcy Cavanagh – 92 points – Honda
9. Jades Oates – 91 points – Yamaha
10. Cory Watts – 89 points – Honda

Rd 8 – Canadian Motocross Nationals – Moncton, New Brunswick

Round 8 of the CMRC had some good battles as the riders were forced to deal with a lot of punishing roost coming from their opponents’ rear wheels as they tried to make a pass.

With only two rounds to go, we have a terrific battle for the MX1 title between Matt Goerke and Christophe Pourcel, and in the MX2 class we saw Shawn Maffenbeier put on a clinic and extend his points lead as he continues to go after his first national title.

MX1 Report

Rockstar Husqvarna’s Christophe Pourcel was the day’s fastest qualifier. After coming around fifth on the opening lap of Moto 1, Pourcel made a steady charge to the front where he posted the fastest lap of the race, and looked like he was going to challenge Goerke for the lead before settling for second. Pourcel got a similar start in Moto 2 and again made his way towards the front, and after passing both Goerke and Mike Alessi found himself in the lead on Lap 11.

Christophe hung on to take the win in Moto 2 and his 2-1 finishes put him on the top of the box for the day. The overall was his fourth this season, making him the only one in the class to have more than one win, but he was unable to gain any ground on series leader Goerke. Pourcel still finds himself trailing by 19 points with only two races left this season.

Series points leader and red plate holder Matt Goerke continued to move closer to his third national title, and although his 1-2 moto scores left him second overall for the day, he maintained his 19-point series lead that he came to Moncton with.

Goerke had good starts in both motos and never ran worse than third all day, and described the roost coming off the rear wheel of the motorcycles “like being shot with a paintball gun.” After being passed by Pourcel in the second moto, Matt said he tried to run him back down but made a few mistakes and didn’t want to crash so he settled for second. Goerke is looking forward to next weekend’s track in Quebec where he has won before.

Mike Alessi has often been called the best starter in motocross and race fans this weekend got to see why after the talented American took both holeshots on route to the Royal Distributing Triple Crown and a nice bonus cheque.

Alessi qualified second and led all but five laps of Moto 1 before admitting to “tightening up” and being passed late in the race by Goerke and Pourcel. In Moto 2, Mike led more than half the race until tightening up again and being passed by the same two guys, finished the day 3-3 for third overall, and moved into a tie for third in the series standings.

Kyle Chisholm backed up his best finish of the season with another fourth overall this weekend after finishing 5-4 in Moncton. Chisholm got good starts in both motos and was never outside of the top 5 all day. With only two rounds left in the series, Kyle is still looking to be standing on the podium at the end of the day, but don’t be suprised if it happens next weekend in Deschambault on a track that should suit his riding style well.

After being the top dog on the newly formed Royal Distributing Motovan Piller’s Race Team all season, Tyler Medaglia has been narrowly beaten by his teammate now at the last two rounds. After qualifying fourth fastest, Medaglia got a great start in the first moto and ran in second place for the first seven laps before being passed by Goerke then Pourcel and finishing fourth. In the second moto, Tyler came around the first lap in fifth and held that position for all but one lap of the moto, and finished 4-5 for fifth overall on the day.

Rounding out the top 10 were Colton Facciotti, Cade Clason, Jesse Wentland, Keylan Meston and Tim Tremblay.

MX1 Overall

1. Christophe Pourcel          
2. Matt Goerke       
3. Mike Alessi          
4. Kyle Chisholm      
5. Tyler Medaglia    
6. Colton Facciotti    
7. Cade Clason         
8. Jesse Wentland    
9. Keylan Meston     
10. Tim Tremblay    

MX1 Championship Standings

1. Matt Goerke – 425
2. Christophe Pourcel – 406
3. Mike Alessi – 366
4. Colton Facciotti – 366
5. Tyler Medaglia – 355
6. Dillan Epstein – 328
7. Kyle Chisholm – 298
8. Tim Tremblay – 263
9. Cade Clason – 248
10. Nathan Biles – 208

MX2 Report

After capturing the red plate in Round 7, Shawn Maffenbeier showed why he deserves to be running it after being the fastest MX2 qualifier during the morning sessions. Maffenbeier took the lead early on the first lap of Moto 1 and put on a clinic on route to a wire to wire win.

Shawn again found himself in the lead on the fifth lap of Moto 2 after making a clean, safe pass on his teammate Jess Pettis, and posted the fastest lap of the moto. On the podium, after going 1-1 for the day, Maff said, “I felt like I had a couple of cool, crafty lines out there today,” and now leads the series by 46 points with only two rounds remaining.

In just his second race back after suffering a broken collarbone, Jess Pettis qualified second, ran the entire first moto in second place where he finished, and posted the fastest lap of Moto 1. Pettis grabbed the holeshot in Moto 2, his first this season, and led for four laps before being passed by Maffenbeier and finishing the moto in second. Jess now has three podium finishes this season after competing in only 6 of 8 rounds, and sits seventh in the series standings.

Jacob Hayes qualified third and went 3-3 on the day for his second consecutive podium finish, and his third this season. Hayes had a good battle with Dylan Wright on the opening laps of Moto 1, and after making the pass into third on Lap 3 looked like he might make a run at Pettis for second. In Moto 2, Jacob came around the first lap in second before being passed by Maffenbeier and running the rest of the race in third.

After finishing on the podium in each of the last four rounds, Dylan Wright saw that streak come to an end this weekend when he went 4-4 for fourth overall. Wright rode by himself most of the day and spent all but three laps in fourth position, as well as qualifying there. Dylan now finds himself third in the series standings and is only 1 point back of second place Ryan Surratt.

Ryan Surratt qualified sixth and failed to get a good start in either moto like we are used to seeing from him this year. Surratt had to come from outside the top 10 in both motos and make a lot of passes to finish 5-5 for fifth overall. Ryan sits second in the series standings and is now 46 points back of the leader with only two rounds remaining this season.

Next weekend, the series moves to Deschambault, Quebec, just outside of Quebec City, as Round 9 of the 2017 CMRC sanctioned Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals presented by Motovan will take place next Sunday, August 6th. 

MX2 Overall

1. Shawn Maffenbeier         
2. Jesse Pettis          
3. Jacob Hayes         
4. Dylan Wright
5. Ryan Surratt         
6. Davey Fraser        
7. Tanner Ward        
8. Hayden Halstead  
9. Bobby Piazza        
10. Jeremy Pronovost         

MX2 Championship Standings

1. Shawn Maffenbeier – 388
2. Ryan Surratt – 342
3. Rylan Wright – 341
4. Josh Osby – 307
5. Cole Thompson – 298
6. Jacob Hayes – 286
7. Jesse Pettis – 259
8. Davey Fraser – 250
9. Casey Keast – 249
10. Hayden Halstead – 238

Rd 3 – Championnat de France d’enduro , Bar-sur-Seine

The third stop on this year’s Championnat de France d’enduro headed to Bar-sur-Seine, a French commune in the Aube department in the Grand Est region of north-central France last weekend.

After taking four wins from four starts in this year’s Championnat de France d’enduro, Rider Camp Yamaha’s Jess Gardiner entered the third round of the series with a twelve point championship lead over her nearest rival.

Once again, Gardiner was unstoppable in the heart of the champagne vineyards taking the overall win on both days which now sees her taking six wins from six starts.

On Saturday, Gardiner was in a class of her own finishing in the top position in all six tests. While she did reign supreme by winning the day with a total time of 29min58.170, 56.643 seconds clear of Samantha Tichet, she did admit that the first test started a bit “awkward” for her. However, Gardiner managed to get moving and enjoyed a consistent run for the rest of the day.

Gardiner dominated the second day on Sunday to move to an ominously comfortable lead in the title standings which saw the 24-year-old once again winning every single test throughout the day.
This time however, Gardiner had another battle on her hands which was mother-nature as it poured with rain. 

Gardiner described the trials as “super slick”, but that did not stop her from romping to a 59.701 second victory, again beating Tichet. It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Gardiner. On the trial section between the first and second test she lost front end of her Yamaha WR250F, in fifth gear, on an off camber rocky corner which resulted her in hurting her elbows.

Jess Gardiner

“Today was a tough day, that’s for sure, iIt didn’t make things easy with the weather as well and the get off I had in between the test sections, but that’s just part and parcel in motorcycle racing. My goal today was to try and win by over a minute, which we almost got there. The main thing is we leave Bar-sur-Seine extending our championship lead which is the main thing. I have to once again give a massive thanks to the whole of the Rider Camp Yamaha team for their efforts this weekend. Our Yamaha WR250F and Michelin tyres once again proved to be the best package to be on this weekend, both in the day and in the wet conditions. Also thanks to all of my other sponsors who are right behind me this year and making this year possible. We’re just trying to make the most of each round we come to. I’m feeling good but we don’t want to change too much. We will just keep pressing on and work towards our goal, which is winning the championship.”

Gardiner now heads into round four of the Championnat de France d’enduro with an eighteen point lead in the series. The fourth round heads 735km south to Réquista in southern France on 16-17 September.

Next weekend will see Gardiner lining up for the third round of the FIM European Euduro Championship which will take place in Burg, Germany, before turning her attention to the 2017 FIM International Six Days Enduro which ignites into action on the 28th of August which will be held in Brive-la-Gaillarde, France.

Championnat de France d’enduro championship standings (top 5) after Round 3

1. Jess Gardiner 120
2. Samantha Tichet 102
3. Juliette Berrez 90
4. Valerie Roche 76
5. Justine Martel 68

FIM Junior World Motocross Championships – Estonia

Italian Gianluca Facchetti, Brit Eddie Jay Wade, and Ivano Van Erp from the Netherland have won their respective classes at Lange Motokeskus circuit in Estonia where the 2017 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship was held last weekend.

Defending champions Team Australia took 4th overall in the country standings with the stand out performance coming from Kayden Minear who finished 3rd in the 65cc class with Jet Alsop a few spots back in 6^th while Alex Larwood finished 11^th in the 85cc class and in the 125cc class Bailey Malkiewicz finished a hard fought 11^th well ahead of Mason Semmens who battled poor luck in both motos to finish 22^nd. 

Jett Lawrence was forced out of the meet after crashing during practice in the lead up to the event.

You can find the full report here: Minear leads strong Aussie showing at Estonia Junior MX (link)

Red Bull Romaniacs – Sibiu, Poland

Putting in a dominant race-long performance in the mountains around Sibiu, Graham Jarvis has secured a record sixth career victory at the 14th edition of the Red Bull Romaniacs held in Poland last week.

Jarvis got off to a great start by securing a strong fourth place result in the short Sibiu city Prologue. With the race entering its hardest part right after the start of the first off-road day, the TE 300 mounted rider was able to show more of his extreme enduro prowess.

Successfully battling his way through a long and challenging day of extreme enduro racing, Jarvis topped the opening day in the mountains to open up a gap of 10 minutes over his closest rival.

Continuing his strong run of form by winning days two and three, the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider entered the final day of racing with a 26-minute advantage at the top of the provisional overall standings.

Putting in a cautious ride to earn fifth on day four, he eased his way to the finish line and into the record books as a six-time Romaniacs champion.

Graham Jarvis

“It’s an incredible feeling to win Romaniacs for the sixth time. When I started racing the event almost ten years ago I couldn’t even dream of winning it six times. It’s a fantastic race that has been growing and growing over the last few years. This time it’s been a battle of survival and I was really happy to get to the finish. Day one was pretty tough and it seemed to go on forever. It was difficult to navigate as well. Day two was a bit of an easier one and not so technical. Jonny Walker caught me but after the service point I managed to pull a gap. Overall, it was a good day for me. We knew day three was going to be tough. There was a lot of pushing before the service point and that was the hardest bit. It was a very long day and the tiredness kept building. On the last day I did my best to stay focused on the track. I was tired so I decided to play it safe and ride my bike to the finish. It’s been a huge team effort to get this winning result.”  

Final Results – Red Bull Romaniacs 2017

1. Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna)
2. Mario Roman (Sherco)
3. Paul Bolton (KTM)
4. Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM)
5. Travis Teasdale (KTM)
6. Billy Bolt (Husqvarna)