Moto News Wrap for Feb 10, 2015 by Darren Smart
Australasian News
The 2015 season kicked into life for all of our off-road racers last weekend with round 1 of the EnduroX Championships being held at Archerfield and despite the efforts of our very best Aussie riders it was Yank superstar Mike Brown who spectacularly took the win. See the full report and results below.
Jay Wilson has won the MX2 class at the opening round of the New Zealand Motocross Championship held in New Plymouth last weekend while Kirk Gibbs came home second in the MX1 class ahead of Kade Mosig who finished a solid fifth. Luke Styke had a troublesome day to finish back in 16th place.
Looking through the results it is amazing that Daryl Hurley and Darryll King finished 10th and 11th outright in the MX1 championship class in New Plymouth last weekend – once a champion, always a champion. See the full report and results below.
American News
The first 450 heat race at round 6 of the AMA Supercross in San Diego had our Aussie boys Chad Reed, Brett Metcalfe and Adam Monea on the start line so when the gate dropped I figured at least one of them would qualify but it all turned to poo when Metty crashed and unintentionally collected Monea so that was two down and one to go.
Reed was on fire and had gone from 8th place up to fourth and was closing on Andrew Short for third when he crashed all by himself so our Aussies found themselves in 7th (Reed), 16th (Monea) and 18th (Metcalfe).
Metcalfe came back in the first Semi to get third and make the main where he finished a credible 11th while Reed won his Semi before storming to a solid fourth in the main event. As for Monea, he got a solid 8th in his Semi but a 17th in the LCQ had him watching the main from the stands.
Jackson Richardson qualified in 14th place out of 57 hopefuls before a cracker 6th place in his heat race and while sitting in 10th place in the main Jackson was pushed back to 15th on lap six but as you would expect from the plucky Cairns rider fought back to 12th by race end.
See the full Report and Results from San Diego below
Justin Barcia joined teammate Weston Peick, Wil Hahn, Dean Wilson and Justin Brayton on the injured list leading into San Diego. Mike Alessi and Broc Tickle made it back from a week off with injury to race round 6.
HRT Racing’s Vicki Golden will attempt to become the first woman to ever qualify for an AMA Supercross at round seven of the season from Arlington, Texas this weekend……oh dear.
Euro News
Dean Ferris decided to race the Hawkestone International last weekend and came away with 6-5 moto results for a more than credible 5th overall. See the full report and results below.
Todd Waters had a solid day at the second round of the Italian Motocross Championships with a come from behind ride up to an eventual 9th place in the MX1 moto before finishing 6th place in the Elite moto. See the full report and results below.
Todd and Dean are in good form leading up to the opening round of the World Motocross Championships in just a few weeks.
Race Reports and Results for the Weekend of the 7th and 8th of February
- – Monster Energy Supercross Championships – Round 6 – San Diego
- – AMSOIL Arenacross Championship – Round 5 – Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pa
- – Italian Motocross Championships – Round 2 – Castiglione del Lago
- – Australian EnduroX Championship – Round 1 – Archerfield Speedway, Brisbane
- – New Zealand Motocross Championships – Round 1 – New Plymouth
- – Hawkestone Park International Motocross
InsureMyRide Australian Enduro-X Nationals – Round 1 – Archerfield Speedway
American Veteran Mike Brown has kicked off his 2015 season with a convincing win at the opening round of the 2015 InsureMyRide Australian Enduro-X Nationals held at Archerfield Speedway in Queensland last weekend.
The American who has only just returned to Enduro-X style riding in the weeks leading up to the Australian series dominated the evenings proceedings claiming pole position in the top ten shoot-out before going on to win the opening two main event races on his way to overall victory.
The Heats: Earlier in the day it was Active8 Yamalube Yamaha’s Josh Green who kicked off the proceedings in the Pro class thrilling the large and enthusiastic local crowd with a win in the opening heat, with Penrite Oil Honda Racings Peter Boyle doing likewise in heat two. Brown then kicked his winning run off in heat three with a big win over new Factory KTM racer Daniel Sanders.
Qualifying: With the heat racing over, the top ten qualifiers lined up to each tackle the track one at a time for the top ten shoot out to determine gate picks for the three moto final format.
It was CDR Yamaha’s Chris Hollis who laid down the fastest lap from the Aussie contenders, but all eyes were on Brown has he started his spring lap and the former AMA Motocross Champion didn’t disappoint with a lap time just over two seconds faster than Hollis.
Final 1: With the field set, the gates were dropped for the opening back to back to back finals of the night, with Sanders aboard his KTM 300 two stroke blowing the doors off his opposition to pull the inaugural Foxhead.com.au holeshot by more than a bike length.
Brown however quickly made his way to the front of the field and by the time the opening lap was done and dusted the American has a huge gap over the field which he continued to extend right until the end of the five lap race. Boyle moved himself into second place early and never relinquished the position, while Green powered his way through the field to round out the top three.
Victorian Dylan Lees raced to a superb 4th place finish ahead of fifth placed Toby Price, with CDR Yamaha’s Tom McCormack finishing 6th. Things did not go so well for McCormack’s team mate however, with Hollis being forced out of the opening final of the night and did not line up for the remaining two races.
Final 2: With a ten minute break between races, riders had little time to compose themselves before lining up for race two. Once again it was Sanders who fired out to the lead early with Brown close in tow. Sanders was able to hold off the #3 Husqvarna of Brown for the entire opening lap before the Ameican made his move to the front and checked out.
Brown raced to his second straight win, with Sanders holding on for a very impressive second place just in front of Green with McCormack and Price rounding out the top five.
Final 3: The third and final saw a change up front with Price making his way to the lead early, while Brown was left buried deep in the field. Brown made his way through the pack and with just two laps left remaining closed right in on the back wheel of Price but no matter how hard he tried the Aussie star was able to resist every move to hold on for the race win over Brown, while Green carded his third straight third place finish ahead of Sanders and Mitcham Harper.
Brown will now carry a handy point’s lead heading into round two in Sydney in just three weeks. “It’s been good all day, right from practice and heat races. I won all those and got the hot lap, and just kept it going. That last race I knew that I could just position myself to get the overall. Toby rode good in that third one and I thought I would just finish off a good weekend with an overall win and not a crash. All these guys have got other stuff to do, but I’ve just been on enduro cross since last year without stopping. The last two weeks I’ve been back in California training for this, and I’m going back tomorrow for testing Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and then back at it again here in Sydney.”
Toby Price has this to say after the final race. “The first couple didn’t go our way, but in the last one I got a holeshot and could run the place I wanted, to just try to hold the guys back a little bit. Once you get those other guys out in front, it’s hard to try to snag onto them and get around them when you’re doing the same pace. Dakar has definitely drained me out a little bit at the moment, but hey, at the end of the day, to get third in the first round is good points. We’re just looking forward to the last two, and to see if we can get the body back into shape and ready to go.”
“The bike was awesome and I was getting of the gate well all night,” Boyle said. “I was simply tired towards the end of the night and I made mistakes. I had driven all day from Melbourne the day before which was not ideal. I know I can’t do that again and I will definitely find an alternative for Round 2. I am disappointed. I had the speed and everything felt good. I was just making small mistakes that were costing me a lot of time and sprint races you cannot afford to lose time.”
“I am 19 points off third at the moment and in these types of sprint races mistakes can happen so I need to put my head down and give it all I have,” Boyle continued. “I would prefer to be in a better position but all I can do know is regroup and focus on the next six races.”
The second round of the Australian Enduro-X Nationals will be held at Sydney Dragway on Saturday February 28.
EnduroX Round 1 Results: 1. Mike Brown – 72. 2. Josh Green – 60. 3. Toby Price – 57. 4. Daniel Sanders – 53. 5. Tom Mccormack – 47. 6. Mitcham Harper – 45. 7. Dylan Rees – 41. 8. Tye Simmonds – 38. 9. Peter Boyle – 38. 10. Stefan Granquist – 37.
Monster Energy Supercross Championships – Round 6 – San Diego
450SX Report: Ken Roczen pulled the handy holeshot and led the race for three laps, but on lap four Trey Canard caught the German and the two traded the lead a couple of times before Canard finally got far enough away from a possible pass and once up front Canard pulled out to a fairly comfortable lead, but it was short lived.
Just past half way Roczen took advantage of lapped traffic and began chipping away at Canard’s lead and then in the closing laps Roczen actually sliced under Canard to nearly get the lead but then messed up the next rhythm section.
Canard got cleanly by a lapped Nick Wey, but Roczen got stuck behind him for a few turns. That was all the breathing room Canard needed. In spite of a last-ditch charge by Roczen, Canard was able to hold on to earn the victory.
In spite of putting himself squarely in the title hunt, Canard shrugged at the suggestion that he’s now a title contender this early in the season. “There’s a long way to go,” said Canard, who hasn’t won two Supercross races in a season since 2011. “This is round six of 17, so we’ve got a lot of racing, but I tell you, it’s great to win!”
“I just tried to ride smooth and consistent. The track was really slick, so it was easy to make mistakes. I made a couple, towards the end especially. I’m so grateful to be able to do this and I want to keep doing it and have fun.”
“Overall that was a super-fun race,” said Roczen. “We battled quite good, but I’m mad because I didn’t ride that good. I clipped too many things, made too many mistakes. I noticed that, but kept doing it and that’s what cost me big time. I got screwed up with lappers a couple of times and that cost me big. I wish we would have had another lap.”
Series leader Dungey turned in yet another solid ride. “At that 10-lap mark the track started really going away, we were trying to catch Ken, the lappers were tough, but no excuses, we gave it our best. I kind of fought it today a little bit, so I’m happy. I rode much better in the main than I did in my Heat.”
Chad Reed scored his second-best finish of the season with a fourth. That moved him up a couple of spots in the standings to seventh while Eli Tomac fought back after sliding out and falling while trying to pass Reed on the second lap. He ran as far back as 14th on the third lap before mounting what was undoubtedly the best charge of the night.
Chad had this to say in an interview with RacerX. “The track started going away from me a little bit. It was getting rough, and I felt like I didn’t adjust to that. I had three or four laps where I was just banging out the laps, and I felt good. Dunge and I were taking some time out of Kenny. Then I made a mistake and I kind of didn’t adapt. It got to the point where the gap with Dungey was too big. Then I took a peek and saw Eli there, so I just kind of used up that time. He took three seconds out of me on one lap; I got held up by [Jimmy] Albertson pretty good. Eli [Tomac] tried to hook me up pretty good tonight! My $3,500 footpeg, he broke that.”
Rookie standout Cole Seely took sixth, followed by fellow first-year campaigner Blake Baggett in seventh. Andrew Short, Broc Tickle and Jason Anderson rounded out the top 10.
450SX Class Results: San Diego
1. Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda
2. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki
3. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
4. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Kawasaki
5. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda
6. Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda
7. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki
8. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM
9. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki
10. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna
11. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Cal, Kawasaki
450SX Class Season Standings – After Round 6 of 17
1. Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM, 127
2. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki, 118
3. Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda, 109
4. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Honda, 100
5. Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Husqvarna, 85
6. Cole Seely, Laguna Beach, Calif., Honda, 82
7. Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Kawasaki, 75
8. Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha, 71
9. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., Suzuki, 68
10. Andrew Short, Smithville, Texas, KTM, 66
14. Brett Metcalfe, Lake Elsinore, Cal, Kaw, 40
250 West Report: Zach Osborne nailed the holeshot on his Rockstar Energy Husqvarna but it was Bowers who quickly made his to the lead and immediately opened up what would normally be a winning lead. Malcolm Stewart came up short on a jump on the first lap and crashed hard while Webb, who crashed heavily during qualifying went to second and McElrath took over third, both getting by Osborne.
Bowers pace remained steady while Webb kept charging and on lap nine Webb made a clean inside pass on Bowers and there was no response from the former Arenacross Champ. Bowers seemed to be losing steam and McElrath took advantage and also got by Bowers to take second on his Troy Lee Designs/ Lucas Oil/ Red Bull KTM.
That was the way they finished. It marked the first podium finish of the season for McElrath, whose previous best result of the year was sixth.
“I wasn’t going to race tonight,” explained Webb. “My crash was gnarly and I’m just thankful to walk away from it. I knew tonight was going to be a fight. I told myself I can hurt as much as I want tomorrow, but there’s no better feeling than winning.”
Josh Hansen had his best ride of the season with a solid fourth place ahead of Alex Martin, Osborne, Zach Bell, Jessy Nelson, Tommy Hahn and Chris Aldridge.
Webb’s lead in the Western Regional 250SX Class standings now sits at 30 points over Jessy Nelson, while Bowers is 32 points behind in third. The championship will take a midseason break, giving way to the Eastern Regional 250SX Class, and will return on April 11 in Houston.
Western Regional 250SX Class Results: San Diego
1. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha
2. Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM
3. Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki
4. Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki
5. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
6. Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna
7. Zach Bell, Cairo, Ga., Husqvarna
8. Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Cali., KTM
9. Tommy Hahn, Decatur, Texas, Honda
10. Chris Alldredge, Powell Butte, Ore., Kawasaki
12. Jackson Richardson, Wildomar, Cal, Honda
Western Regional 250SX Class Season Standings – After Round 6 of 9
1. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha, 136
2. Jessy Nelson, Paso Robles, Calif., KTM, 106
3. Tyler Bowers, Corona, Calif., Kawasaki, 104
4. Zach Osborne, Chesterfield, S.C., Husqvarna, 102
5. Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., KTM, 86
6. Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, Yamaha, 81
7. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM, 79
8. Josh Hansen, Elbert, Colo., Kawasaki, 79
9. Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha, 75
10. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda, 69
16. Jackson Richardson, Wildomar, Cal, Honda, 39
The series moves to the Dallas Supercross next Saturday (Feb. 14) at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Amsoil Arenacross Championships – Rounds 5 – Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pa
The fifth round of the 2015 season of AMSOIL Arenacross saw two nights of action from Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza and below are the reports and results from both nights of racing.
Arenacross Class Friday Night Report: In the midst of his first full season of AMSOIL Arenacross competition, Kiniry’s success on Friday was largely attributed to his first Main Event win of the season in the first of two 15-lap battles. Kiniry grabbed the holeshot with Steven Mages and Motosport.com/Haeseker Racing KTM’s Gared Steinke in tow. Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Chris Blose, who won the previous round, started in fourth and was able to move into podium position on Lap 5 by making the pass on Steinke.
While Kiniry and Mages established themselves at the front of the field, several of the championship contenders were fighting their way to the front. Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Chris Blose, started in fourth and was able to move into podium position on Lap 5 by making the pass on Steinke. He was followed by Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Gavin Faith, who made his return to action after missing last weekend with an injury. This duo continued their battle, but they were ultimately both caught and passed by Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Matt Goerke, who had the hot hand in the Main Event, starting eighth and eventually moving into podium position.
Kiniry withstood some late pressure from Mages to stay out front and take the win, while Goerke rounded out the top three. Faith made a late pass on Blose to finish fourth, with the Kawasaki rider rounding out the top five. Another notable effort came from Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Jacob Hayes, the championship leader. After falling to the ground on the opening lap and starting 15th, Hayes put on a resilient charge through the field, breaking into the top 10 on Lap 5 and continuing his upward climb into seventh by the end of the race.
Kiniry, the newest Main Event winner of 2015, had the distinction of selecting the inversion of the second Main Event where he picked the number 16 for the second time this season, meaning the entire field would be inverted. As a result, the top finishers from the first Main Event would start on the second row for the final race of the evening.
As the gate dropped on the second Main Event, Watson Metals/Compound MX Honda’s Kyle Bitterman, who finished 13th in the first Main Event, took advantage of his improved starting position to grab the early lead ahead of TZR KTM’s Josh Osby and KTM rider Dave Ginolfi. Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Kyle Regal and Hayes came through the first turn in great position despite the 16-rider inversion.
Regal and Hayes began their march to the front quickly, surpassing Ginolfi on Lap 3 and then Osby on Lap 4 to set their sights on Bitterman out front. Despite the pressure from his more experienced counterparts, Bitterman stood tough and fended off the challenge for half of the Main Event before Regal was able to make the pass for the lead in the whoops on Lap 8. Once out front Regal was able to open a comfortable lead. Hayes made contact with Bitterman to take over second on Lap 13, but there wasn’t enough laps left to mount a challenge on Regal out front.
While the battle for the lead was taking place, Kiniry was clawing his way forward from a 12th-place start in what would ultimately be a winning effort for the overall. Kiniry went bar-to-bar with Blose, Mages, Goerke and more, each of who also were in contention for the win, and his persistence ultimately resulted in a sixth-place finish. Regal, Hayes and Bitterman completed the top three for the second Main Event, with Faith fourth and Ginolfi fifth, just ahead of Kiniry.
When the final points were tallied, Kiniry’s 1-6 finishes gave him a slim one-point edge on both Hayes (7-2) and Faith (4-4), who tied for second. Hayes’ second-place finish in the second Main Event gave him the tiebreaker over Faith for the position. Regal’s win helped him to a fourth-place finish (10-1) while Mages rounded out the top five (2-10).
In the RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge competition earlier in the evening, Hayes edged out Blose for the win and extra championship bonus point, which paid big dividends in the overall classification.
Hayes’ runner-up effort helped him open up a 19-point lead in the Arenacross Class standings over his teammate Goerke, who finished 10th on Friday. Regal moved to within four points of Goerke in third, 23 behind Hayes.
Arenacross Class Saturday Night Report: In his first full season of AMSOIL Arenacross competition, Goerke has been one of the most formidable contenders in the Arenacross Class and in the first Main Event of the evening he put himself in position to earn the overall victory. Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Kyle Regal began the Main Event in the lead, just ahead of Goerke and Motosport.com/Haeseker Racing KTM’s Gared Steinke. Regal and Goerke established themselves out front while Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Chris Blose moved past Steinke on Lap 3 to take over third. Shortly thereafter, fellow Team Babbitt’s rider Jacob Hayes slotted into fourth, setting his sights on his teammate.
Regal maintained his advantage over Goerke for half of the Main Event, but the gap between the two slowly narrowed in the closing laps. As the battle up front intensified, Hayes was able to make his way around Blose just after the finish line on Lap 10. Out front, Goerke was looking for a way around Regal and after several attempts, made the pass stick after the whoops on Lap 13. Regal attempted a counter move, resulting in contact between the two riders that briefly paused their momentum. Hayes closed in quickly as a result and ultimately made contact with Goerke, causing Hayes to fall to the ground. Both Goerke and Regal resumed out front, with Goerke in the lead, while Hayes ended up losing several positions. Goerke took the win with Regal second and Blose third. It was Goerke’s first Main Event win of the season.
Thanks to his triumph, Goerke had the opportunity to select the inversion of the second Main Event, picking the number eight. As a result, half of the field was inverted heading into the final race of the evening. Regal seized the opportunity again out of the gate in the second Main Event and took early control of the lead ahead of teammate Gavin Faith and Hayes. Blose wasn’t far behind in fourth, while Goerke settled into fifth. In an effort to run down his teammate for the lead, Faith made a mistake in the rhythm section on Lap 2, allowing both Hayes and Blose to pass. In the ensuing laps, Hayes closed in on Regal for the lead and made an aggressive pass coming out of the whoops on Lap 6 that caused heavy contact between the two riders and forced Regal off the track.
Once out front, Hayes was able to slowly and consistently build a gap over Blose, with Faith in third and Goerke in fourth. The top four remained the same until Lap 11, when Faith made a move on Blose to reclaim the runner-up spot. Hayes cruised to the win with Faith and Blose completing the top three.
Goerke finished fourth and his consistency on the evening (1-4), combined with a win in the RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge, gave him the overall win ahead of Blose (3-3). Faith’s late pass for second helped him secure third overall (5-2). Regal rebounded from his incident with Hayes to finish sixth in the final Main Event and claim fourth overall (2-6), with Hayes rounding out the top five (8-1).
Goerke took a chunk out of his deficit to Hayes in the Arenacross Class championship standings, and now sits 14 points out of the lead. Regal maintained his hold on third, 22 points back. Blose and Slaka Wear KTM’s Steven Mages round out the top five.
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Friday Report: TZR Woodstock KTM’s Scott Zont kicked off the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event by taking control of the early lead over Hillview Motorsports Suzuki’s Steve Roman and Mages. Behind them, points leader Dave Ginolfi started fifth and looked to move forward. Mages wasted little time in taking control of the race, moving into the lead on Lap 1. As Mages made his move, so did Ginofli, picking off one rider a lap before slotting into second on Lap 3. Given how quick he moved into contention, it looked as though Ginolfi might challenge Mages for the lead. While the pair stayed about a second apart for several laps, they encountered lappers on Lap 7, which ultimately proved to work to Mages’ advantage. The Ohio native slowly began to extend his lead over Ginolfi while working his way through lapped traffic and took the win. Ginolfi finished second, while Roman battled his way to a third-place finish in front of his home state crowd.
Ginolfi added to his Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class points lead and now sits 16 points ahead of A&Y Racing Honda’s Daniel Herrlein, who was not competing in Wilkes-Barre. Roman sits third, 21 points back, while Mages moved into fourth, 27 points out of the lead. Zont rounds out the top five.
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Saturday Report: On Friday night Ginolfi finished second in the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event, but on Saturday he enjoyed a near-perfect performance by going wire-to-wire. The KTM rider started the 15-lap Main Event with the holeshot ahead of Watson Metals/Compound MX Honda’s Kyle Bitterman and Hillview Motorsports Suzuki’s Steve Roman. The top three went unchanged throughout the entirety of the Main Event, but Ginolfi and Bitterman were never separated by more than a second. The Honda rider put on the pressure in the final laps, but Ginolfi held him off to claim his second Main Event win of the season.
Ginolfi added to his Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class points lead and now sits 23 points ahead of Roman. A&Y Racing Honda’s Daniel Herrlein sits third.
Arenacross Class Results – Friday Night Overall (Main Event Finishes)
- Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (1-6)
- Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (7-2)
- Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (4-4)
- Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (10-1)
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (2-10)
- Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (6-7)
- Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda (13-3)
- Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (5-12)
- Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM (12-5)
- Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (3-14)
RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge – Friday Night Results
- Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (2 points)
- Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (1 point)
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (1 point)
- Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (1 point)
- Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (1 point)
- Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (1 point)
- Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki (1 point)
- Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., KTM (1 point)
Arenacross Class Results – Saturday Night Overall (Main Event Finishes)
- Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (1-4)
- Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (3-3)
- Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (5-2)
- Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (2-6)
- Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (8-1)
- Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (7-5)
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (4-9)
- Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (6-8)
- Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (9-7)
- Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (10-10)
RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge Saturday Results
- Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (2 points)
- Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., KTM (1 point)
- Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (1 point)
- Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (1 point)
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (1 point)
- Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (1 point)
- Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (1 point)
- Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (1 point)
Arenacross Class Points (Race 8 of 20)
- Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki – 211 (4 Main Event wins)
- Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki – 197 (1 Main Event win)
- Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna – 189 (3 Main Event wins)
- Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki – 166 (4 Main Event wins)
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM – 163 (1 Main Event win)
- Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha – 159 (1 Main Event win)
- Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM – 153
- Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM – 132
- Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna – 126 (2 Main Event wins)
- Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., KTM – 115
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Friday Results
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
- Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
- Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki
- Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda
- Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki
- Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
- Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
- Chase Marquier, Newcastle, Okla., Honda
- Robert Piazza, Easton, Pa., Honda
- Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Saturday Results
1. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
2. Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda
3. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki
4. Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
5. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki
6. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
7. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
8. Jeremy Hand, Mantua, Ohio, Kawasaki
9. Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki
10. Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 6 of 10)
- Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM – 88 (2 Main Event win)
- Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki – 65
- Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda – 56
- Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM – 48
- Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasak – 46 (1 Main Event win)
- Darian Sanayei, Orting, Wash., Kawasaki – 35 (2 Main Event wins)
- Mitchell Harrison, Cairo, Georgia, Kawasaki – 33 (1 Main Event win)
- Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki – 32
- Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki – 30
- Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM – 30
Italian Motocross Championships – Round 2 – Castiglione del Lago
At round two of the three round Italian Motocross Championships held at Castiglione del Lago last weekend Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Max Nagl secured victory in the Elite class while Yamaha’s David Philippaerts won the MX1 class and Honda’s Tim Gajser won the MX2 class. Here is what the riders had to say of the day.
Max Nagl: “What can I say, it’s been a really, really good day. I’m more than pleased with how it’s all gone. Taking the point’s lead in MX1 and then winning the Elite class is fantastic in what’s been difficult riding conditions. During warm-up the track was very muddy and honestly I struggled – only managing to qualify 12th. I knew the start was going to be critical so I focused all my energy on that. I gated second in the MX1 race and was then able to finish second. I got a perfect holeshot in the Elite class and led the entire race to win. Overall it’s been a brilliant effort from everyone involved in the team to get this result.”
Tony Cairoli: “For me there was everything to lose at a race like this. You can easily get injured on this kind of track with lots of ruts and it’s close to the start of the world championships. I was focused on having a great race and a good result but it’s a difficult track especially in these conditions. I didn’t expect to win but for sure I wanted to have a good race and improve my skills because I know I have some problems with this kind of race. Next week we are back on sand and I will do my best to win both races and take this championship.”
Tommy Searle. “I am very happy with my starts. I didn’t get good starts now for the last two years and now in the last three races I have had all good starts so this is really positive for me to take to the GPs,” he said. “I had a good second race when the track was a proper track, the first was a bit like Enduro so I pushed in a few laps in my second race.” Searle said his good starts were all about his KTM 350 SX-F, the same factory bike that Cairoli also rides. “It’s the bike. Its unbelievable on the start,” he said. “Next week I want to have a nice last race in this championship to give me confidence before we head for the GPs.”
Todd Waters: “We made a lot of progress with both the bike and myself this weekend and I think it showed. On a track that was super difficult to pass on – it became very one lined due to the mud – I managed to fight my way from 13th to ninth in the MX1 race. The Elite race was another step forward and a better start resulted in a sixth place finish.”
Nathan Watson: “I’m pleased with my pace this weekend. I’d never ridden this track before and had to learn fast in such tricky conditions. Seventh in qualification was great and it gave me confidence for the races. Pushing through from a mid pack start I worked my way up to finish 10th in the MX1 race. Fighting for another top ten result in the Elite race I made a slight mistake when trying to pass a rider and paid greatly for it. I got badly stuck in the mud off the racing lines and lost a bunch of places. On the whole I’m happy with my pace and I’m looking forward to the final round of the series next weekend.”
MX1 Results: 1, David Philippaerts, ITA, Yamaha. 2, Max Nagl GER, Husqvarna. 3, Jeremy Van Horebeek BEL, Yamaha. 4, Romain Febvre, FRA, Yamaha. 5, Antonio Cairoli, ITA, KTM. 6, Tommy Searle Tommy GBR, KTM. 7, Davide Guarneri ITA, TM. 8, Kristian Whatley GBR, Honda. 9, Todd Waters, AUS, Husqvarna. 10, Nathan Watson GBR, Husqvarna. 11, Ken De Dycker BEL, KTM.
MX1 Standings after Round Two: 1, Nagl, 165. 2, Cairoli, 160. 3, Van Horebeek, 160. 4, Philippaerts, 154. 5, Febvre, 125. 7, Searle, 105. 8, De Dycker, 89.
MX2 Results: 1. Tim Gajser. 2. Benoit Paturel. 3. Alessandro D’Angelo. 4. Simone Zecchina. 5. Brent Van Boninck. 6. Jens Getteman. 7. Marco Paganini.8. Michale Kratzer. 9. Freek Van Der Vlist. 10. Giuseppe Torpepe.
MX2 Standings after Rd. 2: 1, Gajser 185. 2, Pauls Jonass, LAT, KTM, 120. 3, D’Angelo 116. 4, Paturel, 100. 5, Seewer, 100.
Elite Results (MX1 + MX2): 1, Max Nagl. 2, Tommy Searle, KTM. 3, David Philippaerts. 4, Romain Febvre. 5, Antonio Cairoli, KTM. 6, Todd Waters. 7, Tim Gajser (MX2). 8, Benoit Paturel (MX2). 9, Jose Butron, ESP, KTM. 10, Davide Guarneri. 17, Ken de Dycker, KTM.
Elite Standings after Round Two: 1, Cairoli, KTM 180. 2, Searle, KTM 180. 3, Nagl, 175. 4, Febvre, 125. 5, Butron, 105.
New Zealand Motocross Championships – Round 1 – New Plymouth
Upsets and surprises was the theme of the day’s racing at the first round of four in this season’s New Zealand Motocross Championships in Taranaki on Sunday.
The JT Racing-sponsored series kicked off at the popular Barrett Road Motorcycle Park facility on the outskirts of New Plymouth with a scintillating day of race action where none of the riders who had been widely tipped as title favourites ended up on the top steps of their respective podiums.
Defending MX1 champion Cody Cooper, of Mount Maunganui, had been expected to follow on from his dominant MX1 performance at the New Zealand Motocross Grand Prix at Woodville a fortnight ago, Rotorua’s Michael Phillips (Honda) had perhaps been expected to do likewise in the MX2 (250cc) class and defending national 125cc champion Josiah Natzke (KTM), of Hamilton, had been tipped to again make the 125cc class his own.
However, after three races on Sunday in each of the championship categories, Queenstown’s Scott Columb (Yamaha) ended up on top of the MX1 class, Australian visitor Jay Wilson (Yamaha) topped the MX2 (250cc) class and Taupo’s Cohen Chase (Yamaha) ruled the 125cc division.
There is still a long way to go with three rounds – nine races – in each class still required to settle the issue, but if anything can be said about this championship chase, it’s impossible to predict.
Sadly, it was a disastrous weekend for a couple of title contenders – Rotorua’s MX2 class hopeful Phillips crashed during the practice and qualifying session earlier in the day and he broke his collarbone.
The series now heads to Pleasant Point, near Timaru, for round two in just under two weeks’ time, on February 22 while round three is set for Rotorua on March 8, with the fourth and final round at Pukekohe on March 15.
MX1 – Round 1 Results: 1. Scott Columb – 70. 2. Kirk Gibbs – 62. 3. John Phillips – 55. 4. Cody Cooper – 49. 5. Kade Mosig – 48. 6. Ethan Martens – 48. 7. Brad Groombridge – 46. 8. Makoto Ogata – 32. 9. Rhys Carter – 31. 10. Daryl Hurley – 31. 11. Darryll King – 28. 12. Jesse Donnelly – 25. 13. Shaun Fogarty – 25. 14. Yu Hirata – 24. 15. Campbell Bailey – 24. 16. Luke Styke – 16.
MX2 – Round 1 Results: 1. Jay Wilson – 65. 2. Micah McGoldrick – 61. 3. Hamish Harwood – 58. 4. Hayden Kanters – 48. 5. Campbell King – 45. 6. Scotty Canham – 43. 7. Joel Meikle – 39. 8. Logan Blackburn – 39. 9. Sam Greenslade – 37. 10. Josiah Natzke – 31. 11. Rob Holyoake – 24. 12. Hadleigh Knight – 22. 13. Kieran Scheele – 22. 14. Nick Saunders – 22. 15. Cam Dillon – 20.
125cc – Round 1 Results: 1. Cohen Chase (Taupo, Yamaha) 67; 2. Josiah Natzke (Hamilton, KTM) 63; 3. Ben Broad (Ngatea, KTM) 62; 4. Kurtis Lilly (Karaka, Husqvarna) 52; 5. Reece Walker (Nelson, Yamaha) 52.
Report by www.BikesportNZ.com
Hawkestone Park International Motocross
Rockstar Energy Suzuki’s Kevin Strijbos, Clement Desalle and Glenn Coldenhoff swept the podium in their first International race of the season at the Hawkstone Park International Motocross in the UK on Sunday.
The 2015 Factory RM-Zs dominated practice, qualifying and all three races; World MXGP number three Strijbos winning the two main races, plus the Superfinal as Desalle raced-to runner-up slot in each. MXGP class rookie Coldenhoff also impressed with a 4-3-5 result in his first international debut aboard the Factory RM-Z450 after moving-up from the MX2 class.
The Suzuki International Europe-supported rider was the fastest rider out of the gate in both motos – taking the holeshot – and he continued to lead for several laps until arm-pump forced him to slow, but fourth and third positions rewarded him third overall on the podium in his first-ever international outing on the powerful Suzuki RM-Z450.
Kevin Strijbos: “I went to the race without expecting too much as I had been a bit sick the last week and didn’t ride much in the sand after I got back from training in the US. It was always a bit difficult in the beginning of the races, but I gained momentum as the races went on and this turned out good. I’m stoked for the team to have such a good start to the season and I’m looking forward to the next races!”
Clement Desalle: “It was a good day; a bit cold in the morning but good in the afternoon. I’m not such a big fan of the start on the concrete at Hawkstone, but still did ok in the race with three second-places. Strijbos was pretty-strong in the sand here, but I didn’t lose too-much time there either. The racing was good – and there were no crashes – so it’s been a good training race!”
Glenn Coldenhoff: “I got good starts in the races, but went-in a bit-too aggressive. The consequences were that I almost immediately got arm-pump, that didn’t really go away in any of the heats. I had to slow down, but still had a good finish. In the Superfinal I had a bad start when someone took my line, but like (Shaun) Simpson I rode through the pack and put-in great effort in the last two laps and managed to pass him. So all-in-all, I’m quite happy with the result!”
Opting to contest the prestigious Hawkstone Park International Motocross in Great Britain, Wilvo Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing took a trip to the historic sandy Shropshire circuit.
Favouring the deep rough sandy track, Aleksandr Tonkov enjoyed a competitive outing in the MX2 category. Second in both races, the Husqvarna rider ended his day as a close runner-up to MX2 world champion Jordi Tixier. “I had two good starts today and two holeshots, which is pretty cool, especially for the beginning of the season. But in the first moto I got arm pump and really struggled to ride – I’ve only been riding for a couple of weeks due to my end of season hand injury. It’s my first time here and I really loved the layout and the terrain. But this kind of sandy terrain is really tough and things get worse when you are not fully prepared. My riding improved as the day went on and in the final moto I believe I had the speed to pass Jordi if not for a small problem when I bent the shift lever.”
Mixing things up in the highly stacked MX1 class, Dean Ferris positioned himself towards the sharp end of the field. Sixth in race one, the Australian claimed a top five result with fifth in race two to sign off on his day with a successful fifth overall. “Today was quite OK I’d say. I qualified seventh but during the races I was a bit off the pace and I wasn’t feeling comfortable overall. The season has only just started so there is a long way to go. I still haven’t got that click that I had last year. It’s not that I’m scared but more that I’ve been only riding my new bike for a month now. I am still finding my feet. I believe there is a lot more from me and still I haven’t reached that level I want to be at.”
MX1 Results: 1. Kevin Strijbos (Suzuki) [1-1] 50pts; 2. Clement Desalle (Suzuki) [2-2] 44; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (Suzuki) [4-3] 38; 4. Shaun Simpson (KTM) [3-4] 38; 5. Dean Ferris (Husqvarna) [6-5] 31.
MX2 Results: 1. Jordi Tixier (Kawasaki) [1-1] 50pts; 2. Aleksandr Tonkov (Husqvarna) [2-2] 44; 3. Ben Watson (KTM) [3-3] 40; 4. Steven Lenoir (KTM) [4-5] 34; 5. Petar Petrov (KTM) [10-4] 29.
