Things tight at the top in MX1 after Echo Valley battles

Penrite 2024 Australian ProMX Motocross Championship
Round Six – Toowoomba

Toowoomba’s Echo Valley saw multiple race winners across each of the classes as the 2024 Penrite ProMX Championship, presented by AMX Superstores, arrived in Queensland for round six on Sunday.

And the gears clicked another level, firstly by featuring as retro round and resulting in a number of seriously nostalgic throwback bike liveries, and secondly, with the late addition of MotoGP megastar Jack Miller on track – trying his hand in the dirt during the MotoGP summer break.

CDR Yamaha Monster Energy’s Jed Beaton swapped race wins with Thor MX1 series leader Kyle Webster to emerge victorious on countback, and ensure the slender seven-point gap remains with two rounds remaining.

The factory Honda Racing team took round honours in the remaining categories, with Brodie Connolly again extending his Pirelli MX2 points margin, Jake Cannon narrowing the gap in MAXXIS MX3, and Charli Cannon continuing her perfect season in EZILIFT MX3.

MotoGP star Jack Miller scored 23rd and 24th place finishes in MX1, two-laps behind the winners after the 25-minute plus on-lap race distances. Miller’s fastest lap 2min10.055s, 16-seconds slower than race winners Kyle Webster and Jed Beaton, but importantly with nothing broken and ready to roll when MotoGP reconvenes at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix early next month.

Thor MX1 Race One

After a hard-fought day of Thor MX1, Beaton claimed the round win on countback from Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Webster, while Nathan Crawford (KTM Racing Team) took home another round podium.

Beaton’s continued his domination of the AMX Superstores Top 10 Shootout this year by claiming the top qualifying result at Echo Valley. The Yamaha rider finished 1.108s ahead of Empire Kawasaki’s Luke Clout, who threw down a storming final lap to push Webster to third-quickest.

Webster claimed the opening moto win, but only after a classic race-long battle with Beaton. The Honda Racing rider scored the holeshot, but Beaton put down some aggressive opening laps to charge from fifth and into the lead early.

The pair matched lap-times for most of the race, before Webster ramped up the pressure and soared past Beaton into the lead, then win by 7.5s. Crawford bounced back from a small early crash to finish a distant P3, as seasoned racers Kirk Gibbs (GASGAS Racing Team) and Todd Waters (Raceline Husqvarna Racing Team) filled the top five.

Thor MX1 Race One Results

Thor MX1 Race Two

As the sun sank and the ruts got gnarlier, Beaton bounced back to convincingly win the second MX1 moto, and take the round honours. Crawford took the holeshot, but Beaton made multiple aggressive passes to charge into the lead and put in a statement ride to claim a 21-second win over Webster.

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Red plate-holder Webster also had to work his way from outside the top five early to take runner-up spot in brutal track conditions and to ensure the points margin between the two rivals remains at seven with two rounds to go. Crawford crossed the finish in third, ahead of Husqvarna privateer Caleb Ward and Clout, who had an eventful moto.

In the championship standings, Webster still leads Beaton by seven points, with Crawford 42 points behind in third.

As for Miller, in a one-off showing at Toowoomba with backing from Caterpillar, the North Queenslander was impressive to finish both motos just outside the points this afternoon.

Jed Beaton – P1

“I had to make a stand this round and stay in the fight,” Beaton said after the final race. “If the points got out to thirteen with four races to go, then all Kyle had to do was follow me around at the last two rounds and he would have won. I wasn’t about to let that happen, so the goal today was to either get some points back or at the very least, not let the gap get any bigger. The first race was a little disappointing. My arms tightened up a little and didn’t ride with a lot of flow, but race two was much better and it was good to get the race win and give the team a reward for all the effort they have been putting in. We have a couple of weeks between now and the final two rounds which are both in Queensland. It’s back to work again and try and build on how we left here today as I know this will come down to the final race between myself and Kyle, but I’m loving the challenge.”

Kyle Webster – P2

“Race 1 was one of the best races of my career; the bike, the team, everything was working well, and things just clicked. In Race 2, I got a terrible start and had to come from 6th to 2nd. I couldn’t push too hard as a crash would have resulted in a much worse position, so I just settled. Equal on overall points but 2nd on the day due to countback is fine with me. I knew this weekend was going to be one of the hardest rounds for me; I don’t think I have ever been on the podium in Toowoomba.”

Nathan Crawford – P3

“I’m happy with my riding in practice, but in Superpole I was just rushing it a little bit. I rode really well in moto one and there were times I was consistently the fastest on track and matching those top guys – I’m kicking myself as I had a little crash in that moto and had to fight my way back to third. I wanted a good start to the second moto and I ripped the holeshot. I led a couple of laps, but found myself settling into a pace that was a bit off those guys and ended up third. The track was tricky, because it was one of those days where it felt like there was high risk out there, especially with the sun position in that final race. I’m stoked to be back on the podium and look to finish out the next two rounds on the podium as well. I’d like to tick off an overall, that’s the aim, so we’ll see how we go!”

Todd Waters – P5

“Toowoomba’s always super-challenging for me, as I’m not a hard-pack rider. I’ve been working hard on the bike and feeling more comfortable on it, but I didn’t get the best start to the first moto. I caught up to third and I felt I had speed, but I couldn’t make any passes happen. In the second moto, I got a good start and was in P2, but the track was baked and it was just scary at that point – I didn’t have the extra push the front guys were running. Overall, we’re making progress, and I had some fight this weekend. I’m looking forward to the last two rounds, getting myself further up there and battling with the guys up front.”

Kirk Gibbs – P6

“Overall, I’m happy with how I rode today, but on paper the results don’t show that. My first race was good, but at the start of the second moto there were all these ruts going into the second turn and I got shuffled right back. I managed to get myself back to fifth, but then I pushed into a turn too hard and blew through it. Being in a taller gear in the mud, the bike stalled and it took a while for me to get going again. I fought back to P8, but the track was really difficult today – there were ruts right into the base of the up ramps, then you were landing into more ruts, so you had to basically pick a line in the air and line yourself up. It was pretty gnarly!”

Thor MX1 Race Two Results

Thor MX1 Round Points

Thor MX1 Championship Points

Pirelli MX2 Race One

Polyflor Honda Racing’s series leader Connolly continued to relentlessly build his advantage in the Pirelli MX2 class, with a 2-1 result around the rutted Toowoomba circuit. Joining him on the round podium were Reid Taylor (Empire Kawasaki) and Jayce Cosford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing).

Taylor stormed to pole position in MX2 qualifying, edging out Yamalube Yamaha Racing’s Kaleb Barham for the top spot by a slender 0.026s, as Connolly completed the top three.

The opening moto belonged to local racer Barham, who found a flow around the already-rutted circuit to pass Connolly and take a breakthrough win.

Husqvarna rider Brock Flynn scored the holeshot from Barham and Ryder Kingsford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing), but Connolly surged by Barham to take the early lead. Barham hung tough, then snatched the lead from the red plate-holder and the pair distanced themselves from the rest of the pack as they fought through to the final lap.

Behind Connolly, Jayce Cosford rode a lonely race to third, ahead of Taylor and Cambell Williams (MotoGo Yamaha). A difficult motos for title hopefuls Noah Ferguson (Boost Mobile Honda Racing) and Kingsford saw them finish P8 and 14th, respectively.

Pirelli MX2 Race One Results

Pirelli MX2 Race Two

Connolly bounced back to take an emphatic start-to-finish win in the second moto, claiming the round win and extending his points lead. The Kiwi scored the holeshot and led Taylor for the duration of the race, finishing 10 seconds up the track from the Kawasaki rider.

Queenslander Cosford put in a solid ride to place third and take his first-career round podium, as Alex Larwood (Froth Honda Racing) recovered from a bad start to take P4, ahead of Kingsford. Moto one winner Barham crashed early and recovered to finish P8.

In the MX2 standings, Connolly’s stretched his series lead over Kingsford to 54 points, with Ferguson another two points back.

Brodie Connolly – P1

“I was smart in Race 1 and took 2nd; I didn’t want to push it and make a mistake. I was getting good communication on the pit board. In Race 2, I didn’t let up; I had one goal, to win the race and take the overall. A 54-point advantage is nice, but my goal is to wrap the championship up as quickly as I can, so I will be going all out in Round 7 to wrap this up. But I won’t do anything to jeopardise my chances to represent NZ in the Des Nations, something I hope I am picked to do.”

Jayce Cosford – P3

“A cross between relief and happiness,” Cosford expressed at the podium. “I always put in during the week and I feel like my riding during the week was always pretty good, but I never have been able to turn that into a result, so to finally get on the box was a combination of those two emotions as I knew I could do it, I just found it hard to get it done. But it’s cool because the team kept working and believing in me so having them all at the podium was a nice moment and hope we have a few more of them before the season is out.”

Kaleb Barham – P4

“I saw Brodie got the lead on lap one so I maybe panicked a little and tried to rush a rutty corner entry and just over balanced and went down, which was frustrating, but I’m happy with how I rode all day,” Barham offers. “I gave it everything that I had in both races and can leave here saying I left it all on the table. This is now the benchmark of what I can achieve and the effort I need to give every time I race and with two rounds left to go, hopefully I can get on the podium and finish the championship strongly.”

Kayden Minear – P6

“Today the track was probably the gnarliest I’ve ever ridden at Toowoomba, but the bike felt good all day. I’m not satisfied with my riding, though. I just struggled in the last moto and I didn’t find a flow. It took a while and my fastest laps were at the end, but the track was just really tough and easy to make mistakes on. We’ve got to fix the problems I had today and make sure we’re better at MX Farm.”

Rhys Budd – P8

“Today started decently and I was sixth-fastest in qualifying, but the times were quite close towards the front. I struggled with the starts and wasn’t quite comfortable getting off the mesh today, but somehow I managed to come around the first turn near the top-five in each moto and felt pretty good for the first couple of laps. I just had a couple of tip-overs early in the motos, which made it hard, and I ended up fighting just inside the top 10 in both races. We’ll get back to work and get ready for Gympie.”

Ryder Kingsford – P9

“I just wanted to get through the round and stay in the points hunt,” Kingsford explain, “but I was doing it tough in that first one with a crash at the start, then another fell directly in front of me a lap later costing me plenty of positions, so it didn’t start well. But race two was much better and I rode better so it was nice the finish the day on a good note. I ran third for a lot of that race but just didn’t want to push the injury anymore so I took the common sense approach and got as many points as possible. With a few weeks between now and the final two rounds, hopefully my ankle can keep getting better and I will be back to full strength by round seven at MX Farm.”

Jack Mather – P11

“Today was pretty solid. The starts weren’t great, but I was able to fight through the pack to two top 10s on what ended up being a very technical track. I’m happy with my riding, so I’m looking forward to a track we’re more familiar with at MX Farm.”

Pirelli MX2 Race Two Results

Pirelli MX2 Round Points

Pirelli MX2 Championship Points

Maxxis MX3 Race One

Mongrel Boots Honda Racing rider Jake Cannon took another MAXXIS MX3 round win and continued to close in on the championship. But it didn’t go all his way, with WBR Bulk Nutrients Yamaha’s Kobe Drew also claiming a moto win.

Drew and his WBR team-mate Seth Burchell finished second and third on the round podium.

It was a perfect start to Cannon’s day when he topped the qualifying charts, beating out Murray Bridge round winner Ky Woods (GASGAS) by 1.165s and a trio of WBR Bulk Nutrients Yamaha riders in Burchell, Kayd Kingsford and Drew.

Cannon comfortably won the opening MX3 moto by almost eight seconds. It was Kingsford who scored the holeshot, but he ran off-track in the next corner and allowed Cannon to inherit the lead, drop the hammer and take the victory.

Red plate-holder Koby Hantis (WBR Bulk Nutrients Yamaha) got the better of a lengthy battle with his team-mate Burchell to lead the pair across the finish-line, with a hard-charging Drew finishing P4. Kingsford recovered from his off-track excursion to cross the line in fifth.

Maxxis MX3 Race One Results

Maxxis MX3 Race Two

Drew won a dramatic second MX3 moto, after working his way from outside the top 10. Deegan Rose (Husqvarna) scored the holeshot, but Cannon was quickly by him, and looked like he was heading for a double-moto victory, but crashed twice in consecutive corners late in the race and dropped to third.

Drew and Burchell were the big winners of Cannon’s bad luck, as those three finished 1-2-3 in the race. Hantis maintained his grip on the red plate with a fourth-place result overall, while Deacon Paice (KTM) completed the top five.

In the championship standings, Cannon has shaved Hantis’ lead to seven points (246 to 239), with Drew another four markers behind in third.

Kobe Drew – P2

“That has been a long time coming and I’m pumped to finally able to win one,” Drew said from the podium. “Jake had a bit of a lead on us, and I got past Seth the lap earlier, so when I saw Jake down, I knew I had to ride well for the last half to ensure I got the win and its good to be here on the podium. Thanks to everyone who came out today as I have a lot of friends and family here and also the WBR Yamaha team. We have four riders in the truck and its hectic in there at times, but we all keep at it and getting good results.”

Seth Burchell – P3

“I like racing here even though I haven’t always gone well. It’s a tough track to ride with all the ruts, the hills and different traction so I was happy to be able to put two good races together inside the top three and get back on the podium again.”

Koby Hantis – P4

“I didn’t qualify that well this morning and my starts were a bit off today, so I had to work hard to salvage some reasonable results. Being so rutty, I can be hard to pass here sometimes so track position at the start of the race is supper important. I will try and clean those up for the final two rounds and keep doing what I am doing.”

Maxxis MX3 Race Two Results

Maxxis MX3 Round Points

Maxxis MX3 Championship Points

EziLift MXW Race One

Defending number one Charli Cannon continued to prove she’s in a league of her own with SCT Logistics Honda Racing in the EZILIFT MXW class, dominating Toowoomba with a pair of wire-to-wire wins.

Behind her, the round points were tight, with Taylah McCutcheon (Empire Kawasaki), Madi Simpson (Honda) and Taylor Thompson (Husqvarna) all tying on 40 points. On countback, McCutcheon finished second and Simpson scored her first podium result.

Cannon set the standard early with a qualifying time that was almost 3.5s faster than second-placed Thompson, with McCutcheon a further 0.7s further back.

The opening MXW moto saw a familiar scenario unfold, as Cannon holeshot and led every lap to take a very comfortable 36.5s win. Thompson crossed the line a distant second, followed by Simpson. McCutcheon completed the moto in fourth, followed by Emma Milesevic (Honda), who recovered well from a mid-pack start.

EziLift MXW Race One Results

EziLift MXW Race Two

Cannon continued her dominant form in the second moto, as another wire-to-wire win for the Honda rider saw her extend her perfect race record for the year.

Almost 37 seconds back was McCutcheon, followed by Simpson and Thompson, who battled hard to the chequered flag. Teenager Danielle McDonald (Yamaha) crossed the line in P5 after a pair of late crashes saw her drop from third.

In the points, Cannon now has a perfect 150 points, leading Thompson on 126 and McDonald on 107, with one round remaining at QMP in a month’s time.

EziLift MXW Race Two Results

EziLift MXW Round Points

EziLift MXW Cup Points