Virginia International Raceway has long been a frustrating venue on the MotoAmerica schedule for Cameron Beaubier. In the first eight races at VIR, Beaubier had rather amazingly only won one of them. On Sunday that all changed with win number two, a dominant victory over Toni Elias, his rival who beat him twice here a season ago. This one, however, belonged to Beaubier, the three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion beating Yoshimura Suzuki’s Elias by 3.5 seconds on his Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing YZF-R1.
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
Both Beaubier and Elias had difficult Superpole sessions on the first two-day MotoAmerica event of the season. Beaubier crashed so early in the session that his lap that put him second on the grid actually came on race tyres – not very confidence-inspiring for those going slower than him on qualifying tyres. Elias, meanwhile, had bike troubles and was ultimately stranded on the track for the majority of the time. He started the race from the third row after qualifying eighth. Pole position went to Beaubier’s teammate Garrett Gerloff, the Texan’s second of the season.
Beaubier didn’t start the race in the lead, but he was in second place when race leader Mathew Scholtz crashed out on the second lap. From there it was all Beaubier, the defending champion inching away to ultimately win by 3.5 seconds for this second win of the season.
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
“Just started off today feeling pretty good,” Beaubier said after the 34th Superbike win of his career. “I felt pretty comfortable on the R1 out there. We were able to get up to pace pretty quick. I feel like I’ve kind of struggled getting that pace here in the past. This one just feels really, really good. I know how fast these guys are at this track and this year. It felt really good to be able to win with a little bit of a margin. I’m sure tomorrow is going to be tougher. Both these guys are going to go back and it’s going to be a dog-fight tomorrow. Just in the past we’ve always been fast here. I feel like the R1 works pretty good here. I think I have one win to my name at this track in the past five years or something like that. That’s frustrating for a track that we know that we’re pretty strong at. This one felt really good. Got a couple things I might try in the morning depending on wet or dry. It’s going to be tough but looking forward to racing.”
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
Elias rebounded from his difficult day with second place, despite starting from the third row.
Gerloff was hot on Elias’ heels when he ran off in turn one, losing out on a chance to get second place.
Fourth place went to Attack Performance Estenson Racing Yamaha’s JD Beach, some four seconds behind Gerloff and 13.2 seconds ahead of M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Jake Lewis.
Lewis, in turn, was way ahead of Scheibe Racing BMW’s Jake Gagne, who had his hands full to the finish with FLY Racing/ADR Motorsports’ David Anthony. Omega Moto’s Cameron Petersen battled muscle-cramping to finish eighth with KWR Ducati’s Kyle Wyman and Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders rounding out the top 10.
Superbike Race One Video Highlights
EBC Brakes Superbike Race One
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
Toni Elias (Suzuki)
Garrett Gerloff (Yamaha)
JD Beach (Yamaha)
Jake Lewis (Suzuki)
Jake Gagne (BMW)
David Anthony (Kawasaki)
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
Kyle Wyman (Ducati)
Max Flinders (Yamaha)
Superbike Race Two
Sunday was all about JD Beach at VIRginia International Raceway as the two-time MotoAmerica Supersport Champion put a smile on everybody’s face when he earned his first career AMA Superbike victory with a 3.7-second win in the Championship of Virginia.
A week after winning his first career AMA Grand National Flat Track at the Super TT in Arizona, Beach went out and did it again, winning a race he’d been dreaming about since he was 16 years old.
Beach’s day was made even more emotional for three reasons: Today marked the anniversary of his good friend Ethan Gillim’s passing 12 years ago; Beach became the first rider to win a Superbike National and a Flat Track National in the same season since his good friend and hero Nicky Hayden accomplished the feat in 2002; and his best friend and housemate Hayden Gillim also won the Supersport race earlier in the day.
Beach was impressive in a race that started in iffy conditions but ended in bright sunshine and on a dry racetrack. Once he got past early leader Kyle Wyman, who had fitted rain tires to his KWR Ducati in the hopes that the track wouldn’t dry, and his old Supersport rival Garrett Gerloff, Beach put his head down and opened a four-second gap. He maintained that lead to the finish, besting Gerloff by 3.759 seconds and riding a wave of emotion that will last him until Road America in four weeks.
JD Beach
“It just feels like the stars just aligned this whole week,” Beach said. “For me to get my first win last week, and to get this win today with Hayden (Gillim) winning the 600 class, it’s just amazing. These guys are so fast. I looked up to Toni (Elias). He’s won the Moto2 World Championship, and Garrett (Gerloff) has kicked my ass so many times. Even with how this track was today, I was having flashbacks because he (Gerloff) lapped me when we had rain tires here. So, to beat him here, it’s just amazing. I just got to thank my team, the whole Attack Estenson Racing team. They believed in me. They gave me a shot on this bike when nobody else would. It feels good to get the win, but it feels good to reward them too. We’ve still got a lot of races to go. These guys aren’t going to let up. We’re going to keep fighting. We’ve got two dirt track races and then I’m going to Road America, so it will be fun.”
Beach compared the flat track win last week to the Superbike win this week.
“They’re both amazing,” he said. “The desire to win last weekend was like a childhood goal. It’s kind of like when you’re a kid you’re like, I want to be a firefighter or whatever. For me when I was a kid that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a dirt tracker. I wanted to win races, and I still do. To win this Superbike race is something I’ve looked forward to my whole adult life, since I was 16. So, they both feel amazing, but this has a little bit of a sweeter feel to it. To do it on the day that I did it and for the last person to do it (Nicky Hayden), it’s amazing.”
JD Beach
Gerloff was emotional in defeat and also fought back tears during the victory celebration as he was disappointed in the fact that this was one he thought he could have won.
Third place went to Toni Elias, the Yoshimura Suzuki rider holding back three others to the finish to earn the final podium spot. It was also good for his championship aspirations as his closest rival Cameron Beaubier, who won Saturday’s EBC Brakes Superbike race at VIR, crashed his Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing YZF-R1 and didn’t score any points.
Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz was fourth, the South African nipping at Elias’ heels in the closing laps but coming up just short at the finish. Right behind those two came M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Jake Lewis, the Kentuckian barely holding off Omega Moto’s Cameron Petersen. Petersen ran as high as fourth in what was essentially a four-rider battle for the final podium spot.
Yoshimura Suzuki’s Josh Herrin finished a disappointing weekend with a seventh place to go with his non-finish on Saturday. Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders, FLY Racing’s David Anthony and Wyman rounded out the top 10 with those three gambling on different variations of rain/slick tires.
As mentioned earlier, Beaubier crashed out of the battle for third and he now trails Elias by 24 points, 126-102. Beach is third in the series point standings with 78 points, six points clear of Gerloff. Lewis rounds out the top five with 62 points.
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The LATEST News
Arizona AFT Super TT falls to JD Beach
Webb and Sexton Top the Podium at East Rutherford SX
Upton Wins Gascoyne Dash
Doyle headlines FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2
Murray Bridge Double Header This Weekend
Victoria, ACT and WA Host Championship Rounds
Weekly Up-Date on Our Aussies Abroad
Arizona AFT Super TT falls to JD Beach
Yamaha MT-07 rider JD Beach pulled off an improbable come-from-behind victory to claim his first-career American Flat Track premier class win in last Saturday night’s thrilling Super TT at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Arizona.
AFT Twins head to the Arizona Super TT – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Twins Report
Throughout the day it was the points leader Briar Bauman on his Indian who logged the fastest laps around the twisting and undulating Super TT circuit and he appeared well on his way to a seemingly effortless victory deep into the 25-lap Main Event but the determined Beach slowly reeled his quarry in and finally positioned himself to attack with just two laps remaining.
2019 Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
Beach, a multi-time national road racing champion made his move up the inside entering Turn 2 and pulled clear from there to at last complete the long-awaited breakthrough win ahead of Bauman and the defending champion Jared Mees (Indian) whom in turn got the nod over the Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Indian) and Jake Johnson (MT-07).
2019 Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
JD Beach
“It’s amazing. This is something I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid. We’ve been close before but never quite got it. To ride the race that I did — to be back from Briar like that and catch him and pass him with two to go — was awesome. I’ve just got to thank the whole team. We’ve definitely had our highs and lows this year so far. They’ve worked so hard. It’s a great feeling, but we’ve still got a lot of rounds to go and a lot of work to do. We’ll have some fun tonight and get back to work tomorrow.”
JD Beach – Image by Scott Hunter
Bauman could take solace in the fact that he continued his perfect podium record on the season and extended his title lead to 18 points after four rounds.
Briar Bauman
“I had nothing for him. He came by me like I was tied to a tree… The bike was great all night. I thought I was in a pretty good position. I got the start and did everything right. The only problem is JD Beach came, so here we are in second.”
2019 Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins Main Event
JD Beach Yamaha MT-07
Briar Bauman Indian FTR750 +2.244
Jared Mees Indian FTR750 +19.026
Jeffrey Carver Jr. Indian FTR750 +23.610
Jake Johnson Yamaha MT-07 +23.907
Bronson Bauman Indian FTR750 +35.266
Kayl Kolkman Yamaha MT-07 +35.896
Brandon Robinson Indian FTR750 +36.052
Sammy Halbert Harley-Davidson XG750R +40.515
Larry Pegram Indian FTR750 +1 Lap
2019 Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Twin Standings
Briar Bauman 82
Jared Mees 64
Brandon Robinson 64
Henry Wiles 51
Jarod Vanderkooi 51
Jeffrey Carver Jr. 44
Sammy Halbert 44
Jake Johnson 43
Larry Pegram 42
Bronson Bauman 37
Jared Mees – 2019 Arizona Super TT – AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Singles Report
TT specialist Jesse Janisch and his Yamaha YZ450 upped his AFT Singles win streak to three with a wire-to-wire victory in Saturday night’s undercard Main Event over Dalton Gauthier and Ryan Wells.
Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
Janisch found himself under heavy pressure throughout the Main Event courtesy of points leader Dalton Gauthier who threw everything he had into one final strike at the chequered flag, pulling alongside Janisch as they two exited the race’s last corner and powered up the decisive jump with Janisch holding on by a scant 0.105 seconds at the line.
Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
Jesse Janisch
“This race was so much about the start. These guys were flying all day… I just tried running clean laps. Roof Systems Dallas TX got me off to a great start, and I was trying to watch the monitor and I saw Dalton right on me. But they kept going to a different battle, and I wanted to see where Dalton was at! He was really coming on that last lap.”
Jesse Janisch – Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
2016 AFT Singles champion Ryan Wells came home third ahead of Mikey Rush and Dan Bromley while Aussie Max Whale who was still feeling the effects of last weekend’s crash struggled home to 16th but he maintains a top ten position in the points.
Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles Main Event
Jesse Janisch Yamaha YZ450F
Dalton Gauthier Husqvarna FC450 +0.105
Ryan Wells Yamaha YZ450F +3.324
Mikey Rush Honda CRF450R +5.822
Dan Bromley KTM 450 SX-F +6.227
Chad Cose Honda CRF450R +10.395
Cole Frederickson Honda CRF450R +10.922
Andrew Luker Kawasaki KX450F +11.236
Ben Lowe Honda CRF450R +13.251
Jacob Lehmann Honda CRF450R +13.829
Arizona Super TT – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Singles Standings
Dalton Gauthier 79
Jesse Janisch 72
Mikey Rush 63
Dan Bromley 58
Morgen Mischler 40
Oliver Brindley 38
Shayna Texter 35
Chad Cose 34
Ryan Wells 31
Max Whale 25
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Webb and Sexton Top the Podium at East Rutherford SX
On a jump infested and highly technical layout Cooper Webb has managed to win an action packed 450 main event to extend his championship lead, while Chase Sexton took over as the 250 East Coast class championship leader after winning his first main for the year.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
450SX Report
While his teammate Marvin Musquin was avoiding being run over after crashing in the first corner, Webb grabbed the holeshot from Zach Osborne and Eli Tomac, but before the opening lap was complete Tomac had moved to second and was right on the rear wheel of Webb.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by HoppenworldAMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
After a few attempts Eli was finally able to get to the lead and reminiscent to his Vegas performance in 2017 Tomac was looking to unsettle Webb as he slowed in several sections before cutting down to a tighter line through some of the corners but the Kawasaki rider finally cleared his thoughts to establish a small lead.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
In fact, it looked like Eli would pull away for the win until he got cross rutted and went down in the whoops to drop back to fourth behind Webb, Osborne and Blake Baggett. Osborne caught up to Webb to make the pass for the lead so it this stage Zach led ahead of Webb, Baggett and a fast closing Tomac but then Baggett crashed and Osborne rode straight up a right hand berm which gave the lead back to Webb.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
The atmosphere was electric as Tomac caught all the way up to Webb but an identical crash in the whoops dropped him back to third and that is the way they stayed to the line with Webb winning over Osborne, Tomac and Baggett.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
With one race left, Web has a 23-point lead over Tomac while Musquin, who came into the race as the only other rider besides Tomac within striking distance of his teammate salvaged a fifth after his crash to now trails Webb by 31 points so he is no longer in championship contention.
Cooper Webb
“The win is a great momentum booster for me. Having another win for me and the team that works so hard is awesome, but anything can happen, as we saw tonight, but it is nice to come in with a bigger lead. I felt like crap all day and all week, so to be out here at all was great, the goal was a top five, so to come away with a win was incredible.”
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
Zach Osborne
“It’s been a long gruelling road to get back, I felt great in the off season, had a really good bike and one tiny mistake took me out of the first six rounds but it is finally coming back to me, we completely changed the bike in the off week and I felt a lot more comfortable in the whoops. In the main event I got off to a good start and after getting beaten up in the past I decided to just send it which I did for a couple of laps then made the pass for the lead – it was a really good race for me.”
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
Eli Tomac
“I had to have a chuckle about it, I mean, I did the exact thing twice (crash twice in the same spot), I mean, how do you even do that? We were going triple into the whoops and I was leaning a little too far to the right, got cross rutted and then went into the same tuff block, the same tip over, it’s like a replay. I could have got away with one of those but the second one really did me in.”
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
450SX Main Event Results
Cooper Webb
Zach Osborne
Eli Tomac
Blake Baggett
Marvin Musquin
Ken Roczen
Joey Savatgy
Joshua Grant
Cole Seely
Justin Hill
450SX Main Event Podium – AMA SX Round 16, 2019
450SX Points after 16 of 17 Rounds
Cooper Webb – 358
Eli Tomac – 335
Marvin Musquin – 327
Ken Roczen – 300
Blake Baggett – 274
Dean Wilson – 223
Joey Savatgy – 208
Cole Seely – 194
Justin Bogle – 158
Justin Barcia – 154
Chad Reed – 151
Justin Brayton – 151
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250 East Coast Report
After the injured championship leader Austin Forkner made his way to the main event with a far from convincing fourth place in his heat race it was Alex Martin who grabbed the early lead in the main event ahead of Martin Davalos, Sexton and Forkner.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
Austin slammed by Sexton for third but he was soon in second behind his teammate Davalos after Martin slid out so it looked like things were going the way of Forkner BUT a flat landing before the wall jump caused him to re-aggravate his knee and take him out of the race.
When Austin pulled off, Sexton inherited second place and later he took over the lead from a struggling Davalos who would also surrender second and third to the Yamaha duo of Mitchell Oldenburg and Justin Cooper, so the win went to Sexton over Oldenburg, Cooper and Davalos.
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
With just the final East/West shootout at Las Vegas to go next weekend Sexton has inherited/earned a nine-point lead over Cooper with Forkner a further 13-points back. The 250 West Coast series is similarly placed with Adam Cianciarulo holding an 8-point lead over Dylan Ferrandis heading into Vegas so the combined final is going to be very interesting indeed.
Chase Sexton
“We have made a lot of bike changes from the beginning of the season, it is pretty crazy when you compare what I was riding back then to now, it has made a big difference and I have just been trying to put in my laps but I felt really good out there tonight, it feels awesome to be fastest qualifier, win my heat then the main, it’s been a long time and it feels great.”
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
Mitchell Oldenburg
“It has been a tough physically and mentally but everyone around me has believed in me so this feels great, I felt awesome tonight, comfortable and it’s been a long couple of years but we can now see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Justin Cooper
“We struggled with suspension but we did our best and I felt really good in the heat where I got into second and started putting in my laps before I ended up jumping into the hay bales and it all went downhill from there because I didn’t feel myself in the main event but not taking any credit from these guys, they are riding awesome.”
AMA Supercross Round 16 – East Rutherford – Image by Hoppenworld
250 East Coast Main Event Results
Chase Sexton
Mitchell Oldenburg
Justin Cooper
Martin Davalos
Brandon Hartranft
Kyle Peters
Alex Martin
Jordan Bailey
Lorenzo Locurcio
Anthony Rodriguez …22. Austin Forkner
250SX Main Event Podium – AMA SX Round 16, 2019
250 East Coast Points after 8 of 9 Rounds
Chase Sexton – 174
Justin Cooper – 165
Austin Forkner – 152
Martin Davalos – 134
Mitchell Oldenburg – 128
Alex Martin –121
Brandon Hartranft – 118
Kyle Peters – 115
Kyle Cunningham – 108
Jordon Bailey – 91
250 West Coast Points after 9 of 10 Rounds
Adam Cianciarulo – 208
Dylan Ferrandis – 200
Colt Nichols – 163
RJ Hampshire – 145
James Decotis – 128
Michael Mosiman – 128
Cameron McAdoo – 128
Shane McElrath – 123
Chris Blose – 119
Garrett Marchbanks – 100
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Upton wins Gascoyne Dash
Easter weekend saw defending champion Cody Upton win the Gascoyne Dash which has competitors racing from the WA coastal town of Carnarvon to the outback oasis of Gascoyne Junction and back.
Cody Upton wins the 2019 Gascoyne Dash
Upton lead a field of 32 bikes and 19 quads away for the Prologue but it was KTM rider James McCarthy, stopping the clock some 13 seconds ahead of fellow KTM Rider Thomas O’Connell, with the Yamaha of Alex Moore rounding out the outright podium while the leading quad was ATV MX convert, Luke Gaisford on his Honda.
The first day of the main event saw the field race east approximately 205 kilometres from coastal Carnarvon to the outback oasis of Gascoyne Junction and it was Upton who managed to take the win. The defending champ not only faced stiff opposition from his fellow competitors and the tough terrain on the race home, he would also have to overcome a broken left hand thanks to a rock thrown from a competitor’s bike on the run to Gascoyne Junction.
Luke Gaisford took the Quad win
While not able to match the pace that he set on day one, Upton was able to do just enough to lead the Moto field home ahead of McCarthy, Moore and O’Connell while Jye Schaap, Damon Meyer, Luke Thomson, Cameron Smart, Michael Lough and Andrew Somers rounded out the top ten.
Amongst the hotly contested quad category, ATV MX specialist Luke Gaisford powered home from the Junction to win his first desert enduro. Finishing 15th outright ahead of Blake Croonen and Colin Balshaw.
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Doyle headlines FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2
World champions Tai Woffinden and Jason Doyle lead a stellar field for the FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2 in Manchester on May 11 as the squads and starting line-ups are confirmed.
2019 FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2
Reigning world #1 Woffinden captains the Lions on home shale in his first racing appearance in the UK since becoming the first Brit to win three world titles last October.
Meanwhile, 2017 FIM Speedway Grand Prix winner Doyle leads the Australian challenge. The Brits and Aussies are up against Denmark, USA, Latvia, France and Finland with three places up for grabs in the Monster Energy SON Finals at Russian race track Togliatti on July 20 and 21.
Every nation had the chance to name a squad of up to five riders – three seniors and two under-21s, with two seniors and a junior starting in Manchester. Each under-21 must take at least one ride.
Doyle teams up with Belle Vue skipper Max Fricke, who gets the nod ahead of 2012 world champion Chris Holder to race on his SGB Premiership home track. Aussie Under-21 champion Jaimon Lidsey serves as their junior rider, with Redcar rider Jordan Stewart the reserve under-21.
Jason Doyle at least year’s Melbourne Speedway GP – Image by Colin Rosewarne
The Finals field will also feature three nations who advance from Race Off 1 in Landshut, Germany on May 4, which sees Germany, Poland, Sweden, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Ukraine and Italy compete.
Race Off 2 Squads & Line-Ups (In Draw Order):
AUSTRALIA:
1 Jason Doyle (captain), 2 Max Fricke, U21 Jaimon Lidsey.
Also in squad: Chris Holder, Jordan Stewart (U21).
FINLAND:
1 Timo Lahti (captain), 2 Tero Aarnio, U21 Timi Salonen.
Also in squad: Jesse Mustonen, Niklas Sayrio (U21).
1 Niels-Kristian Iversen (captain), 2 Leon Madsen, U21 Frederik Jakobsen. Also in squad: Michael Jepsen Jensen, Patrick Hansen (U21).
GREAT BRITAIN:
1 Tai Woffinden (captain), 2 Craig Cook, U21 Robert Lambert.
Also in squad: Chris Harris, Daniel Bewley (U21).
FRANCE:
1 David Bellego (captain), 2 Dimitri Berge, U21 Gaetan Stella.
USA:
1 Austin Novratil, 2 Luke Becer (captain), U21 Broc Nicol.
Also in squad: Ricky Wells.
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Murray Bridge double header this weekend
This weekend will see the first of the two ‘double header’ rounds of the 2019 Australian MX Nationals with Murray Bridge putting together two days of racing that could well see major changes in the MX1, MX2 and MXD championship classes.
MX Nationals head to Murray Bridge for Rounds 4 & 5
MX Nationals Series Promoter Kevin Williams today expressed his gratitude for the Rural City of Murray Bridge and explained that the venue is well equipped to have a full two days racing and the club are ready to welcome thousands of motocross fans.
Kevin Williams
“I’m very thankful to the Rural City of Murray Brdge for there commitment and partnership in making this event happen with Murray Bridge hosting the first of this years double header rounds, the South Coast Club have been working around the clock to make sure everything is up to a double standard and the track is well equipped to handle two days of gruelling racing.”
In the MX1 class Hayden Mellross holds on to the championship points lead by a slender 5-points over Luke Clout who in turn has a 2-point gap to Kirk Gibbs who has the exact same gap back to Todd Waters so that is less than 10 points from first to fourth which means this weekend at Murray Bridge could well shake this championship up…..or will it?
The likes of Jay Wilson, Aaron Tanti, Kyle Webster and Nathan Crawford need to pull their fingers out and stop Wilson Todd from running away with this championship – and that is going to be difficult with Wilson looking to be in a class of his own during the last two rounds to now have a 28 point lead over Wilson.
Wilson Todd – MX Nationals Round 3, Broadford, 2019
MX2 – Championship Standings After Round 3
Wilson Todd – 170
Jay Wilson – 142
Aaron Tanti – 133
Kyle Webster – 126
Nathan Crawford – 122
Cooper Pozniak – 115
Dylan Wills – 113
Jye Dickson – 107
Riley Dukes – 103
Issac Ferguson – 93
The MXD class has been it’s usual action packed adventure for the youngsters and so far it has been Regan Duffy who has been the most consistent but Rhys Budd, Max Purvis and Mason Semmens have been on the winners pace while there are three or four other riders who are currently top ten in the points who have the speed to win motos.
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Victoria, ACT and WA Host Championship Rounds
The Yamaha BluCru 2-Stroke Nationals was held at Fairburn Park last weekend as was the VSMX at Swan Hill in Victoria and the WAMX Championships at the Coastal Motocross facility.
Jai Walker won the premier YMI All-Power class at Fairburn Park over Jake Cobbin and Connor Whitney while Blake Fox (Yamaha 125cc Jnr Cup), Ryder Kingsford (Yamaha 85cc Cup), Ky Woods (Raceline 65cc Cup) and Steven Bowen (Hallman Retro Cup) took out the support classes.
Jayden Rykers (Pictured at MXN) – Image by Scottya
On a day that fielded many national riders Jayden Rykers won the premier All Powers class at Swan Hill over Erki Kahro and Ryan Shadbolt while Mason Semmens got the win over Max Purvis is the MX2 class then we saw Lewis Stewart (MX1A), Justin Carafa (Over 30s), Mike Reefman (Over 40s) and James Graham (Over 50s) win the support classes.
Coastal hosted the opening round of the WAMX championship and it was Regan Duffy who took out the MX1 class over Charlie Creech and Josh Adams before Duffy also took out the MX2 class over Corben Weinert and Dylan Hennessey while Chris Bosnakis (Quads), Hannah Bagnall (Womens) and Jacob Whatley (Amateur) won the support classes.
Over in the junior ranks the class winners were Brock Flynn, Kayden Minear, Seth Manuel, Dylan Walsh, Mason Brown, Jaylee Rimbas and Jodh McQuade.
Weekly Up-Date on Our Aussies Abroad
Jed Beaton – Rockstar Husqvarna
Championship: World MX2 Motocross Championship Current Standing: 13th after Round 4 of 17 Notes: Thanks to some niggling injuries Jed sat out the opening round but has scored solid points in the next three rounds while still nursing a few aches and pains – the four week break from rounds 4 to 5 will do him no harm. The next round will be the MXGP of Lombardi in Italy on the 12th of May.
Jed Beaton
Mitch Evans – 114 Honda
Championship: World MX2 Motocross Championship Current Standing: 8th after Round 4 of 17 Notes: Mitch sensationally started the season with a podium finish but since then it has been a bit of a roller coaster with great speed let down by two mechanical DNFs. The next round will be the MXGP of Lombardi in Italy on the 12th of May.
Mitch Evans
Tayla Jones – Rockstar/Husqvarna/Moose Racing/Shaw Wines
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 1st after Round 4 of 13 Notes: Tayla has only lost one round so far this year and is looking as good as ever. Next round will be the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis on May 4 and 5
Tayla Jones competing the 2019 GNCC – Image by Ken Hill
Caleb Grothues – SDM Corse Yamaha
Championship: EMX250 Current Standings: 16th after Round 2 of 8 Notes: The former Australian and World Junior Motocross Champion rode well at the opening round but was forced to sit out the second round due to injury but the West Aussie should be back for the next round in France on the 26th of May.
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Hunter Lawrence – Geico Honda
Championship: AMA Motocross Championship Current Standings: TBA Notes: Hunter was looking sharp heading into the supercross championship before he crashed right before the opening round so he is now healed and by all accounts 100% ready for the outdoors which kicks off at Hangtown on May 18.
Hunter Lawrence – MXoN 2018
Jett Lawrence – Geico Honda
Championship: TBA Current Standings: TBA Notes: Jett joined the Geico Honda amateur program for 2019 and to date he has raced a handful of events like the Mini-Os etc – as soon as he races and there are results it will be right here.
Jett Lawrence
Tahlia ‘TJ’ O’Hare – KTM DIGA Racing Team
Championship: MXW World Motocross Championship Current Standings: 13th after Round 1 of 5 Notes: Tahlia’s initiation into the world motocross scene was at the toughest track on the circuit in Valkenswaard but she managed to get through with a solid 13th but look for TJ to move up the points standings at the second round in Portugal on May 19.
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Chad Reed – JGR Suzuki
Championship: AMA Supercross Current Standing: 11th after Round 16 of 17 Notes: Chad was part of a multi bike crash at Seattle when he was sitting 7th in the championship and if a few things go his way Chad will be on the line at the final round of the championship at Vegas this weekend.
Chad Reed – Image by Hoppenworld
Wil Ruprecht – Johansson MPE Yamaha
Championship: EnduroGP – Junior Class Current Standing: 2nd after Round 1 of 7. Notes: Wil proved his worth at the opening round in Germany with a solid weekend on the only Yamaha in the field. The next round will be at Valpaços in Portugal on the 3rd and 4th of May.
Championship: MXW World Motocross Championship Current Standings: 8th after Round 1 of 5 Notes: Meghan sat out the World Championships for four years and her first round was marred with some minor mistakes but there was no mistaking her speed so look for Meghan to have a much better round in Portugal on the 19th of May.
Championship: GNCC / AMA Enduro Current Standing: 6th after Round 4 of 13 Notes: New team for Josh and he is gaining confidence at every round – Josh sat in second place for the early part of round 4 before dropping to fifth overall. Next round will be the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis on May 4 and 5
Josh Strang – 2019 GNCC – Image by Ken Hill
Mackenzie Tricker – KTM/MEPMX/Fly Racing
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 3rd after Round 4 of 13 Notes: Mackenzie is not far off cracking a win at the GNCC level but the pace is red hot out front between Jones and Becca Sheets. Next round will be the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis on May 4 and 5.
Mackenzie Tricker (2018 ISDE) – Image by Dario Agrati
Max Whale – Weirbach Racing Kawasaki
Championship: AFT Singles Current Standings: 10th after Round 4 of 18 Notes: Max scored a disappointing 16th at the Super TT in Arizona last weekend thanks to still feeling the effects of the previous weekend’s big crash but he still sits 10th in the points with plenty of rounds left to prove his worth.
You couldn’t have written a better script for Suzuki in the combined MotoGP/MotoAmerica weekend at the Circuit of the Americas. At the biggest motorcycle racing event in America, the Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing team came away both MotoAmerica Superbike race wins and Superpole.
Toni Elias and Josh Herrin duke it out at COTA MotoAmerica
Icing on the cake came in the form of Team SUZUKI ECSTAR also winning the MotoGP race, with Alex Rins and his GSX-RR giving Suzuki a clean sweep of all races it participated in this weekend.
Toni Elias got the Texas party started by winning MotoAmerica Superpole aboard his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000. He then followed up with a thrilling victory in Superbike Race One on Saturday, with a last-lap, last-turn pass on rival Cameron Beaubier, bringing the crowd to their feet.
Elias and Herrin shared the COTA wins
Then in Sunday’s Superbike Race Two, it was Yoshimura Suzuki finishing 1-2, with newest team member Josh Herrin breaking through to score his first win of the season. Elias was second.
MotoAmerica COTA Race 1
Elias won a scintillating battle with Cameron Beaubier to win his sixth out of seven starts in Texas. After 15 laps of the 3.426-mile Circuit of The Americas, Elias beat Beaubier by just .089 of a second after a battle that went to the final two corners. And Beaubier’s teammate, Garrett Gerloff, was just .248 of a second behind in third place – despite starting the race from the back of the grid.
Toni Elias – Image by Brian J. Nelson
Josh Herrin, who led at times early in the race, ended up fourth, 1.9 seconds behind his teammate Elias. JD Beach rode to fifth, some four seconds clear of fellow Kentuckian Jake Lewis.
Mathew Scholtz ran off the track once, crashed and remounted to finish seventh, barely besting David Anthony and Cameron Petersen with the trio separated by just .454 of a second. Kyle Wyman rounded out the top 10 finishers.
Toni Elias claims the win from Beaubier & Gerloff
EBC Brakes Superbike Race 1
Toni Elias (Suzuki)
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha) +0.089
Garrett Gerloff (Yamaha) +0.248
Josh Herrin (Suzuki) +1.913
JD Beach (Yamaha) +15.560
Jake Lewis (Suzuki) +19.165
Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha) +35.247
David Anthony (Kawasaki) +35.344
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha) +35.798
Kyle Wyman (Ducati) +48.056
MotoAmerica COTA Race 2
Yoshimura Suzuki won its second straight race at Circuit of The Americas on Sunday, but it wasn’t the one ridden by yesterday’s winner Toni Elias. This time it was Josh Herrin on the top step of the podium after winning the seventh AMA Superbike race of his career in the MotoAmerica Championship of Texas.
Josh Herrin – Image by Brian J. Nelson
Herrin battled for 13 of the 15 laps with his teammate Elias, with Cameron Beaubier always within striking distance. In the final two laps, Herrin was able to put his head down and he crossed the line .958 of a second ahead of Elias with Beaubier 1.6 seconds behind in third.
Fourth place went to Beaubier’s teammate Garrett Gerloff, the Texan coming on strong at the end of the race to finish 3.2 seconds behind Herrin. Gerloff, in turn, was well clear of fifth-placed Jake Lewis.
Cameron Petersen finished sixth, some three seconds ahead of Kyle Wyman. David Anthony, Travis Wyman and Max Flinders rounded out the top 10 finishers.
Toni Elias now leads the standings
Elias now has a 13-point lead over Beaubier, 90-77, with Herrin moving past Scholtz and into third with 49 points to Scholtz’s 45. Beach and Lewis are tied for fifth with 40 points each.
Josh Herrin
“Just mentally, I feel like I was a lot more prepared today. We spent a lot of time at the track last night. We ran a different tire today, but it’s two totally different weather conditions today, so I don’t think that really had much to do with it for us. Just made the right choice, I guess. It’s just been, like Toni said, every day I think I get more comfortable on the bike. Each time I can race it and actually put in those hard laps I learn a lot. We have a lot of data to look at and I can learn what I’m doing wrong, what I’m improving on. Like I said on the podium, it’s been such a crazy off-season. I had super highs coming into it and then, once the season started, I was bumming pretty hard because I just wasn’t riding like myself. I think I was just getting so excited at the beginning of the races that I was kind of blowing it for myself, riding like a rookie a little bit. I just had to kind of reset my brain and just relax a little bit. It feels so good to be able to get a win for Suzuki. Two wins this weekend. They won a MotoGP race, so it’s a big day for them. Thank you to everybody at Suzuki and Yoshimura for believing in me.”
Herrin, Rins and Elias celebrate
Toni Elias
“I just was trying to do my race, my pace. There is still something I am missing, because it’s me. Riders we have to choose the tires, the things. Mistake a little bit before the race. I choose the same tire as yesterday, when yesterday I wasn’t happy. I choose it again because I was thinking today with more temperature was better but is the same tire. Last year in Barber I had some bad feeling, too. So, I think today it’s been a good advice to cancel the tire for the future. I’m not going to use it anymore, for sure. But anyway, I was there. I was doing my pace. The team is working so good. We don’t change anything on the bike, just the track condition was much better than yesterday. But I didn’t expect at the end to have this little issue with the shifter. After that, I lost everything, and I couldn’t fight. It’s okay. These things happen in race. A little bit pissed off because I could fight a little bit more. Maybe we could have a big battle with Josh. But anyway, I’m happy for him. 1-2 for Suzuki is so, so good. He deserves this more than anyone. So, very happy for him, for the team, too. After all, I’m happy to take this second place. Let’s continue like this. This is going to be long. Let’s see.”
Toni Elias
Cameron Beaubier
“I gave 110 percent that race just to hang onto those guys. They were riding so good. The pace was a second and a half faster than it was yesterday. I don’t know where the hell they found that. I was just hanging on for dear life. All in all, I’m really happy that I was even able to keep pace with the Yosh boys this weekend. This is always a pretty tough track for us. It just gives me confidence going into the rest of the year. Hats off to both these guys. I’m excited for a really tough year and battling it up with these guys.”
Josh Herrin takes a well earnt win in Race 2
EBC Brakes Superbike Race 2
Josh Herrin (Suzuki)
Toni Elias (Suzuki)
Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
Garrett Gerloff (Yamaha)
Jake Lewis (Suzuki)
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
Kyle Wyman (Ducati)
David Anthony (Kawasaki)
Travis Wyman (BMW)
Max Flinders (Yamaha)
EBC Superbike Championship Standings
Toni Elias 90
Cameron Beaubier 77
Josh Herrin 49
Mathew Scholtz 45
JD Beach 40
Jake Lewis 40
Garrett Gerloff 36
David Anthony 36
Cameron Petersen 30
Kyle Wyman 25
Riders head back east to Virginia International Raceway for round three of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship in Alton, Virginia, on May 4-5th.
