2021 FIM EnduroGP World Championship Round 3 – GP of Estonia
The weekend saw the 2021 BORILLI FIM EnduroGP World Championship continue at Round 3, the GP of Estonia, in Saaremaa, with KTM’s Josep Garcia taking his first overall win of the season on Day 1, only to follow up with another win on Day 2. Australia’s Wil Ruprecht settled for second behind Garcia in the E2 class, and ran 5-5 overall.
Josep Garcia
Conditions at Saaremaa were hot, dry and very physically demanding. A mixture of soft sandy terrain and hard pack trails ensured a thorough test for both riders and their machines.
Day 1
Confident that the hot and dry conditions would favour him Garcia finally recorded his first win of the season on day one, hitting the ground running with the fastest time in Friday’s Akrapovic Super Test.
Josep Garcia
Australia’s Wil Ruprecht was quick to fight back. Topping the Nerve by Just1 Extreme Test, he put his TM out front and the battle was on as Freeman also joined in on the action. The trio were pushing hard, with no-one able to make a clean break.
Mistakes by Ruprecht on the Champion Enduro Test saw him lose touch as Garcia found another gear on the final lap to claim an eight-second margin of victory over Freeman. With a flyer of a final lap, Verona raced his way into contention. Fastest on the final Extreme Test he secured third by less than two seconds over Italy’s Davide Guarneri.
Davide Guarneri – Image by Dario Agrati
The Enduro1 category was once again a battle for victory between the Italian pairing of Verona and Guarneri. With little to separate the duo throughout the day, it all came down to the final test. With the clock stopping in Verona’s favour, he picked up his fourth win of 2021.
France’s Antoine Magain edged out Samuele Bernardini by four seconds for third, with Davide Soreca completing the top five.
Andrea Verona
The Enduro2 class began as a two-horse race between Garcia and Ruprecht with the duo immediately establishing themselves at the head of the field. However, with mistakes for Ruprecht coming in the second half of the day, it gave Garcia the breathing room he needed. Pulling clear to claim a 79-second winning margin, he ended his day a happy man.
With Ruprecht ending his day in second, the fight for the final step of the podium was played out between Hamish MacDonald and Steve Holcombe, with MacDonald eventually taking it by 10 seconds.
The Enduro3 category was yet again the Brad Freeman show as the Beta rider stamped his authority on the proceedings. With a more-than comfortable one-minute and forty-five second margin of victory, Freeman claimed his fifth win of the year.
It wasn’t all plain sailing however, with Freeman finally losing two special tests. Spain’s Jaume Betriu claimed one to end his day as runner-up, while Sherco’s Danny McCanney took the other to finish third. Husqvarna duo Jamie McCanney and Andrew Wilksch rounded out the top five.
Matteo Pavoni topped the podium in Enduro Youth
The TM duo of Pavoni and Macoritto ruled the roost in Enduro Junior, with Pavoni holding command over his teammate. Despite some impressively fast times set by Macoritto, Pavoni matched that speed with consistency to claim the top stop for the fourth time.
Macoritto enjoyed the lion’s share of test wins with eight, but will need to eliminate those mistakes to put his TM on top. Sherco’s Leo Le Quere ended his day in third, while Sergio Navarro and Max Ahlin were fourth and fifth respectively.
After ending the opening days in Portugal and Italy as runner-up, Norrbin finally reversed that trend to take victory in Enduro Youth. The young Swede was on fire on familiar terrain, powering clear to a convincing 52-second margin of victory. Finland’s Pyry Juupaluoma made his first appearance of 2021 for second, with Kevin Cristino third.
Day 2
Day two in Estonia was all about two riders – Freeman and Garcia. From the off the duo positioned themselves at the head of the EnduroGP field, setting a pace out front no other rider could match. Freeman remained in control for the majority of the day and looked to have the Spaniard beaten in the ever-deteriorating conditions.
Freeman was strongest in the Champion Enduro Test, while Garcia proved faster in the Acerbis Cross Test. Entering the final test of the day, the short Akropovic Super Test, Garcia knew he needed to give it everything to overcome his two second deficit to Freeman. Doing exactly that, he emerged victorious and showed himself as a new title threat to point’s leader Freeman ahead of next weekend’s GP of Sweden.
Josep Garcia – EnduroGP Winner
“Finally everything came good for me here in Estonia and I was able to claim the victory in both Enduro2 and EnduroGP. It was hard work, but after winning day one, I knew if I stayed focused, I should be in the fight for day two as well. I made a few mistakes on Saturday and had a couple of crashes, thankfully nothing too serious and it didn’t lose me too much time. On Sunday, I had one crash, but I think Brad did too, and the battle with him stayed really close. We were pushing the limits all day, in every test. Arriving at the last test less than two seconds behind, I knew I had to give it my all – if I crashed, I crashed, but I had to make up those seconds to take the win. Thankfully, the test was perfect, and I was able to claim another victory in EnduroGP. It’s an amazing feeling and I’m really looking forward to going to Sweden now, hopefully for more of the same.”
Josep Garcia celebrates his first victories of the 2021 EnduroGP season in Estonia
Finding his way onto the podium for the second day in a row, it was another strong performance from Verona. Clearly enjoying the deep sandy terrain, the GASGAS rider held off his Enduro2 classmate Davide Guarneri for third overall. Still feeling the effects from his crashes on day one, Will Ruprecht had to be content with fifth.
Beginning to show itself as a two-horse race, the Enduro1 honours were again fought out between Verona and Guarneri. With both riders pushing each other in the overall standings, they ended their day over 90 seconds clear of the field.
Andrea Verona
Verona however got the better of Guarneri again to take the win. In a change of positions, Samuele Bernardini recorded his second podium result of the year with third, while Davide Soreca ensured Italy swept the first four positions in Enduro1. Sweden’s Kilip Bengtsson was fifth and will look to improve on that on home soil next weekend.
Andrea Verona – E1 Winner
“It’s been a very positive weekend for me here in Estonia. After my home GP I really wanted to continue in a positive way, despite the change of terrain, and that has worked out just like I hoped. Everyone knew that with the soft, sandy ground here in Estonia the special tests would change a lot during the GP and they did. Day one was really good. It was another big battle with Davide Guarneri, but that helped me. We were pushing each other so much, it helped me get onto the overall EnduroGP podium as well, which was great. Day two was really tough – the special tests were so, so rough. I had two crashes where I lost some very important seconds, but in the end things were very good for me with another win. I had to work really hard, but to be heading to Sweden after these two Enduro1 class wins is very, very good.”
Andrea Verona topped the E1 class
With the EnduroGP win in one hand, Garcia took home the Enduro2 victory with the other. The Spaniard was nearly all but untouchable in the sandy terrain, claiming 11 of the day’s 12 Enduro2 special test wins.
Admittedly not at his best following his crashes on day one, Ruprecht had to settle for the runner-up result. Gaining momentum in this year’s championship, New Zealand’s Hamish MacDonald carded another third place finish in Enduro2. A tough weekend for Steve Holcombe (Beta) saw the Brit place fourth, while Eero Remes (TM) finished fifth.
Making no mistakes today, Freeman dominated Enduro3 as his battle with Garcia for the overall saw him win in E3 by a massive two minutes and eight seconds. Behind him, Sherco’s Daniel McCanney found an extra turn of speed to leap past Spain’s Jaume Betriu (KTM) and into second place.
Brad Freeman – Image by Dario Agrati
Slipping down to third for the first time in 2021, Betriu completed the podium. Again, the Husqvarna duo of Jamie McCanney and Andrew Wilksch rounded out the top five.
Turning the tables on his teammate, Macoritto raced his way onto the top step of the podium in Enduro Junior. Having showed he had the pace on day one to win, he matched it with consistency on day two to get the job done. Despite his best efforts of securing a double victory by winning the final two tests, Pavoni couldn’t bridge the gap to Macoritto and finished second.
Moving up the leaderboard, Sergio Navarro secured his first podium result of the year with third following a close battle with Sherco’s Leo Le Quere. Sweden’s Max Ahlin took fifth.
Albin Norrbin
Another dominant win by Albin Norrbin puts him in the driving seat in Enduro Youth. The Swede was on flying form and will start as the rider to beat in his home race next weekend.
Ensuring an all-Scandinavian affair on the podium, Finland’s Pyry Juupaluoma and Samuli Puhakainen were second and third respectively. Kevin Cristino and Albert Fontova completed the top five.
In 2021 Montova, Italy will play host to the year’s edition of the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations (MXoN). Commencing on 26th September, Motorcycling Australia (MA) has called for all interested competitors to submit their applications to join Team Australia.
Kyle Webster – Team Australia – 2019 MXoN
There are three classes available for riders to nominate for: MX1, MX2 and Open. Riders are advised that they can nominate for more than one class. Applications must be submitted by no later than COB Friday 16th July.
The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing Team have confirmed that reigning 450MX Champion Zach Osborne will miss the remainder of the 2021 AMA Pro Motocross Championship in order to fully recover from an ongoing back injury.
Zach Osborne will now be out of action until 2022
Osborne, who sustained the back injury mid-way through the 2021 AMA Supercross Championship, worked hard to get himself ready for the opening round of the outdoor season but he unfortunately re-injured himself at the second round in Colorado. Upon further review with the team, Osborne made the tough decision to sit out the rest of the season to fully recover for 2022.
Zach Osborne
“I’m bummed to say the least. This injury has been a big setback with no clear path to 100% but I feel I’m on a good path now and I just need to give my body the time to heal itself. Myself, along with the team, made the decision to pull the plug and be ready for 2022. It was a tough decision in an already-trying year but I believe I can be back to 2020 form with this time away to heal up. Thanks to my team and fans for the support through this!”
The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing Team will return to racing this Saturday, June 19 in Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania.
Sherco hotshot Jonte Reynders has completed an ideal build-up for the 2021 Hattah Desert Race by dominating the latest round of the Tasmanian enduro series at Bakers Beach, north-east of Launceston, on July 19.
The 24-year-old was a class above on his Pirelli Motul Sherco Racing Team 300 SE Factory two-stroke, easily winning the three-hour event ahead of great rivals Kyron Bacon and Seton Broomhall – even after an extra fuel stop!
Jonte Reynders
“I’m rapt with the result on a circuit that was quite difficult, but I made it a little hard for myself – just when I had a decent lead I made a silly mistake of refuelling when I didn’t need to. So I topped up the 300 Factory three times instead of two, which obviously cost me a fair bit of time. But I was able to regroup and take a strong win to extend my lead in the series.”
Jonte Reynders
Five rounds remain in the state title, but Reynders’ focus will now switch to the mainland for the Hattah Desert from July 2-4 where he will be one of the favourites in the open two-stroke class.
He’ll have some exalted guest company in the Pirelli Motul Sherco Racing Team: Ben Grabham – fresh from his two-stroke-winning heroics at the 2021 Finke Desert Race – on a 450 SEF Factory and Justin Carafa on a 500 SEF Factory.
Nathan Trigg, who lives just up the road from the Hattah epicentre at Ouyen, will also be looking to bounce back from his knee-twisting prologue crash at Finke, which put him out of the main game. Trigg rides a Mallee Motorcycles-backed 450 SEF Factory.
The circuit is 37km long, with the senior riders to complete eight laps.
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Daniel Sanders and GasGas ready for Silk Way Rally 2021
The 11th edition of the Silk Way Rally will get underway in less than one month. Setting off from Omsk (Russia), the second town of the Urals, on 1 July, the race will feature 10 varied and technical stages. Crossing Siberia before traversing Mongolia from West to East, the event passes through the famous Gobi Desert before reaching Ulaanbaatar on 11 July.
Silk Way Rally 2019
A total of 5250 km, of which more than 2850 are against the clock, offering the perfect mix of technical difficulty, variety and scenic beauty. From the Altai Mountains to the capital of Mongolia via the Gobi Desert and the endless Mongolian steppes, the 2021 edition of the Silk Way Rally will be quite simply exceptional.
Two years after Sam Sunderland (KTM) in the bikes, who will be the new white tigers to go down in the Silk Way Rally history books at the end of this incredible journey in the land of Genghis Khan?
For its second edition with a bike category, the Silk Way Rally 2021 has once again attracted the major factory teams on what is one of the highlights of the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship. This second round will benefit from a 1.5 coefficient thanks to its status as a marathon event with over six days of racing.
Sam Sunderland – Silk Way Rally 2019
The titleholder, the British rider Sam Sunderland, Dakar winner in 2017, will defend the colours of Red Bull Ktm Factory Racing alongside his Austrian teammate Matthias Walkner.
Their sister team Rockstar Husqvarna Factory Racing will enter the Argentinian Luciano Benavides and their latest recruit, the American Skyler Howes, one of the revelations of the last Dakar.
Another rider to make a splash in Saudi Arabia with his fourth place, the Australian Daniel Sanders will have the honour of flying the flag for GasGas Factory Racing.
Daniel Sanders
Over at the Monster Yamaha Rallye Team, the Frenchman Adrien Van Beveren will be accompanied by another recent revelation, the Botswanan Ross Branch and ex-Supercross Champion, the American Andrew Short.
The Hero Motorsports team will be pinning their hopes on an eclectic trio of Portuguese rider Joaquim Rodriguez, the Argentinian Franco Caimi and the young German Sebastian Bühler.
The quad category is also back on this 11th Silk Way Rally and promises us a splendid duel between the ever young, five times world champion and ex-Dakar winner, the Pole Rafal Sonic and the Russian Alexander Maksimov, both riding Yamaha Raptor 700s.
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Herlings on form at Arnhem International
Jeffrey Herlings took the two moto wins over the weekend at the Arnhem International in Holland to claim the overall from Brian Bogers and Max Nagle, with Cyril Genot finishing fourth overall, just over the podium.
The event served as training for Herlings, between GP events, who admits he’s still working on his starts, with an aim to do better than in Russia.
Jeffrey Herlings
“I really enjoyed myself and it was a good training for the GP. Starts have to be better, but I can get a podium, and I will try and do better than I did in Russia.”
Herlings brought home 40-championship points in the MXGP opener last weekend, after finishing 4-2, and sits second overall in the standings, behind Tim Gajser, who won both races.
Dylan Ferrandis tops High Point ProMX
Images by Jeff Kardas
Following its first break of the 2021 season the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship returned to action with its East Coast debut from legendary High Point Raceway. The third round of the summer campaign marked the sport’s return to the famed Pennsylvania venue for the first time since 2019 with the GEICO Motorcycle High Point National, where the threat of rain loomed over the afternoon but never really materialised.
High Point 2021
In the 450 Class a hard-fought, consistent afternoon was enough to put Dylan Ferrandis atop the podium for the second time this season. In the 250 Class, Jalek Swoll extended the parity in the division and broke through with his first professional victory as Jett Lawrence increased his lead in the 250 Championship.
450 Moto1
Light precipitation was present when the gate dropped on the opening 450 Class moto, where Adam Cianciarulo prevailed with the MotoSport.com Holeshot ahead of Chase Sexton and Christian Craig, who soon gave up the position to Ken Roczen, the championship leader. As Cianciarulo sprinted out to an early lead the Honda teammates engaged in a battle for second place.
450 Start
As the moto surpassed the 10-minute mark, the lead trio solidified their hold on those positions as Ferrandis gave chase from fourth. As the minutes continued to tick away the distance between the top three continued to shrink. Sexton soon closed in to within a couple bike lengths of Cianciarulo, but a mistake by Sexton not only caused the Honda rider to lose some ground, it forced Roczen into a mistake when he briefly went down and gave up third to Ferrandis.
Ferrandis and Roczen
With the threat defended, Cianciarulo gradually built a multi-second advantage over Sexton, who in turn built a comfortable margin over Ferrandis. As time ran out on the moto clock with just over three laps to go, Sexton tucked the front of his Honda and went down. As he looked to remount, both Ferrandis and Roczen were able to get by, which placed Sexton in fourth when he resumed.
Out front, Cianciarulo looked to close out his first moto win of the season with ease but was dealt with one last obstacle as a slower rider went down exiting the final corner. With nowhere to go, Cianciarulo ran over the downed motorcycle and fell over.
Adam Cianciarulo
He kept his Kawasaki running, got up, and pushed his bike across the finish line to win in unconventional fashion. Ferrandis followed five seconds behind in second as Roczen rounded out the podium in third. Sexton recovered to finish fourth as Aaron Plessinger completed the top five.
450 Moto 2
The deciding 450 Class moto kicked off as Justin Barcia emerged with the MotoSport.com Holeshot out of a gaggle of bikes. He was quickly passed by Plessinger for the early lead, while Eli Tomac and Cianciarulo followed through.
450 Start
Cianciarulo put the hammer down and made an aggressive push that carried him all the way around Plessinger and into the lead. He continued to ramp up the pace and established a multi-second advantage after just two laps. Behind him, Tomac’s first opportunity to run at the front of the field in 2021 saw him surge around Plessinger into second to put the Kawasaki riders at the top of the running order.
As the battle up front took shape the class’ title contenders made moves as well, as Ferrandis worked his way from fourth and Roczen from sixth. Both riders were urgent in their push and successfully moved into third and fourth, respectively. By the time they finished their early charge, the Kawasaki teammates were more than five seconds ahead. From there, Ferrandis and Roczen went head-to-head for third and traded the position before Ferrandis got the upper hand and asserted control of the spot.
Ken Roczen
Up front, Tomac closed onto Cianciarulo’s rear fender and a battle for the lead ensued. Tomac was able to get by, but Cianciarulo fought back and reclaimed the position. However, Tomac didn’t give up and kept the pressure on. The two came together, which pushed Cianciarulo out of a rut and allowed Tomac to move into the lead for the first time this season.
Once out front Tomac started to build an advantage over his teammate and was soon in control of the moto. As the moto surpassed the 20-minute mark Cianciarulo found himself under pressure from Ferrandis and Roczen in third and fourth. All three riders then duked it out for second and used every inch of the track in search of an advantage.
Dylan Ferrandis
As the crowd cheered them on, both Ferrandis and Roczen bullied their way around Cianciarulo, who dropped from second to fourth. That thrilling sequence also changed the battle in the overall classification, as Ferrandis moved into control of the afternoon.
For Tomac it was a dominant ride indicative of his three-year championship run. He stormed to his first moto win of the season by 3.2 seconds over Ferrandis, who was able to fend off Roczen for the entirety of the moto.
Although he missed out on a moto win, Ferrandis’ consistency was enough to vault him to the second overall victory of the season and his career via 2-2 moto finishes. Cianciarulo’s drop off the podium in the final moto relegated him to the runner-up spot by a single point (1-4), while Tomac made his first appearance on the podium this summer in third (6-1), which bumped Roczen (3-3) off the podium via tie-breaker.
Dylan Ferrandis – P1
“What a race. I don’t know (what to say), I got a good start and was able to get by Ken (Roczen), which was good because he was so fast today. It was a war (after that). Ken kept pushing me and we were able to come to Adam (Cianciarulo). It was crazy how competitive it was with them. We were going so fast and the track was so difficult. It’s just amazing to get a win here today and get a hold of the red plate again.”
Dylan Ferrandis
Adam Cianciarulo – P2
“It sure feels good to get that first moto win under my belt. I thought I had a decent sized gap in the second moto, but Eli was flying and caught me a bit off-guard. Fair play to him and the others, they rode amazing. I’m stoked with how awesome my bike has been feeling lately. I honestly believe with a little more endurance, I can be a regular winner this season. Thanks to everyone at Monster Energy Kawasaki for giving me a great bike to ride and always supporting me. We have another break coming up, but I’m ready to build off of this and get back to racing.”
Adam Cianciarulo
Eli Tomac – P3
“This was a big one for us. I’ve been in a bit of slump these last two races, so to get a win and feel like myself on the bike again is huge. After I got off the gate in Moto 2 and saw I had a good jump, I knew it was going to be a good moto. I was able to catch Adam rather quickly and once I was in the clean air, I rode my own race and started pulling away. This was an exciting race, and I can’t wait to keep this momentum rolling into RedBud. Thanks again to the entire Monster Energy Kawasaki squad for all the hard work this weekend.”
Eli Tomac
Ken Roczen – P4
“Today started off really good. I felt comfortable on the track, but we had a slightly different bike setup so in the first moto it really beat me up. I wasn’t that comfortable out there so I really couldn’t do that much. I still rode okay, but it wasn’t the best and I ended up third. In the second moto I was pinched off and had a really bad start. We did some adjustments to the bike that helped me out and I charged forward hard in the first half of the race and ended up having a good battle with Dylan [Ferrandis]. I ended up with another third place for fourth overall, which is kind of weird, but in the end, I’m okay with it because we rode really well and charged hard. That’s all we can do.”
Aaron Plessinger – P6
“This weekend had some ups and downs. I was really happy with my riding in the first moto. I got a really bad start but had a really good flow going and came back to fifth place. I went into the second moto really confident and got an awesome start, but I couldn’t really find that flow that I had in the first moto, and I dropped back to eighth. The track was really tough. There were some spots that were dry and some spots that were soft. So it was definitely weird, but we have a weekend off and will get back to work and get ready for RedBud!”
Justin Barcia – P7
“It was a little bit of a tough day. I just didn’t jive with the track that much and I never felt super comfortable. I think we’ll go back to California and work on a few things and try to be a lot better for RedBud in two weeks. All we can do is keep level-headed and be better for the next race.”
Justin Barcia
Marvin Musquin – P8
“In the first moto, the start was decent but the riding was not good enough and the feeling was not good enough so we decided to go back to some old settings on the shock and it shows, it was definitely better in the second moto. I didn’t get a good start but I was able to fight back, attack and race hard to come back to seventh place, so that was a lot better. Overall, I’m obviously not happy because we’ve been working hard and it didn’t pay off for this weekend, so we need to keep going.”
Cooper Webb – P10
“It was a bit of a struggle today. I felt like I put up a good fight in the first moto and ended up seventh. In the second moto, I got tangled on the start and I ended up crashing three times coming through the pack, so that was pretty unfortunate. Now we’ve got a weekend off and all we can do is try to improve.”
Cooper Webb
Christian Craig – P11
“I didn’t have the best day at High Point. I seemed to struggle to find good lines and had a couple of crashes, but I was able to get through with some points. We’re going to go back to work and look forward to a better RedBud.”
With the win Ferrandis also reclaimed control of the red plate as 450 Class point leader for the second time this season. He currently has a slim three-point advantage over Roczen, while Plessinger, who finished sixth on the afternoon (5-8) maintained his hold on third, 30 points out of the lead.
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Cairoli & Prado dominate MXGP of Lombardia
Mantova in Italy hosted the 5th round of the 2019 FIM Motocross World Championship last weekend with the MXGP of Lombardia being completely dominated by Antonio Cairoli and Jorge Prado in the MXGP and MX2 categories respectively.
MXGP took to Lombardia for Round 5
MXGP Report
On a track that was full of sloppy mud it was smooth sailing for Cairoli who recorded the perfect weekend leading 42 laps over the weekend to take wins in the qualifying race on Saturday and both points scoring motos on Sunday for his fourth Matova GP win this time ahead if Pauls Jonass, Gautier Paulin, Clement Desalle, and Glen Coldenhoff.
Antonio Cairoli
“It is very nice to be again in Italy, despite the weather there were a lot of people today, so I am very thankful they keep coming and keep cheering. I am really happy of course, thanks to all the team for their hard work again and I am looking forward to next week in Portugal which is another track that I really like.”
Antonio Cairoli – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
Pauls Jonass
“It feels really good to be back here and especially with the MXGP guys. It has been a tough winter and a tough few months but it feels really great to be up here. We still need to keep working hard because I’m far off from my best shape but we will keep working and hopefully I can be back on the podium again soon.”
Pauls Jonass – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
Gautier Paulin
“When the track is really rough like this you can gain a lot of points but you can also lose them. I am pretty happy, after the break we made a big step with the bike, I really feel good. Today wasn’t the result I expected but I am on the box so it is always a pleasure for my team and myself. There will be good GP’s coming and I can’t wait to get behind the gate again.”
Gautier Paulin – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
MXGP of Mantova 2019 Results
MXGP Race 1
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 36:48.024
Pauls Jonass (LAT, Husqvarna), +0:10.064
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, Husqvarna), +0:21.379
Max Anstie (GBR, KTM), +0:27.299
Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:39.542
Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:49.512
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +0:52.425
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:57.535
Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +1:03.646
Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +1:10.362
MXGP Race 2
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 35:37.572
Brian Bogers (NED, Honda), +0:07.068
Pauls Jonass (LAT, Husqvarna), +0:11.327
Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:15.790
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +0:15.887
Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:17.780
Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:47.849
Benoit Paturel (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:51.229
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +0:54.290
Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), +1:11.509
MXGP Round Overall
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 50 points
Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 42
Gautier Paulin (FRA, YAM), 33
Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 30
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 29
Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 26
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 26
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, HUS), 26
Brian Bogers (NED, HON), 23
Benoit Paturel (FRA, KAW), 19
MXGP Standings
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 241 points
Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 201
Gautier Paulin (FRA, YAM), 175
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, HUS), 146
Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 142
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 124
Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, HON), 118
Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 109
Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 100
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 94
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MX2 Report
Prado took his fourth GP win over championship leader Thomas Kjer Olsen, Davey Pootjes and Aussie Mitch Evans but he win from Prado was not enough to take over the red plate from Olsen but the gap now drops from the previous 20 points to only 7.
Jorge Prado – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
Evans rode solid in the tough conditions for 8-6 moto results to now sit eighth in the championship points while Jed Beaton scored a sensational third in the opening moto and was running in sixth in the second moto until a crash put him back to an eventual 17th for seventh overall to now be 12th in the championship points.
Jorge Prado
“It is great to come back, get on the podium, and winning the GP was very important for me, especially for my confidence after a month off. Today it was important to get a good start, I failed at that yesterday but today I got really good starts which were key to the race. It is very tough to not make mistakes, get good starts every time, and don’t crash, I just need to keep concentration to lead.”
Jorge Prado – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
Thomas Kjer Olsen
“Overall it was a great weekend for me, in the first race I had that problem on the start where I was down for a bit, I was pretty far behind but I was able to make up some spots in the first laps and get into to a good position pretty quick I worked into the top ten and even got into 6th. So, after being down it was pretty good for me, I even stopped to change my goggles. Overall I felt like I was riding good this weekend.
Thomas Kjer Olsen – MXGP of Lombardia 2019
Davy Pootjes
“It is really good and I am really happy because it has been tough. This podium should have happened maybe 4 years ago but because of crashes, injuries, and some bad luck it didn’t happen. Last winter, together with DIGA Procross, we made a plan, worked really hard, and it payed off. I feel this is the place where I should be and I am not done yet.”
MX2 of Mantova 2019 Results
MX2 Race 1
Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 35:18.651
Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), +0:05.836
Jed Beaton (AUS, Husqvarna), +0:26.496
Davy Pootjes (NED, Husqvarna), +0:40.315
Bas Vaessen (NED, KTM), +1:05.236
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), +1:12.915
Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, KTM), +1:37.577
Mitchell Evans (AUS, Honda), +1:47.716
Morgan Lesiardo (ITA, KTM), +1:50.638
Richard Sikyna (SVK, KTM), +1:51.878
MX2 Race 2
Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 36:52.290
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), +0:08.779
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), +0:36.069
Davy Pootjes (NED, Husqvarna), +0:52.541
Dylan Walsh (NZL, Husqvarna), +0:58.348
Mitchell Evans (AUS, Honda), +1:01.889
Mathys Boisrame (FRA, Honda), +1:11.299
Maxime Renaux (FRA, Yamaha), +1:13.390
Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, KTM), +1:17.228
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Honda), +1:19.630
MX2 Round Overall
Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 50 points
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 37
Davy Pootjes (NED, HUS), 36
Mitchell Evans (AUS, HON), 28
Iker Larranaga Olano (ESP, KTM), 26
Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 25
Jed Beaton (AUS, HUS), 24
Bas Vaessen (NED, KTM), 22
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 20
Mathys Boisrame (FRA, HON), 20
MX2 Standings
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 207 points
Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 200
Henry Jacobi (GER, KAW), 157
Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 150
Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 145
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 141
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, HON), 122
Mitchell Evans (AUS, HON), 117
Davy Pootjes (NED, HUS), 112
Adam Sterry (GBR, KAW), 105
Kras & Guadagnini Win 2-Stroke Classes in Lombardia
Europe’s Two-Stroke categories of EMX2T and EMX125 were on hand at Lombardia last weekend with two days of racing action won by Mike Kras (EMX2T) and Mattia Guadagnini (EMX125).
EMX125 Report
Guadagnini’s veteran like performance saw him take both race wins and as a result the overall ahead of Simon Laegenefelder (2-7) and Eddie Jay Wade (12-2) results. Guadagnini’s points lead is now 35 as the class takes one week off before returning alongside the MXGP of France at Saint Jean d’Angely.
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EMX2T Report
Kras won the opening moto from the Pommie pairing of Todd Kellett and Brad Todd then in the second moto championship leader Brad Anderson took the win from Kras and Erik Williams so Anderson continues to lead the championship by 14 points over Kras.
Mike Kras
EMX2T Results
EMX2T Race 1 Top Ten
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 30:20.257
Todd Kellett (GBR, Yamaha), +0:04.771
Brad Todd (GBR, Yamaha), +0:12.084
Mario Tamai (ITA, KTM), +0:13.931
Andero Lusbo (EST, Husqvarna), +0:21.327
Youri van t Ende (NED, KTM), +0:26.705
Pier Filippo Bertuzzo (ITA, Yamaha), +0:39.726
Ben Putnam (GBR, Yamaha), +0:43.108
Johannes Klein (AUT, KTM), +0:44.718
Erik Hugyecz (HUN, KTM), +0:45.229
EMX2T Race 2 Top Ten
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 30:21.942
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), +0:31.382
Erik Willems (BEL, Husqvarna), +0:36.552
Brad Todd (GBR, Yamaha), +0:57.783
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, Gas Gas), +1:05.100
Youri van t Ende (NED, KTM), +1:06.501
Emanuele Alberio (ITA, Husqvarna), +1:09.430
Johannes Klein (AUT, KTM), +1:38.804
Marco Paganini (ITA, Husqvarna), +1:47.383
Marco Lolli (ITA, Yamaha), +2:10.543.
EMX2T Overall Top Ten
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 47 points
Brad Todd (GBR, YAM), 38
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 33
Youri van t Ende (NED, KTM), 30
Erik Willems (BEL, HUS), 26
Mario Tamai (ITA, KTM), 26
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, GAS), 25
Johannes Klein (AUT, KTM), 25
Todd Kellett (GBR, YAM), 25
Andrea Vendruscolo (ITA, YAM), 20
EMX2T Championship Top Ten
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 83 points
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 69
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, GAS), 67
Todd Kellett (GBR, YAM), 58
Brad Todd (GBR, YAM), 58
Youri van t Ende (NED, KTM), 50
Andero Lusbo (EST, HUS), 46
Andrea Gorini (SMR, YAM), 42
Ben Putnam (GBR, YAM), 39
Marco Lolli (ITA, YAM), 39
Roman Wins WESS of Portugal
Spain’s Mario Roman has claimed victory over Wade Young and Manuel Lettenbichler at round one of the 2019 World Enduro Super Series – the Toyota Porto Extreme XL Lagares, in Portugal.
Extreme XL Lagares – Saturday Urban Enduro
Following two days of action-packed Endurocross and City Prologue racing, the stage was set for Sunday’s Hard Enduro feature race with 300 competitors taking on the two laps of the demanding course.
Extreme XL Lagares – Sunday
Alfredo Gomez and Taddy Blazusiak led the field away but Lettenbichler soon moved into the lead and opened up a five-minute advantage over Young with Billy Bolt, Jonny Walker, Graham Jarvis and Roman all in tow.
Extreme XL Lagares – Sunday
Heading out for lap two, Lettenbichler was now six minutes clear and looking strong but Roman and Young had other ideas and impressively upped their pace in the deteriorating conditions and it wasn’t long Roman put his Sherco in front and, in charging all the way to the finish, claimed a memorable victory and the opening win of the WESS season. Young finished four minutes behind as runner-up.
Mario Roman
“I feel amazing, it’s so good to get the win, in 2016 I finished about a minute behind Alfredo and then two years in a row I had mechanical issues with my bike, but I always believed in myself and knew I could do it this year. On the first lap I was lying fifth or sixth and I couldn’t see the top two guys, but as the race went on, I started to feel stronger and was able to push 100% and pass the others one-by-one. The track was so much more difficult on the second lap and I knew I would be able to make up time on those tricky sections.”
Mario Roman claims the WESS 2019 Round 1 win at the Extreme XL Lagares
Wade Young
“It feels great to get second today. At one point I was down in sixth and I was lacking some confidence after struggling in one of the rivers – that spent a lot of my energy. I came back strong though and towards the end people were starting to get tired and I was able to dig a little deeper and keep going.”
Extreme XL Lagares – Wade Young
Jarvis initially looked to have snatched third from Lettenbichler on corrected time, but the German was awarded time he lost on lap one due to a track marking error and finished on the podium. With Jarvis content in fourth, Bolt completed the top five, while Walker rounded out the top six.
Manuel Lettenbichler
“I am so happy with my result and overall I had a really good race, I didn’t realise at first the gap to the others was so big. I tried to stick to the same pace on the second lap, but Mario and Wade must have been flying. I think they probably pushed each other on the difficult stuff and were able to maintain a good speed when it got really tough. Graham also caught me at a few places, but I was able to stay ahead. I had to stop to move a bridge on the first lap so that cost me some time, but thankfully they have awarded that back to me and I have come away with third. It would have been nice to get the win, especially after leading for over half of the race. But whatever the result, I am happy with my riding and it’s been a good start to this year’s WESS championship.”
Extreme XL Lagares – Manuel Lettenbichler
The World Enduro Super Series continues with round two, the Trèfle Lozérien AMV in France, next weekend, May 17-19.
Results – Round 1: Toyota Porto Extreme XL Lagares
Mario Roman (Sherco – ESP) 4:01:43.21
Wade Young (Sherco – RSA) 4:05:59.04 +4:15.83
Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM – GER) 4:07:09.68 +5:26.47
Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna – GB) 4:07:16.12 +5:32.91
Jonathan Richardson (Husqvarna – GB) 5:11:22.83 +1:09:39.70
2019 World Enduro Super Series Standings (after round 1)
Mario Roman (Sherco – ESP) 1000 points
Wade Young (Sherco – RSA) 850 pts
Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM – GER) 770 pts
Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna – GBR) 690 pts
Billy Bolt (Husqvarna – GB) 610 pts
Jonny Walker (KTM – GB) 570 pts
Alfredo Gomez (Husqvarna – ESP) 530 pts
Taddy Blazusiak (KTM – POL) 490 pts
Travis Teasdale (KTM – RSA) 460 pts
Jonathan Richardson (Husqvarna – GB) 430 pts
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Great Britain & Australia bound for Speedway of Nations Final
The Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2 was held in Manchester last Saturday night and it was England with 26 points who triumphed over Australia and Denmark so all three teams have secured their places at the Finals in Togliatti, Russia on July 20 and 21.
FIM Speedway of Nations – Image by Haggis Hartman
It was an impressive night for GB as triple world champion Tai Woffinden (12), Craig Cook (8) and Robert Lambert (6) all piled up the points while Australia booked the second automatic qualification berth after finishing level on 22 points with Denmark, but out-ranking their rivals after Chris Holder and Max Fricke finished second and third behind Danish rider Leon Madsen when the teams met in heat 18.
Max Fricke and Chris Holder – Image by Haggis Hartman
Holder scored two points from his opening two rides, but hit back with a win and two seconds.
Chris Holder
“It wasn’t too bad. It was a tough night and it’s a tough place here – everybody can be fast here. It’s a big, wide-open track. The bike setup is pretty much everything. My first couple were terrible, but once we got it working well, it got better. Me and Max had a couple of good races. The name of the game was just to get through in the top two. We didn’t want to be in the knock-out heats. We managed to sneak in, so we’re happy with that.”
Chris Holder – Image by Haggis Hartman
Denmark were forced to beat France in the final knock-out heat to earn their spot in Russia on a night plagued by bad luck.
Niels-Kristian Iversen
“We did it the hard way, it was difficult. We did have some bad luck and it cost us some points. I believe we could have won the meeting if things had gone our way in a few races. But we qualified and that’s the main thing. We really wanted to avoid the knock-out race at the end because you never know what’s going to happen in these races. We felt confident we were going to do it, but it is a little bit nerve-wracking. We had to do it the hard way, but we are through.”
Great Britain, Australia and Denmark are joined in the Finals by hosts Russia as well as Race Off 1 winners Sweden, Poland and Germany.
FIM Speedway of Nations – Image by Haggis Hartman
The next World Championships action sees the FIM Speedway Grand Prix series launch with the Boll Warsaw SGP of Poland this Saturday.
Race-Off 2 Results
GREAT BRITAIN 26
Tai Woffinden 12, Craig Cook 8, Robert Lambert 6.
AUSTRALIA 22
Chris Holder 9, Max Fricke 12, Jaimon Lidsey 1.
DENMARK 22
Niels-Kristian Iversen 15, Leon Madsen 5, Frederik Jakobsen 2.
FRANCE 16
David Bellego 10, Dimitri Berge 6, Gaetan Stella 0.
American Flat Track ace Brandon Robinson put together a flawless performance to win last Saturday night’s Vance & Hines So-Cal Half-Mile at the Southern California Fairgrounds in Perris, Calif.
AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
Robinson controlled the once stopped and restarted Main Event from race’s opening lap and by taking victory he became the first AFT Twins rider to claim more than one victory in 2019.
Brandon Robinson
“They all feel amazing. It’s great to be up here. Any time you’re on the box is good, but winning… this is what it’s all about. This is what we put in all the hard work for. My team busted their butts. My team owner, Jerry Kennedy, gives us everything we need to win. My crew chief, Brent Armbruster — the guy is amazing. We make a lot of decisions together, but there are some times he bails me out and gets the bike right. Man, he hit the nail on the head again tonight. This one is for my team.”
AFT Twins – Image by Scott Hunter
After holding off Sammy Halbert for the first part of the race Robinson took the win by nearly two seconds over championship leader Briar Bauman and Halbert who in turn got the nod over fellow Harley rider Jarod Vanderkooi and defending champion Jared Mees.
AFT Twins Podium 1) Robinson, 2) Bauman, 3) Halbert – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Twins Main Event – So-Cal Half-Mile
Brandon Robinson Indian FTR750 0:21.040
Briar Bauman Indian FTR750 +1.833
Sammy Halbert Harley-Davidson XG750R +3.646
Jarod Vanderkooi Harley-Davidson XG750R +4.031
Jared Mees Indian FTR750 +4.280
Bronson Bauman Indian FTR750 +5.993
Brandon Price Indian FTR750 +9.720
Davis Fisher Indian FTR750 +10.050
Robert Pearson Indian FTR750 +10.622
Larry Pegram Indian FTR750 +12.028
AFT Twins Standings
Briar Bauman 102
Brandon Robinson 89
Jared Mees 78
Jarod Vanderkooi 66
Sammy Halbert 61
Henry Wiles 53
Jeffrey Carver Jr. 51
Larry Pegram 51
Bronson Bauman 50
Robert Pearson 45
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AFT Singles Report
Ryan Wells backed up his first podium of the season at the Arizona Super TT with his first win of the year in a virtual wire-to-wire triumph at the So-Cal Half-Mile ahead of podium first timer Michael Inderbitzin and championship leader Dalton Gauthier
Ryan Wells – AFT Singles – Image by Scott Hunter
Ryan Wells
“TTs have never been my super strong suit so I knew getting a podium (at the Arizona Super TT), we had worked out the bugs that needed to be worked out. The Yamaha was awesome. It was huge for me to come in here and get the win. To lead all 15 laps… it was a long race for me mentally. It felt awesome to lead some laps and come out with the win. I can’t say enough about the whole Estenson racing family. That pit over there is literally a family. The camaraderie is awesome and I couldn’t get a win for a better group.”
Ryan Wells topped the AFT Singles podium – Image by Scott Hunter
AFT Singles Main Event – So-Cal Half-Mile
Ryan Wells Yamaha YZ450F 0:21.367
Michael Inderbitzin Honda CRF450R +0.406
Dalton Gauthier Husqvarna FC450 +1.315
Dan Bromley KTM 450 SX-F +2.085
Jesse Janisch +Yamaha YZ450F +2.332
AFT Singles Standings
Dalton Gauthier 96
Jesse Janisch 86
Dan Bromley 73
Mikey Rush 71
Ryan Wells 56
Euro Flat Track Kicks Off
The Indian Motorcycle European Flat Track series, presented by the Dirt Track Riders Association (DTRA), kicked off at the Hells Race, Lelystad Stadium on Sunday May 5. Dirttrack Lelystad in Holland hosted the first ever running during the amazingly popular annual Hells Race meeting.
Over 150 riders raced classes including Hooligan, Vintage, Pro, Amateur, Newbie and Minibike. The program was action packed with some fantastic racing around Holland’s premier short track venue.
The Hooligan class battle did not disappoint at Hells Race. Racing was fast and tough on the soft light shale surface. The big bikes were hard to handle on the tight and deep short track, and rain during the afternoon made the racing really tricky.
It was Gary Birtwistle who skilfully lead the final from beginning to end. After a poor start Max Hunt managed to race to a very well deserved second place. Leah Tokelove, who raced superbly in her heats on the Indian Scout took a well-earned third place on the podium, giving the UK first, second and third positions.
Hooligan Class
Gary Birtwistle – UK
Max Hunt – UK
Leah Tokelove – UK
Jonathan Falkman – Sweden
James Smith – UK
All three championship classes provided some amazing action and with riders from nine countries, the event had a truly international feel. The Pro Class was packed with Europe’s top dirt track riders, with a large showing from the UK, coupled with a strong field of other top riders from the Spain, Netherlands, Italy and Poland. The heats provided really tight racing. It was Ferran Sastre who was the only rider to win all his heats and took first pick for the Pro Final.
Sastre had some very strong competition from Maikel Dijkstra who was fresh from training with Moto Anatomy’s Johnny Lewis and was showing some excellent pace on his home track. Both Toby Hales (Greenfield Dirttrack) and Gerard Bailo (Greenfield Dirttrack) flew in from riding Copa Rodi in Spain the day before.
Franc Sala was also racing well and taking heat wins. In the Pro final it was Ferran Sastre who raced with superb skill to win, with Maikel Dijkstra taking a very close second and Sala third giving the Spanish riders a strong presence on the podium.
Pro Class
Ferran Sastre – Spain
Maikel Dijkstra – Netherlands
Franc Sala – Spain
Toby Hales – UK
Gerard Bailo – Spain
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The vintage Class had a massive entry with some really close racing on some of Europe’s most beautiful vintage machines. German rider Martin Huning was on fire in all his heats and won the finaI. In second place was DTRA Race Director Anthony Brown who was very strong in all his heats. And in third place was Swiss rider Michel Colaizzi.
Vintage
Martin Huning – Germany
Anthony Brown – UK
Michel Colaizzi – Switzerland
Sean Kelly – UK
Christophe Canitrot – France
Krazy Horse’s Hooligan Team return to continue their UK DTRA flat track championship attack with the Indian Scout at MCN’s Festival of Motorcycling, Peterborough Arena, on May 18th and 19th – Join the event and experience the spectacle of Flat Track racing alongside live demo ride opportunities, see the entire Indian Motorcycle range on display and enjoy all the festival has to offer.
2019 Hooligan Championship Dates
May 17/19 – MCN Festival, Peterborough Showground, UK
June 15 – El Rollo, Wheels & Waves, ESP – European Championship
August 9/10 – DIRTQUAKE, Arlington Stadium, Sussex, UK
September 21/22 – Greenfield Oval, Alford, UK – European Championship
Sipes Wins Hawaiian Supercross
Aloha Stadium hosted the first Supercross event in Hawaii in several years and it was former ISDE winner and multi-talented Ryan Sipes who came away with a surprise win over multi-Australian Supercross Champion Justin Brayton and multi-Arenacross Champion Tyler Bowers.
Ryan Sipes claims the Hawaiin Supercross win from Justin Brayton and Tyler Bowers
The event used a three-moto format and Sipes dominated the overall standings with 1-1-1 moto finishes ahead of Brayton, who finished second overall with 3-2-2 moto scores while Tyler Bowers rounded out the podium with 4-5-4 moto results.
Hawaiian Supercross Results 2019 450SX
Ryan Sipes: 1-1-1
Justin Brayton: 3-2-2
Tyler Bowers: 4-5-4
Mike Alessi: 7-4-3
Austin Politelli: 2-3-12
Ben LaMay: 6-9-6
Josh Hill: 8-8-7
Alex Ray: 11-6-8
Jimmy Decotis: 5-13-11
Kyle Chisholm: 13-7-5
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Broc Tickle Back in 2020
FIM have finally given their verdict on American racer Broc Tickle, who was suspended from the sport due to a report from the WADA accredited laboratory in Cologne indicating an adverse analytical finding of 5-methylhexan-2-amine, a specified substance under Section 6 (Stimulants) of the 2018 FIM Prohibited List, in a urine sample collected from him at the San Diego round of supercross.
Broc Tickle in 2018
Tickle had this to say on social media: “Finally got official sentencing from CDI panel and FIM, bummed I won’t be railing some corners this summer in Pro Motocross. I’ll be back 2/10/2020.”
Three Aussies Set for Hangtown
There will be three Aussies at the opening round of the AMA Motocross championship which will be held at Hangtown this weekend with Hunter Lawrence in the 250 class for Geico Honda being joined by Dean Ferris on the Factory Yamaha team and Todd Waters running a privateer Husqvarna.
Hunter Lawrence
Moto News reported last week that Waters flew straight to America after winning the 5th round of the Australian MX Nationals at Murray Bridge with friends and family helping to contest the first three rounds of the series on a production FC450 Husqvarna.
Todd Waters
“With a seven-week break in the calendar, I’ve decided the best training I can do is to race, so I’ll head to the US this week with a small entourage of family and friends to line up as a privateer at the first three rounds of the AMA Outdoors.”
Todd Waters
Ferris on the other hand got the call from Yamaha to fill in for the injured Aaron Plessinger with the Monster Energy Yamaha team alongside Justin Barcia.
Dean Ferris
“I’m super excited about this opportunity to race with the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team. I’ve won a lot of races on the YZ450F, so it’s a perfect fit for me to start my campaign in America. I’m looking forward to getting the outdoor season rolling in Hangtown next weekend!”
Dean Ferris
As for Lawrence, the former GP front runner was injured right before the supercross season and has spent the last 17 weeks getting ready for Hangtown to look for the young hard charger to be at the pointy end for the opening round and beyond.
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Manjimup to Welcome Clout and Gibbs
CDR Monster Energy Yamaha Team members Kirk Gibbs and Luke Clout are set to make the trip across the Nullarbor to take on the best in the West at Australia’s most prestigious single motocross event, the Manjimup 15000 on the 1st and 2nd of June. Kirk Gibbs is a past champion of the event and longing to have his name added to the trophy one more time.
Kirk Gibbs
“I have done Manjimup a few times over the years and it is an event that every motocross racer should do. It’s an amazing track to ride that offers challenges in its layout, its terrain and its physical demands. The atmosphere at the venue is also nothing like we experience back on the East Coast. There is always a big crowd on hand that line the entire track and make plenty of noise as they watch the races. They are motocross people who know about the sport and are enthusiastic to cheer on their favourite rider. My shoulder should be good to go and I’m looking forward to heading back to Manjimup and catching up with all the WA fans.”
Kirk Gibbs
For Luke Clout, 2019 will mark his first appearance at the event and the has the current MX Nationals points leader exciting about the prospect of racing on the famous Manjimup circuit and experience the race for the first time.
Luke Clout
“I have heard so many good things about Manjimup and it’s awesome to know I will finally be taking the trip over to contest the event. Dacka has told me so many stories about his time racing Manjimup and I hope my time there is half as exciting as his. And I’m not sure if I can bare another story about riding a 500cc two stroke on a track rough enough to swallow an ocean-liner. I have seen the track on video and watched some races there and it looks like such a fun track to ride. The schedule looks hectic with six motos during the day but that’s fine with me and I can’t wait to get behind the gate and race Kirk as well as all the WA riders.”
Luke Clout
X Trial Australian Championship returns for 2019
The 2019 X Trial Australian Championship contenders will compete in Perth and Wollongong in back-to-back weekends kicking off on WA on the 20th of July.
X Trial Australian Championship returns for 2019
X Trial features the best eight riders that get an invitation to test themselves through 5 difficult sections each weekends which will offer spectators 3 hours of entertainment.
Eight riders start the qualifying round and four progress to the final, to be crowned the X Trial Australian Champion!
X Trial Australian Championship
Round 1
Perth – Saturday July 20th, HBF Stadium, Mount Claremont WA
Gates open at 6pm – Main Event 6:30pm Start
Round 2
Wollongong – Saturday July 27th, WIN Ent Centre, Wollongong, NSW
Gates open at 6pm – Main Event 6:30pm Start
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Weekly Up-Date on Our Aussies Abroad
Jed Beaton – Rockstar Husqvarna
Championship: World MX2 Motocross Championship Current Standing: 12th after Round 5 of 17 Notes: Jed was on fire at the MXGP of Lombardi in Italy last weekend with a third in the opening moto before crashing out of 6th late in moto two in horrendously wet conditions to finish 17th for 7th overall – Jed has moved from 13th to 12th in the championship points.
Jed Beaton
Mitch Evans – 114 Honda
Championship: World MX2 Motocross Championship Current Standing: 8th after Round 5 of 17 Notes: Mitch had a solid weekend at the MXGP of Lombardi in Italy last weekend with a 3rd in Saturday’s Qualifying race before going 8-6 on Sunday for 6th outright to maintain his 8th in the championship points – Evans was involved in a first corner crash in the opening moto so to claw his way back to 8th in the conditions shows his talent.
Mitch Evans
Tayla Jones – Rockstar/Husqvarna/Moose Racing/Shaw Wines
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 1st after Round 5 of 13 Notes: Tayla won the latest round in Indianapolis on May 5 and has extended her points lead in the WXC class to 11 over second placed Becca Sheets.
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 – Hoppenworld Image
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: 15th after Round 17 of 17 Notes: Chad was part of a multi bike crash at Seattle when he was sitting 7th in the championship and after the series was completed the Aussie still ended up 15th in the points – we now hold out hopes that Chad will line up for the AMA Motocross Championships.
Chad Reed – Image by Hoppenworld
Wil Ruprecht – Johansson MPE Yamaha
Championship: EnduroGP – Junior Class Current Standing: 2nd after Round 2 of 7. Notes: Wil once again proved his world class riding ability at Valpaços in Portugal last weekend with a 2nd and a 4th over the two days of competition where some of the veterans of the sport declared it one of the toughest events in recent history.
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 5 of 13 Notes: Josh ended the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis in a disappointing 13th outright but he still sits 6th overall in the series with 8 rounds remaining.
Josh Strang
Mackenzie Tricker – KTM/MEPMX/Fly Racing
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 3rd after Round 5 of 13 Notes: Mackenzie ended the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis in 9th place which is her poorest performance in years but she still sits third in points with 8 rounds remaining and my bet is still for the former motocross champion to pull off a win this season.
Mackenzie Tricker – Image by Dario Agrati
Max Whale – Weirbach Racing Kawasaki
Championship: AFT Singles Current Standings: 14th after Round 5 of 18 Notes: Max narrowly missed out on going to the final at the SoCal Half Mile on the 11th of May after scoring 12th in his Semi final so he has dropped to 14th in points but there are still 13 rounds to go.
Max Whale at TareeSmarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
You really had to be in Santiago de Compostela to witness the incredible turn around in the weather, as EndurGP battled it out, as after torrential rains and strong winds at the start of the week in the ‘holy city’, the first day of competition at the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship played out under pristine blue skies.
EnduroGP of Spain 2019
The tests were filled with a Spanish fans ready to enjoy watching the best riders in the world. Despite the sunshine, conditions on the track remained tricky – water sections and mud were both on the menu for Day 1. EnduroGP riders a fantastic battle throughout all four laps, with Brad Freeman taking his second victory in a row after his success last Sunday in Portugal. The Beta Boano rider controlled his race very well, Steve Holcombe was left in the wake of his young compatriot. Freeman took the lead of the race on the second Enduro Test of the day, and never looked back. The Brit fully confirms his status as the most serious rival of Holcombe.
EnduroGP of Spain 2019
Second today, Steve Holcombe should still be satisfied with this result, the Beta Factory rider took another podium in EnduroGP and a fresh victory in E3.
For the third time this season Britain reigns, locking out the podium. Danny McCanney completed a full English EnduroGP podium, the TM rider working hard to grab this result. He first had to see off Alex Salvini and then control Loic Larrieu, by the end of the race, McCanney even managed to get within five seconds of Holcombe.
The fight between Salvini and Larrieu for fourth and 5th place was absolutely breathtaking until the last test of the day. The Frenchman was anxious to erase his double DNF from Portugal. When he started the last test, the TM rider had just under two-seconds ahead Salvini and his Honda. After a big push in the final test, he crossed the line with a six-second advantage on his rival.
Brad Freeman – EnduroGP of Spain 2019
In the E1 category, Brad Freeman pocketed his fifth victory in as many races. Winning ahead of Thomas Oldrati and another Italian, Matteo Cavallo.
In E2, at the end of the suspense, Loic Larrieu took the win over Alex Salvini. Giacomo Redondi completed the podium.
In E3, despite not feeling his best, Holcombe took his fifth win of the season ahead of McCanney and an impressive David Abgrall third.
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
For the first time this season, Andrea Verona led the whole day in the Junior category, the TM rider topping seven tests, leaving only a few crumbs for his opponents. Verona remains focused on his main objective – the Overall Junior World Title.
On great form since the beginning of the season, Enric Francisco has not managed to overhaul the leader of the Junior rankings. But the Spanish rider had the better of most of his other competitors to take a very nice second place at home. Jack Edmondson was third overall on the day. The Sherco rider managed to get the better of his team-mate, Theo Espinasse and Wil Ruprecht who both tried to threatened the Brit for the last podium spot.
Wil Ruprecht – Image by Caroline Joelsson
In J1, Verona topped the podium ahead of Espinasse and Ruprecht. In J2 it was Francisco in front of Edmondson and Till De Clercq.
It was difficult to choose which news was the most important of the day in Youth 125cc. We will start with the injury of the leader of the category, Hamish MacDonald who fractured his collarbone on the third Enduro test of the day. The Sherco rider was evacuated and taken care of at the local hospital. Before his accident, the New Zealander was running in an unusual second place, having previously won 4 out of 4. We hope to see him again soon and wish him a speedy recovery.
Nathan Bererd today became the first Frenchman to win a Youth 125 round since Léo Le Quere in 2017. Leading all day, the Frenchman did not suffer from any incident to disrupt his dominance today. He took more than a minute on Claudio Spanu, while Sergio Navarro, took his first ever podium at his home race.
In the Champion Lubricants Enduro Open World Cup Champion, the same riders were once again filling the podiums. David Knight won the Senior class for the fifth time this season, ahead of Fernando Ferreira and Enrique Vega Gonzales.
In Open 2-Stroke, there was another win for Portugal’s Goncalo Reis, he won against Benet Gomez and Jorge Paradelo Rodriguez.
In Open 4-Stroke, Tom Ellwood is the reference to watch this season, with a 100 per cent success rate for the Kawasaki rider. Jilani Cambre and Fraser Flockhart completed the podium of the day.
Day Two
The second day of the Spanish Grand Prix, the third round of the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship, saw another beautiful summer day greet all the competitors and even more spectators flooded the specials. The main difficulty for riders was to adapt to the terrain which had suffered from the passage of so many motorcycles the previous day.
Brad Freeman – EnduroGP of Spain 2019
Brad Freeman gave a double blow to his competitors, the British rider won for the second time on Iberian soil. The Beta Boano rider this time had to scrap with Danny McCanney to win, with Freeman very disciplined all day, keeping out of trouble. He won five tests and finished second on the tests four times. This more than satisfactory result propels him to the head of the EnduroGP standings. He pulls five-points out on former leader Steve Holcombe.
Brad Freeman
“Being the leader of my class was already a dream for me. So leading the EnduroGP class too is a crazy feeling for me. I am delighted with how the day went for me. And I’m so happy to have been able to fight all day with Danny McCanney. I am sad for what’s happening to Steve, we are all here to fight at the forefront within tenths of a second, I hope he gets back in shape as soon as possible.”
Brad Freeman
Second place on the day went to Danny McCanney, he had to settle for this position despite a world-class performance. Undisputed leader during the first lap, the Manxman was then caught and outgunned by Freeman. The objective of the TM rider was to keep lead of E3 ahead of Holcombe. What we take from this Portuguese GP – Danny McCanney may be close to winning his first victory in EnduroGP.
Sunday also saw a debut victory for Italy’s Giacomo Redondi, “Red” was very strong this weekend and was satisfied to have won all the Maxxis Cross Tests on this second day. The JET Racing rider just keeps getting stronger. Could the 2016 Junior World Champion be the surprise of the season?
Giacomo Redondi
“What a joy to win my first victory at the highest level in E2. This podium in EnduroGP also means a lot to me. Team Zanardo and I have been progressing constantly since the beginning of the season. I cannot wait to be back on track at the GP of Greece in a month’s time.”
Alex Salvini and Loïc Larrieu fought all day, but this time, it was Salvini who got the better of the Frenchman.
Loïc Larrieu
Steve Holcombe meanwhile has been suffering with since Germany. The four-time world champion has been diagnosed with a virus than can only be treated with a lot of rest, while the Beta Factory rider’s career is not necessarily very compatible with a fast recovery. Given his state of health, Holcombe was heroic. He drew on all his reserves to finish the day in sixth position. He left this Iberian tour in second position in the provisional standings, trying hard to defend his crown.
In the E1 category, Freeman won his sixth victory in six races, finishing ahead of Davide Guarneri and Matteo Cavallo.
In E2 Redondi celebrated his first victory in a Senior class. He demoted Salvini and Larrieu to second and third. However, Salvini remains leader of the E2.
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
In E3, McCanney finished ahead of Steve Holcombe for the first time this season. Steve Holcombe remains leader in E3 after the Iberian tour, and was second for the day. Meanwhile, David Abgrall took his second podium of the weekend.
Danny McCanney
“I started today really well by winning the first two tests of the day. Maybe I attacked a bit too early. But in the meantime I am quite satisfied with my tour, and I am confident for the rest of the season.”
Danny McCanney
Andrea Verona loves his TM Racing bike, but day two was nevertheless more difficult for him thanks to the pace of the Sherco riders. Theo Espinasse and Jack Edmondson were indeed very strong on this second day. They finished second and third respectively.Enric Francisco, a little tired from his efforts the day before, finished fourth on the day.
Andrea Verona
“What can I say? The 6th victory in as many races is a wonderful reward for all the work that TM and I have done. I feel very good this season, I want to continue with this pace.”
In J1, Verona was ahead of Espinasse and an impressive Roni Kytonen, while the J2 category went to Edmondson, followed by Francisco and Emanuele Facchetti.
Pavoni beat Spanu by the smallest gap in the history of the 125cc Youth Cup in the absence of Hamish MacDonald, winning the day on the very last test by an incredible 0.06 of a second! Day 1 winner Nathan Bererd finished third. Frustrated at being beaten by such a little gap, Spanu can nevertheless be satisfied to take the top of the category ranking.
Matteo Pavoni
“What a crazy weekend, yesterday I had to give up due to a mechanical problem and today I won, I am very happy for the whole Beta Boano team who work very hard for all of us since the beginning of the season.”
In the Champion Lubricants Enduro Open World Cup, David Knight has a solid six out of six in the Senior class. He topped the class ahead of Fernando Ferreira and Enrique Vega Gonzalez.
In Open 2-Stroke Portugal’s Goncalo Reis took his fifth victory of the season. He won ahead of Jorge Paradelo Rodriguez and Benet Gomez.
Finally in Open 4-Stroke, Tom Ellwood got his fourth victory. He is aiming for the title in the category. Jilani Cambre and Fraser Flockhart completed the podium.
The Iberian tour ends after four days of absolutely fantastic racing. The exhausted riders and teams will have a little over a month to recover from their efforts. The next round – the Greek Grand Prix will already mark the mid-season point of the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship.
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The LATEST News
Full Las Vega SX report
Australian MX Nationals – Murray Bridge
Russell lands win at Indianapolis GNCC
Holcombe & Freeman share EnduroGP wins
Simpson & Ostlund win British MX Nationals
Jasikonis & Jacobi win Dutch Masters
Honda signs Roczen for three years
No Yamaha 450 riders at Vegas
Todd Waters to USA
Sweden, Poland and Germany advance to SoN finals
Woffinden & Doyle to clash this weekend
WESS kicks off this weekend
Weekly update on our Aussies abroad
Full Las Vegas SX report
Las Vegas hosted the final round of the 2019 AMA Supercross Championship and despite Eli Tomac dominating the 450 main event it was Cooper Webb who came away with the championship. Dylan Ferrandis and Chase Sexton won the West and East Coast 250 championships respectively.
Cooper Webb – 2019 AMA Supercross Champion – Image by Hoppenworld
450SX Report
The tension around the stadium was once again palpable as the 450 main event got underway and it was Tomac who earned a very rare holeshot. It was obvious from the outset that Eli was not interested in playing games with the Kawasaki rider putting down incredibly fast lap times to pull away from the KTM duo of Marvin Musquin and Webb.
Eli Tomac – Image by Hoppenworld
While maintaining a few bike lengths back from Musquin, Webb was initially under pressure from Zach Osborne but he was able to slowly pull away from the Husqvarna rider. Ken Roczen made his way to the rear wheel of the championship leader put the plucky Webb stuck to hitting his marks around the slippery, hard packed Vegas layout.
As the track deteriorated Tomac continued to push and despite surviving a few ‘moments’ the Kawasaki rider crossed the line some 12 seconds ahead of Musquin while Webb rounded out the podium. Webb led by a narrow margin over Roczen and Osborne with Cole Seely, Blake Baggett, Tyler Bowers, Justin Hill and Justin Bogle rounded out the top ten.
Ken Roczen – Image by Hoppenworld
Webb, a two-time Western Regional 250SX Champion and a former 250 AMA National Motocross Champion can now add the 2019 AMA 450 Supercross Championship to his resume on the back of 5-10-1-1-8-1-1-2-1-2-3-4-1-3-2-1-3 finishes over the 17 rounds.
Cooper Webb
“It’s been an incredible journey. This KTM team believed in me, they took me in and transformed me back to where I always knew I could be. This year was not expected at all, and I can’t thank them enough for giving me this opportunity to get back into this level and to do it this way is unreal. It’s a dream come true, I’ve had it since I was a little kid. It’s an incredible feeling, I am in shock.”
Cooper Webb – Image by Hoppenworld
Eli Tomac
“It’s all about putting the whole season together, we need to fill in the gaps which and we haven’t done that yet. I felt like in the beginning we were playing catch up then we kind of found our stride here in the last few races so that is the positive outlook on the season.”
Eli Tomac – Image by Hoppenworld
Marvin Musquin
“After being second last year I was looking to go one step better and get the championship but I started the year with no training through November and December (thanks to a knee injury) which is where you build up for the season but we had a solid program where the goal was to get better each weekend, which I did, we were close to winning some main events then we won a couple. I would have liked to have been fighting for the championship all of the way to the end but that didn’t happen.”
Marvin Musquin & Zach Osborne – Image by Hoppenworld
450SX Results
Eli Tomac – 22 Laps
Marvin Musquin +12.061
Cooper Webb +17.466
Ken Roczen +18.216
Zach Osborne +29.872
Cole Seely +42.680
Blake Baggett +48.397
Tyler Bowers +55.636
Justin Hill +1:00.694
Justin Bogle – 21Laps
Justin Brayton +02.960
Ben Lamay +05.575
Kyle Chisholm +13.365
Ryan Breece +36.547
Alex Ray +49.372
Henry Miller +1:01.671
Carlen Gardner – 20Laps
Adam Enticknap +09.480
Charles Lefrancois +13.010
Tevin Tapia – 19Laps
Austin Politelli – 15Laps
Scott Champion – 7Laps
Cooper Webb – 379
Eli Tomac – 361
Marvin Musquin – 350
Ken Roczen – 319
Blake Baggett – 290
Dean Wilson – 223
Cole Seely – 211
Joey Savatgy – 208
Justin Bogle – 171
Justin Brayton – 163
Justin Hill – 162
Tyler Bowers – 155
Justin Barcia – 154
Zach Osborne – 154
Chad Reed – 151
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250 East/West Shootout Report
In the 250 East/West Coast shootout both titles were on the line with Chase Sexton holding an 8-point lead over Justin Cooper for the East title. Adam Cianciarulo held a 9-point lead over Dylan Ferrandis in the West and with all four riders easily qualifying into the 15 minute main event the stage was set.
Chase Sexton – Image by Hoppenworld
In the battle for the East, Sexton was running near the front of the field from the start of the race while Cooper battled mid-pack so at the line Sexton cruised through for a fourth-place finish, securing his first 250 championship for Geico Honda.
As for the West Coast title there was a fair bit of drama with Ferrandis taking the holeshot on his Monster Energy Yamaha while Cianciarulo was outside the top five. Cianciarulo was then able to move up to third behind Ferrandis and Cameron McAdoo, which would have secured Adam his first title and for several laps it was looking like Cianciarulo was riding smart and had the title in his grasp.
Adam Cianciarulo – Image by Hoppenworld
Unfortunately for Cianciarulo fans and Mitch Payton, the Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider came up short in a rhythm section, clipped a tuff box and crashed heavily leaving his handlebars bent beyond raceable and despite quickly going into the pits for repairs the championship was over for Cianciarulo……again.
Up front Ferrandis took a comfortable race win from RJ Hampshire, McAdoo and Sexton. Alex Martin, Colt Nichols, Michael Mosiman, Cooper, Martin Davalos and Garrett Marchbanks rounded out the top ten, well ahead of Cianciarulo who ended the main in 20th, handing Ferrandis his first championship on American soil.
Dylan Ferrandis
“Coming into the main, I just asked my mechanic to tell me what Adam was doing and when I saw it at P-10 and P-12, I couldn’t believe it.” Ferrandis said. “We trained so hard coming into this weekend. It’s more than a dream come true. It’s hard to put into words. I’m just thinking about all the people that have been with me and supporting me. The team has been behind me the past few years, and I’m very grateful to them for believing in me. This is incredible.”
Dylan Ferrandis – Image by Hoppenworld
Chase Sexton
“It feels super-good, it really hasn’t sunk in yet but being only 19 and winning my first championship is unbelievable. Man, it was the longest 15 plus one I have ever done, the track was gnarly, to do this for myself and the team is awesome, couldn’t have asked for any better.”
Chase Sexton – Image by Hoppenworld
250 East/West Coast Results
Dylan Ferrandis – 16 Laps
RJ Hampshire +01.805
Cameron McAdoo +02.858
Chase Sexton +03.365
Alex Martin +04.625
Colt Nichols +05.871
Michael Mosiman +09.340
Justin Cooper +11.993
Martin Davalos +18.488
Garrett Marchbanks +22.901
Brandon Hartranft +26.177
Kyle Peters +35.205
Jordan Bailey +42.976
John Short +46.740
Lorenzo Locurcio +52.624
Justin Starling +1:06.503
Chase Marquier – 15Laps
James Decotis +17.645
Mitchell Falk +23.856
Adam Cianciarulo +44.305
Kyle Cunningham – 13Laps
Chris Blose – 4Laps
Chase Sexton – 193
Justin Cooper – 180
Austin Forkner – 152
Martin Davalos – 148
Alex Martin – 139
Brandon Hartranft – 130
Mitchell Oldenburg – 128
Kyle Peters – 126
Kyle Cunningham – 110
Jordan Bailey – 101
Dylan Ferrandis – 226
Adam Cianciarulo – 211
Colt Nichols – 180
RJ Hampshire – 168
Cameron McAdoo – 149
Michael Mosiman – 144
James Decotis – 133
Shane McElrath – 123
Chris Blose – 120
Garrett Marchbanks – 113
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Murray Bridge hosts MX Nationals double header
South Australia’s historic town of Murray Bridge hosted the fourth and fifth rounds of the 2019 Australian MX Nationals last weekend with the first of the two ‘double-headers’ for the series with four championship classes on show over the two days of action.
MX1 Report
The big drawcard at Murray Bridge was the return of Dean Ferris to the series, albeit a brief one, on the Raceline KTM and it didn’t take long for Dean to start where he left off last year with two wins on Saturday though moto two did see Luke Clout hold pace with the 2018 champion.
Dean Ferris
Kirk Gibbs was second in the opening moto but well back from Ferris then it all went sour for Gibbs in the second moto with the CDR Yamaha rider crashing twice to earn a DNF before not being able to race on Sunday so Gibbs’ title chance is all but gone.
So it was Ferris taking the overall on Saturday with Clout, Hayden Mellross, Jayden Rykers and Todd Waters round out the top five so heading to Sunday Mellross still has the red plate by two points over Clout.
Kirk Gibbs
Sunday dawned with the MX1 riders tackling two back-to-back sprint races and it was looking to be more of the same with Ferris out front. Just as the NRGTV commentators were regaling how Ferris rarely makes mistakes the number 1 KTM was on the ground handing the lead and win to Clout with Waters, Mellross, Ferris and Justin Rodbell rounding out the top five.
Moto two saw Clout take another win once again over Waters and Mellross with Rodbell holding off Ferris for fourth so the overall for the combined sprint races went to Clout over Waters, Mellross, Rodbell and Ferris.
Luke Clout
The final 30 minute moto saw Waters take the win by just 1.4 seconds over Clout who had Mellross all over him right to the line while Ferris once again struggled with a poor start to finish a distant fourth.
The overall goes to Waters over Clout and Mellross and as far as the points go Clout now has the red plate by 4-points over Mellross who in turn has a 6-point lead over Waters – with 5 rounds remaining this championship is well and truly alive.
MX1 Round 4 & 5 Results
Dean Ferris – 70 points
Luke Clout – 58
Hayden Mellross – 58
Jayden Rykers – 56
Todd Waters – 53
Richie Evans – 48
Justin Rodbell – 47
Dylan Long – 43
Erki Kahro – 42
Brett Metcalfe – 39
Todd Waters – 67 points
Luke Clout – 67
Hayden Mellross – 60
Dean Ferris – 54
Justin Rodbell – 53
Richie Evans – 50
Jayden Rykers – 49
Brett Metcalfe – 45
Lawson Bopping – 45
Erki Kahro – 41
Luke Clout- 275 points
Hayden Mellross – 271
Todd Waters – 265
Justin Rodbell – 210
Jayden Rykers – 207
Erki Kahro – 190
Brett Metcalfe – 181
Kirk Gibbs – 179
Richie Evans – 174
Jesse Dobson – 173
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MX2 Report
Saturday saw the back-to-back sprint races start the weekend off for the MX2 riders and surprisingly it was Kyle Webster who stamped his dominance by taking the win in the first moto over Jay Wilson, Bailey Malkiewicz, Kaleb Barham and Wilson Todd. He then back that up with another win in the second moto this time over Wilson, Barham, Dylan Wills and Todd.
Kyle Webster
So heading to the final 30-minute moto Webster held the overall so far ahead of Wilson, Barham, Malkiewicz and Todd. However the longer moto allowed Todd to redeem himself with a narrow win over the in-form Webster who had a fair gap back to third place Wilson while Wills and Riley Dukes rounded out the top five.
So the overall for Saturday goes to Webster over Wilson and Todd but with Sunday looming with two 30-minute motos all eyes were on Todd to extend his championship lead.
On the day it was Webster who once again put together a great race with a win in the opening moto over Malkiewicz, Wilson, Aaron Tanti and Dukes while Todd suffered a flat tyre while leading and was forced to dive into the mechanics area to change the wheel and finish in 14th place.
Moto two saw Todd take the win by four seconds ahead of Webster with the Serco Yamaha pairing of Nathan Crawford and Tanti putting together their best finishes after a tough weekend for the team. Heading to the seven week break in the series Todd now had a 23 point lead over Webster who in turn has a 2 point gap back to Wilson.
Kyle Webster
“Things couldn’t have gone much better! Everything clicked from the moment we rolled onto the track and I’m absolutely stoked on how the day went. I can’t ask for much more, with two round wins in two days. It feels like it’s been a while coming this year to get a few wins on the go, but now that they’re here, it’s awesome. Everyone in the MX2 class has been having a real go and the competition is fierce, so getting two round wins now at the double-header rounds is the perfect way to go into the mid-season break. I can’t thank everyone on the Penrite Pirelli CRF Honda Racing team enough, and all the team sponsors and supporters, and my family and everyone who helps make this happen; like I said, getting back-to-back round wins feels just awesome!”
Kyle Webster
MX2 Round 4 & 5 Results
Kyle Webster – 67 points
Jay Wilson – 62
Wilson Todd – 61
Dylan Wills – 53
Kaleb Barham – 53
Bailey Malkiewicz – 52
Riley Dukes – 50
Jai Constantinou – 44
Ricky Latimer – 41
Nathan Crawford – 38
Kyle Webster – 67 points
Bailey Malkiewicz – 58
Aaron Tanti – 56
Jay Wilson – 54
Wilson Todd – 52
Nathan Crawford – 52
Riley Dukes – 49
Ricky Latimer – 45
Jye Dickson – 43
Jai Constantinou – 42
Wilson Todd – 283 points
Kyle Webster – 260
Jay Wilson – 258
Nathan Crawford – 212
Aaron Tanti – 212
Dylan Wills – 206
Riley Dukes – 202
Bailey Malkiewicz – 198
Jye Dickson – 188
Cooper Pozniak – 184
MXD Report
The MXD riders once again put on a great show all weekend with lap times that matched the top MX2 riders and most of the MX1 field but in the end it was Kiwi Max Purvis who won the overall on Saturday over Brodie Ellis and championship leader Regan Duffy but on Sunday Duffy narrowly got the overall ahead of Purvis and Mason Rowe.
Regan Duffy
At the halfway point of the series Duffy has a 17 point lead over Purvis while Rhys Budd sits a further 15 points back.
MXD Rounds 4 & 5 Results
Maximus Purvis – 67 points
Regan Duffy – 65
Rhys Budd – 58
Brodie Ellis – 57
Jack Kukas – 52
Mason Rowe – 49
Jai Walker – 44
Tye Jones – 44
Jayce Cosford – 44
Mackenzie O’Bree – 41
Regan Duffy – 67 points
Maximus Purvis – 65
Mason Rowe – 60
Brodie Ellis – 51
Noah Ferguson – 49
Rhys Budd – 47
Tye Jones – 46
Mackenzie O’Bree – 45
Jai Walker – 44
Liam Walsh – 43
Regan Duffy – 289 points
Maximus Purvis – 272
Rhys Budd – 257
Brodie Ellis – 218
Mason Rowe – 207
Jack Kukas – 200
Noah Ferguson – 197
Jai Walker – 181
Liam Walsh – 179
Jayce Cosford – 178
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YMF Australian MXW Report
Meghan Rutledge was in a class of her own to win all four MXW motos while running lap times within 10 seconds per lap of the top MX2 riders while Maddy Brown and Jessica Moore battle over the minor podium positions all weekend.
MXW – Round 1 Overall (Top 10)
Meghan Rutledge – 70 points
Maddy Brown – 62
Jessica Moore – 62
Emma Milesevic – 56
Kara Cats – 51
Roma Edwards – 50
Tanesha Harnett – 49
Amy Bartsch – 45
Ebony Harris – 43
Britney Boyce – 42
Meghan Rutledge – 70 points
Jessica Moore – 60
Maddy Brown – 60
Emma Milesevic – 60
Roma Edwards – 51
Kara Cats – 51
Ebony Harris – 47
Amy Bartsch – 47
Steph Cutler – 43
Tanesha Harnett – 43
Meghan Rutledge – 140 points
Jessica Moore – 122
Maddy Brown – 122
Emma Milesevic – 116
Kara Cats – 102
Roma Edwards – 101
Amy Bartsch – 92
Tanesha Harnett – 92
Ebony Harris – 90
Britney Boyce – 81
Russell Lands Win at Indianapolis GNCC
The X-Factor Whitetails GNCC at Indianapolis has been won by defending champion and current points leader Kailub Russell by just under 8-seconds over Thad Duval while Ben Kelly won the XC2 class with a fifth overall result.
Kailub Russell captured the X-Factor Whitetails GNCC trophy with his overall win – Image by Ken Hill
Russell got the win over arch rival Thad Ducal and Josh Toth while Aussie Josh Strang struggled to a distant 13th overall but in the XC2 class Ben Kelley continues to be the man to beat with another win this time over Craig Delong and Alex Lee.
Jordan Ansley easily won the XC3 class with an incredible 16th outright while in the WXC class Tayla Jones continues to build the points lead as she defends her 2018 title with another win over Becca Sheets but fellow Aussie Mackenzie Tricker had a shocker with an unusual ninth but the former AMA Motocross Champion still hold third in the points.
GNCC Overall
K. Russell – XC1 Open Pro – Overall Leader 2. T. Duvall – XC1 Open Pro 3. J. Toth – XC1 Open Pro 4. S. Baylor JR – XC1 Open Pro 5. B. Kelley – XC2 250 Pro – Class Leader 6. R. Russell – XC1 Open Pro 7. G. Baylor – XC1 Open Pro 8. C. Delong – XC2 250 Pro 9. A. Delong – XC1 Open Pro 10. A. Lee – XC2 250 Pro 11. T. Bollinger – XC1 Open Pro 12. J. Ashburn – XC1 Open Pro 13. J. Strang – XC1 Open Pro 14. C. Buttrick – XC1 Open Pro 15. M. Witkowski – XC2 250 Pro 16. J. Ansley – XC3 125 Pro-Am – Class Leader
Overall Top 10 Points after Round 5
Kailub Russell – 140
Thaddeus Duvall – 122
Steward Baylor Jr – 105
Trevor Bollinger – 90
Benjamin Kelley – 78
Josh Strang – 67
Joshua Toth – 67
Jordan Ashburn – 58
Andrew Delong – 55
Michael Witkowski – 49
WXC Results
Tayla Jones
Becca N Sheets
Rachael Archer
Korie Steede
Shelby Rolen
Shyann Phelps
Elizabeth Perez
Brooke Cosner
Mackenzie Tricker
WXC Points after 5 Rounds
Tayla Jones – 141
Becca N Sheets – 130
Mackenzie Tricker – 100
Rachael Archer – 86
Brooke Cosner – 73
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Holcombe & Freeman share EnduroGP wins
The small town of Valpaços, about two-hours from Porto, hosted the second round of the FIM Enduro World Championship on mostly hard ground characterised with enormous rocks, as is typical for Portugal. Four rounds took place on Day 1, for a total of twelve special trials, while the following day three rounds took place.
Steve Holcombe
Steve Holcombe (Team Beta Factory Enduro), Alex Salvini (S2 Motorsport Honda RedMoto Sembenini Team) and Andrea Verona (TM Racing Factory Team) were the undisputed leaders in Portugal on the occasion of the second GP of the 2019 FIM Enduro World Championship, in their respective Enduro GP, E3, E2 and Junior classes.
In the EnduroGP, Steve Holcombe (Team Beta Factory Enduro) dominated the opening day in a fight to the end with his compatriot Brad Freeman, the following day winning second place. An excellent performance was also seen from Alex Salvini (S2 Motorsport Honda RedMoto Sembenini Team) who won two third places.
Alex Salvini
It was also a positive weekend for Davide Guarneri (Team Honda RedMoto) who in the E1 class gained two excellent second places.
The E2 class was dominated by Alex Salvini (S2 Motorsport Honda RedMoto Sembenini Team). The Bologna-born rider won both days of racing and fought to the end against Christophe Charlier (Team Honda RedMoto) who gave an outstanding performance. Alex Salvini thus jumps to the head of the provisional rankings.
A double win in the E3 class for the Metzeler-supported rider Steve Holcombe, saw the rider from the Team Beta Factory Enduro also dominate the second GP of the season. Two second places were claimed by Daniel McCanney (TM Racing Factory Team).
Daniel McCanney
It was also an excellent weekend of racing for the rider from the TM Racing Factory Team Andrea Verona who, also equipped with Metzeler MCE 6 Days Extreme tyres, on both days in the Junior class and is currently the leader in the class.
The FIM Enduro World Championship continues, and next weekend the racing will take place in Santiago de Compostela for the Spanish GP.
EnduroGP standings
Holcombe, Steve – 77
Freeman, Brad – 69
Mccanney, Daniel – 58
E1 Class standings
Freeman, Brad – 80
Guarneri, Davide – 62
Cavallo, Matteo – 62
E2 Class standings
Salvini, Alex – 64
Charlier, Christophe – 58
Herrera, Benjamin – 50
Christophe Charlier
E3 Class standings
Holcombe, Steve – 80
Mccanney, Daniel – 68
Geslin, Anthony – 56
Junior Class standings
Verona, Andrea – 80
Francisco, Enric – 55
Espinasse, Thèophile – 54
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Simpson and Ostlund Win British MX Nationals
Canada Heights hosted the third round of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship and it was Shaun Simpson and Alvin Ostlund who won the MXGP and MX2 classes respectively.
Simpson put his RFX KTM at the front of the pack in both motos to take two wins ahead of Tommy Searle (2-2) and Jake Millward (3-5) while Ostlund went 2-1 to earn the overall ahead of Dylan Walsh and Josh Gilbert but it was bad news for the defending champion in Conrad Mewse who won the opening moto before failing to finish the second moto.
Simpson now sits on 144pts and Searle on 136pts so the championship is still well and truly alive and they head to round four at the Blaxhall circuit on June 2.
MXGP Overall
Shaun Simpson – 50
Tommy Searle – 44
Jake Millward – 36
Harri Kullas – 33
Gert Krestinov – 33
Brad Anderson – 30
John Adamson – 25
Lewis Tombs – 24
Stuart Edmonds – 24
Robbie Dowson – 20
MX2 Overall
Alvin Ostlund – 47
Dylan Walsh – 40
Josh Gilbert – 38
Martin Barr – 36
Alexander Brown – 30
Taylor Hammal – 29
Michael Ellis – 27
Conrad Mewse – 25
Glen McCormick – 18
Ashton Dickinson – 18
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Jasikonis and Jacobi with Dutch Masters
The small town of Axel in Holland hosted the latest round of the Dutch Masters of Motocross and it was GP regulars in Arminas Jasikonis and Henri Jacobi who won the MXGP and MX2 classes respectively.
Arminas Jasikonis
Jasikonis’ 1-2 moto finishes gave the Husqvana rider the overall ahead of Glenn Coldenhoff and Jeremy Seewer while Jacobi (2-2) won the overall from Ben Watson (3-3) and Davey Pootjes (4-4) with Aussie Jed Beaton coming home in sixth overall well ahead of Jargo Geerts and Roan Van de Moosdijk both won a moto but DNF’d the other.
Ben Watson
Dutch MX Masters – MXGP Overall
Arminas Jasikonis – 47
Glenn Coldenhoff – 41
Jeremy Seewer – 36
Arnaud Tonus – 36
Pauls Jonass – 35
Petar Petrov – 27
Yentel Martens – 25
Benoit Paturel – 25
Lars Van Berkel – 23
Max Anstie – 22
MX2 Overall:
Henri Jacobi – 44
Ben Watson – 40
Davy Pootjes – 36
Mikkel Haarup – 30
Tom Vialle – 28
Jed Beaton – 27
Roan Van De Moosdijk – 25
Brent Vandonick – 25
Adam Sterry – 25
Jago Geerts – 25
Honda Signs Roczen for Three Years
American Honda have announced that Ken Roczen has renewed his contract with Team Honda HRC where the popular German will campaign the CRF450R in AMA Supercross and AMA Pro Motocross for the next three years.
Ken Roczen
Ken Roczen
“Re-signing with Honda was a no-brainer for me, I owe the team a lot and I feel like we have a lot of good days ahead of us. Three years is a long time, so when I signed, I was beyond stoked and it was a big pressure relief for me. The guys that I work with on this team are like a big family. Over the last two and a half years, the team and I have been through a lot. We’ve had some incredible highs but we’ve also hit rock bottom, and one thing that Honda always did—no matter what—was believe in me. They never gave up. The team also does whatever it takes to make a rider happy, which is huge because it brings comfort, and I want to win just as bad as they do. I know we haven’t done that in a while, but our work and what we do together isn’t done. Them standing behind me through thick and thin, the good times and the bad times, is what makes a great team, so I’m excited to continue our relationship.”
Ken Roczen
Lee Edmunds – American Honda’s Manager of Powersports Marketing Communications
“During his time with Honda so far, Ken’s dedication has been exemplary, the tenacity with which he pursues success is exceeded only by the resolve with which he approaches challenges. We firmly believe that attitude will help him—and us—get back on top. Ken is our guy, and we’re thrilled to continue together.”
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No Yamaha 450 riders at Vegas
The Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team was left without any riders at the final round of the AMA Supercross Championships after fill-in rider Josh Grant was forced to sit out the event after injuring his leg and ribs in a training crash Wednesday at the test track in Southern California.
Josh Grant – AMA SX Round 16, 2019
The veteran Supercross racer was brought on board to fill in for Aaron Plessinger who was injured around the halfway mark of the season in Daytona while Justin Barcia decided to sit out the final four rounds to recover from several injuries in a bid to be fot the motocross season.
Jim Perry, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“This was not the phone call you want to get, however, it is the sad part of the game. What a bummer for Josh Grant and the whole team. Josh has been making improvements each week with two strong top-10 finishes in the previous events. He has been working hard to finish the Supercross series on a high note and it’s a shame that he will be sidelined for the finale.”
Todd Waters to USA
With the Australian MX Nationals on a seven-week break Todd Waters is heading to America to compete in the opening three rounds of the AMA Motocross Championships and here is what he wrote on social media:
Todd Waters – Social Media
“On Thursday we jump on the plane to the United States. The Australian MX Nationals calendar has a seven week break, which we realised lines up perfectly with the opening 3 rounds of the AMA Outdoors. In 2018 I had planned to do the AMA outdoors but found myself back competing in the MXGP’s. I’m excited to live out a lifelong dream. I’m looking forward to keeping the ball rolling. I’m anticipating that continuing to race and to race against some of the world’s fastest riders will up my intensity for the second half of the Australian MX Nationals season.
Todd Water
“The trip will be a journey of epic proportions. 3000+ miles in a hired RV, an entourage (including but not limited to, my girlfriend, mum & little sister plus New Zealand buddies Cody Cooper and mechanic Lee), a couple of albek.co suitcases filled with parts, 2 mechanics (my Dad & cousin Jason), one borrowed, stock FC 450 and one pipe dream!”
Sweden, Poland and Germany Advance to SoN Finals
Sweden, Poland and Germany have qualified for the Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations Finals in Togliatti on July 20 and 21 after top Swede Fredrik Lindgren scored 18 points to lead his team to an emphatic win.
The Swedish team of Lindgren (18p), Peter Ljung (6p) and Peter Hjelmland (1p) topped the teams event on 25 points at Race Off 1 in Landshut last Saturday night, with Poland scoring 24 and Germany 20 to join them in the Finals.
Speedway of Nations 2019
Lindgren may have been in red-hot form, but he admits Ljung’s decision to let him start every race from gate one or two made a huge difference as the Vastervik man bagged his points the hard way.
Fredrik Lindgren
“We are very satisfied with this performance. We are happy to go straight through to Russia for the Finals. It’s a tough meeting. You can’t afford to make any mistakes. That was a job well done. It’s a team effort because Peter gave me the inside gates. He didn’t really feel comfortable in the beginning and I said to him he should maybe try the inside gates to get going. But he wanted us to at least get the heat win and I have to give it up to him. It’s a team effort and we did a good job together.”
Speedway of Nations 2019
Polish star Bartosz Zmarzlik was delighted to power his side through to Togliatti as he joined forces with Patryk Dudek, who was only drafted in the 11th hour when Maciej Janowski withdrew due to a shoulder ligament injury.
Bartosz Zmarzlik
“I am very happy because Poland took the next step and we’re through to the Finals in Togliatti. Second place is not so bad and we were very close to the win against Sweden. Patryk did a very good job for the Poland team, but I’d like to say hello to Magic and we keep our fingers crossed he will come back to the track soon. This meeting wasn’t bad for me and I am happy. But in Togliatti we have two days and we will see what happens. There are two months to go.”
German ace Martin Smolinski was delighted to see his side reach their second straight world final in front of a passionate home crowd in Landshut.
Martin Smolinski
“It’s job done – it’s very nice. It’s always nice to get to the next round in front of the home crowd. We had a very good team performance, I think. Every one of us scored some good points. We showed how good German speedway is at a very good venue. We had a lot of rain in the afternoon, but the track guys worked very well and I think we saw some very nice racing out there.”
Speedway of Nations 2019
The Monster Energy SON now moves to Manchester’s National Speedway Stadium for Race Off 2 next Saturday, as Great Britain tackle Australia, Denmark, USA, France, Finland and Latvia.
Monster Energy Son Race Off 1 Scores
SWEDEN 25:
1 Fredrik Lindgren 18, 2 Peter Ljung 6, 3 Peter Hjelmland 1.
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Woffinden and Doyle to Clash his Weekend
World Champions Tai Woffinden and Jason Doyle will go head-to-head this weekend at the Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations Race Off 2 in Manchester where the Brits and Aussies are up against Denmark, USA, Latvia, France and Finland with three places up for grabs for the SON Finals at the Russian race track Togliatti on July 20 and 21.
Jason Doyle Speedway GP – Image by Colin Rosewarne
Reigning world No.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 while 2017 World Champion Doyle leads the Australian challenge.
The top three teams in Manchester join last weekend’s SON Race Off 1 qualifiers Sweden, Poland and Germany along with hosts and defending champions Russia at the Finals in Togliatti.
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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WESS Kicks off this Weekend
After a successful debut as a series in 2018, the opening round of the 8-round World Enduro Super Series (WESS) kicks off in Portugal this weekend with the Toyota Porto Extreme XL Lagares which is now in its 15th edition where the three-day race showcases Superenduro, Urban and Hard Enduro.
WESS returns this weekend!
Defining its parameters for 2019, WESS will feature Classic Enduro, Hard Enduro and Cross-Country racing, while mixing a variety of iconic events and new venues together to create the perfect blend of Enduro racing.
From Portugal defending champion Billy Bolt and the rest of the WESS contenders will criss-cross Europe to take on some of the most iconic and challenging off-road events in France, Austria, Italy, Romania, UK, Spain and Germany – below is the official calendar.
World Enduro Super Series – 2019 Calendar
Round 1: Extreme XL Lagares (Portugal) May 10-12
Round 2: Trèfle Lozérien AMV (France) May 17-19
Round 3: Erzbergrodeo Red Bull Hare Scramble (Austria) May 30-June 2
Round 4: Classic Enduro (Italy) TBA
Round 5: Red Bull Romaniacs (Romania) July 30-August 4
Round 6: Hawkstone Park Cross Country (United Kingdom) September 21-22
Round 7: Solsona Enduro (Spain) October 5-6
Round 8: GetzenRodeo (Germany) November 2-3
Weekly update on our Aussies abroad
Jed Beaton – Rockstar Husqvarna
Championship: World MX2 Motocross Championship Current Standing: 13th after Round 4 of 17 Notes: Jed rode the Dutch Masters of Motocross last weekend and came away with a solid 6th so he is primed and ready for the MXGP of Lombardi in Italy this weekend.
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 this coming weekend.
Mitch Evans
Tayla Jones – Rockstar/Husqvarna/Moose Racing/Shaw Wines
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 1st after Round 5 of 13 Notes: Tayla won the latest round in Indianapolis on May 5 and has extended her points lead in the WXC class to 11 over second placed Becca Sheets.
Tayla Jones – Image by Sarah Kinrade
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.
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 – Hoppenworld Image
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: 15th after Round 17 of 17 Notes: Chad was part of a multi bike crash at Seattle when he was sitting 7th in the championship and after the series was completed the Aussie still ended up 15th in the points – we now hold out hopes that Chad will line up for the AMA Motocross Championships.
Chad Reed – Image by Hoppenworld
Wil Ruprecht – Johansson MPE Yamaha
Championship: EnduroGP – Junior Class Current Standing: 2nd after Round 2 of 7. Notes: Wil once again proved his world class riding ability at Valpaços in Portugal last weekend with a 2nd and a 4th over the two days of competition where some of the veterans of the sport declared it one of the toughest events in recent history.
Wil Ruprecht – Image by Caroline Joelsson
Meghan Rutledge – Bud Racing Kawasaki
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 5 of 13 Notes: Josh ended the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis in a disappointing 13th outright but he still sits 6th overall in the series with 8 rounds remaining.
Josh Strang
Mackenzie Tricker – KTM/MEPMX/Fly Racing
Championship: GNCC Current Standing: 3rd after Round 5 of 13 Notes: Mackenzie ended the ‘X Factor Whitetails’ at Peru near Indianapolis in 9th place which is her poorest performance in years but she still sits third in points with 8 rounds remaining and my bet is still for the former motocross champion to pull off a win this season.
Mackenzie Tricker – 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.
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After a highly successful outing in 2018 in Chile, the official Team Australia that will head over to compete the 2019 FIM ISDE in Portimao Portugal has been announced, with the event running November 11-16 and this years team tasked with defending two coveted trophies in order to remain the top spot.
Over six days on three different routes, traversing 1,500 kilometres and tackling 10 demanding special tests, Team Australia will go up against more than 30 nations from five continents. Riding on the back of an undeniably successful 2018 in Chile where Team Australia took home the Outright World Champion, World Trophy and Women’s World Trophy, the three teams will call upon a wealth of experience and an invaluable support team as they push both mind and body to the ultimate test.
2019 ISDE Australian Team announced
2018 ISDE Outright Champion, Daniel Milner (KTM Enduro Racing Team), returns again for 2019 riding a currently perfect Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) E2 season. Joining Milner for the second year in a row is speed demon and larrikin, Daniel Sanders (Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team), whose ferocity in the 2019 AORC season as well as appearances in the Pirelli MX Nationals shows no chance of slowing down.
Long-time Australian ISDE competitor, Joshua Green (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube), returns to Team Australia for 2019 atop his Yamaha, bringing a World Trophy win from 2015 and immense AORC experience to the table. Rounding out the 2019 Australian World Trophy Team is Green’s Active8 Yamaha Yamalube teammate Luke Styke. Styke has become the first Australian to win an Australian Motocross, Supercross and AORC title, and will be an extremely valuable asset to the World Trophy Team as they pursue a campaign to protect their winning streak.
2019 ISDE Australian Team announced
Revered as a titan in the ISDE Women’s category, the Australian Women’s World Trophy team returns unchanged from 2018. With six consecutive title wins, these three ladies are one of the most successful Australian female sporting teams, let alone in motorcycling. Two-time Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Women’s Cross Country (WXC) Champion, Tayla Jones (Husqvarna Motorcycles USA), returns to defend her top spot in the Women’s category, and based on her stunning results so far in the 2019 racing season over in the United States, Jones will be a force to be reckoned with.
Currently pursuing a record breaking five-time AORC Women’s title record and set to land in Portugal for the Australian Women’s World Trophy Team is Jessica Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off-Road Team)! Taking the third and final position in the Women’s World Trophy Team is 2018 ISDE newcomer, Mackenzie Tricker (KTM). Tricker was a valuable team member of the 2018 victorious Women’s World Trophy Team, mounting a KTM, and closed off the her first ISDE event with an impressive finish in 9th place.
2019 ISDE Australian Team announced
Landing in Portugal for Australia’s Junior World Trophy Team will be three familiar faces, who fans will recognise as the 2017 Australian ISDE Junior World Trophy Team. With a plethora of experience under their belts since 2017, Michael Driscoll (Active8 Yamaha Yamalube), Wil Ruprecht (Yamaha) and Lyndon Snodgrass (KTM Enduro Racing Team) will represent Australia in Portimao, Portugal for six gruelling days of what’s fondly coined the “Olympics of motorcycling”.
Driscoll, mounting a Yamaha, will come into November’s festivities with the success of his 2018 AORC EJ Championship title plus strong continued results in the 2019 AORC E1 class. Featuring regularly now in the EnduroGP, Ruprecht will be comfortable in the Portuguese landscape after a strong EnduroGP Portugal with a second-place podium finish on Day 1. Returning to the Australian squad for the third year in a row, Snodgrass will bring experience from both the Junior and World Trophy Teams to support his teammates in achieving glory.
Don Atkins will continue his successful role as the Australian ISDE Team Manager for 2019.
The full official list of the 2019 Australian ISDE squad is as follows:
The first day of the Portuguese EnduroGP was held under bright sunshine in Valpaços, where the physical condition and strength of the riders was put to the test over the course of seven hours of riding.
Steve Holcombe took on the day in his usual dominant and consistent style, and he was able to really make the difference on his favourite – the Enduro Test, which is very long test in Portugal. Increasing his advantage with every pass through this demanding test, Holcombe built up a comfortable lead. The Brit won a total of five tests on Saturday, making him the best ‘performer’ of the day.
Steve Holcombe
“It was absolutely fantastic, everything went well. Even though I had some difficulty getting myself into the rhythm this morning. I’ll be honest this kind of terrain is really not my strong point but I’m delighted to dominate today. Now i’ll rest and try to attack again tomorrow”
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
The battle to accompany him on the overall podium was superb, between Alex Salvini, Loic Larrieu, Brad Freeman, Danny McCanney and Giacomo Redondi. By midday the top 10 was covered by just 30 seconds.
Brad Freeman struggled with the first Enduro Test of the day, where he lost 14 seconds on Holcombe and fell to third overall. Gradually the Beta Boano rider managed to work his way back up again by winning three tests. He had to give his all to finish second overall.
Alex Salvini wanted to forget the unfortunate start to the season he suffered in Germany. In a good rhythm from the beginning of the day, the Italian worked hard all day to hold on to his second place overall and fight off Brad Freeman.
It was a fantastic fight between the two riders! Even at the start of the fourth and final lap the gap was a tiny eight-thousandths of a second. Finally Salvini conceded the second place to Freeman, but “Rocky” was satisfied to be able to show a glimpse of his real form.
Loïc Larrieu
There was a big disappointment for Loïc Larrieu, who was forced to give up after a broken engine on his 300cc TM. The Frenchman fought for the podium for most of the day. His bike was fixed in time for Day 2.
Fourth on the day, Danny McCanney had to fight against fierce opponents in the form of Christophe Charlier, who came fifth – putting in a nice performance riding with a broken toe. Giacomo Redondi finished sixth on the day and he looked impressive on the Maxxis Cross-Test.
Meanwhile, Eero Remes had a difficult day, an error on the third Technomousse Extreme Test lost him a lot of time. The Finn is still getting used to riding his Yamaha 450, but he salvaged seventh place.
Brad Freeman
In E1, Brad Freeman took another strong victory, finishing ahead of a consistent Davide Guarneri and an impressive Matteo Cavallo.
Brad Freeman
“Steve is really on another planet, so I focused on my own battle with Salvini and it was good to fight with him. I’m tired and I can tell you it was one of the hardest days of racing in my career.”
In the highly contested category E2, Salvini took the honours in front of Charlier and Redondi. Finally, in E3, the victory naturally went to Steve Holcombe , ahead of an ever fast McCanney and France’s Anthony Geslin.
Alex Salvini
“What a pleasure to fight at the front again! I really want to thank my team, my bike was perfect. I was riding a little bit hurt after my falls in the Italian Championship, but today I felt good all day. I’m ready to give it all again tomorrow.”
Alex Salvini
In the Junior category, the fight was absolutely fantastic between the dicing duo composed of Will Ruprecht and Andrea Verona. Leading all morning Ruprecht made a small mistake in the third Extreme Test. From then on, he could not do anything to fight off Verona, with the Italian recovering strongly from bike issues at the start of the day.
Will Ruprecht
“Unlike Germany, I’m not as disappointed with my performance. I fought well all day. I still suffered a lot in the second half of the day and I still need to work on my fitness and my adaptation to living in this new hemisphere.”
Wil Ruprecht – Image by Caroline Joelsson
After Verona got the bike back to his liking, the Italian produced an incredible effort and managed to take over the lead at the end of the third lap! Ruprecht held on to a handy second place. Third overall on the day was Enric Francisco who finished ahead of Jack Edmondson fourth.
Andrea Verona
“I tried some new parts on my bike after the training day but then I decided to go back to my previous settings because I wasn’t in the flow of things. It was a good idea to make the adjustments because I was able to attack again as I like to do. It’s great to have another victory and I’m super happy.”
The J1 category podium consisted of Verona, Ruprecht, and Theo Espinasse. In J2 Francisco took his second win in a row after a debut victory in Germany. Edmondson and Ruy Barbosa rounded out the top three.
In Youth 125cc, Hamish MacDonald left little chance for his opponents. He won eight tests and finished second in all the others. His winning margin was an amazing 57 seconds ahead of a fantastic Claudio Spanu, who worked very hard to come back from a five second penalty. Matteo Pavoni was third in the Youth class, finishing just seven seconds behind compatriot Spanu.
In the Champion Lubricants Enduro Open Cup, the giant from the Isle of Man – David Knight imposed himself on the Senior category. He won in front of Andrea Belotti and local rider Fernando Ferreira.
In Open 4-stroke, Tom Ellwood was unstoppable, leaving Fraser Flockhart and Mathias Van Hoof to round out the podium. Belgium’s Van Hoof was thrilled with his first world level podium.
Goncalo Reis was the hero of the day for the local fans! The Portuguese rider took top honours in the Open 2-Stroke category. His compatriot Joao Lourenco was second, and Spaniard Jorge Paradelo Rodriguez third.
EnduroGP Results Day 1
Steve HOLCOMBE
Brad FREEMAN
Alex SALVINI
Daniel MCCANNEY
Christophe CHARLIER
Giacomo REDONDI
Eero REMES
Davide GUARNERI
Matteo CAVALLO
Thomas OLDRATI
Benjamin HERRERA
Hugo BLANJOUE
Antoine BASSET
Anthony GESLIN
David ABGRALL
E1 Day 1 Top 3
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
E2 Day 1 Top 3
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Christophe CHARLIER – France
Giacomo REDONDI – Italy
E3 Day 1 Top 3
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Anthony GESLIN – France
Junior Day 1 – Top 3
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
J1 Day 1 – Top 3
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
J2 Day 1 – Top 3
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Ruy BARBOSA – Chile
Youth 125 Cup Day 1 – Top 3
Hamish MAC DONALD – New Zealand
Claudio SPANU – Italy
Matteo PAVONI – Italy
Portuguese EnduroGP Day 2
On the second day of racing in Valpaços, riders set off for another three laps in the tough Portuguese terrain. The weather was much the same as day one – warm and dry, but the special tests were rougher. One of the biggest questions of the season was answered today – who can beat quadruple World Champion Steve Holcombe?
Brad Freeman was the one to topple his compatriot! The Beta Boano rider showed his strength all day long, but the gaps were still tiny between Freeman and his rivals. The Brit kept his focus and pulled out a gap over the usually dominant Holcombe. And so the youngster won his first overall Grand Prix in 2019 and boosts his confidence for the next round in Spain next week.
Brad Freeman
“It was a great day, but it wasn’t without mistakes! Steve and I both made mistakes and fell several times. The hard work i’ve put in this winter has paid off with this overall victory in Enduro GP, it’s just incredible ….I’ll try to do the same thing in Spain next week!”
Brad Freeman
Steve Holcombe had been hoping for four victories from four days of racing. The factory Beta rider instead had to settle for the second step on the overall podium. A little tired from his efforts the day before, Holcombe still threatened Freeman all day.
Steve Holcombe
“It was harder on Sunday. I am not overly satisfied with my physical condition lately. Nevertheless I remain satisfied with my result. Brad has been great and I have to congratulate him on this deserved victory. I now want to rest well and arrive next week in great shape.”
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
Alex Salvini was solid and strong again on Day 2. He was able to see off his opponents one by one, starting with Davide Guarneri who had been set for the final step of the EnduroGP podium. And so ‘Rocky’ finished third overall on Day 2, and he’ll go to Spain in good spirits.
Several riders were tested to the max throughout this second day of racing. Danny made a big mistake in the first Technomousse Extreme Test, but the TM rider pulled it back for another good performance – he won a test and leaves Valpaços in 4th position. The Manxman’s performance will have pleased the team, as their other rider Loïc Larrieu was unable to start following a mechanical failure on Day 1 that wasn’t fixed in time.
Honda Lunigiana rider Davide Guarneri put in another impressive performance and he fought well all day. The Italian finished 7th overall on the day. Also on a Honda, the Frenchman Christophe Charlier took his second top five overall of the weekend. “CC” is pleased with his progress on the Honda CRF450.
Davide Guarneri
“This weekend was complicated but I am happy with my results, I led in the E1 class for a while and I was even temporarily on the podium in EnduroGP. I know my weakness lies in the Extreme tests, so I know where I have to work to improve my results.”
Davide Guarneri
The duel in E1 was a great one, and Brad Freeman won and ahead of Davide Guarneri and 2018 Junior World Champion Matteo Cavallo.
Alex Salvini was delighted with his second consecutive victory in E2. He took the top step ahead of Christophe Charlier and Eero Remes. Loïc Larrieu really lost out this weekend with a DNF and a DNS.
Alex Salvini
“What a fabulous weekend! I came with the goal of making my mark in the E2 class. And now that I’ve achieved that I want to increase my general level and fight it out for victory in the EnduroGP class.”
Alex Salvini
Despite losing out on the overall victory today, Steve Holcombe still took top honours in the E3 class. In fact, the podium was identical to that of Day 1 with Holcombe accompanied by Mccanney and Anthony Geslin.
By a tiny margin of just 9 seconds, Spain’s Enric Francisco conceded overall Junior victory against Andrea Verona. Ivan Cervantes’ protege had a solid race all day, but a mistake in the last Enduro Test cost him time, and the ‘shark’ Andrea Verona was ready to attack after stalking his rival closely all day. However, impressive Francisco will carry a lot of confidence into his home GP next week in Santiago de Compostela.
Four out of four is the formidable statistic of Andrea Verona. So far, the TM rider has been near faultless in the Junior category. After this exemplary start to the season, Andrea hopes to keep up this pace and continue his winning streak.
Everyone expected Will Ruprecht to be on at least one podium today, but instead it was Jack Edmondson who stepped up to snatch the third step on the overall podium. The Sherco rider suffered with the heat this weekend, but he found enough energy and coupled this with his silky smooth riding style to finish this Portuguese weekend on a positive note.
Wil Ruprecht – Image by Caroline Joelsson
Meanwhile the friendly Australian, Ruprecht, finished 2 minutes 30 behind Verona on this very tough Sunday. We’re sure he’ll be back for more next weekend.
The classification in J1 was Verona ahead of Theo Espinasse and another Frenchman, Thomas Dubost.
In J2 Francisco and Edmondson were accompanied by the class rookie Ruy Barbosa.
Enric Francisco
“Andrea was really strong today, I fought hard, but I made a big mistake and he managed to beat me. I am very happy with this weekend and that gives me confidence before my home GP in Spain. Thanks to my coach, Ivan Cervantes, and the whole team for their support.”
What a display by Hamish MacDonald in the Youth 125 class! The New Zealander signs off his 4th success of the season. He finished Day 2 with a slightly smaller lead than the first day as he admitted making a few mistakes towards the end of the day. But it’s a clean sweep for the Kiwi nevertheless.
MacDonald was joined on this Sunday podium by Alejandro Navarro and Claudio Spanu.
In the Champion Lubricants Enduro Open World Cup, the results were almost identical to those of Day 1. David Knight won the Senior class ahead of Ferreira who moved up one place compared to Saturday. Andrea Belotti completed the top three.
In the Open 2-Stroke class it was another popular victory for Portugal’s Goncalo Reis. He beat compatriot Joao Lourenco and Spain’s Jorge Paradelo Rodriguez.
In Open 4-Stroke, Tom Ellwood took his second win of the weekend. Fraser Flockhart and Mathias Van Hoof were second and third once again.
There’s not long for the riders to rest and recover after this punishing weekend, as next week they’ll head to the third round of the season and the Grand Prix of Spain in Santiago de Compostela. A huge and heartfelt ‘thank you; goes out to the organisers of this Grand Prix of Portugal, they gave us a fantastic event and the whole of the FIM Maxxis Enduro World Championship agreed that the organisation was brilliant.
EnduroGP Results Day 2
Brad FREEMAN
Steve HOLCOMBE
Alex SALVINI
Daniel MCCANNEY
Christophe CHARLIER
Eero REMES
Davide GUARNERI
Matteo CAVALLO
Benjamin HERRERA
Giacomo REDONDI
Antoine BASSET
Thomas OLDRATI
Hugo BLANJOUE
Anthony GESLIN
Diogo VENTURA
EnduroGP Standings
Steve HOLCOMBE 77
Brad FREEMAN 69
Daniel MCCANNEY 58
Alex SALVINI 41
Christophe CHARLIER 33
Eero REMES 32
Matteo CAVALLO 32
Davide GUARNERI 28
Thomas OLDRATI 25
Benjamin HERRERA 24
E1 Day 2 Top 3
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
E1 Standings
Brad FREEMAN 80
Davide GUARNERI 62
Matteo CAVALLO 62
E2 Day 2 Top 3
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Christophe CHARLIER – France
Eero REMES – Finland
E2 Standings
Alex SALVINI 64
Christophe CHARLIER 58
Benjamin HERRERA 50
E3 Day 2 Top 3
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Anthony GESLIN – France
E3 Standings
Steve HOLCOMBE 80
Daniel MCCANNEY 68
Anthony GESLIN 56
Junior Day 2 – Top 3
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom …13. Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Junior Standings
Andrea VERONA 80
Enric FRANCISCO 55
Théophile ESPINASSE 54
Jack EDMONDSON 52
Wil RUPRECHT 52
J1 Day 2 – Top 3
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Thomas DUBOST – France …7. Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Smarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
The LATEST News
Musquin and Ferrandis win in Seattle SX
Chad Reed OUT of 2019 Season
2019 A4DE postponed – Date TBA
Cairoli and Kjer Olsen storm Matterley Basin MXGP
Forato and Anderson win EMX in Great Britain
Prado sits out MXGP of Great Britain
Herlings to return to MXGP in May
Holcombe dominates EnduroGP
HRC’s Ricky Brabec wins the Sonora Rally
Ryan brothers shine at Casey Stoner Cup
Musquin and Ferrandis win in Seattle SX
Seattle hosted last weekend’s round of the AMA Supercross Championships and it was French riders Marvin Musquin and Dylan Ferrandis who won the 450SX and 250SX West main events respectively after an action-packed and somewhat controversial night of racing.
AMA Supercross Round 12 – Seattle – Image by Hoppenworld
The race was reasonably stagnant right up to the chequered flag with Musquin, Roczen, and Tomac filling the. Musquin took his second consecutive win but as far as the points go he was docked seven points for jumping through a medical flag.
Marvin Musquin
“I know what I did wrong, I have no excuses, I was leading and going for it and I saw the yellows (flags) and I did slow down but I did jump, but this doesn’t take away from my win because after that I slowed down and was looking back and Kenny was right behind me but I put in a solid main, I am really happy with my riding and that doesn’t take anything away (from the win), so I am really happy.”
Marvin Musquin – Image by Hoppenworld
Chad Reed lost traction as the field entered the second jump section at Seattle on the weekend, and sustained a hefty injury list from the clash, with eight broken ribs, a broken scapula and a collapsed lung. But blamed nobody but himself. See below for more details.
450SX Main Event Results
Marvin Musquin
Ken Roczen
Eli Tomac
Cooper Webb
Joey Savatgy
Dean Wilson
Blake Baggett
Zach Osborne
Cole Seely
Tyler Bowers
450SX Main Event Results – Image by Hoppenworld
Marvin Musquin
Ken Roczen +02.361
Eli Tomac +07.407
450SX Points after 12 of 17 Rounds
Cooper Webb – 262
Marvin Musquin – 248
Eli Tomac – 243
Ken Roczen – 239
Blake Baggett – 200
Dean Wilson – 180
Joey Savatgy – 159
Chad Reed – 151
Justin Barcia – 144
Cole Seely – 142
250 West Coast Report
Cianciarulo made a mistake in the whoops late in the race, handing Ferrandis a handy lead with one lap remaining but Cianciarulo was able to close right back up on Ferrandis and even went for an unlikely block pass on the final turn. He came up short so it was Ferrandis’ first main win in America while Cianciarulo, Decotis, Mosiman and Chris Blose rounded out the top five ahead of RJ Hampshire who came back to sixth after the start straight crash.
AMA SX Round 12 – 250 Start – Image by Hoppenworld
Cianciarulo now holds a 12-point lead over Ferrandis as they head to Houston next weekend while the big losers at Seattle were Shane McElrath and Nichols with the third and fourth placed riders in the points scoring zero on the night thanks to McElrath pulling out after practice with a back injury and the first lap crash of Nichols.
Dylan Ferrandis
“It has taken me three years in America to get my first win, I have suffered a lot of bad starts but tonight I got a good start then my teammate (Nichols) crashed right in front of me so I took the lead and I was leading the main which is new for me so I just tried to ride with no mistakes, Adam was right on my back and it was really challenging for me but I think for the future this is going to help me a lot.”
Dylan Ferrandis – Image by Hoppenworld
250 West Coast Main Event Results
Dylan Ferrandis
Adam Cianciarulo
Jimmy Decotis
Michael Mosiman
Chris Blose
RJ Hampshire
Mitchell Harrison
Cameron McAdoo
Enzo Lopes
Justin Starling
250 West Coast Main Event Results – Image by Hoppenworld
Dylan Ferrandis
Adam Cianciarulo +00.571
Jimmy Decotis +23.247
250 West Coast Points after 7 of 11 Rounds
Adam Cianciarulo – 163
Dylan Ferrandis – 151
Shane McElrath – 123
Colt Nichols – 121
J. Hampshire – 103
Michael Mosiman – 99
Chris Blose – 98
Cameron McAdoo – 94
Jimmy Decotis – 94
Garrett Marchbanks – 85
250 East Coast Points after 6 of 9 Rounds
Austin Forkner – 151
Chase Sexton – 125
Justin Cooper – 123
Alex Martin – 92
Martin Davalos – 89
Mitchell Oldenburg – 88
Brandon Hartranft – 82
Kyle Cunningham – 81
Kyle Peters – 79
Jordon Smith – 70
Smarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
Chad Reed OUT of 2019 Season
Superstar Chad Reed has been forced out of the remainder of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship following injuries received in a multi-rider pile-up at Seattle last weekend.
Reed has a hefty injury list from the clash, with eight broken ribs, a broken scapula and a collapsed lung. – Image by Hoppenworld
Reed was on the inside of Cooper Webb going through the second right hand corner of the main event but his JGR Suzuki spun up as he was trying to launch into the next rhythm section and with the rest of the field flying down to the left his Suzuki spewed directly into the path of a heap of riders bringing Ryan Breece and Justin Brayton down before Kyle Chisolm was left with no choice but to land right on top of Reed.
Via social media the 32-year-old Reed announced that the crash has resulted in the multi supercross champion having to sit out the remaining five rounds.
Chad Reed – Instagram
“Yesterday was fun. Finally a halfway technical track; The whoops were so freaking awesome loved every pass, unfortunately a mistake in the main was costly. Eight broken ribs, broken scapula and a collapsed lung. I’m bummed my year comes to an end with five to go.”
Chad Reed – Image by Hoppenworld
2019 A4DE postponed – Date TBA
Motorcycling Australia (MA) have advise all competitors and teams entered into the 2019 Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE), that the event has been postponed, with a date to be confirmed in due course, find below further details:
A4DE 2018 – Image by Jeff Mawston
Motorcycling Australia (MA) Statement
“Due to government approvals surrounding the environment in which the 2019 A4DE will take place, the date for this prestigious event has been delayed. To ensure that the area spanning the event’s four days are supported and protected to best of the Motorcycling New South Wales Enduro Committee’s and Far South Coast Motorcycle Club’s abilities, this change in date is vital to the success of the A4DE 41st anniversary.
“To ensure the least amount of disruption to riders and teams alike, full refunds due to the date change will be provided, if requested, within 21 days. For a full refund please contact the A4DE secretary via [email protected].
“For further information surrounding the event and how to enter, please head to the A4DE website and Facebook. “MA and A4DE appreciate your patience and understanding in this matter. Further updates regarding the 2019 A4DE official date will be released via MA in due course.”
Cairoli and Kjer Olsen storm Matterley Basin MXGP
Perfect weather and a huge crowd gave Great Britain’s Matterley Basin circuit a boost as it hosted the second round of the FIM World Motocross Championship last weekend and it was Tony Cairoli who clinched his second win of the season while Thomas Kjer Olsen rode the wheels off his Husqvarna in the MX2 class to take his first win of the year.
Tony Cairoli in the lead
MXGP Report
Despite a shoulder injury Cairoli garnered his 87th GP victory with 1-2 moto results but you would have to say ‘the man’ of the GP was Tim Gajser who had a massive high-speed crash while leading the opening moto only to bounce back to finish third THEN get it all together to win the second moto ahead of a determined Cairoli.
Gautier Paulin’s 2-3 gave him third overall ahead of Clement Desalle, Jeremy Van Horebeek, Arnaud Tonus, Max Anstie, Jeremy Seewer, Arminas Jasikonis and Julien Lieber so after two rounds Cairoli leads the championship by just 8 points over Gajser who in turn has a 15-point lead over Paulin.
Tony Cairoli
“It was a great weekend and this track is for sure one of my favourites but, today it was very difficult to push from the beginning. I couldn’t really push because I am stiff on my right shoulder and neck which gave me arm pump right away. Hopefully I can be 100% again for the next race but overall, I’m really happy, of course for the championship everything is going well and this is my goal.”
Tony Cairoli
Tim Gajser is proving to be Cairoli’s main competition so far this season.
Tim Gajser
“Today was a special day for me and I’m really happy to finish on the podium. The first race I had a good start I was behind Tony and managed to pass him quickly but made a little gap then I made a mistake … thankfully I could continue. I was really happy to win the second race and I’m looking forward to next weekend. We can see that we are going to the right direction so we will continue pushing hard with the team and everybody I’m just happy that the pace and everything is finally back.”
Tim Gajser – Image by Bavo
Gautier Paulin’s second round on the Yamaha earned the French star a solid podium.
Gautier Paulin
“Every weekend on the box is a good weekend. I was happy with the first moto. In the second moto I was riding stiff in the beginning, but overall, we had a good weekend and made a big step forward since Argentina. This was always the goal and this is what we are working really hard towards. I am really happy with my team Monster Energy Wilvo Yamaha MXGP and the work they are putting in.”
Dean Ferris started the opening moto just inside the top 30 but as you would expect our fastest 450 rider made his way to 15th with lap times that were comparable to the like of Max Anstie, Arminas Jasikonis and Glenn Coldenhoff but a fall at the start of the second moto not only put pay to what should have been a great weekend for Ferris and it looks like he has picked up a knee injury.
Dean Ferris
“It was a tough weekend, but I got more comfortable in every session. I thought the last fifteen minutes of the race I found my groove and had some really good lap-times, so I was content with that. In moto two, I went down on the start and I have hurt my knee, so that will need to be assessed.”
Dean Ferris
MXGP Race 1 Top Ten
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 36:37.831
Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:01.956
Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), +0:04.473
Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:24.293
Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Honda), +0:26.271
Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Yamaha), +0:27.618
Max Anstie (GBR, KTM), +0:45.107
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +0:46.683
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, Husqvarna), +0:49.675
Julien Lieber (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:56.271
MXGP Race 2 Top Ten
Tim Gajser (SLO, Honda), 36:01.717
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), +0:01.709
Gautier Paulin (FRA, Yamaha), +0:54.204
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, Husqvarna), +0:57.637
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, Yamaha), +1:00.564
Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Honda), +1:05.984
Clement Desalle (BEL, Kawasaki), +1:20.385
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), +1:22.071
Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +1:26.697
Ivo Monticelli (ITA, KTM), +1:28.257
2019 MXGP Podium – Matterley Basin, UK – 1) Tony Cairoli, 2) Tim Gajser, 3) Gautier Paulin
MXGP Overall Top Ten
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 47 points
Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 45 points
Gautier Paulin (FRA, YAM), 42 points
Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 32 points
Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, HON), 31 points
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, HUS), 30 points
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 29 points
Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, KTM), 22 points
Max Anstie (GBR, KTM), 21 points
Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 17 points
MXGP Championship Top Ten
Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 97 points
Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 89 points
Gautier Paulin (FRA, YAM), 74 points
Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, HON), 66 points
Clement Desalle (BEL, KAW), 65 points
Arminas Jasikonis (LTU, HUS), 56 points
Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 50 points
Max Anstie (GBR, KTM), 39 points
Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 39 points
Tommy Searle (GBR, KAW), 38 points
Smarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
MX2 Report
Olsen’s dominant weekend ended with a perfect 1-1 score to take the overall ahead of the hard charging Henry Jacobi’s 2-3 and Tom Vialle’s 3-4 which put the second-generation French motocross star on the podium in his second ever MX2 GP.
Thomas Kjer Olsen
Thomas Kjer Olsen’s first win of the season is not only a confidence booster but the Husqvarna rider now has a 16 point lead over second placed Jacobi in the championship and more importantly a 44 point lead over defending champion Jorge Prado who was forced to sit out the GP with a shoulder injury.
Thomas Kjer Olsen
“It was amazing to go 1-1 for the first time and it was even better when I was on the podium and they gave me the red plate because I didn’t realize I would be leading the points. Overall I had a great weekend, I felt really good out on the track, I had great energy and I felt really comfortable, we even made improvements every time I was out so I was really happy with that and how the whole team is working.”
Thomas Kjer Olsen
Jacobi is supported by F&H Kawasaki but it is far from being a factory team.
Henry Jacobi
“I had some special lines that I was seeing and nobody else took. 2nd overall is really good for us, the team, you know we are not a factory team, but we made some really good steps over the winter with F&H Racing.”
Henry Jacobi
Australian riders Jed Beaton and Mitch Evans had mixed success with Beaton’s return to racing after an injury kept him out of the opening round earned the Husqvarna rider tenth overall with a 9-13 finishes while Evans finished 15th overall after a DNF in the opening moto and an eighth in moto two.
Jed Beaton
“I had a really good weekend here at Matterley Basin. It was my first GP after many months, and I felt strong on the bike. It was good to get a top-10 in the opening moto. In the second moto I was close to the top-10 again and ended up finishing in 13th place. Getting a top-10 result in the overall is really positive for the rest of the season. There’s still a long way to go in this series. I’m pretty happy with where I am, hopefully I can start building from here.”
Jed Beaton
Mitchell Evans
“My weekend started well with a fourth in the qualifying race on Saturday, but Sunday I struggled with my starts. After a bad start in the first race I crashed whilst trying to fight my way forward. After a pit stop to fix a damaged clutch, I found myself almost a lap down and unfortunately, due to the track having such a long lap, I was unable to make up any positions. Another bad start in race two left me with a lot of work to do. I was able to fight my way back to eighth. I am happy with my riding and fitness after ten days of sitting on the couch following Argentina, due to an infection in my knee. We will work on my starts this week and be more prepared for next weekend! Thanks to my team and everyone supporting me!”
Mitch Evans
The next round of the FIM Motocross World Championship is this weekend for the MXGP of The Netherlands in Valkenswaard.
MX2 Race 1 Top Ten
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), 35:01.449
Henry Jacobi (GER, Kawasaki), +0:04.278
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), +0:16.160
Ben Watson (GBR, Yamaha), +0:28.500
Michele Cervellin (ITA, Yamaha), +0:30.179
Conrad Mewse (GBR, KTM), +0:35.271
Davy Pootjes (NED, Husqvarna), +0:36.018
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Honda), +0:44.908
Jed Beaton (AUS, Husqvarna), +0:50.189
Dylan Walsh (NZL, Husqvarna), +0:54.010
MX2 Race 2 Top Ten
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, Husqvarna), 37:10.022
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, Honda), +0:09.936
Henry Jacobi (GER, Kawasaki), +0:16.035
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), +0:16.935
Ben Watson (GBR, Yamaha), +0:20.044
Jago Geerts (BEL, Yamaha), +0:38.635
Davy Pootjes (NED, Husqvarna), +0:43.577
Mitchell Evans (AUS, Honda), +0:46.268
Michele Cervellin (ITA, Yamaha), +0:54.765
Dylan Walsh (NZL, Husqvarna), +0:59.920
2019 MX2 Podium – Matterley Basin, UK – 1) Kjer Olsen, 2) Henry Jacobi, 3) Tom Vialle
MX2 Overall Top Ten
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 50 points
Henry Jacobi (GER, KAW), 42 points
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 38 points
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, HON), 35 points
Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 34 points
Davy Pootjes (NED, HUS), 28 points
Michele Cervellin (ITA, YAM), 28 points
Dylan Walsh (NZL, HUS), 22 points
Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 20 points
Jed Beaton (AUS, HUS), 20 points
MX2 Championship Top Ten
Thomas Kjer Olsen (DEN, HUS), 94 points
Henry Jacobi (GER, KAW), 78 points
Calvin Vlaanderen (NED, HON), 71 points
Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 65 points
Ben Watson (GBR, YAM), 63 points
Jorge Prado (ESP, KTM), 50 points
Davy Pootjes (NED, HUS), 50 points
Mitchell Evans (AUS, HON), 49 points
Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 45 points
Michele Cervellin (ITA, YAM), 41 points
Forato and Anderson win EMX in Great Britain
Elberto Forato and Brad Anderson have won the opening rounds of the EMX250 and EMX2T classes respectively at the Matterley Basin round of the FIM World motocross Championships last weekend.
EMX250 Start – Matterley Basin
EMX250 Report
The EMX250 class is now age limited to 23 years of age and the overall winner was clearly Forato who led every lap on the way to a perfect weekend while Stephan Rubini took second with 3-5 finishes ahead of Roan Van de Moosdijk finished third with 6-3 scores.
Alberto Forato
“For me it was a good weekend, I lead from the first lap of every race, so I was able to focus on myself and I want to do this every weekend. It is a different bike and a different team this year but now I am really comfortable with everyone, the bike, the mechanics, and everything so it is good for me.”
EMX250 Race 1 Top Ten
Alberto Forato (ITA, Husqvarna), 32:04.381
Ruben Fernandez (ESP, Yamaha), +0:07.871
Stephen Rubini (FRA, Honda), +0:13.441
Jimmy Clochet (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:17.624
Pierre Goupillon (FRA, Honda), +0:20.202
Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, Kawasaki), +0:24.296
Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), +0:25.668
Karlis Sabulis (LAT, KTM), +0:29.951
Josh Gilbert (GBR, Honda), +0:31.131
Caleb Grothues (AUS, Yamaha), +0:53.522
EMX250 Race 2 Top Ten
Alberto Forato (ITA, Husqvarna), 32:24.557
Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KTM), +0:09.886
Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, Kawasaki), +0:22.042
Pierre Goupillon (FRA, Honda), +0:23.370
Stephen Rubini (FRA, Honda), +0:26.631
Giuseppe Tropepe (ITA, Yamaha), +1:01.793
Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), +1:06.422
Michael Ivanov (BUL, KTM), +1:10.730
Jimmy Clochet (FRA, Kawasaki), +1:13.653
Josh Gilbert (GBR, Honda), +1:17.062
EMX250 Championship Top Ten
Alberto Forato (ITA, HUS), 50 points
Stephen Rubini (FRA, HON), 36
Roan Van De Moosdijk (NED, KAW), 35
Pierre Goupillon (FRA, HON), 34
Jimmy Clochet (FRA, KAW), 30
Ruben Fernandez (ESP, YAM), 29
Rene Hofer (AUT, KTM), 28
Josh Gilbert (GBR, HON), 23
Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KTM), 22
Michael Ivanov (BUL, KTM), 22
Smarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
EMX2T Report
The EMX2T class is the newest category of EMX racing and with this weekend being the first round of the championship a long list of riders entered for their chance to become the first winner and in the end it was Brit Brad Anderson who earned the overall with 1-1 moto results ahead of Vaclav Kovar’s 3-2 results while Andrea Gorini battled hard to go 6-4 for third overall.
EMX 2T Start – Matterley Basin
EMX2T Race 1 Top Ten
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 32:30.711
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), +0:11.823
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, Gas Gas), +0:18.398
Todd Kellett (GBR, Yamaha), +0:28.185
Andero Lusbo (EST, Husqvarna), +0:29.117
Andrea Gorini (SMR, Yamaha), +0:41.229
Jamie Law (GBR, KTM), +0:48.410
Emanuele Alberio (ITA, Husqvarna), +0:51.244
Marco Lolli (ITA, Yamaha), +0:53.367
Andrea Vendruscolo (ITA, Yamaha), +0:54.018
EMX2T Race 2 Top Ten
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 31:53.709
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, Gas Gas), +0:13.016
Brad Todd (GBR, Yamaha), +0:23.472
Andrea Gorini (SMR, Yamaha), +0:31.933
Ben Putnam (GBR, Yamaha), +0:39.101
Todd Kellett (GBR, Yamaha), +0:41.262
Andero Lusbo (EST, Husqvarna), +0:42.289
Matt Burrows (GBR, Husqvarna), +0:53.431
Marco Lolli (ITA, Yamaha), +0:57.771
Youri van t Ende (NED, KTM), +0:59.480
EMX2T Championship Top Ten
Brad Anderson (GBR, KTM), 50 points
Vaclav Kovar (CZE, GAS), 42
Andrea Gorini (SMR, YAM), 33
Todd Kellett (GBR, YAM), 33
Andero Lusbo (EST, HUS), 30
Ben Putnam (GBR, YAM), 26
Marco Lolli (ITA, YAM), 24
Mike Kras (NED, KTM), 22
Matt Burrows (GBR, HUS), 21
Emanuele Alberio (ITA, HUS), 21
Prado sits out MXGP of Great Britain
Defending MX2 World Champion Jorge Prado did not take part in the second round of the 2019 FIM Motocross World Championship last weekend in Great Britain after sustaining a shoulder injury thanks to a crash while practicing three weeks ago.
Jorge Prado – Image by Ray Archer
Prado did complain of a sore left shoulder after the crash but the Spaniard continued to prepare for Matterley Basin but felt the condition of the joint deteriorate and become more painful.
Further detailed medical examination with renowned surgeon and specialist Dr Claes in Belgium revealed a haematoma under the left shoulder blade was causing the discomfort so the best course of recovery involves rest, and Prado will return for another check-up on Tuesday 26th for further evaluation ahead of the Grand Prix of the Netherlands at Valkenswaard.
Jorge Prado – Image by Ray Archer
Claudio De Carli – Red Bull KTM Team Manager
“After such a strong start to the season for the team and Jorge it is disappointing for everyone that he and Jeffrey are now missing Matterley Basin and the first European round of 2019. Unfortunately this is part of the sport but, fortunately, it could be worse and we hope Jorge will be back on the bike very quickly. We’re in good shape and we are confident, and we believe this will not be such a big setback for us in what is a long season.”
Herlings to return to MXGP in May
In the wake of a complex operation on his broken right foot, MXGP World Champion Jeffrey Herlings has stepped-up his physical training program with a view to start riding his Red Bull KTM 450 SX-F in late April and return to competition in the FIM MXGP Motocross World Championship action sometime in May.
Jeffrey Herlings – Image by Ray Archer
The four-times World Champion was already missed the opening two Grands Prix and he will also miss Holland and Italy but will then hopefully be counting the days until he can again be behind a FIM World Championship gate.
Jeffrey Herlings
“Rehab has been going very well and I cannot wait to be back and to throw a leg over the bike again. I want to be back at the GPs as quick as possible but we cannot say which race yet until I get some riding time. I’m also able to step-up my cycling and swimming now. For sure we’ll miss the next three rounds and we also don’t want to rush things and risk a setback.”
Jeffrey Herlings – Image by Jeff KardasSmarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
Australia to host MXGP in 2020?
There was some noise made at the British GP last weekend with Australian GP promoter Willie Thomson on hand to hold talks with Youthstream, but it must be noted that nothing is concrete right now and that Thomson has yet to convince the WA government to foot the bill.
Holcombe dominates opening EnduroGP round
2019 EnduroGP Round 1
In almost perfect conditions Germany hosted the opening two rounds of the World EnduroGP Championships and it was defending champion Steve Holcombe who dominated both days but it was Aussie Will Ruprecht who etched his name in history to win Friday night’s Super Test against the best in the world before backing that up with a pair of podiums in the Junior class.
Steve Holcombe celebrates the win in Germany – Image by Future7Media
Holcombe won the overall EnduroGP class as well as the E3 class and Brad Freeman dominated the E1 class while it was Loïc Larrieu and Eero Remes who shared victories in the E2 class.
Loïc Larrieu – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
Steve Holcombe
“It’s difficult to sum up how much of a surprise it is to win both days. My goal was to podium and claim strong points, so as you can imagine a double victory in EnduroGP and Enduro 3 is a huge result to take. I didn’t have a great Super Test on Friday – I never really do – but I wanted to push hard from the beginning on Saturday to see where I was at. That strategy paid off and I won by 70 seconds. I went with that tactic again on Sunday and made things count on the opening two laps. I ran out of steam a little on the final lap but knew that with the effort I’d put in earlier on, barring any major mistakes, I could win. We’ve a couple of weeks now until round two in Portugal, so the plan remains unchanged – keep working with the goal of getting stronger. I know there’s room to improve. Finally, a huge thanks to Beta and all the team – a result like this is very much a team effort.”
Steve Holcombe – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
Danny McCanney
“I finish third today, I’m a little disappointed, but overall I’m very happy with my weekend. I can’t wait to continue the season and gain some more good results.”
Danny McCanney – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
Brad Freeman
“I’m happy because today (day 2) I was able to increase my pace to catch up with Danny. I’m still a long way from Steve, but I’m happy to be on this 100 per cent British podium.”
Brad Freeman – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
Eero Remes
“The first day was very disappointing for me and the team, but I told the team that the season is very long and we are going to catch up. I feel good and this victory in E2 is a first great reward.”
Akrapovic Super Test Award Standings
Wil RUPRECHT 10 points
Benjamin HERRERA 9
Thomas OLDRATI 8
Daniel MCCANNEY 7p
Steve HOLCOMBE 6
Kirian MIRABET 5
Hamish MACDONALD 4
Andrea VERONA 3
Loïc LARRIEU 2
Alex SALVINI 1
EnduroGP Day 1 Top 10
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Christophe NAMBOTIN – France
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Albin ELOWSON – Sweden
Christophe CHARLIER – France
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Steve Holcombe on the podium
EnduroGP Day 2 Top 10
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Eero REMES – Finland
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Brad Freeman – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
E1 Day 1 Results
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Rudy MORONI – Italy
E1 Day 2 Podium – EnduroGP Round 1 Germany, 2019
E1 Day 2 Results
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Rudy MORONI – Italy
Loïc Larrieu – 2019 EnduroGP Round 1
E2 Day 1 Results
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Albin ELOWSON – Sweden
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Giacomo REDONDI – Italy
Antoine BASSET – France
E2 Day 2 Podium – EnduroGP Round 1 Germany, 2019
E2 Day 2 Results
Eero REMES – Finland
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Antoine BASSET – France
E3 Day 1 Results
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Christophe NAMBOTIN – France
David ABGRALL – France
Anthony GESLIN – France
E3 Day 2 Podium – EnduroGP Round 1 Germany, 2019
E3 Day 2 Results
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Anthony GESLIN – France
David ABGRALL – France
Dennis SCHROETER – Germany
EnduroGP Juniors
The Junior classes were as hard fought as the senior division and it was Italian Andrea Verona who came away with victory in both days but Ruprecht kept him honest all weekend in the overall Junior class and the J1 class while Jack Edmondson and Enric Francisco shared victories in the J2 class with Kiwi Hamish Macdonald dominating the J3 class.
Andrea Verona
“This might be the most beautiful victory of my career so far. When I lost so much time this morning after the bike stopped in the Cross Test I knew I had the potential to win. My body hurts because I really attacked all day, but I’m super happy.”
Andrea Verona
Wil Ruprecht
“I don’t know what to say to you, I am so disappointed, I cracked under the pressure, I crashed three times on the last test. Andrea was the better man and he deserves it. I can only try to learn and improve after such a defeat.”
The next round of the Maxxis FIM EnduroGP World Championship will take place in Portugal in the city of Valpaços from May 3rd to 5th.
Junior – Day 1
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Junior – Day 2
Andrea VERONA Italy
Wil RUPRECHT Australia
Théophile ESPINASSE France
Enric FRANCISCO Spain
Jack EDMONDSON United Kingdom
Junior 1 (J1) – Day 1
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Thomas DUBOST – France
Junior 1 (J1) – Day 2
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Thomas DUBOST – France
Junior 2 (J2) – Day 1
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Leo LE QUERE – France
Emanuele FACCHETTI – Italy
Till DE CLERCQ – France
Junior 2 (J2) – Day 2
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Emanuele FACCHETTI – Italy
Ruy BARBOSA – Chile
Jimmy WICKSELL – Sweden
Youth Cup – Day 1
Hamish MACDONALD – New Zealand
Claudio SPANU – Italy
Matteo PAVONI – Italy
Alejandro NAVARRO HUERTAS – Spain
Hugo SVARD – Finland
Youth Cup – Day 2
Hamish MACDONALD – New Zealand
Matteo PAVONI – Italy
Claudio SPANU – Italy
Hugo SVARD – Finland
Nathan BERERD – France
Smarty’s Weekly Moto News Wrap proudly brought to you by Dunlop
HRC’s Ricky Brabec wins the Sonora Rally
The Sonora Rally takes place in the border region between Mexico and the United States near the Gulf of California and after five day Monster Energy Honda Team’s American rider Ricky Brabec claimed victory for the second time in the five year history of the event.
Ricky Brabec – Image by Boyd Jaynes
In conditions that varied from high speed arid tracks to 500km of sand dunes, Brabec set the pace of the race from the start, grabbing victories in the first three stages, which opened a significant margin of more than half an hour over rivals before the American masterfully managed the two final days of rallying, before reaching the final finish-line in the Sonora region capital with a 37’15” gap back to his nearest second place rival.
Ricky Brabec
“This rally was the first of the year for me so I was excited to just be able to ride the big bike again with some navigation. This desert to me is like home and very close from my home town so it makes it easy to show up with a small crew to race and as well to train. The terrain is sandy in spots with great dunes and a little more south is rocky hard pack, there’s a little of everything and for this I believe it’s proven training grounds. Looking forward to the rest of the year racing and training; hungry for more and to top it off Dakar 2020 will be in a good way, I believe. We must stay strong in the fight.”
Ricky Brabec – Image by Boyd Jaynes
Ryan brothers shine at Casey Stoner Cup
Kurri Kurri hosted the Casey Stoner Cup last weekend and for the second weekend in a row the Ryan brothers have dominated a major dirt track meeting with Harrison Ryan winning the Junior Cup minutes before older brother Connor led the field home in the eight-lap Senior Cup.
While Harrison scored big winning margins in an unbeaten run over the two days of racing in the 13-16 years age class, Connor was made work much harder.
In the Junior Cup Wade O’Keefe and Jayden Rodgers followed Harrison Ryan home to complete a clean-sweep of placegetters from the host club but in the Senior Cup it was Coffs Harbour rider Bailey Spencer who lead for the opening six laps before one mistake was punished as Connor Ryan and then Boyd Hollis took over the front running.
In other senior classes Connor Ryan also won the Pro 450 final over Hollis and North Queensland rider Harry Maxwell before Taree rider Blake Wilby topped the very competitive Pro 250 class ahead of Brisbane rider Ben Montgomery and Taree’s Kye Andrews, while Anthony Farrell was best in the Over 35s.
All junior classes produced plenty of close battles with Bray Bowden (13-16 years) and Noah Grabham (7-10s) both scoring class victories after winning all five rounds, while Gold Coast rider Viv Muddle amassed nine wins and a second placing to win both of his classes.
There was more success for Taree riders with Cody Wilby and Will Bisley finishing 1-2 in the 80cc class, while Hayden Nelson also scored a class win as did Cameron Dunker and Jayden Holder but perhaps the most stirring win came in the 65cc – 9 to 13 years final when diminutive Forbes rider Beau Bailey led home Jayden Holder and Gold Coast rider Riley Nautam less than hour after Bailey had crashed heavily in an earlier race.
The next major dirt track meeting is the 30th staging of the Trackmasters at the Barleigh Ranch track on the weekend on April 13 / 14.
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The first round of the 2019 EnduroGP championship kicked off in Germany over the weekend, with Australian Wil Ruprecht impressing with his results on board the Swedish Team Yamaha Johansson MPE banner, claiming third overall in both the Junior and J1 results on Day 1, as well as second in the same classes on Day 2.
Australian Wil Ruprecht joins the Team Yamaha Johansson MPE Team in 2019 and was on form in Germany – Image by Caroline Joelsson
Ruprecht also impressed in the Akrapovic Super Test, where despite being a Junior rider, he set a 2:16.06, the fastest time of the test, ahead of Benjamin Herrera and Thomas Oldrati.
The 2019 EnduroGP season sees no official team from KTM and Husqvarna who seem to have abandoned the prime category of the EnduroGP series in pursuit of Enduro competition in other championships.
This largely leaves the premier class of EnduroGP to the Spanish brands Gas Gas, Beta and Sherco.
KTM and Husqvarna no doubt have their reasons for dumping the series, but I can say from a press and PR point of view, I can certainly see why.
Wil Ruprecht (Team Yamaha Johansson MPE) – Image by Caroline Joelsson
Akrapovic Super Test Award Standings
Wil RUPRECHT 10 points
Benjamin HERRERA 9
Thomas OLDRATI 8
Daniel MCCANNEY 7p
Steve HOLCOMBE 6
Kirian MIRABET 5
Hamish MACDONALD 4
Andrea VERONA 3
Loïc LARRIEU 2
Alex SALVINI 1
EnduroGP of Germany – Day 1
Germany has once again proven its passion for Enduro with a huge number of spectators turning out to watch Day 1’s special tests. The loop-style lap consisted of two Enduro Tests, one Extreme Test, and a Cross Test. With three laps for all the EnduroGP riders, and two laps for the newly created Enduro Open categories.
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
In EnduroGP, Steve Holcombe has started exactly were he left off. The quadruple World Champion slotted himself quickly into the top spot despite having the tough job of opening the track. He won eight specials and increased his gap with each passing test. Holcombe completed the day with an advantage of 1 minute and 7 seconds.
The Brit took the overall top spot ahead of his compatriot, the new rider at TM – Danny McCanney. The rider from the Isle of Man took over second place in the middle of the morning. His pace allowed him to win two tests, but he struggled to really threaten the untouchable Holcombe. Danny continued his push all afternoon to widen his gap over Brad Freeman.
Freeman was in behind Holcombe for a good part of the morning. The Beta Boano rider had a dip in form and lost one place in the overall standings.
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
He had to spend the rest of the day controlling his gap to Christophe Nambotin, with the Frenchman starting the season in great shape. Fourth on of this first day, the factory Gas Gas rider gains a good points haul from the beginning of the season.
Perhaps the unluckiest rider of the day was Alex Salvini. The Honda rider lost out big time early in the day, running into radiator hose problems. This caused him to be late at the next time control and he therefore incurred a 4 minute penalty which plummeted him down the standings. Salvini tried hard to regain a few places but mistakes set him back further. He returned to the paddock at the end of the day in 25th position, more than 7 minutes behind the winner.
In the fight for the podium, Eero Remes was forced to give up after his chain broke. This DNF for Remes benefited Loïc Larrieu, who returned to parc fermé in fifth position.
In fact, three E3 riders made up the top five overall, with the big bikes showing strongly on the first day of this German GP.
E1 Day 1 Podium – Freeman won from Cavallo and Guarneri
In E1, despite his small drop in the overall rankings, Freeman won in front of 2018 Junior Champion Matteo Cavallo and Davide Guarneri.
In the E2 category, the disappointments of Remes and Salvini benefitted Loïc Larrieu who won ahead of Albin Elowson and Christophe Charlier, who was delayed by a crash and a pain in the shoulder.
In E3 Steve Holcombe won in front of Danny McCanney and Christophe Nambotin.
EnduroGP Day 1 Podium – Steve Holcombe wins from Daniel McCanney and Brad Freeman
EnduroGP Day 1 Top 10
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Christophe NAMBOTIN – France
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Albin ELOWSON – Sweden
Christophe CHARLIER – France
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
E1 Day 1 Results
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Rudy MORONI – Italy
E2 Day 1 Podium – Loic Larrieu claimed the E2 Day 1 win from Elowson and Herrera
E2 Day 1 Results
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Albin ELOWSON – Sweden
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Giacomo REDONDI – Italy
Antoine BASSET – France
E3 Day 1 Results
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Christophe NAMBOTIN – France
David ABGRALL – France
Anthony GESLIN – France
EnduroGP Juniors – Day 1
In Junior Andrea Verona had to work hard to hold back a charge from Australia’s hot prospect Wil Ruprecht. The TM rider showed his typical composure despite losing some time with a stick in his wheel. He stayed focused on making no mistakes and in the end, he crushed the competition by winning by more than 1 minute and 25 seconds ahead of his Aussie rival.
At the beginning of the day Wil Ruprecht was fighting hard, but he ran out of steam and couldn’t hold off a quick Theo Espinasse. The Frenchman put in a strong performance during the three laps. Jack Edmondson finished in fourth place, a sluggish start for the son of Paul meant he had to push hard for the rest of the day.
Wil Ruprecht (Team Yamaha Johansson MPE) – Image by Caroline Joelsson
Matthew Van Oevelen finished in fifth place, this result is encouraging for the rider who has just switched teams.
In J1 Verona showed his dominance over Espinasse and Ruprecht. In J2, Jack Edmondson won ahead of Enric Francisco and Leo Le Quere.
The Youth category was dominated by Hamish MacDonald, determined to leave his opponents in the dust. He won ahead of Claudio Spanu and Matteo Pavoni, who enjoyed a superb fight all day long.
Junior Day 1 Podium – Andrea Verona won from Espinasse and Ruprecht
Junior – Day 1
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Junior 1 (J1) – Day 1
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Thomas DUBOST – France
Junior 2 (J2) – Day 1
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Leo LE QUERE – France
Emanuele FACCHETTI – Italy
Till DE CLERCQ – France
Youth Cup – Day 1
Hamish MACDONALD – New Zealand
Claudio SPANU – Italy
Matteo PAVONI – Italy
Alejandro NAVARRO HUERTAS – Spain
Hugo SVARD – Finland
Enduro Open World Cup – Day 1
The Champion Lubricants Enduro Open World Cup, a new initiative from the FIM has already proved a success considering the impressive number of riders entered for this first round. In the 4-stroke class Bernhard Schoepf won ahead of Luis Oliveira and Fraser Flockhart.
In the 2-stroke class, Portugal’s Goncalo Reis won ahead of Richard Tucker and Martin Ortner.
In Senior, Enduro legend David Knight took his first win since 2013. Werner Mueller and the returning Euan McConnell completed the top three.
Open Senior – Day 1
David KNIGHT United Kingdom
WERNER MUELLER Germany
EUAN MCCONNELL United Kingdom
FERNANDO FERREIRA Portugal
PATRICK ANDERSSON Sweden
Open 2 Strokes – Day 1
Gonçalo REIS Portugal
Richard TUCKER United Kingdom
Nico RAMBOW Germany
Martin ORTNER Austria
Rafal BRACIK Poland
Open 4 Strokes – Day 1
Bernhard SCHOEPF – Austria
Robert RIEDEL – Germany
Luis OLIVEIRA – Portugal
Fraser FLOCKHART – United Kingdom
Bas KLEIN HAVENELD – Netherlands
EnduroGP of Germany – Day 2
After an eventful first day, the EnduroGP stars were back on track for another day of competition in Dahlen. The tests had been significantly ‘cut up’ after so many competitors riding on the first day, and the second day offered up a lot of surprises.
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
Steve Holcombe did not have the same disadvantage as Day 1, where he had to open the tests. With the course well ‘bedded in’, the reigning EnduroGP Champion into his rhythm immediately. He impressed from the start, winning eight specials in a row on scratch.
Only Davide Guarneri, Brad Freeman and Danny Mccanney managed to ‘steal’ test victories from the Beta Factory rider on the overall times. Despite the pressure and the fatigue of the tough terrain, Holcombe showed perfect control.
The season is just beginning but Holcombe already seems to be at the top of his game. Naturally, he is leading the EnduroGP class and E3 class at the end of this weekend in Germany.
Benjamin Herrera would round out the EnduroGP top 10
Brad Freeman snatched second place on the EnduroGP podium. The Beta Boano rider launched his offensive on McCanney just after mid-day. He managed to limit the damage to Holcombe, ending the day 43 seconds behind the reigning EnduroGP Champion.
Danny McCanney finished 3rd overall on this 2nd day and his debut weekend with TM Factory. The Brit could not fight back against Freeman, but he remained focused to secure an important 3rd spot.
Danny McCanney
“I finish third today, I’m a little disappointed, but overall I’m very happy with my weekend. I can’t wait to continue the season and gain some more good results.”
Eero Remes started the day aggressively as he was eager to put Saturday’s mechnical DNF behind him. His new Team Manager, Joakim Johansson was thrilled with the performance of his new signing. The Yamaha rider was solid all day, fighting continuously in the top five overall. He finished fourth.
Alex Salvini was also fighting with Remes and Larrieu for the top five all day. The Italian ended this 2nd day feeling more positive after his bad luck and DNF on Day 1. He said he felt confident for the next round of the EnduroGP Championship in Portugal.
Alex Salvini
Christophe Nambotin was the only big DNF on Day 2, after a strong performance on the opening day, the Gas Gas rider saw his race cut short by a gearbox failure. ‘Nambot’ was nevertheless satisfied with his form and felt ready to face the rest of the season.
In the E1 category, Brad Freeman confirmed his 2018 confidence has not wavered, and it was another victory for him ahead of Davide Guarneri and Thomas Oldrati.
Brad Freeman
“I’m happy because today I was able to increase my pace to catch up with Danny. I’m still a long way from Steve, but I’m happy to be on this 100 per cent British podium.”
The fight in E2 was intense between the three ‘favorites’ and it was Remes who eventually won ahead of Salvini and Larrieu, beating the Italian by just 0.16 seconds.
Eero Remes
“The first day was very disappointing for me and the team, but I told the team that the season is very long and we are going to catch up. I feel good and this victory in E2 is a first great reward.”
Holcombe took no prisoners in E3 and won the class ahead of Mccanney and Anthony Geslin.
Steve Holcombe
“It’s difficult to sum up how much of a surprise it is to win both days. My goal was to podium and claim strong points, so as you can imagine a double victory in EnduroGP and Enduro 3 is a huge result to take. I didn’t have a great Super Test on Friday – I never really do – but I wanted to push hard from the beginning on Saturday to see where I was at. That strategy paid off and I won by 70 seconds. I went with that tactic again on Sunday and made things count on the opening two laps. I ran out of steam a little on the final lap but knew that with the effort I’d put in earlier on, barring any major mistakes, I could win. We’ve a couple of weeks now until round two in Portugal, so the plan remains unchanged – keep working with the goal of getting stronger. I know there’s room to improve. Finally, a huge thanks to Beta and all the team – a result like this is very much a team effort.”
Steve Holcombe – Image by Future7Media
EnduroGP Day 2 Top 10
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Eero REMES – Finland
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Brad Freeman topped the E1 podium on Day 2
E1 Day 2 Results
Brad FREEMAN – United Kingdom
Davide GUARNERI – Italy
Thomas OLDRATI – Italy
Matteo CAVALLO – Italy
Rudy MORONI – Italy
E2 Day 2 Results
Eero REMES – Finland
Alex SALVINI – Italy
Loïc LARRIEU – France
Benjamin HERRERA – Chile
Antoine BASSET – France
Steve Holcombe once again won the E3 class on Day 2
E3 Day 2 Results
Steve HOLCOMBE – United Kingdom
Daniel MCCANNEY – United Kingdom
Anthony GESLIN – France
David ABGRALL – France
Dennis SCHROETER – Germany
EnduroGP Juniors – Day 2
In the hotly contested Junior class, the surprise lay in the difficulties suffered by Andrea Verona early in the day. The Italian’s bike stopped in the first Cross Test and Andrea lost about 50 seconds and fell down to 7th position.
Junior Day 2 Podium – Andrea Verona once again topped the podium, with Wil Ruprecht moving up into second
But the 2018 Youth Cup Champion had the resources to keep his focus and fight back test by test. After just six tests he was already back on the podium, about thirty seconds from the leader, Wil Ruprecht.
After overhauling Theo Espinasse for 2nd place, the factory TM rider went after Ruprecht, giving his all and taking the overall victory in the last special! The talented Australian admitted that he cracked under the pressure of the TM rider.
Wil Ruprecht
“I don’t know what to say to you, I am so disappointed, I cracked under the pressure, I crashed three times on the last test. Andrea was the better man and he deserves it. I can only try to learn and improve after such a defeat.”
Verona also won in J1 ahead of Ruprecht and Espinasse. Enric Francisco, who had a great day, won in J2 ahead of Jack Edmondson and Emanuele Facchetti.
Andrea Verona
“This might be the most beautiful victory of my career so far. When I lost so much time this morning after the bike stopped in the Cross Test I knew I had the potential to win. My body hurts because I really attacked all day, but I’m super happy.”
Andrea Verona
In the Youth category, Hamish MacDonald confirmed his ‘favourite’ status with another comfortable victory. 2nd went to Matteo Pavoni, who overtook his compatriot, Claudio Spanu towards the end of the day.
Junior – Day 2
Andrea VERONA Italy
Wil RUPRECHT Australia
Théophile ESPINASSE France
Enric FRANCISCO Spain
Jack EDMONDSON United Kingdom
Junior 1 (J1) – Day 2
Andrea VERONA – Italy
Wil RUPRECHT – Australia
Théophile ESPINASSE – France
Matthew VAN OEVELEN – Belgium
Thomas DUBOST – France
Junior 2 (J2) – Day 2
Enric FRANCISCO – Spain
Jack EDMONDSON – United Kingdom
Emanuele FACCHETTI – Italy
Ruy BARBOSA – Chile
Jimmy WICKSELL – Sweden
Youth Cup – Day 2
Hamish MACDONALD – New Zealand
Matteo PAVONI – Italy
Claudio SPANU – Italy
Hugo SVARD – Finland
Nathan BERERD – France
Enduro Open World Cup – Day 2
David Knight completed his return to competition by taking the double in the Senior class double of the Champion Lubricants Enduro Open World Championship. He won in front of Werner Mueller and Euan McConnell.
In the 4-stroke class, Bernhard Schoepf clinched a second win ahead of Robert Riedel and Fraser Flockhart.
The 2-stroke category enjoyed a second different winner in two days of competition; Richard won in front of Rafal Bracik and Nico Ranbow.
The German Grand Prix was a real success – 155 riders delighted 18,000 spectators throughout the weekend. The next round of the Maxxis FIM EnduroGP World Championship will take place in Portugal in the city of Valpaços from May 3rd to 5th.
Over 150 riders raced classes including Hooligan, Vintage, Pro, Amateur, Newbie and Minibike. The program was action packed with some fantastic racing around Holland’s premier short track venue.
Sastre had some very strong competition from Maikel Dijkstra who was fresh from training with Moto Anatomy’s Johnny Lewis and was showing some excellent pace on his home track. Both Toby Hales (Greenfield Dirttrack) and Gerard Bailo (Greenfield Dirttrack) flew in from riding Copa Rodi in Spain the day before.
Pro Class
2019 Hooligan Championship Dates
