MCNEWS.COM.AU - The ultimate in motorcycle news Australian Motocross Championship - Round Three - Conondale (Queensland)

 
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In the third round of the 2008 Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals, Jay Marmont (Yamaha) topped the Pro Opens with Luke George (Kawasaki) dominating the Pro Lites once again.

However despite a late charge by Marmont, Honda rider Craig Anderson has managed to retain the red plates heading into the fourth round of the National Championship.

Once again Pro Lites rider George proved that consistency pays off, with his second and first placings earning him round honours and the red plates.

After a chilly and foggy start to the day, the sun finally broke through revealing a stunning 2.8 km grassy Conondale track.

The long track, featuring some massive hill-side climbs and curves, was watered to perfection, with the grassy field soon churned into mud.

With an estimated crowd of 3200, fans experienced firsthand the hard and fast racing on the long and winding track in the battle for Championship points.

Anderson started the day strongly, streaking out to nearly a 10 second lead in the first moto.

The current series leader led the entire way with Marmont working his way up from sixth to come second in the moto ahead of Daryl Hurley (Suzuki) who came in third.

Anderson once again led the pack in the second moto but six laps in Marmont overtook, breaking out to an incredible 28 second lead by the chequered flag.

Round winner Marmont, was happy with his result and pointed out that he was rather nervous with Anderson hot on his heels in the final moto.
“In the first race I didn’t get off the line the best, but I knew in the second that I had to get out there quick to give Ando a run for his money,” Marmont said.

“I think I would have had more fun if Ando was way behind me in the last few laps, I was really nervous and thinking about listening to every engine part in my bike and trying to avoid the rocks, but everything turned out really well, and I ended up coming away with a nice victory.”

Current series leader Anderson was slightly disappointed with his performance in the second moto however he was stoked with the way the Conondale track turned out.

“I seem to crash in the second moto each round this year so I’ll gave to get back to the drawing board on that!” Anderson said.

“The track here at Conondale is awesome and while they change it every year I think this is one of the best yet, so hats off to all the people involved in getting the track up and running.”

The first moto in the Pro Lites was led out by Todd Waters (KTM) who after seven laps left the track with bike problems.

Kade Mosig (Honda), who had been steadily working his way up the field, took control and held onto the lead finishing ahead of series leader Luke George (Kawasaki) and Takeshi Katfuya (Kawasaki) who came in second and third respectively.

The Pro Lites second moto got off to a shaky start with four riders coming to grief in the first corner.

While one of the riders was forced out due to injury, the remaining three continued only for Dean Ferris, who was caught up in the prang, to pull out in the last lap with smoke pouring out the back of his bike.

However it was George who, after Ryan Marmont (KTM) left the track while in the lead, took to the front and brought the moto home and followed by Adam Monea (Kawasaki) and Mosig.

George, who has performed consistently throughout the Championship so far, was happy with his win and enjoyed the grassy Conondale track.
“I like this track,” George said.

“I came up here pretty confident and I think the results show that, my starts weren’t as good as I’d have liked, but they did the job.

“I’ve never ridden on something like this with the big steep hills and I think my back will feel it tomorrow but it was pretty fun!

In the Under 19s first moto, young-gun Luke Styke (Yamaha) stormed ahead, breaking out to an eight second lead ahead of Joey Ringwood (KTM) and Joel Rizzo (KTM) who came in second and third respectively.

Styke once again shot to the front in the Under 19s second moto, this time challenged in the last three laps by Michael Menchi (Suzuki) who came in second with Ringwood appearing once again on the podium this time in third.

With Under 19s qualifying now complete their championship will begin in the fourth round of the National Series to be held at Raymond Terrace, NSW on 18 May.

It wasn’t only the riders commenting on the great track; Event Director Kevin Williams said that the preparation put into the track was first class.

“In the last ten years of coming up to Conondale this has to be one of the best circuits we’ve seen and they have provided excellent spectator viewing for a great crowd,” Williams said.
Pro Open Race 1 Pro Open Race 2 Pro Open Round Pts Pro Open Series Pts
  1. Anderson
  2. Marmont 9.22
  3. Hurley 16.62
  4. McCoy 25.95
  5. Brochtrup 26.90
  6. Price 30.58
  7. Addison 41.68
  8. Hoad 45.08
  9. Taylor 53.14
  10. Broxholme 54.15
  11. Crawford 54.26
  12. Boyd 71.13
  13. Simmonds 71.29
  14. Ellis 77.49
  15. Ham 92.06
  1. Marmont
  2. Anderson 27.33
  3. Hurley 36.29
  4. Boyd 40.41
  5. Crawford 53.35
  6. Taylor 57.70
  7. Addison 64.06
  8. McCoy 65.27
  9. Ellis 66.49
  10. Brochtrup 69.57
  11. Simmonds 81.97
  12. Burkhart 86.19
  13. Price 89.17
  14. Saunders 114.06
  15. Jones 118.02
  1. Marmont 47
  2. Anderson 47
  3. Hurley 40
  4. McCoy 31
  5. Addison 28
  6. Boyd 27
  7. Taylor 27
  8. Brochtrup 27
  9. Crawford 26
  10. Price 23
  11. Ellis 19
  12. Simmonds 18
  13. Broxholme 13
  14. Hoad 13
  15. Saunders 11
  16. Burkhart 9
  17. Landman 8
  18. Jones 6
  19. Ham 6
  20. DiCecco 5
  1. Anderson 136
  2. Marmont 132
  3. Hurley 125
  4. McCoy 91
  5. Burkhart 85
  6. Boyd 78
  7. Crawford 69
  8. Taylor 67
  9. Addison 66
  10. Brochtrup 48
  11. Brooxholme 46
  12. Hoad 45
  13. Carroll 43
  14. Price 40
  15. Ellis 31
  16. Jones 26
  17. Landman 25
  18. Geck 24
  19. Porter 21
  20. Simmonds 18
Pro Lites Race 1 Pro Lites Race 2 Pro Lites Round Pts Pro Lites Series Pts
  1. Mosig
  2. Geroge 2.60
  3. Katfuya 4.71
  4. Ferris 12.15
  5. Monea 21.85
  6. Anderson 41.54
  7. Woods 46.49
  8. Chalker 47.86
  9. Stewart 47.96
  10. Winston 65.36
  11. Calvin 67.10
  12. Jessup 69.34
  13. Marshall 73.29
  14. Jackson 85.46
  15. King 87.14
  1. Geroge
  2. Monea 0.52
  3. Mosig 8.46
  4. Stewart 10.40
  5. Cini 12.30
  6. Waters 19.15
  7. Katfuya 28.46
  8. Woods 43.93
  9. Anderson 48.38
  10. King 57.43
  11. Marshall 71.72
  12. Jackson 82.93
  13. Winston 91.04
  14. Chalker 98.82
  15. Haskins 109.26
  1. George 47
  2. Mosig 45
  3. Monea 38
  4. Katfuya 34
  5. Stewart 30
  6. Woods 27
  7. Anderson 27
  8. Chalker 20
  9. Winston 19
  10. Marshall 18
  11. Ferris 18
  12. King 17
  13. Cini 16
  14. Jackson 15
  15. Waters 15
  16. Haskins 11
  17. Calvin 10
  18. Jessup 9
  19. Matheson 5
  20. Leech 4
  1. George 127
  2. Mosig 117
  3. Monea 95
  4. Ferris 95
  5. Gibbs 82
  6. Waters 76
  7. Woods 68
  8. King 63
  9. Stewart 57
  10. Marmont 56
  11. Anderson 46
  12. Ryan 39
  13. Jessup 39
  14. Katfuya 34
  15. Cachia 31
  16. Calvin 29
  17. Haskins 28
  18. Bopping 25
  19. Girdwood 23
  20. Chalker 20
Australian Motocross Championship - Round Three - Conondale (Queensland)

Yamaha Report -

After showing convincing speed already this year, Jay Marmont has broken through to take his first overall victory for Yamaha Racing, winning the third round of the 2008 Rockstar Energy Drink MX National at Conondale this afternoon.

As Marmont set up his third consecutive podium result of the year, Lewis Stewart showed that he is continuing to recover from the wrist injury that plagued him at the start of the season. Stewart finished fifth overall and was the highest placed Yamaha rider in the Pro Lites category.

CDR Rockstar Yamaha riders, Jay Marmont and Cheyne Boyd made the most of the three week break between races with both riders completing extensive testing prior to heading to the famous Sunshine Coast track.

After an encouraging start Marmont was seventh into the first corner and immediately began chasing down race leader Craig Anderson. Marmont fought his way through the field and recorded the quickest lap time of the race, the CDR Rockstar Yamaha rider finished the moto in second position with his team-mate Boyd 12th after clawing his way through the pack after being held up by a last lap pile up.

Marmont got a better start in the second moto and was second to Anderson going into the first turn. The Wollongong-based rider maintained pace with the race leader until the half-way point of the moto when he made his move to take the lead.

After being followed by Anderson for a number of laps, Marmont started to pull away and with four laps remaining his challenger fell providing the CDR Yamaha Rockstar rider with a 10 second victory on the rest of the field.

Boyd also completed a solid race and after sitting inside the top seven going into the first corner gained three spots throughout the 30 minute race to finish fourth. He finished the round sixth overall.

Ironically as Marmont crossed the finish line at Conondale so too did his close friend and fellow Yamaha rider, Chad Reed who won the 2008 AMA Monster Energy Drink AMA Supercross Championship in Las Vegas.

“Things keep going on the up and up especially when you consider that I was third at the first round, second last round and then won today - so we are definitely getting better with each race,” Marmont said.

“The bike is excellent. We spent a bit of time testing between rounds and it has certainly paid off today as we recorded the fastest lap in both races.”

It was another challenging weekend for Team Seven Fly Motorsport with Danny Ham showing glimpses of a return to form after finishing the first race 15th following an engaging battle with Boyd and Lee Ellis during the race.

As Ham completed what Team Principal, Mark Haughton described as his best race of the year, Tom Jones had a challenging start to the weekend and after a bad start made his way through the pack to be in 18th position before colliding with another rider and dropping to second last in the race. He was 23rd to the finish line.

Ham was not so lucky in the second moto, a bad start leaving him at the back of the field and unable to improve on 23rd. Jones improved on his first race result and finished 15th, he was 18th for the round and one position ahead of team-mate, Ham.

After showing up a number of the top riders at the second round of the series at Horsham last month, Yamaha’s wildcard entry, Nick Geck was unable to make the trip to Conondale due to illness. Fellow emerging rider, Simon Thompson was also a notable absentee from the event after dislocating his shoulder. He is expected to return to competition in the next four to six weeks.


Honda Thor Racing Report -

Woodstock Honda Thor Racing hero Craig Anderson retains his lead in the Australian Motocross Pro Open Championship after a brilliant performance in round three at Conondale (QLD), today.

Anderson's Pro Open team mate Daniel McCoy also rode strongly in the day's two motos to advance up the championship order to fourth place.
Marked as the man to catch, qualifying saw Anderson hold the fastest lap until the dying moments of the session, before being relegated to second, while McCoy recorded the eighth fastest time of the session.

A classy ride from Anderson saw the Honda star take the holeshot in race one and lead uncontested from start to finish.

McCoy also arrowed out of the start gates, running strongly in second behind his team mate through the first turn of the opening moto.

Dropping two spots, McCoy then saw out the rest of the race with an incident-free run to greet the chequered flag in fourth.

Another holeshot in race two and Anderson led yet again, before coming under fire from Jay Marmont.

Staying within striking distance to reclaim the race lead from Marmont, Anderson suffered a minor crash and rejoined without dropping a position, but lost his opportunity to attack Marmont for the win.

Scoring equal top points for the round, Anderson was awarded second place on countback, leaving the championship points margin unchanged with Anderson maintaining his four-point advantage.

McCoy delivered another fast start in race two, but he came to grief dicing with Mitch Hoad through the first few corners and completed lap one in eighth place.

Initially making up some of the lost ground, McCoy eventually dropped back to wrap up the moto in eighth spot, finishing fourth overall for the round.

Advancing up the championship ranks yet again, McCoy now has his sights trained on the top three riders.

Heading to Newcastle, round four of the 2008 Australian Motocross Nationals will take place on Anderson's home turf at Raymond Terrace (NSW) on Sunday 18 May.

CRAIG ANDERSON:
"In the first race, I got a good clean start and was able to pull a gap and led all the way home from there.

"I managed two holeshots today, which is awesome - I'm pretty pumped about that.

"I was pretty comfortable, the bike felt good and the track was probably the best I've ever ridden on at Conondale.

"The track had a few more hills over the back section than before and it got really rough today which is unusual for Conondale.

"The hills in particular really sorted out the class riders - it's a big 'heart' thing that requires a lot of commitment to pin it down the hills and turn around and pin it back up the hills, plus it needs good lines and good corner speed at the bottom of the hill.

"The next round at Raymond Terrace should be good; it’s definitely going to get rough because they've put a lot of dirt onto the track and it's going to be fast and really choppy - a bit like this weekend, I guess.

"I've done a lot of years racing at Raymond Terrace, but every year the track is completely different - it always turns into hard pack, but the bumps and ruts change so much.

"Being my home round, I'm also really looking forward to going racing without having to travel anywhere this time round."

DANIEL McCOY:
"I got a good jump in race one; Ando took the holeshot and I followed him through.

"I was in a good position from the start; then I slipped back to fourth and basically remained there for the rest of the race.

"In the second race I made a good start and was in the top three or four again when I got into a battle with Mitchell Hoad - we were banging bars through a few corners and he finished up crashing in front of me, which forced me to run off the track and I dropped a fair way back down the order.

"I made up some ground, but wasn't able to hold onto it as I battled with my head cold.

"That first lap incident was pretty disappointing because I know I could have quite easily run top five for the race."

-- Suzuki Report

Team Shift Motul Suzuki's Daryl Hurley collected more valuable points in the 2008 Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals title race yesterday, 4 May, with a pair of third-place finishes in Round Three at Conondale (Queensland).

Hurley's points haul sees the New Zealander remain within striking distance of the series lead, while team-mate Luke Burkhart pushed through the pain barrier to contest Moto 2 after a heavy crash in Moto 1.

Again showing blistering speed on the fuel-injected Suzuki RM-Z450, Hurley headed a Team Shift Motul Suzuki 1-3 result in qualifying, with Burkhart a strong third.

In each Moto, Hurley put in mature rides to finish third, banking valuable championship points in the process to consolidate his top-three position in the series.


While Hurley had a clean run in Moto 1, Burkhart was caught up in a first-corner accident, in which he was ridden over by several other riders.

Despite heavy upper-body bruising and a suspected broken finger, he lined up for Moto 2 just three hours later and fought on to finish 12th.

With Matt Moss still sidelined by injury, Lawson Bopping flew the flag for Suzuki in Pro Lites.

Bopping qualified an impressive fifth-fastest on his RM-Z250, before finishing 18th in Moto 1 and 21st in Moto 2.

Round Four of the 2008 Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals will be held at Raymond Terrace (New South Wales), Team Shift Motul Suzuki's home track, on 18 May.

DARYL HURLEY - TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI
"The Team Shift Motul Suzuki crew have done a lot of work on the RM-Z450 since Horsham and it really paid off in qualifying, Luke and I had a lot of speed.

"The bike worked well in the races, but I lost some positions at the start of each Moto and was playing catch-up after that.

"A pair of thirds isn't the result we were hoping for, but we still picked up a good bunch of championship points as we turn our attention to Raymond Terrace."

LUKE BURKHART - TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI
"After qualifying third I was aiming to finish Moto 1 on the podium, but it didn't go to plan.

"Going into the first corner I copped a huge hit and as the field came through I was run over by at least three other riders; I'm pretty banged up but I'm lucky to get out of it with just a suspected broken finger and bruising.

"It's very important to keep the points ticking over all year, so I made sure I got back out there for Moto 2.

"I definitely wasn't 100%, but finishing 12th means we only lost one place in the championship."

JAY FOREMAN - TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI TEAM MANAGER
"We made more progress with the new RM-Z450 between rounds and our whole team performed at the highest level all weekend.

"Consistency is very important across a long season, and Daryl rode with great maturity and determination to finish third in each Moto, and remain well and truly in championship contention.

"Like Daryl, Luke put in a sensational performance in qualifying and he was looking set for a big weekend.

"Unfortunately he was knocked around very badly in the Moto 1 crash, but showed a lot of guts to get back out there in Moto 2 and pick up a solid finish.

"We've had a bit of bad luck in these first three rounds, but there have been a lot of positives, so we're all really looking forward to our home event at Raymond Terrace in two weeks time."

-- KTM Report

Round three of the Australian Motocross Championship held at Conondale over the weekend saw Motorex KTM riders find the pace they had been looking for all season, yet unfortunate mechanical challenges kept Pro Lites riders Ryan Marmont and Todd Waters off the podium and in the Open class Michael Addison used solid starts and good early race speed to finish fifth for the round. Also in Pro Open class for Conondale was Motorex KTM's under 19s rider Tye Simmonds who was granted a one off wildcard for the Conondale event .

Following a two week break between the second and third round, all Motorex KTM racers put in a solid effort to improve on their speed . Advancements showed immediately in the Pro Lites class with Ryan Marmont and Todd Waters picking up on their pace dramatically in the opening moto, until mechanical challenges struck.

Waters from Atherton in Cairns, was leading the opening Pro Lites race convincingly for over 20 minutes before mechanical misfortune struck. Waters comments, “I have never smiled so much with a DNF before, but seriously I was so happy with my riding in the opening moto that the mechanical challenges didn’t upset me,” said Waters. “All season I have been trying to find my rhythm and finally my pace was where I wanted it to be.

“I was third off the start in the opening Pro Lites moto, and quickly passed Adam Monea and then also my team mate Ryan Marmont, to take the lead. I was leading moto one for about 20 minutes and then I had mechanical challenges and couldn’t restart my bike. I only had 10 minutes to go so it’s likely I would have won that moto, if I could have continued racing but it wasn’t meant to be.

“By the second moto the team had sorted out all the mechanical challenges and I was pumped to get going. I race best when I get a good start and I didn’t get the best of starts in the second moto. I was mid pack in around 17th position and had to fight hard to work through the front runners. By the end of the race I came home sixth.

“While I didn’t gain many points from this round, I can say I put down the best racing I have in some time. I’m really enjoying my racing and that’s what it’s all about for me. I’m now looking forward to round four at Raymond Terrace, where hopefully we can have a trouble free run.”

For team mate Ryan Marmont from Wollongong, NSW, his challenges started in qualifying with some mechanical problems, which were sorted by the opening Pro Lites moto, where he was first to jump out of the gate with a hole shot.

“I had a great start to the opening moto, and felt really comfortable on the bike and with my riding,” said Marmont. “It was the best I had felt all season, I was really on the pace.

“It all went down hill for me, when I was moving in on Adam Monea for second and he crashed in front of me. When I went to pass him, he didn’t see me and jumped back on his bike running straight into me, ripping the gear leaver off my bike and just missing my leg.

“I was thankful I didn’t get injured but disappointed I couldn’t finish the race. You can’t ride with no gear leaver so instead I drew the DNF card with no points.

“By moto two the team had the bike repaired and I was first off the start gate again with another hole shot. I set a good pace and this time mechanical challenges struck with my rear brake. I pulled in and the team decided the track was too hilly to continue with no rear brake, so again it was a DNF for me with no points.

“ Two DNF results was not what I was looking for at this round but it was the best I have felt racing in a long time and I’m sure Todd and I could have come home on the podium in the Pro Lites, so we’re hoping our luck improves at Raymond Terrace for round four of the Australian Championship in two weeks.”

In the Pro Open class, Michael Addison from Lesmurdie in WA, and wildcard entrant Tye Simmonds from Bourke in NSW, were both able to finish their motos with no mechanical challenges or unfortunate collisions. Addison finished fifth for the round, while Simmonds in his first ever Pro Open race finished just outside the top 10.

Addison comments on his racing, “I finished sixth in qualifying after on a very slippery and muddy track first up in the morning,” said Addison. “I was in around fifth on the first corner into the opening moto and settled into a good pace. By around the third lap I started to get a bit sore with arm pump. The track conditions increased my arm pump, because I was having to hold on so much tighter to maintain traction. I moved back to around tenth by the half way mark and towards the end of the race, I started to loosen up and flush out the arm pump to gain some ground. By the chequered flag I was in seventh and stoked to be in the top ten.

“I got an awesome start in the second moto. I was lined up next to Daryl Hurley and Craig Anderson. With the KTM 450 SX-F known for its power I was able to pull away hard and fast from most of the field down the straight and ended up second into the first turn.

“I sat in second for a short while early in the race behind Craig Anderson, but then I got passed by Jay Marmont. I held onto third until the half way mark but I made a few little mistakes and started to lose my rhythm to then come under fire from Daryl Hurley and Cheyne Boyd. These guys passed me and I started to lose my focus, then others were making passes on me which I could usually hold off.

“I ended up finishing seventh again, but combined my two motos gave me fifth overall for the day and I have moved up in Championship points and look to improve again at Raymond Terrace.”

For new senior rider, Tye Simmonds who celebrated his sixteenth birthday on May 3, it was a welcome change to have some stiff competition after years of dominating in the junior ranks. Simmonds earned himself a wildcard entry into the Conondale round with a choice to race in the Pro Lites or Pro Open.

Simmonds chose the elite Pro Open class, where he had the attention of the whole crowd, fellow racers and other factory teams.

“I chose to ride the Pro Open class for my wildcard entry so nobody would start making bets on where I finished if I were in the Lites,” said Simmonds.

“I want my transition into senior racing to be smooth and pressure free and I knew nobody would expect me to come out and beat Pro Open racers with years of senior experience under their belts.

“I just set my pace and focused on riding my own race. It was an awesome feeling to need to push hard to make up ground with such fierce competition.

“In my opening moto the best position I held was around eighth but by the chequered flag I fell back to around 13th. Then again in the second moto my best position was when I was running eighth and by the finish I was in 11th.

“From a full grid of riders, I’m really happy with those results and can’t wait to race in the Under 19s Championship which is going to be my new official class for senior racing.”

Motorex KTM senior racers will re-group on Sunday May 18 for round four of the Australian Motocross Championship to be held at Barleigh Ranch Raceway, located 10 minutes north of Raymond Terrace, NSW.
Australian Pro Lites Motocross Championship - Round Three - Conondale (Queensland)

Honda Thor Racing Report -

Woodstock Honda Thor Racing Pro Lites rider, Kade Mosig has barged into second place in the Australian Motocross Championship via a race win and second overall in round three at Conondale (QLD), today.

Closing in on the series lead, Mosig was again the fastest qualifier in the Pro Lites class for the third consecutive round with an impressive 2:54.181min lap around the long, grassy Conondale circuit.

Fifth off the start in race one, Mosig was gaining on the leaders and was set to make his way past when two machines failed ahead of him gifting him two places.

Forging his way to the front of the field, the young dynamic racer made the required moves on the remaining two leaders to head the field and take victory in the opening race.

A difficult start to the second 30-minute moto, had Mosig through turn one in 10th place, but by only the third lap had already clawed his way into seventh place and was charging.

Steadily picking his way forward, Mosig had battled for and secured a podium position by half race distance which he held until the chequered flag.

Mosig's performances boosted him two positions up the order to now sit second in the championship, just 10 points off first place.

KADE MOSIG:
"I really need to improve my starts... my Woodstock Honda is great and I've been winning races, but I've really done it the hard way making such average starts and having to work through the field.

"It's good to be moving up the order; I've made up five places in these last two rounds and now I've got just one more position to take and six rounds to do it."

Honda Thor Racing's Dean Ferris showed why he is touted as one of the hottest up-and-coming young riders despite disappointing results in today's third round of the Australian Motocross Championship at Conondale (QLD).

Ferris got the day underway in strongly, posting the fourth fastest qualifying time.

Launching out of the start gates for race one, Ferris rounded the first corner in sixth and, despite a minor crash on lap two, hustled his way forward through to second place to run 1-2 behind his factory Honda team mate Kade Mosig.

While pressuring for the race lead in the closing laps, a second incident interrupted Ferris' momentum. The Honda rookie stalled his CRF250R and, taking some time to rejoin the fray, dropped from second place to fifth when he resumed the fight. Despite having two incidents during the race, the talented, young racer still greeted the chequered flag in a hugely impressive fourth place.  Further underlining his outstanding ability, Ferris set the fastest lap of the opening race on lap five with a 2:41.537min - the only rider to break into the 2:41min bracket.

A diabolical start to moto two saw Ferris caught up in a big incident heading into the first corner, leaving the rising star to remount his CRF250R and commence the colossal task of chasing down the leaders. Delivering a phenomenal performance, Ferris scythed through the back markers, into the mid field and up inside the top ten, passing 28 riders on his way to eighth place. Still charging on the final lap, Ferris' charge came to an abrupt halt as he was forced to withdraw from the race with mechanical issues suspected to be a result of his first lap incident.
Ferris and the Honda Thor Racing crew now prepare to tackle round four of the Australian Motocross Championship on Sunday 18 May at Barleigh Ranch, Raymond Terrace (NSW).

DEAN FERRIS:
"I got an average start in race one, and I was working my way through when I tipped it into a rut trying to pass one of the riders; my front brake hit the inside of the turn and it caused me to lay it over.

"I remounted and caught up and passed the riders that I had been battling with and was running down the leader, which was Kade (Mosig).

"I closed the gap to him, but unfortunately I stalled my bike and took a bit to get going again, but I fought my way back up to fourth."

"In the second moto, I got another average start and was taken down on the first turn.

"I was down for quite a while - I hit my head pretty hard, but I got up and rode strongly through the whole moto; I caught and passed a lot of riders and was battling for seventh on the last lap when I suffered a mechanical failure.

"That was 'end of story' and I was lucky to hang on to it in the section of track that it stopped.

"In the lead up to this weekend, I'd been working hard on new techniques to help me here and I felt really comfortable on the track, but in the end it's one of those days you just have to let go and move on to the next round."

Yamaha Report -

After being the surprise package of the 2008 Pro Lites Championship, Kirk Gibbs had a weekend he would like to forget with the Team Seven Fly Yamaha rider failing to finish the final race. Tomorrow he will seek further advice on a suspected broken elbow which was sustained in a fall in the second moto which cost the YZ250F rider valuable championship points.

Gibbs struggled in the first moto and was 10th going into the first corner before dropping the bike on the opening lap. After a gutsy fight back he was 20th at the halfway point of the moto and despite struggling with a jammed clutch finished 18th.

As Gibbs struggled through the weekend, Serco Yamaha rider, Lewis Stewart fought back from a mid pack start and worked his way through a number of slower riders to finish the first moto ninth. With team-mate Ford Dale still sidelined due to injury, Stewart was joined by Damien King who after a small crash in the first moto was able to finish the race inside the top 15.

With some suspension changes made to Stewart’s bike in between races he got a better start in the second moto and with continual strong laps finished inside the top four. King also completed a good performance and finished 11th. King finished the weekend in 12th position.

Stewart said the weekend was encouraging and he expects to be able to improve in the coming weeks as his wrist continues to get stronger.

“While fifth overall is not where really where I wanted to be for the weekend, it is still an encouraging result and a lot better than Horsham where I struggled with a wrist injury,” Stewart said.

“I am feeling a lot more comfortable on the bike at each race meeting and can’t wait until the next round at Raymond Terrace in two weeks time.”

After taking a break from the national championship, Robbie Marshall returned to Pro Lites competition today, with his Northstar Yamaha sponsored entry 10th overall after finishing 13th and 11th respectively in the two motos of the round.

Also making an appearance for Yamaha was Scott Jackson who also preformed strongly in his first round of the Pro Lites in 2008. The Queensland Yamaha Development Team rider finished 14th and 12th in the two motos to be equal 13th for the round.

-- Husqvarna Report

Round 3 of the Rockstar Energy Mx Nationals at Conondale saw a mixed result for Husqvarna rider Adam Cini. In a hugely competitive field of 39 riders lone Husqvarna entrant Adam came through with a comfortable 19th position qualifying spot from the mornings timed practice.

“We are just dialing things in and getting some valuable seat time this morning” said Adam “but we are quietly confident come race time that we will be in the hunt.”

And that he was with a rocket start Adam positioned himself in 7th place in moto 1 looking to be riding aggressively and making moves further up the leader board. But around halfway through the moto an unfortunate mechanical problem occurred forcing Adam to retire from the race. “We seem to have had a minor problem with the electrics which made it unable for me to continue in the race, but it is not a major issue and we are ready for moto 2.”

Adam wasn’t kidding as he nailed his TC250F into 5th place as they rounded turn 1. From there a battle ensued as Adam traded places back and forth with the lead group. By moto’s end Adam was credited with a well earned 5th place reflecting both his and his machines true capability.

Even with his moto 1 DNF Adams strong showing in the second moto gained him 16 championship points and 13th overall on the day. “I felt good out there that moto,” he said. “My Husky was working awesome and with the Metzeler tyres hooking up to a great bike I still had plenty left in me at the end of the race, it’s unfortunate about moto1 as a top 5 overall for the day was certainly possible.”

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