O'Neal Honda

Shayne King took one step closer to claiming the outright Pro Open title in this years 4-Stroke Nationals last weekend at Junee with a 3rd overall. Extremely cold conditions and the threat of rain kept the spectator numbers low but the rain did hold off until the very end of day. The small crowd of spectators witnessed awesome racing on a track that was already cut up from the previous weekends racing.

With a 10th and two 2nd place finishes in this round, Shayne King goes into the final round aboard his CRF450R with a 35 point lead over his Yamaha mounted brother Darryl. Shayne and his CRF450R has been a strong reliable performer in this years championship claiming overall wins at most rounds. With a solid 3rd place this has further cemented his Championship leading position with one round remaining.

The biggest surprise for the weekend came when Shane Metcalfe debuted the 2004 year model CRF450R. The O’Neal Honda team un-crated a new machine the week prior to the race, fitted Metcalfe’s preferred Renthal ‘bars, stickered it up and loaded it into the truck. On Sunday morning Shane rode the stock bike in practice and decided that he liked it better than his race bike that he has ridden all year. The team mechanics simply adjusted the suspension clickers to Metcalfe’s liking and he went out and raced on it. What was the result? A stunning 5th place in race two of the Pro Open class against Australia’s best riders on Australia’s fastest race machines. The O’Neal Honda team were excited by the result but more excited by the prospects for this new model in next years race season, if it’s this good out of the box then just how far can the team take it?

Cody Cooper was in the thick of the Honda freight train at the front of the pack with 3rd, 7th and 6th placing’s in the Pro Open class which gave him a 5th overall placing. Also running a CRF450R and gaining valuable experience all the time in the Pro Open class is young Danny Anderson. “Digsy” Anderson finished 10th overall which was a great result for him.

The final round of the 4-Stroke Nationals will be held at Wonthaggi Victoria on September 21st where Shayne King should come away from the weekend with a number one trophy.

Staintune MXM

They say motocross racing is about character and Staintune MXM riders Chris Urquhart and Paul Broomfield clearly illustrated theirs, in another tough weekend in the Staintune 4-Stroke Nationals at Junee, NSW.

On the back of a stellar motocross season which saw him finish one agonizing point away from third in the national series, Broomfield’s start to the 4-stroke racing season has been comparatively slow, as the effects of an increased coaching workload become obvious.

For the second consecutive round Broomfield moved up a position in the Pro Open championship, but the improvements are neither large enough nor fast enough for the ex-sandgroper, who makes no excuses, instead blaming a lack of fitness.

Regardless, Broomfield rode to 6, 8, 7 results for seventh on the day, in the process elevating himself to seventh in the series. Overall honours on the day went to Darryll King (Yamaha) from Cheyne Boyd (KTM) and championship leader Shayne King (Honda), on a day when both Pro classes rode their final moto in heavy rain which made track conditions slick and slimy.

In the Pro Lites, Staintune MXM’s Chris Urquhart fronted with a case of the ‘flu that would have turned many riders away, but pushed through the fatigue to not only register three finishes, but run near the front in each of the three races.

“Chris was in bed until Wednesday this week,” said Team Manager Byron Draper, “and only rode for half an hour after hopping off the plane.
“I roomed with him last night and I didn’t get any sleep either. About 1a.m. I was sure he was going to cough a lung up!

“But he pushed on for seventh, sixth and tenth, and as the day went on he got so tired, and just so exhausted. I think he had the pace to run top-five, but the best he could do today was eighth on the day. And even that was an amazing effort.

“Paul showed definite improvement even though it was pouring rain and freezing cold during the last races in the Lites and Opens.”

Pro Lites: Championship leader Troy Carroll was joined in the Pro Lites class at Junee by both his Open class team mates, Darryll King and Cam Taylor, and the three riders shared the race wins and the podium. Carroll took the first and second races over Taylor by the narrowest of margins, with DK taking the third from Taylor. Carroll won the day from Taylor and King, with Adam Robinson and Glenn Kearney fourth and fifth. Urquhart’s 7, 6, 10 gave him eighth on the day.

Chris Urquhart: “I got crook last Sunday arvo with something and it just buggered me for the week - that was my preparation coming in to this race. My plan coming here today was to get back into third in the championship, but instead I’m fifth. I’m very disappointed about that. In the first moto I hung up there for a few laps, but the effects of the flu and the arm pump got me each time. Today we had Darryll King and Cam Taylor riding in our class, so it’s another two guys who you know are going to be at the front. It’s not the best time for that when you’re trying to make up championship points, but I guess the rest of us are all in the same boat.  There were a few positives I could take from the day though. I was riding pretty good, and I hope I can continue that this weekend. We’ve headed straight to Heffs for Monday to pick up the supercross bikes and start riding straight away. I want to get in touch with the supercross side of things and make the most of the week, maybe get a day's riding in over there as well before the race.”

Pro Open: Darryll King became the first rider to break the winning streak of Honda’s Shayne King, taking the overall at Junee, ahead of Cheyne Boyd (KTM), Shayne and Damien King, and Honda’s Cody Cooper.  Shane Metcalfe (Honda) and Broomfield were sixth and seventh respectively. Darryll King won the day’s first and second motos, while younger brother Damien King won his first Australian national championship race in the wet and muddy third moto.

Paul Broomfield: “At first I thought my day was utter crap, but I’ve revised that evaluation to ‘okay’. I learned a few more lessons today, but I’m still struggling a little bit with arm pump.  My shoulder that I injured before the Superdome didn’t hold me back, and it only became uncomfortable late in the races. The problem is that I’m struggling a little but with that last little bit of fitness intensity, and that's the only thing holding me back at the moment. This was my first race with the new motor and it was great - a lot more bottom and mid so it’s easier to lug a higher gear. Through the turns I think it’s the better package I needed, and I think top fives were the call for the day. That’s why I’m starting to feel I’m letting the team down. It’s the first time in my whole career I haven't been fit enough, and I think being a part-time racer has taken a toll towards the end of the season. At the start of the year where I wasn’t coaching as much I was pushing all the guys a lot more, and I just don't want to give up the racing yet because I'll forever be asking myself what if.”

Motorex KTM

Motorex KTM team mates Cheyne Boyd and Jay Marmont will have each other as their major challenger when the final round of the Staintune F4-stroke Nats takes place at Wonthaggi in three weeks time.

With most of the lead championship positions settled, both Boyd and Marmont have a clear shot at a third place finish in the series, and with just ten points separating them on the points table, each has the other as his most serious challenger.

Boyd took over third slot on the ladder with another brilliant podium finish at Junee, this time taking second to former world vice champion Darryll King (Yamaha), and finishing ahead of runaway championship leader Shayne King.

It was Boyd’s third national-level podium finish in as many races, and underlines the Victorian rider’s growing maturity and professionalism in both motocross and supercross arenas.

Somewhat by contrast, team mate Jay Marmont’s day was a disappointing one for the Australian supercross championship leader, who finished on the podium in the previous two rounds of the four-stroke championship.

“The boys rode pretty well in tough conditions,” said Team Manager Rob Twyerould. “It was bitterly cold at times, and like a number of riders, they suffered a little bit with arm pump in a couple of motos.”

The other factor that made conditions trying for competitors was the mid-program downpour, which continued into the day’s third and final Open Pro moto.

In the day’s opening moto, Boyd fired his KTM540SXS to an impressive holeshot, and after holding the lead til approximately half race distance, began to suffer a little arm pump which dropped him to second, with Darryll King going on to win. Meanwhile, Marmont recovered from an eighth place start to finish fourth.

In the second moto, Marmont positioned himself second on the opening lap, but as severe pump set in, plummeted to sixth, while Boyd worked his way forward to an eventual third with D.King taking his second win.

In rain and very sloppy track conditions, Damien King (Honda) holeshot the third moto and was never headed, while behind, Boyd would ride to fifth after a wild off-track excursion, and Jay Marmont was enjoying the ride of his day.

The Wollongong ace was giving his KTM everything in the slick and slippery conditions, and held second for much of the moto before getting involved in a stoush with Darryll and Shayne King. Unfortunately though, with just two laps to go, Marmont’s clutch succumbed to the hammering it was receiving, and on the final lap the bike stopped.

“Obviously it was very disappointing for Jay to lose his position in the championship to a mechanical, but if someone had to take his place, it’s good that it’s Cheyne!

“They’ll battle for third in the championship now, and there’s a chance for second, so we’ll see what happens.

This weekend sees the Motorex KTM team back in action for the fifth round of the Australian Supercross Championship at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Both supercross championship leader Marmont and in-form Boyd will be contenders for the round win.

Jay Marmont (4, 6, DNF) – “It feels like that was my worst race day in years!  In the first race I got fourth with a bit of arm pump, then in the next one I was running up there in second and ended up fifth or sixth. In the last one I was running second or third the whole race and I burnt the clutch out. It just summed up a crappy day overall, I didn’t feel 100% and I’m used to going from second to first, not second to fifth. That third race was different; it got really slick and it was pissing down rain but I had a good start and I was letting it all hang out because I hadn’t had the best day. And it was working for me. But then I killed the clutch. As for the championship, Cheyne was 15 points behind me coming in, so it goes to show how easily you can drop the points. We’ll have to fight it out at the next one. We’ve got supercross coming up this weekend and I can't wait - supercross is where I feel the strongest, I enjoy riding the 250cc 2-stroke and that’s where I’ve won my races this year so I’m looking forward to finishing off the season on a good note.”

Cheyne Boyd (2, 3, 5,) – “I had a good day. It started off with a good practice session and just went from there. I haven't been able to practice fast tracks much lately and Wagga was definitely one of the fastest tracks this year. It got pretty rough toward the end of the day, too. Race one I had the holeshot and was doing it pretty comfortably, but then my arms pumped up a little bit and DK came up. We battled a bit, but he passed me with two laps to go. I was still happy with second though because my first race is normally my worst result. The second race I came from a little way back to finish third and then in the last race it pissed down. I went off the track, hit one of those water containers and rode my front wheel for about 10 metres and lost a heap of places. There wasn’t too much pressure on me to get second on the day because a few other guys had had bad luck, but I managed to get back through to fifth. My approach this weekend in Adelaide will be the same as any. I know I’m fast enough to win races, and I’m a lot smarter now for supercross, so, we’ll just hope for a good start.”

KTM Fly HSE Racing

With Fly HSE KTM Racing team youngsters Cody Mackie and Bradleigh Thompson accumulating tremendous (relative) success in recent rounds of the supercross and four-stroke series, the opportunity has come to build on growing confidence and experience.

The penultimate round of the Staintune 4-stroke Nats at Junee brings another high-speed track for the pair to come to grips with on their KTM450SX machines, and the added challenge of third moto in the rain for a slick, muddy finale.

The result: Cody Mackie – moto finishes: 3rd, 9th, 3rd, … 4th o’all
Bradleigh Thompson – moto finishes: 17th, 1st, 9th, … 7h o’all

Cody Mackie - "Fourth on the day was okay, but I expected to go better. I rode this track last year and it was dusty when I was back in tenth place, but I had no intention of being tenth this year. I’m getting a lot more aggressive off the starts now – It’s sort of mind over matter just knowing that you can get a holeshot, and in Race 1 I nearly got it. I was top-three into turn 1, but unfortunately I stayed there the whole race. It was one-lined at the time and I couldn’t pass Wayne Dukes, because I had to go off the race line to have a go. I was a bit bummed, because maybe if I’d have got by I could have won. The second moto I was way too cautions on the first lap and I went from third to seventh before I got firing. Then I lost the front into a right-hander and got up dead last. Lucky it was still the first lap. I got back up to ninth. I felt I was making good passes, even though I had to slam a few people to get by out there - I hope there are no hard feelings. In the third I got a great jump and pulled the start, but again my first lap wasn’t so good, although this time I only dropped to sixth. I started to charge, and even though it was pouring down, the track surprisingly got better! The half-metre dust berms got firm enough that you could rail them! I got all the way back up to third, and nearly got second. I’m only six points behind in third place, and I’m confident going into the final because it’s a sand track, and I grew up riding sand in the West."

Bradleigh Thompson - "It took a bit to sink in once I got back to the pits, but my first senior race win at the Nats felt great. I’d been working on my starts through the week, so I got a good one in the first race. I was running top-5 and I moved up to fourth and was running there until I washed the front end on the third lap. Unfortunately I stalled and flooded the bike, and by the time I got going the best I could do was 17th. After that we changed the suspension to take the sharp bumps out of the track, and even though I had a pretty average pick of the gate, I got into second off the start. I ran second for a few laps, but then I went by Wayne Dukes with two to go and took my first win for the year! It felt great crossing that line and everyone was pretty happy for me back in the pits. Dad was happy and Cody was happy for me too, which was good. That did a lot for my confidence and when it started raining in the third moto I tried to work through from fourth place, but I ran out of tearoffs - so no vision! I couldn't see, and I finished ninth.  I’m looking forward to a good finish at Wonthaggi now. I want to try to string three consistent motos together and see what I can come up with."