ASX heads to Virginia, SA with Brayton & Faith in lead
By Marc Jones
Round 3 of the Australian Supercross series rolls into Virginia, South Australia, this Saturday the 28th of October, where the countries best riders eye off American duo Justin Brayton and Gavin Faith to knock them off their perch.
For Brayton, the opening two rounds have merely been another day in the office, taken convincing wins in both races ahead of Dean Ferris. With great starts and a pace that can’t be matched, Brayton has found the going easy but admits he knows that he has to be at his best at all times saying, “These guys are tough completion, racing is racing, and anything can happen out there.”
Dean Ferris may have let Brayton get away at the last round at Bacchus Marsh, but it could be seen as more of a tactic. The track was challenging and in some aspects dangerous. With Brayton on another level, Ferris knew that conceding three points but finishing the event, was safer than making a mistake and leaving empty-handed.
He enters Virginia this weekend a respectable six points behind, which can be made up in the matter of a single race. Coming into the midway point of the series, however, it’s time to lay it all on the line for Ferris and show what he can do and potentially come away with the win, but more importantly, confidence to take it to Brayton for the rest of the series.
Todd Waters made his way back onto the podium last time out and will be looking to match the pace of the two front-runners, as well as Dylan Long who held on to finish fourth at Bacchus Marsh, showing he too can run with the big dogs.
Gavin Faith is back in a familiar position holding the red plate this weekend in the SX2 class. The former champion took the series lead after Hayden Mellross went down hard while leading the main event comfortably. The crash saw Mellross retiring from the race, but looks set to return to the track this weekend to redeem points lost and make a charge for the series win. After falling two laps short of the championship last year with an engine issue, the fire is burning strong for Mellross, and he will stop at nothing to take home the title.
Wilson Todd picked up a maiden podium last round and is expected to replicate his form at Virginia. He showed he has the pace, and coming off an excellent motocross series, should be one to see at the front of the pack in the main event.
Defending champion Jackson Richardson spent his pre-season recovering from an injury sustained mid-year during the motocross series and is yet to find his place out front leading laps. There’s no doubting he has the speed and is definitely moving forward after two rounds, so don’t be surprised if you see the number 1 plate out front.
SX1 Points Standings
- Justin Brayton 50
- Dean Ferris 44
- Todd Waters 36
- Daniel Reardon 36
- Dylan Long 32
- Luke Clout 32
- Nathan Crawford 28
- Cheyne Boyd 24
- Kade Mosig 23
- Nick Schmidt 22
SX2 Point Standings
- Gavin Faith 47
2. Jackson Richardson 37
3. Wilson Todd 36
4. Jay Wilson 34
5. Dylan Wills 32
6. Hayden Mellross 25
7. Cooper Pozniak 22
8. Connor Tierney 21
9. Callum Norton 21
10. Mitchell Evans 20
