Yamaha clean sweep AORC outright podium
Riders on Yamaha machines roosted away with the top three Outright positions as well as the crowns for the hotly contested Championship E1, E2 and Women’s Classes after the final round of the series, held yesterday at Salisbury (NSW).
Torrential rain made conditions for the cross-country round extremely tough and technical, and eventually forced organisers to cancel round 10, which was scheduled for today.
One rider: Chris Hollis (from Port Macquarie, NSW), was all smiles yesterday, even despite the mud and freezing rain.
The 27-year-old took his second Yamaha AORC crown by 15-points aboard his YZ450F, ahead of Ballard’s Yamaha Off-Road teammate and Championship E1 Class winner, Stefan Merriman.
“It wasn’t the best way to go, but there was not much you could do with the weather… I just got home [Sunday night] and it’s flooding here at home,” Hollis said.
“It was pretty hard today. It wasn’t really a race – survival just get through it and finish every lap.
“There were people stuck on all these big gnarly hills. There were only like one or two ruts you could get in to get up the hills.
“Every lap, guys were sitting on their bikes on the side of the track, absolutely buggered.
“It was a scary kind of race. Anything could happen, you could wreck your bike so easy.
“But at the end of the day, I finished. It was an awesome result for Yamaha, getting the top three. I’m really stoked.”
Merriman, 38, from Nelson Bay (NSW) had a cracker of a day in round nine, with his World Enduro Championship experience really shining through on the grueling, 18-minute track.
The YZ250F rider took the Outright win of the round – his second round win of the year – by an impressive four minutes and eight seconds.
“It was like a European race,” Merriman said. “The hills were pretty long, rutted and very slippery.
“The biggest drama was not to burn out your clutch. A lot of guys were having troubles like that, they’d overcook their clutch, then have to stop and wait for it to cool down.
“The mud made it hard, you had to change your goggles so often. But Lexy was there and so was my mechanic, Steven Clarke – they were flat out and did a brilliant job.
“I didn’t think I was going to be able to beat Matt Phillips… he had trouble with his clutch.
“I’m really happy with my result, it was great.”
Tasmanian Matt Phillips came third Outright and second in Championship E3 (as a DNF early in the series cost him valuable class points).
Phillips, 18, had won four rounds Outright in a row before yesterday.
Also in the top-10 Outright for the 2011 championship was Victorian (Christensen’s Yamaha) rider, Daniel Milner.
Milner, from Lang Lang, came fifth in yesterday’s cross-country and landed seventh for the series.
Yamaha Motor Australia Motorsports Division Manager, Ray Howard, was on hand this weekend to witness the victories.
“[Chris, Stefan and Matt] arrived here with determination to do their best, to get one-two-three,” Howard said.
“That was their goal, and they didn’t lose focus from that, despite the atrocious conditions.
“They never gave up and dug deep… Stefan was a perfect example of that. All of our riders looked so good, they were all into it. It was a great result.”
The conditions made it impossible for several of the classes to run, the Women’s Class one of them.
This meant that the results as of the eighth round stood, with Brisbane rider Jemma Wilson taking the crown on her YZ250F. Swedish rider, Emelie Karlsson came second on her YZ250F and former winner, Jessica Gardiner (WR250F) was third.
The presentation ceremony for the 2011 Yamaha AORC took place today at the Dungog RSL Club.
Yamaha AORC Round 9 Outright Results
1. Stefan Merriman YAMAHA
2. Bartosz Obluki
3. Glenn Kearney
4. Chris Hollis YAMAHA
5. Daniel Milner YAMAHA
6. Matt Phillips YAMAHA
7. Jarrod Bewley
8. Ben Burrell YAMAHA
9. Luka Bussa
10. Geoff Braico
2011 Yamaha AORC Championship Results
1. Chris Hollis (184) YAMAHA (E2)
2. Stefan Merriman (169) YAMAHA (E1)
3. Matt Phillips (168) YAMAHA (E3)
4. Jarrod Bewley (154) (E3)
5. Glenn Kearney (145) (E2)
6. Bartosz Obluki (130) (E2)
7. Daniel Milner (98) YAMAHA (E2)
8. Ben Grabham (85) (E1)
9. Toby Price (75) (E2)
10. Luka Bussa (74) (E1)
Husqvarna Report
The AORC (Australian Off Road Championship) final rounds were set down for Salisbury near the NSW mid north coast, over the weekend.
Originally set down for a Sunday round nine cross country to be followed on the Monday with a sprint format race, however consistent heavy rain saw Mondays round ten cancelled.
In excess of 200 of Australia’s premier off road riders lined up in the less than ideal conditions, each looking to secure a strong finish in the 2011 championship.
Husqvarna racings Glenn Kearney and Bartosz Oblucki came into the event sitting in 2nd and 3rd place respectively in the premier E2 class behind Chris Hollis.
The wet conditions proved challenging to all the competitors; however the European based Oblucki appeared to revel in the slippery conditions to secure the E2 class victory with Glen Kearney locking in a strong second place.
Bartosz Oblucki – “I usually don’t like cross-country but when the rain kept on getting heavier, I knew this would suit me as this is what I’m used to in Europe. I just powered my Husqvarna up and down the slush with no major effort,” said Oblucki.
Glenn Kearney – “The conditions were really challenging this weekend, there was a very tough section that the majority of riders struggled with on one of the steeper hills. The result was a great one for Husqvarna and the team, I am really looking forward to next year as I am very confident that we can have an even more successful season.” said Kearney.
The impressive one two finish for Husqvarna in the E2 class lifted Oblucki to 2nd in the championship with Glenn Kearney taking the final step on the podium with a strong 3rd spot in the 2011 AORC E2 title.
Another impressive performance from Husqvarna Racings Luka Bussa in the E1 class secured a great result for Husqvarna with Luka taking out 3rd place behind, Former world champion, Stefan Merriman and Ben Burrell.
Luka Bussa – “It was disappointing to have the last round washed out, the result for both me and the Husqvarna racing team was very strong and third place in this year’s E1 title was still on target for us. Thanks again to the team at Paul Feeney Group, Vic, Joel and the guys have worked hard through the season to give us the best opportunity in this year’s title”. Said Luka
Paul Feeney – “I would like to congratulate the guys on their strong finish to the 2011 season, Both Bart and Glenn have performed well right through the season and had it not been for a DNF early in the season, the final results could have been even better. Vic Martin and his techs, Joel, Chris and Freddie have put in a huge effort to make sure the bikes are as competitive as possible. I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank our 2011 sponsors: Link International, Pirelli Tyres, Motul products, Ferodo Brakes, RK Chains, JT Sprockets, Polisport, Renthal and Progrip. Thanks also to Motorcycling Australia and perhaps more importantly, all the individual clubs, like the Dungog club, who have made this year’s series possible. Their ongoing passion and support are a credit to the sport.” Said Paul
2011 AORC E2 Championship final results:
1st place: Chris Hollis (Yamaha WR 450)
2nd place: Bartosz Oblucki (Husqvarna TE 310) equal points
3rd place: Glenn Kearney (Husqvarna TE 310) equal points
2011 AORC E1 Championship final results:
1st place: Stefan Merriman (Yamaha WR 250)
2nd place: Ben Grabham (KTM EXC 250)
3rd place: Luka Bussa (Husqvarna TE 250)
