Pro Open
Jay Marmont (Yamaha) has taken out the third round of the 2009 Australian Motocross Championship held at Toowoomba Motocross Club this weekend.
Following an impressive points tussle with Andrew McFarlane, Marmont retains the red plates following a great day of racing at the hilly Toowoomba track.
In qualifying it was Craig Anderson (Kawasaki) who clocked the fastest lap time ahead of McFarlane and Cheyne Boyd (Yamaha), shattering the average two minute lap time.
In the first race, Anderson scored the holeshot but within the first lap, McFarlane had his measure, breaking out to comfortable lead.
A battle between reigning Champion Marmont and Anderson soon ensued, the two riders banging bars in a fight for second place.
In the end Marmont was too fit for Anderson, who slid back into fifth place by the end of the moto.
Oblivious to the battle raging behind him McFarlane rode his own race, while Kawasaki rider, Cody Mackie, worked his way through the field to eventually challenge Anderson for the final step on the podium.
At the flag it was McFarlane nearly eight seconds ahead of second placed Marmont, with Mackie hanging on to third place.
As the second moto got underway, Boyd scored the holeshot and held onto the lead in the first few laps.
Unfortunately after two small mishaps in the next lap, he was overtaken by his teammate Marmont and McFarlane.
As the race progressed McFarlane began to chip seconds away from Marmont’s lead, while inching further and further away from Boyd.
By the time the flag fell, Marmont had clung victory by just under four seconds, with McFarlane in second and Boyd in third.
Jay Marmont: “The track was very difficult here today, if there was going to be a track the Andrew (McFarlane) was good at it was going to be Toowoomba. He’s got that European background of riding the deep ruts and that’s what this track was all about today; you had to be smooth and try to eliminate all mistakes, get out and ride your own race and he seemed to do that in the first moto, and I retaliated in the second one. The traditional formats are always fun, it’s what we train and practice for, but I’m all about a change and I like the idea of the sprint races. I think it makes racing really good, and I’m all about racing for the fans, having good motos and it being fun, so I’m up for changing it up a bit and I’d probably say I like the sprint races a little bit more at the moment. The last two rounds I’ve finished second, and while there’s nothing wrong with finishing second, finishing first feels a whole lot better so getting this win out of the way today it definitely states my authority in the Championship. I know everyone is going to come on strong in the next rounds which are going to be the sand rounds and the faster sort of tracks so I’m up for the challenge of running that number one plate and am going to be the number one contender.”
— Pro Lites
At the third round of the 2009 Australian Motocross Championship, Matt Moss (Suzuki) has taken out the Pro Lites class with Harley Quinlan (Yamaha) taking out the top spot in the Under 19s class.
Despite a controversial time penalty in the final moto, Luke George (Kawasaki) retains the red Series leader plate now only three points ahead of second placed Moss.
In the under 19s, Josh Cachia (Yamaha) and Luke Styke (Yamaha) are now tied on points with Cachia still managing to hang onto the red plates for the next round.
In the first Pro Lites moto, Moss scored the holeshot and broke out to an early lead until he put his bike down allowing George to slip past.
George held onto the lead for several laps until and determined Moss caught and passed him before breaking away.
Moss took the flag with George finishing in second and KTM rider Tye Simmonds wrapping up the moto in third.
The second moto was riddled with controversy with George handed a 20 second time penalty for cutting the track after getting clipped coming down the steep hill.
With the time penalty in place, George was dropped down to sixth place, where he then set about gaining back lost ground, and within a handful of laps had gained several valuable seconds back from the leading riders.
By the end of the race Moss had taken the flag, with Lawson Bopping (Suzuki) in second place and George, who by the time he crossed the line had worked his way into third place.
Emotions ran high as some of the riders nearly came to blows in their post race confrontation ensuring a blockbuster round in a week’s time at Mackay!
— Under 19s
The Under 19s class was a more sedate affair, with Yamaha’s young guns dominating the first race.
In the first moto, Harley Quinlan (Yamaha) was a force to be reckoned with, taking the holeshot, the lead and eventually the flag ahead of teammates Ross Beaton and Luke Styke.
The second moto was lead out once again by the Yamaha squad, however they were soon joined by Kawasaki’s Luke Arbon, who caught and passed Styke in lap five.
In the last lap, Quinlan was out in front once again, followed by Beaton and now by Dylan Peterson (Honda), who in the dying moments of the race, overtook Beaton for second place.
Series Promoter, Kevin Williams: “Round three of the Championship certainly came with some great racing back to the traditional formats. It was great to see the young-guns step up with another new winner in the Under 19s class in Harley Quinlan, and to see Ross Beaton move up onto the podium as well. In the Pro Lites there was plenty of controversy today in the second moto; Luke George got clipped going down the steep hill and cut the track incurring the wrath of a 20 second penalty. Some say it was a bit light, others say it was fair but that was the penalty and he got the message, instead of being in second he dropped back into sixth place and had to fight his way through the remainder of the moto to make up for the lost time. Moss was certainly disappointed and thought the penalty should have been more and the word from Mossy is “I’ll show you how good I am, I’ll go one-one next round,” so it’s certainly going to be a fiery battle in the Pro Lites as we move forward in the Championship.”
Harley Quinlan: “I had a bit of a slow start to the season and it feels good to get on top again. The track was awesome today; I’m a good hard-pack rider so I love the ruts and the shiny bits so it really suited me today. The Championship is going to be a hard fought one, it’s tightening up now but I think by the end of it there’s going to be a good finish. Everyone is so much more determined now, and everyone trains so much harder now and tries to train harder than anyone else which is so good for the competition.”
— Results from Round Three in Toowoomba
Pro Open Race One
| Pro Open Race Two
| Pro Open Round
| Pro Open Championship
|
Pro Lites Race One
| Pro Lites Race Two
| Pro Lites Round
| Pro Lites Championship
|
Under 19s Race One
| Under 19s Race Two
| Under 19s Round
| Under 19s Championship
|
— Yamaha Report
Yamaha Racing has enjoyed immense success at the third round of the 2009 Australian Motocross Championships at Toowoomba’s Echo Valley today, taking a clean sweep of the Pro Open podium as well as laying claim to two steps on the Under 19’s dais.
CDR Rockstar Yamaha’s Jay Marmont broke through for his first Pro Open race victory of the season, edging out fellow Yamaha rider Andrew McFarlane for the overall round win.
Marmont’s teammate Cheyne Boyd rounded out the Pro Open podium while in the Under 19’s GYTR Yamaha Junior Development rider Harley Quinlan won both races to claim the round with teammate Ross Beaton finishing third.
Yamaha’s race teams will have a short turnaround before the fourth round of the series which will be held in MacKay on Sunday 24 May.
Pro Open
The third round on the series has paid dividends for CDR Rockstar Yamaha, the factory team recording their first dual podium of the season at the Toowoomba event.
A return to the traditional two race format suited reigning Champion Jay Marmont who appeared stronger as each of the 20 minute races progressed.
Marmont finished second behind McFarlane in the opening race after losing ground while duelling with Craig Anderson for second. There were no such obstacles in the second moto, Marmont was second out of the gate behind teammate Boyd and within a couple of laps he had control of the race.
Today’s results see Marmont retain the championship lead and the coveted red plate.
“It was great to finally break through for a win,” Marmont said. “Second was nice but first is a whole better.”
“I lost a lot of ground in the first race trying to get past Ando (Craig Anderson) which gave Andrew (McFarlane) the chance to really check out. I clawed back a lot of time but not enough to pressure him for first.
“The traditional formats are always fun, it’s what we train and practice for but I must say I have become a fan of the sprint races as well,” Marmont acknowledged.
After finishing fourth in the opening moto Boyd holeshot the second race and led for a number of laps before being passed by his teammate and McFarlane. The YZ450F rider finished the race third and claimed his first podium of the season.
“I am pretty happy with today’s result I wasn’t that comfortable with the bike during practice,” Boyd explained.
“Things came good during the course of the races and it was good to get through two motos without incident.”
Team Principal Craig Dack said today’s results would be confidence building for both riders.
“It was a fantastic day for the whole team,” Dack said. “Both riders stuck to their game plans and today’s results are a reflection of this.
“This is the home track for Andrew McFarlane so we knew it was always going to be a tough round for Jay. To come out and win here is especially pleasing.
“After a couple of tough rounds I was really happy with Cheyne’s performance, he rode two very solid motos which is great for his confidence ,” Dack added.
Pro Lites
It was a tough day at the office for Serco Yamaha riders, Kirk Gibbs and Mitch Hoad with the pair finishing 15th and 18th respectively at the third round of the Pro Lites Championship at Toowoomba’s Echo Valley Race Track.
After qualifying fourth, Gibbs got a good jump out of the gates in the opening moto before he was pushed off line going into the first turn, losing a number of positions. From there the YZ250F rider fought his way through the pack to finish ninth.
In the second moto, Gibbs got a solid start and climbed into fourth position before he experienced problems with his rear brakes forcing him to retire from the final 30 minute moto of the round. The malfunction cost him dearly with the 20-year-old falling to fifth position in the series point score.
“It was a very tough day,” Gibbs said, “However we were able to take a few positives from the event and my starts were good and I showed a lot of speed in the opening stages of each race.”
“It is now just a matter of taking advantage of these positives and drawing on them at the fourth round of the championship at Mackay next weekend,” he said.
It was also a challenging day for Gibbs’ team-mate, Hoad who was unable to finish the opening moto after being hit by another rider. The Serco Yamaha rider took the holeshot in the second moto and completed a number of consistent laps throughout the race to finish 11th.
Under 19s
The GYTR Yamaha Junior Development Team dominated the third round of the Under 19s Championship with Harley Quinlan and Ross Beaton both finishing on the podium and Luke Styke now equal first in the championship point score.
Quinlan, led both motos from start to finish to take victory for the round with his team-mate Beaton also joining him on the podium after claiming second overall by finishing second and third in each of today’s races.
Quinlan, who took the holeshot and lead both races from start to finish said today’s victory was his first for 2009.
“I started practice with a different approach and I also changed how I went into today’s race and it has worked with me claiming the win today,” said Quinlan.
“I am and now focusing on having fun instead of making racing a job and I’m hoping to do much the same throughout the rest of the championship,” he concluded.
Styke was fifth overall after finishing third and seventh in today’s two motos.
— Suzuki Report
Team Shift Motul Suzuki Pro Lite star Matt Moss cemented his standing as the hottest young rider in the country with his second consecutive clean sweep in round three of the 2009 Australian National Motocross Championships at Toowoomba.
After another strong qualifying session, Moss was clearly the quickest on course and grabbed the hole shot in the first moto and quickly built up a clear lead.
An uncharacteristic error saw Moss put his bike down, dropping him back to second, but with his Suzuki RM-Z250 on song, Moss fought back and re-established his dominance over Luke George to eventually win the first leg by seven seconds.
The second Pro Lite moto was drama packed, with George earning the official’s wrath for cutting the track and earning a 20 second penalty.
Moss was in superb form in the second moto, earning his fourth straight win and ultimately scoring the win by more than 22 seconds.
The Suzuki star has clearly put the disappointment of an indifferent performance in round one at Albury behind him to score his second bag of maximum points.
He is now just three points shy of the lead in the Pro Lite championship table and, after his second dominant performance in a row, has sent a clear message he will only be satisfied with first place.
Team Shift Motul Suzuki Development squad member Lawson Bopping continued to mine the rich vein of form he found at Canberra with his best points haul to date.
The up and coming Bopping finished the Toowoomba round with a second and fifth to score 38 points and move into outright fourth position.
Bopping’s consistent form in all three rounds has him well within striking distance of a top three finish.
In the Pro Open title race, the revamped Suzuki rider line-up of Cameron Taylor and Daryl Hurley gave the team its best points haul of the season to date.
With the series reverting back to the familiar two 30-minute moto format, Taylor demonstrated his smoothness and consistency by finishing seventh in both events.
Teammate Hurley, back on the Suzuki RM-Z450 for the first time in 2009, started superbly to finish sixth in the first event and followed up with a strong eighth place finish in the second leg.
Taylor’s consistent form since round one sees him in seventh place overall, and his high fitness levels should see him rake in even more points when the MX show backs up next weekend at Mackay.
JAY FOREMAN – TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI TEAM MANAGER
“Matt was in great form again today with another clean sweep of both motos.
“He didn’t get fazed by the hiccup in the first race and proved his talent by charging back through the field, taking the lead and pulling away again.
“Matt’s showing everyone he’s the rider to watch in the Pro Lites championship and we’re confident of another great performance at Mackay this week.
“Lawson has been a model of consistency all season and his points haul means we now have two Suzukis in the top four of the Pro Lites title race.
“It was great having Daryl back for the Pro Open and I think having him here helped Cam have his best result of the year so far.
“It sets us up nicely not only for next week, but the rest of the 2009 season.”
CAM TAYLOR – TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI
“It was good to get back to the traditional 30 minute motos and score more valuable points for myself and the team.
“I’m looking forward to next week where Daryl and I and the rest of the team can demonstrate just how good the Suzuki RM-Z450 can be.”
MATT MOSS – TEAM SHIFT MOTUL SUZUKI
“It was great to score maximum points again. The Suzuki is really flying now and even when things don’t always go my way I’m confident in the bike to get me over the line.
“I’m only three points away from the red plate now; hopefully I can have them by the time we finish the round at Mackay.”
— Woodstock Honda Report
Woodstock Honda Thor Racing’s Todd Waters stands firmly in third place in the Australian Motocross Championship following today’s third round at the Toowoomba Motocross Club (QLD).
Meanwhile, the factory Honda team’s newest recruit, Brent Landman, delivered consistent performances aboard the Woodstock Honda CRF450R to climb from 10th to eighth in the overall series standings.
Looking forward to returning to the classic motocross format of two 30-minute motos, Honda’s star rookie, Waters made his task all the more difficult with minor errors creeping into both races.
In the day’s opening Pro Open moto, Waters was on competitive terms with the leaders and racing strongly in third place until a light crash dropped him down the order.
Rejoining and working his way back up the standings, Waters then suffered a second crash that undid his previous efforts and left him to fight his way back through the pack from 10th to eighth.
Meanwhile, a solid showing from Landman had him well placed in 10th on the final lap of moto one, before a tangle with lapped traffic and a subsequent crash saw him drop a position and cross the finish line in 11th.
A slow start in the second moto, left the 18-year-old Honda rider, Waters with work to do to salvage a result and keep his championship aspirations alive.
Charging into fifth place after gaining the upper hand in a mighty battle with multi-time Australian champion, Craig Anderson, Waters earned sixth place for the round and comfortably maintained third in the series standings.
Also making a slower start to moto two, Landman pushed hard to once again climb into the top 10, before dropping back to score another 11th-place finish.
The result earned Landman 11th overall for the round, but, crucially, he advanced two places in the overall series standings.
Woodstock Honda racers Waters and Landman will be rejoined by Honda’s enduro hero, Peter Boyle, for round four of the 2009 Australian Motocross Championship in Mackay (QLD) on Sunday 24 May.
TODD WATERS:
“I didn’t make it easy for myself, today – I had to come through the pack each time. In moto one, I was running third until I dropped the bike. I picked it up and made up some ground but then I dropped it again which put me back in 12th and I fought back to eighth. In the next moto, I was slow out of the start gate and came through to fifth after a big battle with Craig Anderson. I’m a bit disappointed with how today went… It was really rutted and hard pack and pretty slippery and I guess I didn’t really read the track as well as I thought.
“On the positive side, I’m still third in the championship which is good to still be in the mix. Heading into Mackay next week, I’m just going to go and give it my best shot and hopefully we’ll go a lot better.”
BRENT LANDMAN:
“I’ve moved up a couple of places in the championship, which was my goal for the weekend. It was an average day, but I rode the track pretty well for me – I don’t normally like this deep ruts and hard pack kind of track, but I got through with a reasonable result and moved up in the series standings. I’m really looking forward to getting to the sandier tracks for the next three rounds and I can hopefully deliver some stronger results on the Woodstock Honda.”
