Yamaha riders win Titles in Vic & Qld
Yamaha riders again did themselves proud, wrapping up a state motocross championship in Victoria and a Sunshine State Series victory in Queensland over an action packed weekend.
GYTR Yamaha’s Sam Martin, at 17 years of age, became one of the youngest riders to win the A Grade Open Victorian Motocross Championship after the final round was wrapped up at Horsham over the weekend.
Martin entered the final round with a comfortable 40 point lead after strong showings in the opening three rounds. But, he was keen to continue his good form on the Yamaha YZ450F and out to win the final round to stamp his authority on the championship. And that’s exactly what he did. His day moto results of 5-1-1-1 gave him the overall round victory and combined with previous round results of 4-1-2, he was a worthy winner of the championship, his first as a professional racer.
“I really enjoy racing the YZ450F and this is a result I’m proud of. I have never won a major championship before, so this is pretty cool,” Martin said excitedly.
“I wanted to win today and build lots of momentum for the last half of the MX Nationals, so it was nice to get it done. A big thank you goes out to the GYTR Yamaha team and our sponsors for their massive support and also to my family for the effort they put in.”
Martin also competed on his YZ250F in the A Grade Lites to take third for the round and seventh overall in the championship despite missing seven out of the 16 races. Both results made it a good weekend for the young Victorian and he now heads towards the final half of the MX Nationals in good spirits where he currently sits fourth in the MXD class, only 22 points from the lead.
WRD/ Yamaha racer Wade Hunter wrapped up the win in the Pro Lites class of the Queensland Sunshine State Series with a round to spare after another podium result in the penultimate round at Leyburn Park on the weekend.
Hunter has been impressive in 2012 and his third overall at Leyburn Park behind national contenders, Ford Dale and Kade Mosig, gave him an unassailable lead in the series with one round still to come.
“Winning this series was one of the goals I had at the start of the year, so it is good that I can tick this one off and keep moving forward, especially one round early,” Hunter said.
“I now want to make an impression at the MX Nats and after good results here and at the Queensland Motocross Championships I feel I’m ready to challenge the good guys at Hervey Bay next week.”
“But this win couldn’t come without the support from Mike Ward at WRD, Yamaha and all the team sponsors, so thanks to them and also the Queensland motocross sub –committee and the series sponsors for their hard work in running the series.”
Results
Victorian MX Champs – Round four
A Grade Open
1st Sam Martin (Yamaha)
2nd Thomas Alexander (Honda)
3rd Kyle McKeddie (Kawasaki)
Championship Standings
1st Sam Martin – 340
2nd Kyle McKeddie – 287
3rd Thomas Alexander – 276
QLD Sunshine State Series – Round seven
Pro Lites
1st Ford Dale (Honda)
2nd Kade Mosig – (Kawasaki)
3rd Wade Hunter – (Yamaha)
Series Standings After Round seven
1st Wade Hunter – 233 (series winner)
2nd Jay Wilson – 164
3rd Sam Liekefett – 162
Wade Hunter claimed the Pro Lites win at the QLD SSMX with a round to spare
