Gibbs & Crawford Take Wanaroo

Australian MX Champs 2016

maddix park mx

www.mxnationals.com.au

Race Highlights

MX1

The Thor MX1 class had three gruelling racing in the sand today with KTM Motocross Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs securing another round victory and extending his championship points lead, at round five of the 2016 Motul MX Nationals at Wanneroo in Western Australia.

After a 20-minute qualifying session this morning, GoPro Superpole proved to be more important than ever – with series points leader Gibbs (KTM), CDR Yamaha’s Dean Ferris, Todd Waters (Wilson Coolair Motul Factory Suzuki), National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Matt Moss, and Jesse Dobson all looking to collect additional championship points.

And when each rider had put down their fastest individual laps, it was Ferris who collected the Superpole cheque with a 1:42.344 lap time, equalising on championship points with Gibbs, and setting up the day as a fight for the red plate.

With the championship lead well and truly up for grabs at round five, thousands of eager spectators watched on as the Thor MX1 class lined up for moto one, and when gates dropped it was Ferris who carried his momentum from Superpole, to snatch up the first MXstore hole shot for the day.

With one lap in the books, it was Ferris who led from Gibbs, Moss, and Wilson Coolair Motul Suzuki’s Waters, while Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team’s Dylan Long slotted in to an impressive fifth position ahead of KTM’s Dobson in sixth.

With races at Wanneroo being a 20-minute dash, any mistake would prove to be crucial. With that known, Ferris took to the sand like a champion, looking smooth and consistent out in front after four laps, while Gibbs continued to chase his tail just ahead of Moss.

By the time the Thor MX1 class reached the half way mark in moto one, the running order saw no changes, with CDR Yamaha’s Ferris continuing to lead from Gibbs and Moss, while Waters and Long completed the top five standings.

When the Thor MX1 competitors received the last lap board, CDR Yamaha’s Ferris was well and truly in the box seat to collect the race one victory, while Gibbs continued to attack the deep sand and close the gap in second position ahead of Moss in third.

And when the chequered flag flew, despite a minor mishap with a lapper causing Ferris to go down, he remounted and did exactly was required to collect his first race win for the weekend, crossing the line in first position only a bike’s length ahead of Gibbs in second, while Moss wrapped up race one in third. Suzuki mounted Waters and Honda’s Long concluded race one in fourth and fifth places respectively.

When race two kicked off, once again it was CDR Yamaha’s Ferris who launched off the start and in to the early race lead, followed by his closest opponent Gibbs and National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Moss in third.

After two laps, Ferris had pulled five seconds on KTM’s Gibbs, checking out on the MX1 field and allowing the battles for remaining positions to happen behind him. Gibbs continued to circulate in second place, only narrowly holding back hard charging Moss and Waters who held down third and fourth places respectively.

As the Thor MX1 class reached the 10 minute mark, the running order saw Ferris dominating in the lead position, from Gibbs, Moss, Waters and Mosig. Honda mounted Long was just outside the top five in sixth, followed by Dobson, Law, Wilson and Wright who completed the top ten standings.

As moto two approached the closing stages, Wilson Coolair Motul Suzuki’s Waters began his charge to the front- managing to make passes on both Moss and Gibbs to move in to second position behind race leader Ferris.

But when the chequered flag flew, no one’s performance could match that of CDR Yamaha’s Ferris, taking his second consecutive win for the day by an impressive four seconds, while Waters crossed the finish line in second, followed by Gibbs who finished moto two in third.

When the final moto kicked off this afternoon, it was Gibbs who this time edged out Ferris to take the third holeshot for the day, however it was a disaster for CDR Yamaha’s Ferris who went down after just a couple of turns, marking an early end to his day, and leaving the track in the hands of Racesafe.

With two laps in the books for the MX1 class, Gibbs continued to maintain his lead, followed by teammate Dobson in second, while National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Mosig held down third.

From there, Gibbs completely checked out on the MX1 field, showcasing his ‘diesel engine’ form, and allowing the bar to bar racing to happen behind him.

By the half way mark, both KTM Motocross Racing Team riders Gibbs and Dobson continued to dominate in positions one and two, while Mosig remained in third ahead of Jamie Law in fourth, and Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team’s Wilson who rounded out the top five.

When the third moto for the MX1 class reached it’s closing stages, there was little change to the running order, with only Mosig managing to get by Dobson to slot in to second position ahead of the KTM rider.

And when the chequered flag flew for the final time today, it was Gibbs who took the last race victory, while Mosig wrapped up moto three in second position, followed by Dobson who secured his best result so far this year finishing in third.

With a DNF from CDR Yamaha’s Ferris in the final moto, the Thor MX1 round overall saw Gibbs take the overall at Wanneroo, while National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team’s Moss collected second, and Waters finished round five in third.

With Gibbs’ consistent 2, 3, 1 results today, the KTM mounted rider will now enter the mid-season break with the Thor MX1 red plate, and a 17-point lead on Suzuki’s Waters.

Kirk Gibbs – KTM Motocross Racing Team – Round Five Overall Winner

“It’s awesome to take the win here, and walk away with the points lead going in to the break,” he said.

“I felt like towards the end of the second moto I found a few lines and I had a bit of confidence coming in to the final moto of the day.

“It was a shame to see Dean go down – you never want to see another rider get hurt, but I’m happy that I just stayed consistent and managed to ride to the track conditions.

“I knew that with the two guys coming back from Europe that they would be fast in the sand so it’s especially nice to walk away with a win here at Wanneroo.”

Thor MX1 round five results

1) Kirk Gibbs – 97 points
2) Matt Moss – 86 points
3) Todd Waters – 86 points
4) Kade Mosig – 80 points
5) Jesse Dobson – 80 points
6) Dylan Long – 73 points
7) Jamie Law – 72 points
8) Dean Ferris – 70 points
9) Jay Wilson – 69 points
10) Mitch Taylor – 61 points

Thor MX1 Championship Standings

1) Kirk Gibbs – 351 points
2) Todd Waters – 334 points
3) Dean Ferris – 324 points
4) Matt Moss – 314 points
5) Kade Mosig – 267 points
6) Dylan Long – 258 points
7) Brett Metcalfe – 225 points
8) Jay Wilson – 221 points
9) Jacob Wright – 193 points
10) Michael Menchi – 188 points

MX2

It was yet another action packed round of racing at Wanneroo in Western Australia today, with Husqvarna mounted Nathan Crawford taking a pivotal round win, and snatching up the Motul MX2 championship lead at round five of the Motul MX Nationals.

When the MX2 competitors headed out for qualifying this morning, it was local Jayden Rykers who emerged as the early man to catch with the fastest qualifying time of a 1:44.008, while Husqvarna’s Crawford and Honda mounted Webster collected the second and third quickest laps.

When gates dropped on race one, spectators were five rows deep on the fence-line, and riders were treated to a full house for their first moto of the day. It was CRF Honda Racing’s Webster who secured the first MX2 MXstore holeshot, ahead of Rykers and KTM Motocross Racing Team’s Caleb Ward.

From there, moto one was set up to go down to the wire. With Webster and Rykers holding valuable local knowledge of the tack, and Ward who is known as a sand specialist, all putting on a performance for the MX2 top spot.

After three laps, race leader Webster began to come under fire from KTM mounted Rykers, the pair chopping and changing line choices in order to make up time – Ward also began to feel the pressure of lightening fast Crawford who was attempting to make his dash for third position.

From there, the front four, Webster, Rykers, Ward, and Crawford all began to check out on the field, while Serco Yamaha’s Wilson Todd also joined the party, tagging on to Crawford’s rear wheel in fifth position.

By the time Motul MX2 competitors had reached the ten-minute mark in moto one, there had been little change to the running order, with Webster continuing to lead from Rykers and Ward, while Todd made his way in to fourth position followed by Crawford and DPH Motorsport’s Jed Beaton.

With five minutes on the clock remaining, no one looked as if they could get near Western Australian Webster, and despite fellow local Rykers’ every attempt to make a pass, the KTM mounted youngster could not make a challenge for the lead stick.

So when the Motul MX2 class received the last lap board, Webster looked in control out in front, while Rykers and Ward continued to race for the final podium positions – Despite an earlier mistake, Crawford made his way back in to fourth, while Yamaha’s Todd held down fifth.

And when the chequered flag flew, it was CRF Honda Racing Team’s Webster who capitalised on a home track advantage, crossing the line with his first moto victory for the day, ahead of Rykers in second, while KTM’s Ward wrapped up race one in third.

When moto two got underway, it was Husqvarna’s Crawford who edged out Ward to take the second holeshot of the day, but it didn’t take long for Ward to make his presence known, and after three laps Ward’s charge to the front was unstoppable – the KTM rider finding the perfect line, passing Crawford to move in to the race lead, relegating the Husqvarna rider to second position.

By the time the Motul MX2 class reached the half way mark in moto two, Ward continued to dominate out in front, while Crawford, Rykers and local Webster went head to head for the remaining podium positions. Raceline Pirelli KTM’s Dylan Wills held down an impressive fifth, while Serco Yamaha’s Wade Hunter, Dean Porter and Hamish Harwood occupied sixth, seventh and eighth positions.

With five minutes left of the clock, there was little change to the running order, the only passes to note being from Hunter and Porter who both managed to get by Wills to slot in to fifth and sixth positions.

And when the chequered flag flew for the second time, it was Ward’s turn to celebrate – taking an emphatic moto two victory from Crawford who finished in second, while Rykers managed to snatch away third from a hard charging Webster who wrapped up moto two in fourth.

When the final moto for the Motul MX2 class kicked off this afternoon, spectators watched on to see whether a third rider would take a race victory at Wanneroo – And once again it was Husqvarna’s Crawford who shot off to the early race lead, ahead of the consistent Rykers and Ward in second and third positions.

After only two laps, Beaton who started moto three in fourth made his presence known, passing both Ward and Rykers on the same lap to move in to second position, and begin his chase for race leader Crawford.

It was going in to lap five that Beaton executed a successful pass on Husqvarna’s Crawford, taking the race three lead, and allowing Crawford and Rykers to fight for second position behind him.

From there DPH Motorsport’s Beaton looked ultra comfortable in the rough and deep Wanneroo conditions, managing to keep Crawford at bay and attempting to set himself up for the final race victory.

However, when riders came past the finish line to receive the last lap board for the final time, it was Crawford who had made a pass back on Beaton to secure the lead once again with one lap to go, followed by Rykers, Ward and Porter.

And when bikes crossed the line for the final time, the determination of Husqvarna mounted Crawford saw him awarded with his first and final race win of the day, while Beaton was forced to settle for second, and Rykers remained consistent finishing in third.

With three different race winners across three motos in the Motul MX2 class, consistency was the key when the overall results were tallied, and it was Crawford who’s 4,2,1 results saw him awarded with his first round victory for 2016 as well as the MX2 red plate, while Ward wrapped up round five in second, followed by local Western Australian Rykers who concluded the round in third. 

Motul MX2 round five results

1) Nathan Crawford – 95 points
2) Caleb Ward – 93 points
3) Jayden Rykers – 92 points
4) Kyle Webster – 87 points
5) Jed Beaton – 81 points
6) Dean Porter – 76 points
7) Wilson Todd – 72 points
8) Dylan Wills – 66 points
9) Hamish Harwood – 65 points
10) Wade Hunter – 58 points

Motul MX2 Championship Standings

1) Nathan Crawford – 326 points
2) Jed Beaton – 313 points
3) Caleb Ward – 305 points
4) Jayden Rykers – 280 points
5) Wilson Todd – 270 points
6) Kyle Webster – 261 points
7) Jake Moss – 255 points
8) Dylan Wills – 239 points
9) Dean Porter – 228 points
10) Hamish Harwood – 226 points

The Motul MX Nationals will now commence the mid-season break, with the sixth round of the championship, being held at Nowra in New South Wales on July 3, 2016.

For more information on the Motul MX Nationals, and for a full list of results from round four, head to www.mxnationals.com.au

 
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