MOTOPINION: ROTORUA REVIEW - FOX NZ MX NATIONALS
With the half way point of the championship coming to its peak - the FOX New Zealand Motocross Nationals is tighter at the top than any championship previous (at least from memory). Six motos down, it is a real ‘anyone’s-title’ in two classes with only six races to go.
The Pukekohe Motorcycle Club, using their well established Harrisville Raceway will host Round 3, while the final round honors sees the Taupo Motorcycle Club wrap up the championship. Buts as we are not fortune tellers, lets dive into the weekend’s racing, proudly put together by the Phillips family and the Rotorua Motorcycle Club MX track, 20 minutes out of Rotorua.
After the mud-fest during the second race at Taranaki, followed by some less than happy MX2 riders, the Rotorua Motorcycle Club needed to step up and make a track like everyone knows they can. The blistering heat-wave didn’t give the club a lick of support leading up to the race, and that showed with an uncharacteristically un-rutty track. Mid-day watering helped keep the dust away but you could tell it wasn’t as good as it usually is. Having said that, the track crew did a fantastic job with the resources they had.
The 125cc class was tighter at the top at Round 2. Hamish Harwood swept the class with three straight wins, but Ben Broad was keeping him honest all the way through. The loss of Brodie Connolly meant it was a little easier for Hamish as even though he didn’t win by as much as he did at Taranaki, he never looked out of control up front.
Ben Broad was the best of the rest. The pilot in training switching to the 125cc class for 2019 and having fun at the same time. He was never close enough to make a move on Hamish but you could tell with one slip up he was ready to pounce.
There is a lot going on at the start of the MX2 race. Probably the most exciting class of the day. Here you see two Aussie riders, Morgan Fogarty (F) and new comer Kyle Webster (K) lead the field into the holeshot corner. Fogarty sits 5th in the points after two rounds, while Webster, who rides for Penrite Honda in Australia and who has only competed one round, and will only do one more before heading back to Australia, is already up to 8th after finishing the day second overall. Kyle showed crazy-speed in Race 1, before a tip over in Race 2 was enough to drop him off the top spot.
Ethan Martens would admit he hasn’t had the season he was hoping for as yet. An altercation at Round 1, resulting in a disqualification, and bad starts have kept Ethan away from the front runners and off the podium. When asked about his season, he said he was disappointing with his results and knows he can do better. However he did mention that he loves the Kawasaki and the team are doing everything they can to get him to where they know he can be. A podium threat.
Hamish Harwood still holds a narrow lead in the MX2 Championship. Only 3 points separates him from Wilson Todd after six races. Harwood is relying on consistency to stay on top of the points, something that has been the Auckland residents strongest attribute in his career. A bad race for Hamish sees him usually in about 3rd or 4th where other riders tend to have worse results. Will consistency pay off again for 2019 or does Hamish need to rip off a few wins to keep that number 1 plate.
Wilson Todd has been the great surprise of the series. Not that we all thought he was slow, more that he came into this championship as virtually unknown in NZ. Having raced in Australia for many years, his first stint in NZ is paying dividends with Todd having won half the races so far in MX2. A win gives you 3-extra points over second and a valuable buffer, so even though consistency is important, getting a few wins can eradicate a poor race. This is what Wilson is doing and has clawed back the 9 point deficit to be Harwood’s main title contender.
Another surprise in the series, Wyatt Chase doesn’t seem to be living up to the potential we all expected from him for 2019. Rides at Summercross and results from last year prove that Wyatt should be a serious title threat. But the Taupo lad has been hampered by bad starts and a seemingly lack of the raw speed he is known for. Is the new team for the season taking a little more getting used to than he expected? With Harrisville next up and Taupo after that, if it was ever a time for Wyatt to show what hes got - these two tracks will be right up his alley.
There is nothing better than some sibling rivalry on the track. Broc Martens, Ethan’s younger brother has been a campaigner for a while now, usually found hovering somewhere between 15-20 in the MX2 class. Broc currently sits in 10th overall after two rounds and isn’t far off his brother at times. Very cool how they have sequential race numbers too!
Kyle Webster was tacked onto the side of the Honda Racing tent for Round 2 and we expect the same come Round 3. The Australian rider is a member of the Penrite Honda team, the same team that Justin Brayton races for when he hits OZ during the Aus X Open series. Borrowing a bike from Blue Wing Honda and with a little tweaking from his mechanic, Kyle was up front all day and finished as #2 behind Wilson Todd.
Kayne Lamont is slowly getting back on track after only recently coming back from an injury. He says he is thinking too much about his knee and that’s not helping him on the track. He says his knee is back to 100% but he’s subconsciously keeping it safe. More time on the bike will clear that up but it would appear his title hopes for 2019 are not looking good. Having said that, finishing on the podium - I think he would be realistically happy with that considering his build up this year. He can still lead races and run at the front for 4-5 laps before dropping back. Its all there - just needs more time.
Cody Cooper went 2-1-2 for the weekend and lost the three points he put on Gibbs at Round 1. The two are now tied for points and clear of anyone else in the class. This equilibrium of speed on paper did not transition to the track as both Cooper and Gibbs never came together to battle for a race win. In each race, either Gibbs or Cooper got out front early at that was all she wrote. Hopefully we see some battling between the two riders at Harrisville.
Brad Groombridge is again doing two classes and is currently 4th in each after two rounds. Bad starts and having to come through the pack in almost every single race this year is proving very frustrating for the Taupo rider. Someone buy this guy a start and lets see what he can actually do when hes not having to push from 18th place after the first turn.
New ENI Kawasaki rider Cohen Chase mentioned to us he is loving the new KX450. After coming off a privateer effort with his family, the team environment and new bike has injected new life into the Taupo lad and he currently sits 5th in the points in MX1 - a mere 3-clicks off fourth overall. Look for Cohen to shine at his home track in Taupo at the final round.
Kirb Gibbs is the reigning NZ MX1 champion and its becoming clear why. His consistent starts and good speed have seen him reel in the deficit that he had to Cooper to now ties the Honda rider on points. Mentioning that he is excited about going to Harrisville as the track is more akin to the ones he rides in Australia, this title will go right down to the wire and we are pretty keen to see how it turns out.
With MNZ employing a new technical guy to administer checks like fuel testing and random bore X stroke checks, it was in full force after the last race of the 125 class. Here Joshua Bourke-Palmer’s bike was selected to be measured, as was Ben Broad’s bike and another bike too. All bikes came back as a pass meaning they were within the 125cc specs. Currently the 125cc class results are provisional, pending a lab test on some fuel samples taken after the race. More on that when we know more.
Round 3 of the FOX New Zealand Motocross Champs will be held on February 24, with the final round going to Taupo on March 10th.
Keep an eye on The Dirt for a more in-depth look at the action and race-day information you won’t read anywhere else. All original, all the time, all here!