Styke & Driscoll 2018 AORC Champions

It’s been a sensational year for Active8 Yamalube Yamaha’s Luke Styke, who since making the switch from contesting the MX Nationals to the Australian Off-Road Championship has looked completely at home. This weekend, he was rewarded with the 2018 E1 title after winning an impressive 9 out of 11 rounds this year.

Luke Styke has been a revelation since changing over from motocross to off-road in 2018 and secured his first AORC championship with another commanding performance. Already the Australian Four Day Champion in the E1 class, Styke can now add the Australian Off-Road crown to his resume and he motored to another superb finish on the weekend.

In dry and dusty conditions, Styke needed nothing more than a cool and calculated ride at the penultimate round on Saturday at Omeo and that’s exactly what he produced. He rolled across the finish line of the Cross-Country event to take the class win and was swapped by his team as they settled the dust by covering the new Australian champion in champagne. And with nothing but pride to ride for at the final round on Sunday, Styke went out all guns blazing to secure another round victory and make it nine round wins from the eleven in the championship to dominate the E1 class in season 2018.

“Racing off-road has been a great change in my career and one that has been rewarding for me, Styke begins. I have made a heap of new friends and I have enjoyed the challenge of racing a dirt bike in completely foreign surroundings. I set my sights high for the first year in off-road and I have met those goals so I’m proud of what I have been able to achieve in the last 12 months. The Yamalube Yamaha Active8 Team have been amazing in their support of me and the advice and help everyone on the team has provided me, including my team mates, has been amazing. Thank you to everyone on the team and at Yamaha for giving me the opportunity to prove myself in off-road and having the belief in me. It’s been an awesome year and with a great group of people,” Styke ends.

Not to be outdone by his team mate, Michael Driscoll has been on a winning spree of his own and he has decimated the opposition in the EJ (under 19) class in 2018. Already the reigning champ, Driscoll retained his crown in the most emphatic way possible; he won every round. Driscoll scored eleven round wins from the eleven contested and defended his championship perfectly. He will now move up in 2019 but his development has shown he can mix it with the professionals of off-road racing and will be a contender in years to come.

“It’s been the perfect year for me and something you always hope will happen but very rarely does,” says Driscoll of his perfect season. “But, probably the most important thing was learning the work ethic and dedication it takes to be racing at the highest level and now that I can see what riders like Luke and Josh do during the week, it inspired me to work harder and when I did, my outright results also improved. To get through 11 rounds without any major bike issues is a real testament to the team and I can’t thank AJ, Brandon, Aaron and Josh enough for their work and support throughout the year and now I’m looking forward to mixing it up with the big boys in 2019.”