AUSENDURO ROUND 5 & 6 REVIEW

Wil Ruprecht has made it six-from-six in 2026 at Queensland Moto Park (QMP), but the Shop Yamaha rider was pushed hard across both days as DM31 KTM Racing Team’s Jye Dickson, Korey McMahon and a cast of class fighters delivered one of the season’s most competitive weekends yet.

Dry, dusty and unforgiving – Queensland Moto Park served up exactly the kind of old-school Australian bushland brutality that separates the pretenders from the contenders at Round 5 and 6 of the 2026 Australian Enduro Championship. Scattered rocks, deeply rutted tracks and deteriorating visibility across both days ensured that mistakes came at a price, and the results reflected it.

Ruprecht, however, refused to put a foot wrong and extended his perfect 2026 season across the QMP double-header – six rounds with six wins. Dickson made him earn every one of them, but Ruprecht’s composure when it mattered most proved the difference on both days.

Here’s how it all unfolded at QMP, round by round…

ROUND 5

ProEnduro
From the opening test, both Ruprecht and Dickson were at it. Despite a small crash, Dickson claimed the first test win, applying immediate pressure to the championship leader. McMahon sat just 1.9 seconds off the lead in the early stages, keeping the outright battle tight as E2 and E3 machinery controlled the outright pace. Ruprecht and Dickson traded blows through the middle tests, separated by barely a second, before a costly issue for Dickson in test five finally allowed Ruprecht to breathe. From there the order held firm – Ruprecht unbeaten, Dickson second, McMahon third for another consistent Pro Enduro podium.

E1
Cooper Sheidow (Yamaha), Deegan Graham (Yamaha), Maximus Purvis (Yamaha) and Jeremy Carpentier (Yamaha) arrived at QMP ready to resume their four-rider scrap, and they didn’t disappoint – just 7.6 seconds split the quartet after the opening test. Sheidow and Graham swapped test wins through the early laps while Purvis delivered his strongest start to an event all season. The pivotal moment came in test four, where Sheidow produced a commanding stage to reassert control of the class – and Purvis suffered a heavy crash after striking a rock, ending his day on the spot. Sheidow closed it out from there, with Graham holding on for second by just 0.2 seconds over Carpentier in third.

E2
The E2 class was effectively the Ruprecht vs. Dickson show – same battle, different class. Dickson opened strongly before Ruprecht responded in test two, and despite Dickson staying within a handful of seconds for most of the day, a costly 11-second loss in test five sealed his fate. Kogan Lock (GASGAS) rounded out the class podium in third with another measured performance.

E3
McMahon was in a class of his own in E3, controlling the category from test one through to the finish. Behind him, Max Midwinter (KTM) came back from an early mechanical to claim second, while Broc Grabham (Stark) and Max Rikys (KTM) scrapped hard for third, with Grabham eventually getting the nod for third place.

EW
Jessica Gardiner (Yamaha) opened a strong early advantage before fellow-Yamaha rider Madi Simpson reeled her in through tests three and four, taking consecutive stage wins to throw the result wide open. Gardiner steadied in test five before Simpson landed a massive 15-second gain in test six to carry her momentum into the final stage, where Simpson charged to her first victory of the 2026 season by just 3.5 seconds over Gardiner. Emi Ruprecht (GASGAS) claimed third, narrowly edging Emelie Granquist (Triumph) in what was one of the closest class battles of the round.

EJ
Marcus Nowland (Yamaha) arrived as championship leader and made sure it stayed that way. Despite mistakes and a crash, his consistency kept him on top of the timesheets throughout the day, with a test five victory for Oscar Harris (KTM) the closest the class came to changing the narrative. Two closing test wins from Nowland sealed his first EJ outright victory of 2026 ahead of Beau Tripcony (Husqvarna) and Harris.

ROUND 6

ProEnduro
Ruprecht came out firing on Sunday, opening a five-second gap over Dickson from the first test. McMahon began to find the speed expected of him as the day wore on – finishing two seconds shy of Ruprecht in test four and topping the final test to carry strong momentum into the next round at Casterton. Dickson broke through for his first test win of the weekend in test five. The final order mirrored Saturday’s: Ruprecht first, Dickson second, McMahon third. Sheidow finished fourth outright as the leading E1 rider, with Lock fifth overall.

E1
Sheidow was equally dominant on Sunday, setting the pace from the opening test with Carpentier again his closest challenger. Graham’s day was effectively undone by a heavy crash in test one that handed over nearly a minute – though he fought back strongly to claim third at day’s end. Sheidow’s third E1 win of 2026 was never really in doubt.

E2
More of the same in E2 – Ruprecht and Dickson locked together test-for-test, Lock in third and largely unchallenged. Brock Nichols (Husqvarna) produced his best ride of the weekend late in the day with a strong final test performance.

E3
McMahon was untouchable again, securing a fifth consecutive E3 class win in 2026 despite a timing malfunction affecting Grabham’s opening test result. Grabham recovered strongly across the remaining stages to claim second, with Midwinter third. McMahon’s championship advantage extends further.

EW
Gardiner came back with purpose on Sunday. Starting behind Simpson on the road, she had caught her by the end of the opening test and never looked back – claiming a commanding win ahead of Simpson. The fight for third went all the way to the wire before Maddison Healey (KTM) returned to the podium, edging out Emi Ruprecht and Granquist in the closing stages.

EJ
Kai Austin (Kawasaki) arrived with authority on Sunday, opening a ten-second gap in the first test that set the tone for the day. Tripcony staged a charging finish – claiming three consecutive test wins in tests four, five and six – but Austin held firm, winning by seven seconds. Nowland completed the podium in third to consolidate his championship lead.

The next rounds of the Australian Enduro Championship heads to Casterton for Round 7 and 8 on June 20-21. Head to www.ausenduro.com.au for full results.