MATT PHILLIPS: FIRST OF FOUR WORLD TITLES

Can you believe it’s been 10 years since Tasmania’s favourite moto son, Matt Phillips, won the EJ class (Under 23) Enduro World Championship?! That year’s EWC title win (the first for an Aussie since Stefan Merriman in 2004, and achieved aboard the sub-standard, Italian-owned Husqvarna, just before the brand was purchased by KTM) was the launching pad for the four Enduro World titles that Phillips would go on to notch up during his relatively short but illustrious career – making him arguably Australia’s most successful motorcycle racing export of all time.

You can’t help thinking the current-day, title-winning success of fellow Tasmanian enduro racing guns, Kyron Bacon and Jonte Reynders, has a lot to do with the trailblazing inspiration Phillips provided for them as kids.

So, let’s revisit the landmark interview Transmoto’s Andy Wigan did with the 20-year-old Phillips as he homed in on that maiden world title win in 2013. This “Devil May Care” feature article first appeared in Issue #36 (October, 2013) of Transmoto Dirt Bike Magazine. Check it out…