[Features]

NZ Insider No.41: The MX Nationals

9 years ago | Words: Chris Ritchie

Transmoto’s weekly web-exclusive column, the NZ Insider, penned by Chris Ritchie.

It was an up and down weekend for the Kiwi contingent at the opening round of the Australian MX Nationals held at Horsham, north west of Melbourne, Victoria, over the weekend.

Penrite Honda’s Cody Cooper finished the opening moto in sixth, and then pulled the holeshot in moto two and ended in third for fifth Overall. Coops had the better of all three riders on the podium on Sunday over the recent NZ MX1 championship, and will aim to continue this on their home soil in 2015.

Unfortunately for John Phillips, his debut ride for Troy Carroll’s NPS Monster Energy Kawasaki team began with a mechanical problem on his KX450F prior to moto one, happening while in the staging area, unable to switch to a spare bike, therefore an automatic DNS.

In moto two, he regrouped and managed to finish 15th, ending the day 22nd Overall. As he continues his time with the team, and becoming more familiar with the Kawi, we expect to see John mixing it up in the top ten after his recently completed breakthrough NZ championship campaign.

In MX2, Suzuki’s Rhys Carter, having switched back to the 250 after the previous season on the 450, began his Australian campaign with a solid 9-10 for 11th Overall. His speed was much better than his results show, and he knows where he needs to be at Appin, NSW in less than a fortnight for the second round.

Also in MX2, KTM’s Hamish Harwood began his series with 15-11 for 12th Overall, one place behind Carter. Harwood will be looking to turn his results around as the series progresses after his recent second in the NZ MX2 championship.

Moreover, in the MXD class, it was an intense introduction to the Australian series for KTM’s Joel Meikle, finishing his opening moto in 22nd, and with the second moto cancelled, this is where he ended the day Overall.

In other news, Motorcycling New Zealand has begun preparations for this year’s Motocross of Nations to be held in Ernee, France, in late September. Applications for the team manager position were collated, and we understand the candidates have been whittled down and a final decision is imminent. Once this has been confirmed, we will bring the news straight to you.

As our former Motorcycling New Zealand president, Jim Tuckerman, has been elected as the FIM representative for Oceania, the President position became available, and subsequently also opened to applications from potential candidates, with two well-known motorcycle industry figures emerging in what became a two-horse race for the presidency.

They are Paul Stewart, a long-time industry stalwart from a big-four distributor background, and Glen Williams, a multi-time road racing national champion, and successful business owner. Voting has now closed, and again, we will bring you the details once they are announced.

Finally, our thoughts are with the Wilson family as we wish a speedy recovery to Dylan Wilson, younger brother to Jay, who we now consider to be part-Kiwi having spent considerable time on our shores, and recently claiming the NZ MX2 championship. Get better soon, Dylan!

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