Throwdown No.184 – 10/04/14

—

The second round of the 2014 Monster Energy MX Nationals is taking place at Appin, NSW this Sunday, and it’s going to offer up an awesome day of racing, we reckon. Team Motul Suzuki’s Matt Moss walked away with the Overall MX1 lead after going 2-1-3 at Broadford’s season opener, and he won’t be backing off at Round 2. He’ll just have National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Adam Monea, KTM Motocross Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs, DPH Motorsport Yamaha’s Kade Mosig and CDR Yamaha’s Billy Mackenzie to worry about. Oh, and his twin brother, Jake, who could have almost walked away with the red plate at Broadford if it wasn’t for an opening moto crash – he collided with Matt!

— 

Unfortunately, Penrite Oil Honda Racing’s Cody Cooper banged himself up pretty bad at Broadford, and underwent facial surgery in NZ last week to fix a damaged eye socket and cheekbone. Filling in for Cooper will be fellow Kiwi, Brad Groombridge, who achieved solid results in this year’s New Zealand Motocross Championship. Fingers crossed the curse of the Aussie factory Honda team doesn’t attack him… 

—

So who’s prepared to put money on a two-stroke winning the MX2 (and even the MXD) class at this year’s Monster Energy MX Nats? Well, after the series opener at Broadford two weeks ago, it’d be a game bookie to offer long odds on the possibility. In the Motul MX2 class, a couple of two-strokes actually lead the standings (Kayne Lamont on a Husky TC250 and Brenden Harrison on a KTM 250SX), while several other two-stroke mounted pilots (guys such as last year’s runner-up, KTM’s Kale Makeham, TM’s Daniel McCoy and Yamaha’s Errol Willis) have all shown the speed and stamina to be podium place-getters this year. And in the Pirelli MXD class, TC250-mounted Husqvarna riders, Egan Mastin (who carded 2-2-3 finishes at Broadford) and Nathan Crawford ran second and third Overall, respectively at Broadford – with Mastin just 2 points behind young Yamaha sensation, Jed Beaton.

—

In the US, Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart may have been on fire for a few weeks, but of course, it would only be a matter of time before Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto came charging through, stamping his authority back on the 450SX class. In the 250SX Western Regional class, Rockstar KTM Racing’s Jason Anderson reminded everyone why he’s holding the red plate with only a few rounds remaining.

—

Ken Roczen to RCH Suzuki? Justin Barcia to JGR Yamaha? According to Transmoto‘s American contributor and former Pro racer, Jason Thomas, that’s just two of the rider moves that the smart money is on for 2015. Stay tuned for “JT Money’s” full AMA Silly Season wrap early next week.

—

Speaking of RCH Suzuki, it’s been confirmed that Weston Peick (who has been contesting the 2014 Monster Energy AMA Supercross series as a Suzuki-mounted Privateer) has locked in a deal with Ricky Carmichael and Carey Hart that will see him contest the 2014 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship.

—

Dean Ferris’ training accident and wrist injury has impacted on the 23-year-old Factory Red Bull KTM rider much more than he’d initially hoped. Ferris has confirmed with Transmoto that he’s likely to be off the bike five months in total, and hopes to return to the AMA Outdoor series for just the final three rounds. Have a read of this interview with Ferris, where he speaks candidly (and pretty philosophically) about the injury and its implications for an ongoing ride with the Roger DeCoster-managed powerhouse KTM team in America.

—

Transmoto sources in the USA tell us that Michael Byrne has taken on a rider liaison role with Australia’s MX des Nations team. It remains unofficial at the moment, and we’re awaiting a return call from MXoN team manager, Gary Benn, about the rumour. Stay tuned for an online interview with Burner in the coming week. Speaking of the MXoN, it’s looking promising that Chad Reed will be good to go for the September 28 event in Latvia.

—

Todd Waters might have come up tantalizingly short when it comes to title wins in Australia, but his dream has always been to dance on the world stage. Transmoto’s Sean Lawless caught up with the fun-loving 23-year-old Queenslander to see how he’s settling into racing life on the far side of the world. In the piece, it’s revealed that Waters raced the opening rounds of the 2014 FIM Motocross World Championship carrying injuries that could have potentially kept him sidelined. We can’t wait to see how he goes at this weekend’s round in Arco di Trento. We’ll be cheering for Luke Styke and Meghan Rutledge, too.

—

News just to hand from TM Racing Australia is that the team has secured a naming-rights sponsor for 2014, Tapout Energy. According to Tapout’s CEO, Steve Ross, “I’m very excited about our new partnership with TM Racing Australia, taking the Team and Dan McCoy to the next level and getting Tapout Energy out there and ‘Stay in the Fight’.”

—

—

We’ll be watching this weekend’s Portugal rounds (Rounds 3 and 4) of the Enduro World Championship with great interest, following the strong showing by Australians Matt Phillips and Jess Gardiner at last weekend’s season opener in Spain. Jess went 3-3 in Spain, while Phillips turned heads with his 2-3 result in the E3 class debut. Interestingly, Phillips actually got the better of KTM teammate and E3-class winner, four-time world champ Ivan Cervantes, in a majority of tests, but a 15th place in one test (when a failed rear brake led to Phillips colliding with a tree and busing his nose) relegated him to second place. Last year, Phillips went 1-1 in Portugal and tightened his grasp on the EJ world title he went on to win, while Jess Gardiner’s 2013 Portugal win was later taken away from her when her appeal was overturned.

—

Our best wishes go out to New Zealand enduro ace, Rory Mead, who suffered a severe spinal injury on March 30 at Round 3 of the American GNCC series. The likeable Kiwi – who has been riding for Shane Watts’ Maxxis/KLiM/DirtWise KTM team – has undergone surgery to reconstruct the fractured C5 and C6 in his neck. At this point, Wattsy has confirmed that Rory has no feeling or movement from his chest down, but that they remain positive as Rory embarks on the long road to recovery. To help with Rory’s medical expenses, the DirtWise team has kicked off a Fundraising Raffle on eBay. Raffle tickets can be purchased here.

—

The mid-capacity enduro bikes from KTM, Husqvarna, Beta and Sherco are now the biggest-selling models in their respective ranges. But how do these five machines stack up against each other? Which of them suits what sort of rider, and why? We hit a bunch of trails, enduro loops and grasstrack for two days to find out. For the full-length test, pick up a print or digital edition of Transmoto Dirt Bike Magazine‘s 2014 May (#43) Issue, on sale now.

—

The 17th running of the Slattery Auctions-sponsored Condo 750 navigational rally is set to take place this weekend. Australasian Safari top-tenners (Rod Faggottter, Matt Fish, locals Todd and Jake Smith, and Todd Ridley) are all part of the 40-Bike division entries. One lucky Bike and Quad entrant at this year’s Condo 750 will win the chance for a free entry into this year’s Australasian Safari. Click here for more information.

—

Today we presented to you the exclusive first look at RIDE: World Elements, the all-new dirt bike film fromFourohfour, set to be released in December, 2014. As sections of the RIDE: World Elements are filmed, we’ll be dropping these exclusive teasers, right here on Transmoto‘s website. We’ll have snippets featuring big names such as… Oh, as if we were ever going to tell you! Watch this space over the coming months and get yourself excited for the film’s release date. Check out Toby Price’s epic teaser section here.

—

—

What happened when a couple of Australian freestyle motocross riders became totally fed up with the state of the Aussie competitive scene? They said, “Stuff it; let’s put on our own series.” Read all about the birth of the Australian FMX Championship in this week’s FMX Insider column, penned by Ben Heidrich.

—

—

Click here to find out what’s inside Transmoto Dirt Bike Magazine’s 2014 May Issue (#43), and be sure to grab yourself a print or digital edition.

—

For the past few months, speculation his been rife that the distribution for Sherco enduro bikes in Australia may move from ACT-based Moto Central Group to Qld-based Paul Feeney Group (who recently lost the distribution of Husqvarna motorcycles in Oz). However, it was announced late last week that the French manufacturer’s enduro range will now be distributed nationally in Australia by Victorian-based Mojo Motorcycles, who’ve confirmed that the first shipment of production two-strokes (which Transmoto tested in the January/#39 Issue) will arrive in May, followed a month later by the brand’s four-strokes. Moto Central Group will continue with the distribution of Sherco’s trials bikes.

—

The crew from Newcastle-based distribution company, Lusty Industries, have announced that one of the industry’s nice guys, Cody Mackie, has been appointed brand ambassador for Seven MX riding gear (which makes sense, as Mackie has been a long-time Lusty athlete and also lived with the man behind the new brand, James Stewart, in America about five years ago). Mackie will oversee an all-new amateur-based sponsorship program in Oz, consisting of Cooper Pozniak (15) and Bailey Malkiewicz (12). Check the boys out below.

—

The 2014 Penrite Broadford Bike Bonanza – held at Victoria’s Broadford Motorcycle Complex over the Easter long weekend – is going from strength to strength. For 2014, the event appears to have a greater proportion of dirt bike attractions, with fresh tracks for speedway, dirt track and vintage MX bikes. For more information, click here.

—

The best trials riders in the world will descend upon Mt Tarrengower near Maldon, Victoria this weekend to take part in the 2014 FIM Trails World Championship. The two-day event took place at the same location in 2012, and was deemed a huge success. A one-day pass for an adult costs $25, and a two-day pass costs $40. A youth one-day pass costs $15, and children under the age of 10 can enter for free. And when you purchase a ticket to attend the event, you’ll automatically go into the draw to win a brand new 2014 KTM 250 Freeride. To find more information on the event, and to purchase a ticket, click here.

—