Yamaha’s Beaton Wins at ProMX Opener

Monster Energy CDR Yamaha Team rider, Jed Beaton, has made a great start to the 2025 ProMX Championship by taking the opening round victory at the Wonthaggi circuit in Victoria, following a weekend-long battle with Honda rider and 2024 Australian MX1 Champion Kyle Webster.

Beaton nabbed Webster for the Superpole by 0.2 seconds, while the duo were two seconds clear of the rider in third. It was ultimately going to be a race between two and that’s exactly how the two, thirty-minute races proved later in the day. Beaton claimed a hard-earned second place in Race 1, and went on to claim P1 in Race 2 by 40 seconds after Webster was violently ejected from his bike.

Aaron Tanti’s replacement, New Zealand’s Maximus Purvis who is fresh of a NZMX championship claim, unfortunately came into the ProMX season opener under an injury cloud himself, carrying rib and shoulder issues.

Nonetheless, Purvis showed his talent and raw speed by charging to a third-place finish in the opening MX1 race. While he was never going to challenge the front pair of Beaton and Webster, he had the rest of the pack under control by the midway point and raced to a lonely, yet impressive third to get the year started. A lackluster Race 2 saw the Kiwi on damage control, ultimately finishing ninth and finishing the weekend in fourth place overall.

Jed Beaton:
“First up, I didn’t see what happened to Kyle, but the team told me it was a pretty good crash and I hope he is ok. I enjoy racing with him, and we both knew we were locked into a battle to the end. But happy to grab the win and get the season started on a positive note. I won Superpole, and then even though I was second in race one, I was able to stay in the fight and race him all the way to the end, so I took some positives from that. Then I pulled a holey in the last won and I think it took me a lap to settle down as they have been pretty rare for me. I was able to put in some solid laps, weather the storm and little then bring it home. Thanks for the team for a great weekend and looking forward to getting after it at Appin in a few weeks’ time.”

Maximum Purvis:
“I’m a bit weary now. First moto was great and I was trying to conserve as much energy as possible as I know this track is so demanding and the final moto was going to be tough. I got a terrible start and tried to be patient and pace myself as I moved forward, but those mistakes took it out of me, and I was just in survival mode for the rest of the race. Fortunately, I didn’t do any more damage to myself, so after a few days off, hopefully I can get some riding in during the week and start working my way back into better shape as the rounds progress.”

In MX2, success continued for the Yamaha team with Ryder Kingsford proving he means business in 2025 after finishing second overall on his Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha YZ250F. Kingsford showed he has stepped up his game for the new season and is a serious contender for the MX2 crown, after qualifying second and finishing second in both races. Kingsford’s weekend on-track battle was almost a replica to what was seen in the MX1 class, as he contended with Honda rider and 2024 MX2 Champion Brodie Connolly.

Jayce Cosford had an interrupted pre-season after an injury from last year’s Supercross lingered longer than anticipated. Having only been back on the bike a little over a month coming into the weekend, Cosford qualified well in sixth place and despite an average start, as well as several crashes, he was able to finish sixth in the opening race. A dramatic second race, including a crash and mechanical stop, resulted in Cosford having to claw his way from the back to finish 13th place.

Ryder Kingsford:
“Things got pretty hectic out there and I’m not even sure what happened. I know we were in with the lappers, and I didn’t see Brodie crash until it was too late. I tried to avoid him, but I think that made me crash and I cleaned him out pretty good. I just thankful we are both alright as that could have got ugly. But pretty happy with the day. Felt I rode strong and consistent all day which was the goal as last year I have too many good race / bad race situations. It’s something I need to improve to be a contender this year.”

Ky Woods turned in a memorable debut performance as he dominated the opening round of the MX3 division. On a weekend that marked a new structure for Yamaha’s motocross teams, welcoming new partners and a new look, Woods provided the team with the perfect debut, winning both MX3 races and taking the leaders red plate to Round 2 at Appin.

The weekend started a little rough for Woods when he was handed a penalty for stopping in the mechanics lane during qualifying. Despite having the fastest lap in qualifying, he was relegated a few positions but quickly put it behind him and moved onto the racing.

Race 1 saw Woods made his move on Honda’s Kayd Kingsford, snatching the lead and riding off for a comfortable race victory. Race 2 saw Woods at the front with Kingsford close behind, with the pair battling for 20 minutes before Woods was able to break clear and take a five second win.

Ky Woods:
“I was a bit nervous today with the new team, new bike and new surroundings, but everyone around me was great and the WBR Yamaha team were super supportive all weekend. I was able to get the race win in moto one, but I really wanted to make sure I was consistent in race two and not do anything silly, so I tried to stay calm and peel off the laps as best I could without thinking about the result. Thanks to everyone for an awesome start to the year and can’t wait to get to Appin and see if we can do it again.”

Struggling with arm pump all weekend on the technical Wonthaggi track, Madi Simpson had a weekend not as successful as hoped. While still proving she had good pace and was right in the heat of the battle in terms of speed, her arm pump ultimately induced crashes in the first race, making for a tough day.

Simpson rebounded in Race 2, and left with feeling there is more to give in the coming rounds and vows to be back up the front before long. She finished the round in 11^th place with 15-7 results in a field that included riders from the US, New Zealand and South Africa. To cap off the weekend on a positive note, Simpson stood on the podium as part of the winning Australian team in the FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup held on the weekend.

Madi Simpson:
“It wasn’t a great weekend for me, and I didn’t race the way I know I can, but I think I have learned a lot from it and will be much better from now on. The team were great in trying to help me and in race two I was much better and was running inside the top three for the first half before I pumped up again. If I can just stay calm, then I think I can stay up there and get on the podium.”

The Monster Energy WBR Yamaha Team will be back to full strength at Round 2 in Appin on April 13, with Koby Hantis back in action. Hantis has been given clearance to ride, now it’s just a matter of time getting his shoulder back to full strength.