Smarty’s Moto Wrap

I really don’t know what is inside Justin Barcia’s head. The factory Honda rider is completely incapable of passing another rider cleanly and his move on Malcolm ‘Mookie’ Stewart at Daytona proved once and for all that ‘Bam-Bam’ is a dickhead! Sure, Malcolm, in his first 450SX race, turned down and hit Barica’s back wheel but really, all Justin had to do is get in, make the pass and get out of the corner but no, he has to slide into the side of Stewart and stay just long enough to be a problem.

Well, ‘Mookie’ didn’t take kindly to what Barcia did and after a bit of push and shove Malcolm rode away while Barcia was picking his bike up for the second time, but as luck would have it the crash punctured Malcolm’s radiator and his Troy Lee Honda CRF450R didn’t make the distance.

It wasn’t a good night for the Stewart brothers, while Malcolm was at the pointy end of the field battling with the likes of Roczen and Barcia early in the main event, James was parked in the pits after trashing the header pipe of his RMZ450, on Mike Alessi’s bike that was laying in the middle of the first corner. James managed to finish back in 18th while as stated above, Malcolm didn’t finish the race.

Our Aussie combatants at Daytona were Jackson Richardson and Taylor Potter who qualified through to the 250SX main program with the 25th and 34th times respectively. Unfortunately Potter could only manage 19th in his heat race then a ninth in the LCQ, while Richardson on the other hand qualified straight through to the main with a  ninth in his heat and ran inside the top 15 in the main until a small mishap late in the race dropped the Queenslander back to 17th.

Let’s go to the World Championships… During the opening MXGP moto in Thailand Tommy Searle broke his wrist when his KX450F reportedly misfired on the face of one of the huge jumps on the track. The forks on Searle’s KX were ripped off the chassis as it cartwheeled down the track and at the time of writing Searle is having his wrist plated, so the likeable Pom will be out for at least two months. According to sources in the GP paddock, the Thai government banned the import on foreign fuel so the teams were forced to use locally-sourced fuel and thanks to this many of the teams suffered engine problems throughout the weekend in Thailand.

Luke Styke must have thought his World Motocross Championship campaign was back on track after having the 16th fastest time after timed practice in Thailand but the 2013 Australian MX2 Champion could only managed 18th in the MX2 qualifying race then disappointing 26-24 moto finishes after being inside the top 20 during each moto. I can only guess that Luke is still suffering from the illness that snuffed out his opening round assault.

Todd Waters on the other hand is proving his worth for Husqvarna in the MX1 class. Now that Tyla Rattray is out with injury there is some pressure on the rookie, but Waters managed 12th place in his qualifying race before coming from 15thup to 10th in the opening moto and from 11th up to sixth in the second moto. The gutsy Queenslander is now 9th in the MXGP championships. Todd is tough, fast and fit, he won’t be satisfied until he is on the podium.

With Waters’ teammate Tyla Rattray out of the next few GP’s thanks to a broken finger, the Ice One Husqvarna team has put Austrian rider Pascal Rauchenecker on Rattray’s bike until the South African returns. The 20 year old Austrian rider is no mug, and was fast enough to score points in 12 or 18 GPs in 2013 and finished 17th overall in the MX2 World Championships with the highlight being a 9th overall in Holland. Rauchenecker went 16-16 in Thailand for 15th outright, he will improve.

Speaking of Husqvarna, did you see the Bel-Ray Husqvarna Factory Racing team that will contest the 2014 World Enduro Championships? Leading the charge and looking to be in contention straight way will be Frenchman Pela Renet in the Enduro 2 class while Swede Joakim Ljunggren and France’s Mathias Bellino will contest the Enduro 3 class and Italian Thomas Oldrati in Enduro 1.

And in an effort to bring some young blood through to the world championships, Husqvarna has hired Great Britain’s Jamie McCanney and France’s Loic Larrieu will race in the Enduro Junior class, Swede Albin Elowson in the 125cc Youth Cup category and Great Britain’s Jane Daniels in the Enduro Women class.

Husqvarna will be represented in international Extreme Enduro events by living legend Graham Jarvis and Alfredo Gomez.

Finally, take a look at my report on the New Zealand Motocross Championships below. Cody Cooper and Kayne Lamont are tearing up the tracks right now and will be threats when they head across the pond for the Aussie titles in April. Their lap times compared to their opposition is scary.

This week we have the race reports and results from:

- Round 10 of the AMA Supercross held at Daytona
- Round 10 of the Amsoil Arenacross Series held at Albuquerque
- Round 3 of the New Zealand Motocross Championships – Pukekohe
- Round 2 of the 2014 World Motocross Championships held in Thailand
- Round 1 of the GNCC held in Bunnell, Florida

2014 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship – Round 10 – Daytona

Can you imagine how good the racing would be if all of these 31 riders got back on the track? Here is the injured rider list heading into Daytona

Zach Bell – Trey Canard – Kyle Chisholm – Darryn Durham – Casey Hinson – Dillon Huddleston – Dean Ferris – Cody Gilmore – Brett Hottel – Brady Kiesel – Ben Lamay – Justin Lee – Davi Millsaps – Marvin Musquin – Zach Osborne – Kristoffer Palm – Kyle Partridge – Weston Peick – Austin Politelli – Ronnie Ray – Killy Rusk – Chad Reed – Anthony Rodriquez – Joey Savatgy – Broc Schmelyun – Shane Sewell – Les Smith – Ivan Tedesco – Eli Tomac – Jake Weimer – Kevin Weisbruch.

450 Race Report: Chad Reed’s fill-in rider Dean Wilson grabbed the holeshot but Ryan Villopoto blasted by to take the lead ahead of Wilson, Andrew Short, Ryan Dungey and Ken Roczen. Mike Alessi crashed right in the middle of the first turn and his prone RMZ450 was clipped by James Stewart, an impact that would crush the header pipe of Stewart’s Yoshimura Suzuki.

With James Stewart sitting in the pits getting his header pipe replaced, Villopoto quickly opened up a sizable gap over Wilson while Dungey and Roczen had pushed Andrew Short back to fifth place ahead of Malcolm Stewart and Justin Barcia.

Dungey was looking for a way around Wilson but Roczen was able to capitalize on Dungey’s lack of aggression to take over third place on lap 10 and second place on lap 12.

Barcia and Stewart came together on a left hand corner after the whoops causing both to crash out of contention while Dungey passed Wilson for third place shortly after. Dungey wasn’t able to catch Roczen while Wilson struggled with fitness late in the race and was passed by Broc Tickle, Andrew Short and Wil Hahn.

Despite a mid moto spill, Villopoto cruised to an easy win over Roczen, Dungey, Tickle, Short and Hahn. “This is big, to get a win here is awesome, it is the turning point of the season, we are closing down on the home stretch here so winning here is huge,” said RV after the race.

Main Event: 1. Ryan Villopoto. 2. Ken Roczen. 3. Ryan Dungey. 4. Broc Tickle. 5. Andrew Short. 6. Wil Hahn. 7. Dean Wilson. 8. Matt Goerke. 9. Justin Brayton. 10. Josh Grant. 11. Cole Seely. 12. Justin Barcia. 13. Phil Nicoletti. 14. Mike Alessi. 15. Josh Hill. 16. Chris Blose. 17. Jimmy Albertson. 18. James Stewart. 19. Nick Schmidt. 20. Ronnie Stewart. 21. Malcolm Stewart. 22. Nick Wey.

450SX Championship Standings After Round 10 of 17: 1. Ryan Villopoto 209. 2. Ryan Dungey 181. 3. Ken Roczen 180. 4. James Stewart 157. 5. Justin Brayton 155. 6. Andrew Short 125. 7. Justin Barcia 118. 8. Chad Reed 111. 9. Broc Tickle 111. 10. Wil Hahn 108.

250 Race Report: Martin Davalos, Blake Baggett and Adam Cianciarulo came out of the first corner running out front ahead of Blake Wharton but it wasn’t long before Baggett took the lead from Davalos.

Cianciarulo found his way around Davalos on lap 5 but was never able to make a serious charge on Baggett so by race end it was an easy win for Baggett over Cianciarulo, Davalos, Wharton and Justin Bogle.

It really was that uninteresting as far as passing and on-going battles.

After four of nine rounds round Cianciarulo leads the series standings with 94 points, followed by Davalos with 87 and Baggett with 79.

“This is Daytona, there is no other place like this, I love coming here, I love racing here, I won here in 2011 and now again in 2014, just excited, got to give it up to the team, it is great to get back some mojo, I was down in the dumps a bit but now I know I can do it,” said Baggett after the main event.

Main Event: 1. Blake Baggett. 2. Adam Cianciarulo. 3. Martin Davalos. 4. Blake Wharton. 5. Justin Bogle. 6. Jeremy Martin. 7. Matt Bisceglia. 8. Vince Friese. 9. Kyle Cunningham. 10. Matt Lemoine. 11. Kyle Peters. 12. Jimmy Decotis. 13. Cole Thompson. 14. Alex Martin. 15. Mitchell Oldenburg. 16. Gavin Faith. 17. Jackson Richardson. 18. Justin Starling. 19. AJ Catanzaro. 20. Jacob Baumert. 21. Auston Albers. 22. Jace Owen.

Baggett

250SX East Regional Championship Standings After Round 4 of 9: 1. Adam Cianciarulo 94. 2. Martin Davalos 87. 3. Blake Baggett 79. 4. Justin Bogle 72. 5. Vince Friese 61. 6. Blake Wharton 51. 7. Cole Thompson 48. 8. Kyle Cunningham 45. 9. Jimmy Decotis 43. 10. Matt Lemoine 37. 19. Jackson Richardson – 14.

250SX West Regional Championship Standings After Round 6 of 9: 1. Jason Anderson – 131. 2. Cole Seely – 127. 3. Justin Hill – 107. 4. Dean Wilson – 98. 5. Cooper Webb – 92. 6. Malcolm Stewart – 89. 7. Jessy Nelson – 76. 8. Shane Mcelrath – 71. 9. Zach Osborne – 69. 10. Dean Ferris – 63. 11. Michael Leib – 51. 12. Dakota Tedder – 50. 13. Jake Canada – 46. 14. Scott Champion – 46. 15. Valentin Teillet – 28. 16. Cole Martinez – 24. 17. Darryn Durham – 21. 18. Topher Ingalls – 19. 19. Preston Mull – 17. 20. Chris Plouffe – 13.

2014 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series an FIM World Championship – Remaining Rounds

Rd 11: March 15        – Ford Field – Detroit
Rd 12: March 22        – Rogers Centre – Toronto
Rd 13: March 29 – Edward Jones Dome – St. Louis
Rd 14: April 5      – Reliant Stadium – Houston
Rd 15: April 12           – Century Link Field – Seattle
Rd 16: April 26           – MetLife Stadium – East Rutherford, N.J.
Rd 17: May 3              – Sam Boyd Stadium – Las Vegas

2014 World Motocross Championships – Round 2 – Si Racha, Thailand

MXGP Race Report

Moto 1: Shaun Simpson took the holeshot ahead of Antonio Cairoli, Clement Desalle, Tommy Searle, Jeremy Van Horebeek, Gautier Paulin, Kevin Strijbos, Joel Roelants, David Philippaerts and Evgeny Bobryshev.

Simpson was passed by Cairoli and Desalle while Tommy Searle, Jeremy Van Horebeek and Gautier Paulin fought over fourth spot.

Lap 4 – Cairoli’s lead is now two seconds over Desalle who is followed by Van Horebeek, Simpson, Paulin, Searle, Strijbos, Nagl, Roelants and Bobryshev.

Lap 5 – Philippaerts had a mechanical problem (Fuel?) and dropped off the pace while at the same time Davide Guarneri passed Bobryshev for 10th spot and Waters moved into reach of a top ten finish.

Simpson and Paulin were in a great fight for fourth place but clipped each other causing Simpson to crash. Paulin was now up to fourth and Searle in fifth.

Lap 7 – Cairoli with a lead of nearly three seconds, then Desalle, Van Horebeek, Paulin, Searle, Strijbos, Simpson, Nagl, Guarneri, Bobryshev, and Waters in 11th.

Lap 9 – Searle has a huge crash over the triple jump abd is out of the GP.

Lap 10 – Cairoli is now three and a half seconds ahead of Desalle while Van Horebeek is now 14 seconds back from Cairoli. Paulin, Strijbos, Simpson, Nagl, Guarneri, Bobryshev, Waters, Boog and Roelants are all vying for major points.

Cairoli ended up winning the moto over Desalle, Van Horebeek, Paulin, Strijbos, Nagl, Simpson, Guarneri. Boog, Waters, Bobryshev and Frossard.

MXGP Race 1 top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 34:26.300; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), +0:14.798; 3. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:31.856; 4. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:37.008; 5. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, Suzuki), +0:44.884; 6. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), +0:50.347; 7. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +0:56.111; 8. Davide Guarneri (ITA, TM), +1:09.408; 9. Xavier Boog (FRA, Honda), +1:10.985; 10. Todd Waters (AUS, Husqvarna), +1:13.856.

Moto 2: Van Horebeek took the holeshot ahead of Desalle, Cairoli, Simpson, Bobryshev, Guarneri, Strijbos, Paulin, Frossard and Roelants but after one lap Desalle took the lead from Horebeek and Cairoli.

Lap 4 – Desalle holds a three second lead over Van Horebeek with Cairoli holding Paulin, Strijbos, Frossard, Nagl, Bobryshev, Waters and Guarneri  at bay.

Lap 8 – Cairoli passed Van Horebeek and quickly started to charge towards Desalle. Paulin, Strijbos, Nagl, Bobryshev, Frossard, Waters and Guarneri rounded out the top ten.

Lap 12 – Cairoli caught and passed Desalle and instantly pulled a gap while Van Horebeek Paulin, Nagl, Strijbos, Bobryshev, Waters, Guarneri and Goncalves all scrapped over he final ten.

Lap 15 – Cairoli took the moto victory and the GP victory. “I’m really happy today because this was a very hard race; two weeks ago in Qatar my ankle was sore and the situation was much more complicated so I was not sure about my potential, but this week in Thailand I was able to recover better. Today the track was also more technical compare to Losail and for sure this fits more with my riding.

Waters worked his way up to sixth by the end of the moto. “I feel like I’ve made a lot of progress this weekend,” said Waters. “I’m beginning to settle into racing at world championship level and growing in confidence. The first race went ok but it was one of those rides where you struggle to get a decent pace going. I got into my groove a lot better in race two and was enjoying the conditions. My FC 450 was flawless in the extreme weather and I was able to charge all the way to the chequered flag. Despite just missing out on fifth place by one second I’m chuffed with sixth. It’s been a good end to the GP of Thailand.”

MXGP Race 2 top ten: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 35:05.060; 2. Clement Desalle (BEL, Suzuki), +0:13.336; 3. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, Yamaha), +0:30.809; 4. Maximilian Nagl (GER, Honda), +0:47.127; 5. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, Honda), +1:00.667; 6. Todd Waters (AUS, Husqvarna), +1:01.753; 7. Rui Goncalves (POR, Yamaha), +1:03.518; 8. Davide Guarneri (ITA, TM), +1:07.127; 9. Gautier Paulin (FRA, Kawasaki), +1:11.149; 10. Xavier Boog (FRA, Honda), +1:22.690;

Herlings

MXGP World Championship standings after 2 of 18 rounds: 1. Antonio Cairoli (ITA, KTM), 92; 2. Maximilian Nagl (GER, HON), 76; 3. Gautier Paulin (FRA, KAW), 75; 4. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, YAM), 72; 5. Clement Desalle (BEL, SUZ), 71; 6. Evgeny Bobryshev (RUS, HON), 51; 7. Kevin Strijbos (BEL, SUZ), 50; 8. Steven Frossard (FRA, KAW), 49; 9. Todd Waters (AUS, HUS), 43; 10. Joel Roelants (BEL, HON), 38.

MXGP Manufacturer: 1. KTM, 92; 2. Honda, 76; 3. Kawasaki, 75; 4. Suzuki, 73; 5. Yamaha, 72; 6. Husqvarna, 43; 7. TM, 42.

MX2 Race Report

Moto 1: Jeffrey Herlings took the holeshot but Dylan Ferrandis had a crack at taking the lead during the first lap but it didn’t take long for Herlings to open up a two second lead over Ferrandis by then end of lap two. Tixier, Coldenhoff, Anstie, Tonus, Guillod, Febvre and Lupino were all battling among themselves inside the top ten. Luke Style is back in 19thplace early in the race.

Lap Four – Herlings has extended his lead to five seconds over Ferrandis who in turn has a two second lead over Tixier while Coldenhoff and Anstie fighting over fourth spot.

Lap Six – Lupino and Butron entered the top ten dropping Febvre to 11th so at this stage it is Herlings, Ferrandis, Tixier, Coldenhoff, Anstie, Tonus, Tonkov, Guillod, Lupino and Petrov in 10th.

Lap 8 – With Herlings long gone and Ferrandis in second place, Tixier lost third place to Coldenoff and Tonus passed Anstie for fifth spot. Febvre rebounded to pass Butron for 11th spot.

Lap 10 – Coldenhoff passed Ferrandis for second place and it wasn’t long before Tixier and Tonus moved up to the rear wheel of Ferrandis and were looking for a way by. Anstie was riding conservatively and was now over 20 seconds back from Herlings.

Herlings too the win well ahead of Coldenhoff while Tonus snuck into in third place ahead of Ferrandis, Tixier, Anstie, Tonkov, Lupino, Febvre, Charlier in 10th. Styke finished back in 24th place.

“I just rode smart,” Herlings said. “I didn’t push too hard because of the heat. I need to save some energy for the second moto.”

MX2 Race 1 top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 34:33.175; 2. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Suzuki), +0:05.414; 3. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Kawasaki), +0:07.604; 4. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:13.176; 5. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +0:21.196; 6. Max Anstie (GBR, Yamaha), +0:28.504; 7. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, Husqvarna), +0:39.462; 8. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Kawasaki), +0:44.566; 9. Romain Febvre (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:50.447; 10. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +0:53.144;

Moto 2: Anstie got the holeshot ahead of Coldenhoff, Tonus, Herlings and Tixier but Tonus stalled his bike in the tight right hand turn and dropped back at a rapid rate of knots. Herlings quickly moved into second but Anstie already had a four second lead and was looking determined to make the most of the situation.

Lap Two – The race order Anstie, Herlings, Coldenhoff, Ferrandis, Tixier, Charlier, Febvre, Tonkov, Lupino and Gajser. Anstie continued to hold a three second lead until lap three, when Herlings cut half a second on the lead while Tonus had gone from 22nd to 16th while Styke is in a point paying position of 18th place.

Lap 3 to 10 – Anstie, Herlings and Coldenhoff were setting a pace out front that opened up a sizeable gap back to Ferrandis, Tixier, Febvre, Tonkov, Gajser, Lupino and Lieber. Tonus was up to 13th.

Anstie and Herlings began to get very close and no matter what Herlings did he could not get around the flying Pom until a lapped rider got in the way of Anstie and Herlings took advantage of the situation to take the lead.

Lap 11 – Herlings has a seven second lead over Anstie while  Coldenhoff, Febvre, Ferrandis, Tixier, Lupino, Tonkov, Tonus and Butron round out the top ten.

Lap 15 – Herlings takes the checker flag, eight seconds ahead of Anstie and Febvre who had made a late pass on Coldenhoff for third place.

“I feel really tired,” Herlings said. “The heat got me and the humidity was amazing. It has been a good race, because of Max’s interview there was some interest, he is a good guy and hats off to him. Two moto wins, so I am happy. Max (Anstie) is ok and rode well, he’s a good guy. I did two good races, got two moto wins, and I have to thank all my team and family for helping me out”

“I made a step,” Anstie said. “Steve (Dixon) did a great job with the bike and I came here with 2013 bike and they did an aamzing job. We struggled with the set-up a little. I was nervous and never got a holeshot before or lead a race like that, so I was pretty nervous.”

“I gave so much in the first moto,” Coldenhoff said. “I didn’t have anything for the second moto and I dropped to fourth, but still got second overall.”

MX2 Race 2 top ten: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 35:13.794; 2. Max Anstie (GBR, Yamaha), +0:07.774; 3. Romain Febvre (FRA, Husqvarna), +0:17.075; 4. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, Suzuki), +0:20.185; 5. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:26.701; 6. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), +0:30.492; 7. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, Kawasaki), +0:48.060; 8. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, Husqvarna), +0:54.571; 9. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Kawasaki), +0:59.486; 10. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), +1:04.789;

MX2 World Championship standings after 2 of 18 rounds: 1. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 97; 2. Dylan Ferrandis (FRA, KAW), 74; 3. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, SUZ), 69; 4. Romain Febvre (FRA, HUS), 66; 5. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, KAW), 65; 6. Jordi Tixier (FRA, KTM), 59; 7. Aleksandr Tonkov (RUS, HUS), 58; 8. Jose Butron (ESP, KTM), 50; 9. Alessandro Lupino (ITA, KAW), 42; 10. Max Anstie (GBR, YAM)..

MX2 Manufacturer: 1. KTM, 97; 2. Kawasaki, 83; 3. Suzuki, 69; 4. Husqvarna, 68; 5. Yamaha, 58; 6. Honda, 43; 7. TM, 3.

WMX Points after Round 1 of 6: 1. Meghan Rutledge, 50. 2. Natalie Kane, 42. 3. Livia Lancelot, 36. 4. Stephanie Laier, 34. 5. Nancy Van De Ven, 34. 6. Chiara Fontanesi, 33. 7. Larissa Papenmeier, 29. 8. Francesca Nocera, 28. 9. Marianne Veenstra, 22. 10. Justine Charroux, 12.

FIM MXGP & MX2 Motocross World Championships – Remaining Rouds

Round 3: 30 March – Beto Carrero, Brazil
Round 4: 13 April – Arco di Trento Italy (Women & 125 support)Round 5: 20 April TBA (250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 6: 04 May – Valkenswaard, Netherlands (Women, 125 & 150 support)
Round 7: 11 May TBA (250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 8: 25 May – Matterley Basin, Great Britain (250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 9: 01 June – St Jean d’Angely, France (Women & 125 support)
Round 10: 15 June – Maggiora, Italy (250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 11: 22 June – Teutschenthal, Germany (Women, 125  & 150 support)
Round 12: 06 July – Uddevalla, Sweden (Vets, 250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 13: 13 July – Hyvinkää, Finland (65, 85, 250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 14: 27 July – Loket, Czech Rep (Women, 125  & 150 support)
Round 15: 03 August – Tba, Belgium (125, 250EMX & 300 two-strokes)
Round 16: 17 August – Dimitrov, Donetsk Ukraine (125 & 250 EMX)
Round 17: 07 September – Goiania, Brazil
Round 18: 15 September – Leon, Mexico

Amsoil Arenacross – Rd 10 – Albuquerque, NM

Friday Night: Defending Arenacross Class Champion Tyler Bowers relied on the championship bonus point awarded in Head-to-Head Bracket Racing to secure his seventh overall victory aboard his Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis machine. In the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class, Team Faith/FLY Racing KTM’s Kelly Smith led every lap of the Main Event to capture his second straight win.

Motosport.com/MJM Express/Spinechillers Racing Kawasaki’s Michael McDade assumed the early lead in the first 15-lap Arenacross Class Main Event, with Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Tyler Bowers in second, PBR/TiLube/TUF Racing Honda’s Jacob Hayes close behind, and Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Zach Ames, the championship leader, in fourth.

Bowers surged into the lead on Lap 1, bringing Hayes with him into second and dropping McDade to third. The following lap, Ames passed McDade to take over third. Bowers and Hayes stayed mere bike lengths apart for many laps until Hayes was able to make a move for the lead on Lap 12 and make the pass stick. He fended off Bowers over the final couple laps for the win, with Ames not far behind in third.

Hayes selected the inversion for the second Main Event, picking eight, meaning half the field would be inverted.

Motosport.com/MJM Express/Spinechillers Racing KTM’s Willy Browning took advantage of his prime starting spot for the second Main Event to grab the lead, edging out McDade and Bowers. Ames emerged in sixth, with Hayes in seventh. On the opening lap, Bowers moved into second and set his sights on Browning up front. Hayes made his way past Ames for fifth on Lap 2 and then began a charge to the front, eventually making his way into the top three on Lap 4. A short time later on Lap 8, Bowers made his move on Browning for the lead and Hayes followed just one lap later. Hayes pressured Bowers for the lead over the final handful of laps but was unable to make the move. Browning held on for third. Ames finished fifth.

With identical Main Event finishes, Bowers (2-1) and Hayes (1-2) tied for the overall but thanks to his victorious effort in Head-to-Head Bracket Racing earlier in the evening, Bowers earned an extra bonus point to move him into sole possession of first. Ames grabbed the final spot on the podium in third (3-5) to maintain his lead in the Race to the Championship.

Ames’ lead in the Race to the Championship sits at six points over Bowers, who moved from fifth to second. Hayes sits 13 points back in third, moving up from ninth.

Smith began his dominant outing in the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship Main Event by grabbing the early lead with KMS KTM’s Dave Ginolfi and Frontier Lubricants KTM’s Daniel Blair in tow. On the opening lap, BWRengines.com Honda’s Maxx Malatia moved past Blair for third and the top three established themselves up front.

Smith consistently pulled away for his second straight wire-to-wire victory, leading all 18 laps and crossing the checkered flag nearly seven seconds ahead of Ginolfi. Malatia rounded out the podium in third to duplicate the top three finishers from the previous round.

BWRengines.com Honda’s Kyle White leads the Western Regional standings by five points over AJ Oilfield Services Kawasaki’s Gray Davenport.

Saturday Night: After narrowly taking the Arenacross Class victory on Friday night, Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis rider Tyler Bowers made it a sweep in Albuquerque with a more convincing effort on Night Two. In the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class, Team Faith/FLY Racing KTM’s Kelly Smith once again led every lap of the Main Event en route to a dominant third consecutive victory.

Bowers moved into the early lead to start the first 15-lap Arenacross Class Main Event, with PBR/TiLube/TUF Racing Honda’s Jacob Hayes in second and his Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki teammate Zach Ames in third. Bowers set a torrid pace over the first few laps to establish a multi-second lead over his rivals. Behind him, Hayes and Ames engaged in a battle for second with Ames ultimately making the pass on Lap 3. From there, the three riders broke away from the field and maintained their positions. Bowers finished just over two seconds ahead of Ames, with Hayes in third.

Bowers selected the inversion for the second Main Event, picking 16 and inverting the entire field.

Motosport.com/MJM Express/Spinechillers Racing Kawasaki’s Michael McDade took advantage of the inversion to grab the early lead in the second Main Event, followed by Team Faith/FLY Racing KTM’s Cheyenne Harmon and TZR/Woodstock KTM’s Travis Sewell in second and third. Hayes emerged with the best start of the podium finishers from the first Main Event in sixth, while Bowers followed in ninth and Ames in 10th. It didn’t take long for Hayes to make his way up front, moving into third place by Lap 3 and eventually into the lead on Lap 6. As he made his upward progression, so did Bowers, breaking into the top five on Lap 5, into podium position on Lap 6, and then behind Hayes in second on Lap 8. Despite his best efforts, Bowers couldn’t track down his rival. Hayes took the Main Event win by a narrow margin over Bowers, while McDade held on to finish third. Ames worked his way through the field to finish fifth.

Bowers’ 1-2 finishes were better than Hayes’ 3-1 results, giving him the overall by just two points. Ames duplicated the overall podium from Friday night in third (2-5) and maintained his lead in the Race to the Championship.

Earlier in the evening, Ames defeated Bowers in Head-to-Head Bracket Racing to give him an additional championship bonus point.

By virtue of Bowers’ win, Ames’ lead in the Race to the Championship has been trimmed to just three points. Hayes maintains control of third, 11 points out of the lead. Just two rounds and three nights of racing remain in the Race to the Championship.

Smith’s continued dominance in the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship began by capturing the early lead in the Main Event, followed by AJ Oilfield Services Kawasaki’s Gray Davenport in second and KMS KTM’s Dave Ginolfi in third. The trio paced the front of the field for the first 14 laps of the 18-lap Main Event until Ginolfi bobbled and allowed BWRengines.com Honda’s Maxx Malatia to take advantage and move into podium position. Out front, Smith comfortably took the checkered flag over five seconds ahead of Davenport while Malatia held on for third.

BWRengines.com Honda’s Kyle White, who finished fourth, continues to lead the Western Regional standings by just three points over Davenport. Malatia sits just six points back in third with three races remaining.

The AMSOIL Arenacross season continues next weekend with its inaugural visit to Hidalgo, Texas. Two nights of action inside State Farm Arena commences on Friday, March 14th, and continues on Saturday, March 15th. Both nights of action begin at 8 p.m. ET.

Arenacross Class – Friday Results – Overall: 1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki (2-1). 2. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Honda (1-2). 3. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki (3-5). 4. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM (6-4). 5. Michael McDade, McDonald, Ohio, Kawasaki (4-7). 6. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (8-3). 7. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Honda (7-6). 8. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (5-9). 9. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (10-10). 10. Colt Nichols, S. Muskogee, Okla., Kawasaki (15-8).

Arenacross Class – Saturday Results – Overall: 1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki (1-2). 2. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Honda (3-1). 3. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki (2-5). 4. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM (5-6). 5. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (9-4). 6. Colt Nichols, S. Muskogee, Okla., Kawasaki (4-9). 7. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki (7-7). 8. Michael McDade, McDonald, Ohio, Kawasaki (12-3). 9. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (8-8). 10. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (6-14).

Arenacross Class Race to the Championship (Race 3 of 6): 1. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki – 94. 2. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki – 91. 3. Jacob Hayes, Greensboro, N.C., Honda – 83. 4. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki – 68. 5. Colt Nichols, S. Muskogee, Okla., Kawasaki – 65. 6. Michael McDade, McDonald, Ohio, Kawasaki – 64. 7. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Honda – 62. 8. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM – 60. 9. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM – 59. 10. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki – 45.

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class – Friday Results: 1. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich, KTM. 2. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM. 3. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda. 4. Gray Davenport, Lehi, Utah, Kawasaki. 5. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda. 6. Cheyenne Harmon, Olivia, Texas, Honda. 7. Jeremy Pronovost, St. Philippe, Quebec, KTM. 8. Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., Honda. 9. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM. 10. Josh Struebig, Crown Point, Ind., KTM.

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class – Saturday Results: 1. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich, KTM. 2. Gray Davenport, Lehi, Utah, Kawasaki. 3. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda. 4. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda. 5. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM. 6. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki. 7. Vance Wofford, Alamogordo, N.M., Yamaha. 8. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM. 9. Tanner Moore, Auburn, Kan., KTM. 10. Coby Adair, Azter, N.M., Kawasaki.

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 7 of 10): 1. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda – 88. 2. Gray Davenport, Lehi, Utah, Kawasaki – 85. 3. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda – 82. 4. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM – 70. 5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki – 64. 6. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM – 53. 7. Brian Alquist, LaGrange, Calif., KTM – 33. 8. RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Honda – 32. 9. Lane Staley, Chillicothe, Ohio, KTM – 26. 10. Josh Struebig, Crown Point, Ind., KTM – 24.

Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 9 of 9): 1. Tony Archer, Waldorf, Md., Kawasaki – 101. 2. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM – 83. 3. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki – 69. 4. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Yamaha – 65. 5. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda – 41. 6. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM – 36. 7. Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., Honda – 34. 8. Jeremy Pronovost, St. Philippe, Quebec, KTM – 34. 9. Keith Tucker, Furgacy-Varina, N.C., Yamaha – 33. 10. Chad Wages, Frederick, Md., KTM – 28.

2014 AMSOIL Arenacross Championships – Remaining Rounds

Rd11 – March 14-16 – Hidalgo, TX
Rd12 – March 29-30 – Salt Lake City, UT

2014 Backflips NZ MX Champs – Round 3 – Pukekohe

Honda’s Cody Cooper and Husqvarna’s Kayne Lamont have put in a dominating performance at round three of the Backflips New Zealand Motocross Championships and in doing so both riders head to the final round in a commanding position.

MX1 Race Report

Cooper won the opening MX1 race by over 12 second from Brad Groombridge while Billy Mackenzie came home a further four seconds behind in third place but as far as the Aussie went Ford Dale ended up back in eighth place, Matt Haworth in 10th and Kirk Gibbs didn’t make it to the finish line.

In moto 2 Cooper was two second per lap faster than his nearest rival to end the moto over 13 second clear of Kirk Gibbs, 26 second clear of third placed rider Michael Philips and a full 26 second clear of Billy Mackenzie while Matt Haworth ended the moto in a credible 8th place.

Ford Dale crashed over in the back part of the undulating course and after quite a while rode back to the pits holding his arm.

In moto 3 Dale and Gibbs got their KTMs to the lead ahead of Cooper and the racing was fierce but on lap three Dale crashed out of contention handing the lead to Gibbs who found a pace that matched Coopers to hang on to his first win of the year while Cooper finished in second place, well ahead of Groombridge and Mackenzie while Haworth managed his best result of the series with a sixth place.

With one round remaining Cooper has a 37 point lead over Mackenzie. “The bike a working really well, I can push it as hard as I like and my fitness is where it should be so all I have to concentrate on his hitting my lines and not making any mistakes, we can take a lot of confidence into the final round,” said Cooper after the final moto.

MX1 Championship Points after 3 of 4 Rounds: 1. Cody Cooper 217. 2. Billy MacKenzie 180. 3. Brad Groombridge 168. 4. Kirk Gibbs 157. 5. Michael Phillips 125. 6. Ford Dale 123. 7. Jesse Wiki 111. 8. Dion Picard 107. 9. Ethan Martens 106. 10. Matt Haworth 93.

MX2 Race Report

Kayne Lamont led every lap of the opening moto to finish almost 10 second ahead of Hamish Dobbyn who in turn has a nice gap over John Phillips who kept himself ahead of the battling trio of Hamish Harwood, Rhys Carter and Aussie Jay Wilson while the other Aussie in the field Dakota Court ended the race in sixth place.

Defending MX2 champion Scott Column was making his way forward from a horror start when he clipped a track-side tree and crashed very hard but as you would expect from Column, the plucky Kiwi got back up to 13th place by moto end.

Dobbyn led moto 2 for the first two laps before Lamont took over the lead and eventual win ahead of Dobbyn, Phillips, Carter and Wilson while Column finish back in 8th place after being taken out by another rider and Court did not make it to the finish line.

Lamont led every lap of the final moto but he didn’t have it all his own way after Jay Wilson got by Phillips on lap three for second place and made a charge for the lead to end up coming just a second short of the win while Dobbyn and Column managed to get by Phillips for third and fourth by moto end. Court didn’t start the final moto.

“The track here is unreal, I got good starts all day and put in good laps in all three races, I couldn’t be more wrapped with the Husqvarna and I can’t be happier as we head into the final,” said Lamont.

MX2 Championship Points after 3 of 4 Rounds: 1. Kayne Lamont 216. 2. Hamish Dobbyn. 178. 3. Jay Wilson 164. 4. John Phillips 152. 5. Scott Columb 151. 6. Hamish Harwood 145. 7. Rhys Carter 106. 8. Hayden Kanters 98. 9. Nick Saunders 92. 10. Kieran Scheele 81. 11. Dakota Court78.

The final round of the championships will be held at the challenging Taupo facility on March 29.

Grand National Cross Country Series – Round 1 – Mud Mucker – Bunnell, FL

The 2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series kicked off its 13-round series with the inaugural running of the Moose Racing Mud Mucker GNCC and after three hours of tackling the extremely tough terrain I was Factory FMF/KTM’s Charlie Mullins took out the XC1 Pro win while Ricky Russell captured the XC2 class win.

XC1 Race Report: Rocky Mountain ATVMC/AmPro Yamaha’s Josh Strang grabbed the holeshot ahead of AmPro Yamaha’s Paul Whibley and former pro motocrosser Ryan Sipes (Rockstar Energy/WMR/KTM).

Behind the leading trio there was quite a pile up of riders in the first corner which included the Factory/FMF/KTM duo of Charlie Mullins and defending GNCC National Champion Kailub Russell as well as Steward Baylor and Andrew Delong.

Amazingly, Mullins made his way from the first corner crash into the lead position by the second lap and from there found himself in a heated scrap with Kiwi hard-case Paul Whibley but when the race wore on Mullins took over the lead and completed an impressive charge from almost dead last to take the opning round win.

Whibley finished in second place ahead of the furious battled for third between Strang and RideMPS.com/AMSOIL/Honda’s Thad DuVall but it was the plucky Aussie who scored the final podium position by less than one second.

DeLong and Baylor came back from their first turn tangle to capture fifth and sixth ahead of Whibley’s N-Fab/AmPro Yamaha teammate Jordan Ashburn and Ryan Sipes while Russell ran into mechanical problems on the muddy course to finish in night place ahead of former Japan National Cross Country Series Champion and Pro Motocross/Supercross rider Takeshi Koikeda.

XC1 Event Results: 1. Charlie Mullins (KTM). 2. Paul Whibley (YAM). 3. Josh Strang (YAM). 4. Thad DuVall (HON). 5. Andrew Delong (HSQ). 6. Steward Baylor (KTM). 7. Jordan Ashburn (YAM). 8. Ryan Sipes (KTM). 9. Kailub Russell (KTM). 10. Takeshi Koikeda (HON).

XC2 Race Report: KR4 Performance’s Shane Hufford got a dream start to the season and led for most of race but Yamaha’s Ricky Russell and KTM’s Rory Mead made a run to the front and by the time they hit the checker flag Mead took the win ahead of Russell and Hufford who nearly collapsed of exhaustion at the finish.

XC2 Event Results: 1. Rory Mead (KTM). 2. Ricky Russell (YAM). 3. Shane Hufford Jr (KTM). 4. Trevor Bollinger (HON). 5. Chris Douglas (KTM). 6. Grant Baylor (KTM). 7. Callan May (YAM). 8. Garrett Edmisten (KAW). 9. Kyle Hangos (KTM). 10. Michael McGinnis (KTM).

Overall National Championship Point Standings after Round 1 of 13: 1. Charlie Mullins (30). 2. Paul Whibley (25). 3. Josh Strang (21). 4. Thad DuVall (18). 5. Andrew Delong (16). 6. Steward Baylor (15). 7. Jordan Ashburn (14). 8. Rory Mead (13). 9. Ricky Russell (12). 10. Shane Hufford (11)

2014 GNCC Calendar – Remaining Rounds

Round 2. The General – Washington, GA – March 15-16 2014
Round 3. Steel Creek – Morgantown, NC – March 29-30 2014
Round 4. Big Buck – Union, SC – April 12-13 2014
Round 5. Limestone 100 – Springville, IN – April 26-27 2014
Round 6. Loretta Lynn’s – Hurrican Mills TN – May 10-11 2014
Round 7. Mountaineer Run – Masontown, WV – May 24-25 2014
Round 8. John Penton – Millfield, OH – June 7-8 2014
Round 9. Snowshoe – Snowshoe, WV – June 21-22 2014
Round 10. Unadilla – New Berlin, NY – Sept. 6-7 2014
Round 11. Car-Mate, TBA, PA – Sept. 20-21 2014
Round 12. Powerline Park – St. Clairsville, OH – Oct. 4-5 2014
Round 13. Ironman – Crawfordsville,IN – Oct. 25-26 2014

Next Week’s Moto Wrap will Feature:

- Round 11 of the AMA Supercross held at Ford Field, Detroit
- Round 11 of the Amsoil Arenacross Series held at Hidalgo, Texas
- Round 1 of the British Motocross Championships held at Landrake
- 2014 Moto Expo – Brisbane RNA Showgrounds