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MA Press Release:
Round four of the Maxxis Australian Motocross Championship was held at Gilman (SA) on Sunday, June 27, with a combination of the old guard and exciting new talent coming to the fore.
While seasoned campaigners Darryll King (CDR/Boost Mobile/Yamaha YZ450F) and the American-based Craig Anderson (Honda CRF450R) claimed the Pro Open races – renewing an intense rivalry from the 2001-02 seasons – 16-year-old rookie Wade Thompson was the cause celebre of the Pro Lites paddock after winning race one aboard his Serco Yamaha YZ250F in just his fourth senior outing.
Thompson, who won the 125cc class (13-U15 years) at the 2002 Australian Junior Motocross Championship and more recently took home the rookie spoils in the inaugural Australian Supercross Nationals, was all belligerence in leading home Daniel McCoy (CDR/Boost Mobile/Yamaha YZ250F) by a healthy 4.393sec in race one, which he followed up with an eighth in the second 18-lapper – good enough for equal first on the day alongside Cameron Taylor (CDR/Boost Mobile/Yamaha YZ250F) and Honda’s Warren Smart (CRF250R) on 38pts.
In Pro Open, Darryll King was the overall winner for the third round in succession, continuing his remarkable run of finishing on the podium in every race – for four wins, and an equal number of second and third places.
The result is that the veteran five-time 500cc grand prix winner increased his lead over sibling Shayne King (No Fear Honda CRF450R) from 19 to 29pts (184 to 155) at the halfway mark in the expanded eight-round championship.
“I really surprised myself winning the round today,” King, the defending champion, said. “I wasn’t that comfortable coming into this round as I hadn’t spent a lot of time on the bike due the appalling weather conditions at home. “After I crashed heavily in practice I went for a walk and thought I really have to turn this around. “It is great to know that you can turn a negative into a positive I had a lot of fun out there today and kept to the plan of pulling out a decent lead in the championship.”
Darryll won race two at the testing Gilman layout from Jay Marmont (Motorex KTM 450SXR) and 11-time Australian motocross and supercross champion, Anderson. Earlier, Anderson – making a short trip home between a two-week break in the AMA 250cc motocross title – had continued his love affair with the Adelaide circuit with a nerveless 5.835sec win over Darryll, with Shayne King third. En route, Anderson set the fastest lap of the day – a quick fire 1:41.612 in front of the 3500 crowd.
In his last Gilman visit back in 2002, Anderson won two out of the three Pro Open races.
With Anderson’s cameo now complete – which was enough to move him into 15th in one fell swoop – the Kings will still have to contend with the likes of Marmont (126pts), Lee Ellis (Honda CREF450R, 120), Troy Carroll (CDR/Boost Mobile/Yamaha YZ250F, 109) and Cheyne Boyd (Motorex KTM 450SXR) in the remaining four rounds, starting at Conondale in Queensland on July 4.
Boyd dropped from third to equal fifth at Gilman after crashing in race one and damaging his wrist; he then sat out the remainder of the day.
Unlike the relative procession of the Pro Open races, the Pro Lites action at Gilman was far from predictable, with no one managing to finish on the podium in both races. In the opener, the inspiring Thompson made short work of McCoy and Cameron Taylor (CDR/Boost Mobile/Yamaha YZ250F), while No Fear Honda’s Troy Dorron (CRF250R) was the man of the moment in race two after registering his first win of the season ahead of Warren Smart (CRF250R) and Suzuki’s Mitch Hoad (Shift Motul Suzuki RM-Z250).
Of the top-tier, Hoad made the biggest gains in pure championship terms at Gilman – he jumped three spots from eight to fifth on 91pts, where he now sits behind New Zealander Cody Cooper (No Fear Honda CRF250R, 175), Taylor (161), Dorron (136) and McCoy (116).
Cooper, after winning five of the opening six races, came back to the pelaton at Gilman – a pair of sixth places his ‘reward’ for listless starts.
In the Yamaha Australian Women’s Cup support class, Honda’s Lisa Irwin still leads from New Zealander Mary Perkins (Yamaha) – but the margin is now a slender 2pts (94 to 92) after the latter scored maximum points.
Mark Fattore
Media Manager
Motorcycling Australia
