ProMX ’23: Penrite ProMX Championship battle to intensify with round three at Wodonga

Published On: April 14, 2023Categories: News

The 2023 Penrite ProMX Championship, presented by AMX Superstores, continues this Sunday, April 16, with competition in the Thor MX1, Pirelli MX2, and MAXXIS MX3 to intensify as battle resumes at Wodonga, Victoria.

Thor MX1
Although the first gate-drop of the Thor MX1 season didn’t take place until Appin, just over one month ago, a number of interesting developments emerged following the scorching hot motos on the challenging track conditions.

Brisbane Motorcycles Yamaha’s Dean Ferris delivered a blistering pace, both over one lap to take pole in the AMX Superstores Top 10 Shootout and also across race distance to win the opening moto by 33 seconds. While a crash in part one of moto two proved costly in terms of his charge to the overall, his form at Appin will have his competitors on high alert as he enters round three level on points for the championship lead.

While some may not have tipped reigning champion Aaron Tanti (CDR Yamaha Monster Energy) to emerge as the early red plate-holder, he displayed a title-winning composure at Appin to notch 3-1 moto scores and take the round win. He enters Wodonga off the back of a strong showing at the recent Sunshine State MX Series round in Toowoomba and will be certain to fight hard to retain the red plate.

Boost Mobile Honda Racing duo Jed Beaton and Kyle Webster can never be counted out, with Beaton showing early promise in his return to domestic competition. Qualifying fastest at Wonthaggi and then finishing third overall at Appin, the number 14 trails the red plate by just five points, while teammate Webster will be eager to make up for lost ground after a troubled round two.

The list of contenders certainly does not end there, with former champions Kirk Gibbs (KTM Racing Team), Luke Clout (CDR Yamaha Monster Energy) and Todd Waters all ready to strike. Add seasoned contender Brett Metcalfe (Penrite GO24 KTM), WBR Yamaha fill-in Matt Moss – also a multiple national champion – and the building Regan Duffy (GasGas Racing Team) in the mix, and the Thor MX1 action is certainly not going to disappoint.

Notably, Wodonga will see a 25-minute plus one lap opening moto, followed by a two-part, back-to-back second moto once more of 13-minutes plus one lap in duration in each, which will determine the overall using Olympic scoring.

Pirelli MX2
The Pirelli MX2 rivalry of Wilson Todd (Terrafirma Honda Racing) and Nathan Crawford continues to take shape, with the KTM Racing Team rider scoring a vital yet commanding double victory last time out at Appin. Crawford’s dominant display at round two elevated him to third in the Pirelli MX2 standings, 19 points back from red plate-holder Todd.

Three-time champion Todd was admittedly not 100 percent at Appin, battling to regain full fitness following a collision with Crawford at Wonthaggi. While a lot of attention has been placed on both riders in Pirelli MX2 this year, Polyflor Honda Racing newcomer Brodie Connolly can’t be forgotten and is second in the standings, 17 points back from the red plate following a convincing start to the season.

Several highly-capable Yamaha riders will also be fighting to feature at the pointy-end, namely last year’s runner-up Rhys Budd, alongside Serco Yamaha teammate Jesse Dobson, in addition to Yamalube Yamaha Racing duo Alex Larwood and Jayce Cosford. The question is, can anyone rise to disrupt the Todd versus Crawford battle at Wodonga, and if so, who will it be?

MAXXIS MX3
It’s all to play for in the MAXXIS MX3 category at Wodonga, as GasGas racer Ky Woods holds the early points lead thanks to 1-3 scores at Appin. The New South Wales-based contender leads with 45 points ahead of the determined Liam Owens (Husqvarna) and Byron Dennis (GasGas) – both on 38 points.

Many hungry MAXXIS MX3 contenders will be looking to elevate in the standings during the third round, including Appin race two winner Connor Towill (KTM), Jack Mather (Husqvarna), Seth Burchell (Yamaha), and Cambell Williams (Empire Kawasaki). The list isn’t limited to those riders and, in short, there is a mixture of capable up-and-coming contenders who are set to feature in the class once more.

Round three will again see a traditional two-moto format across both Pirelli MX2 and MAXXIS MX3, with the 85cc WJMX Qualifier Cup class a fresh addition to the schedule for Wodonga, that being the MX85 WJMX Qualifer Cup.

The MX85 WJMX Qualifier Cup is a two-round cup that will feature at Wodonga this weekend and the following round of the ProMX Championship at Maitland. The goal of the 85cc WJMX Qualifier Cup is to develop and identify riders who have the potential to race in the World Junior Motocross (WJMX) event in Romania on July 8th and 9th. The chosen rounds of the ProMX championship have tracks that are like the planned WJMX track in Romania and the race length will be the similar to the world event.

The 85cc WJMX Qualifier Cup will be a part of the ProMX live stream telecast and will see the top three presented with trophies and participate in a full ProMX-spec podium ceremony.

“We are excited at the addition of the 85cc WJMX Qualifier Cup in the ProMX championship,” said Peter Doyle, CEO of Motorcycling Australia. “The 85 Class will provide a great opportunity for young riders to showcase their skills and develop their abilities in a competitive and challenging environment, while also giving them the opportunity to experience the pressure, conditions, fans, and distractions that they will face at the WJMX event in Romania. Further, this will bring the nation’s best juniors together more regularly.”

Bikes will be on-track from 7:45am local time, with the first moto of the round scheduled to commence at 9:55am, directly following the official Opening Ceremony.