BRACE YOURSELVES FOR ACTION

Youth talent heads to Tokoroa for the
Leatt New Zealand Junior Motocross Championships
this weekend.

Words and Pic By by Andy McGechan, BikesportNZ.com

Brace yourself for action as the most significant event on the junior motocross calendar kicks off in the Central North Island on Friday.

Tokoroa will this Easter weekend host the three-day Leatt New Zealand Junior Motocross Championships with more than 300 riders entered.

The popular Amisfield track, on the outskirts of Tokoroa, is the venue for this annual championship weekend and top talent from throughout Australasia is expected to rapidly fill up the South Waikato forestry town’s motels.

It is hard to pick a favourite to win the 14-16 years’ 250cc class but it’s certain to be a brutal battle between top Kiwis such as Dunedin’s Campbell King, Rotorua’s Haki Waller, Matamata’s Jacob Kneebone, Kumeu’s Liam Underwood, Whakatane’s Damon Rees, Takaka’s Hamish Harwood, Auckland’s Brandon Tipene and Hastings rider Jonty Birrell.

Rangiora’s Micah McGoldrick will certainly be one rider worth watching this weekend. He won the 13-16 years’ 85cc class and finished third in the 12-14 years’ 125cc class last season.

He steps up to the 15-16 years’ 125cc class this season, where he will face stiff opposition from such talented riders as Rotorua’s Cameron Vaughan, Levin’s James Anderson, Paeroa’s Kent Morley, Katikati’s Garth Amrein and Te Puke’s Logan Blackburn, to name a few.

Top Australian 125cc rider Jesse Dobson arrives from Queensland to bid for the 12-14 years’ 125cc class title and there he will line up against top Kiwis such as Hadleigh Knight, of Atiamuri, Rangiora’s Cody Murphy, Opotiki’s Tyler Breingan and Tauranga’s Kurt Langford.

In the 85cc class battles, riders such as Hamilton’s Josiah Natzke (last season’s 11-12 years’ 85cc class champion), Otago’s Courtney Duncan (the former 85cc world No.8), Taupo’s Wyatt Chase (the 8-10 years’ 85cc class winner in 2010), his brother Cohen Chase, Papakura’s Kurtis Lilly, Pahiatua’s Scott Sowry, Oamaru's Joel Meikle, Christchurch's Dylan Walsh, Hawera’s Nick Hornby, Tauranga's Cameron Forlong and Australian riders Hunter Lawrence and Blake Cobbin should feature.

Sponsored by Leatt (the neck brace people), the national championships feature racing in seven separate age-group and bike capacity classes. The championship will comprise five races in each category.

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TOUGH WEEKEND FOR KIWI RIDERS IN FRANCE

By Andy McGechan

It was a mixed weekend for the Kiwi riders contesting this year’s FIM World Junior Motocross Championships in France.

Mangakino’s Kayne Lamont (Suzuki) DNFed his first 125cc moto but scrambled back to record an 11th placing in the second moto, giving him 17th overall for the event.

Rangiora’s Isaiah McGoldrick (KTM) fared less well, finishing out of the points both times, while his younger brother, Micah (KTM), managed to finish 32nd overall in the 85cc class.

“France was very hot and there was over a 100 riders in my class,” said Micah McGoldrick.

“I was sitting in the top five in moto 1 and 2, and feeling strong and good on the bike but making too many mistakes, which cost me a good finish. That’s racing for you: Thinking you’re going to do well and it all goes bad and you’re just gutted it did. But I’m going to move on and come back stronger and faster.”

Micah’s big brother, Isaiah, also enjoyed the experience.

“My goal at this event was to Qualify into the top 40 and I  qualified 23rd, so I was happy with that,” said Isaiah McGoldrick.

“On race day, things went backwards though. In moto one, I had a very hard crash around the high-speed sweeping first corner. In this crash my front tyre went flat. I went into the pits and put on a new front wheel, then went back onto the track.

“But I got black flagged for re entering the track after being back in the pits. So that was a DNF.

“In the halfway point of moto two I was sitting 26th. I had another massive crash, going over the bars on a table top. I got back up but pulled out of the race because I was really shaken up from the crashes. It was a super painful weekend.”

So, instead of the Kiwi trio, the weekend instead belonged to American rider Jake Pinhancos (65cc), Henry Jacobi, from Germany (85cc), and French sensation Jordi Tixier (125cc).

USA got on the top step for the nations classification. France was second and 2009 winner Australia had to settle for third position this year.

Look for a full report in your next issue of Kiwi Rider magazine.

RESULTS

Juniors 65cc top-ten

1 PINHANCOS Jake USA AMA KTM 25 25 50

2 HSU Brian TWN FMI KTM 22 22 44

3 TODD Wilson AUS MA KTM 20 18 38

4 SIKYNA Richard SVK SMF KTM 16 16 32

5 VAESSEN Bas NED KNMV KTM 12 15 27

6 EVANS Mitchell AUS MA KTM 13 14 27

7 PAPI Brock USA AMA METRAKIT 11 12 23

8 CROWN Joseph USA AMA KTM 0 20 20

9 PRAMMER Lukas AUT OeAMTC KTM 10 10 20

10 ZONTA Filippo ITA FMI KTM 18 0 18

Juniors 85cc top-ten

1 JACOBI Henry GER DMSB KTM 25 20 45

2 GAJSER Tim SLO AMZS KTM 18 25 43

3 EKEROLD Stefan GER DMSB KTM 22 9 31

4 JONASS Pauls LAT LaMSF SUZUKI 7 22 29

5 KOVAR Vaclav CZE ACCR KTM 14 15 29

6 CERVELLIN Michele ITA FMI HONDA 15 13 28

7 DE WAAL Micha Boy NED KNMV SUZUKI 11 16 27

8 BOGERS Brian NED KNMV KTM 5 18 23

9 MANN Scott AUS MA KTM 20 2 22

10 OLSEN Thomas Kjer DEN DMU SUZUKI 9 10 19

Juniors 125cc top-ten

1 TIXIER Jordi FRA FFM KTM 25 25 50

2 SAVATGY Joey USA AMA SUZUKI 22 20 42

3 RAUCHENECKER Pascal AUT OeAMTC KTM 16 22 38

4 JAULIN Sulivan FRA FFM YAMAHA 20 16 36

5 DESPREY Maxime FRA FFM YAMAHA 14 15 29

6 OLSEN Stefan DK DMU SUZUKI 15 12 27

7 BERNARDINI Samuele ITA FMI KTM 12 14 26

8 HANOUSEK Roman CZE ACCR KTM 10 11 21

9 BISCEGLIA Matt USA AMA YAMAHA 18 2 20

10 PATUREL Benoît FRA FFM YAMAHA 13 6 19

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