The MX1 podium at Fernhill on Sunday was (from left) Mount Maunganui’s Cody Cooper (runner-up), Australian Kirk Gibbs (winner) and Auckland’s Hamish Harwood (third). Photo by Andy McGechan, BikesportNZ.com
It does not matter one little bit what the weather does to Taupo in two weeks’ time, the final round of the 2020 New Zealand Motocross Championships there will be a scorcher regardless.
The racers arrived in Hawke’s Bay for Sunday’s third round of four in the Fox-sponsored New Zealand Motocross Championships with national titles balancing on a knife edge and it’s really no different now, even with another batch of races in the bag.
There were boil-overs and shake-ups left and right at the Ngaruroro Raceway circuit at Fernhill, on the outskirts of Hastings, on Sunday and the large crowd would have left there well satisfied with their day’s entertainment.
There was an 11-point turnaround at the top of the MX1 class at Fernhill, visiting Australian Kirk Gibbs turning a six-point deficit into a five point buffer over Mount Maunganui’s defending national MX1 champion Cody Cooper.
It was a similar story too in the MX2 (250cc) class, with Taupo’s Maximus Purvis turning an eight-point deficit into a four-point advantage over Mount Maunganui’s Josiah Natzke.
The change of fortunes, while remarkable, will give none of these riders a reason to relax and nerves will be jangling with three more races in each class still remaining to complete the championship series.
The fourth and final round of the 2020 Fox New Zealand Motocross Championships is in Taupo in two weeks’ time, on Sunday, March 15, and there’s no doubt the racing will be fierce.
The only thing that seems certain at this stage is that it would take a disaster for Tauranga’s Brodie Connolly not to win the 125cc class crown.
He scored another hat-trick of wins at Fernhill on Sunday and has extended his championships lead to a whopping 64 points over his nearest challenger, Christchurch’s Marshall Phillips, and this means Connolly has more than two full races up his sleeve.
There was one race for the Women’s Cup competition staged at Fernhill on Sunday and Hamilton’s Amie Roberts won that ahead of Opunake’s Taylar Rampton and Cambridge’s Zara Gray.
The series sponsors are Fox Racing New Zealand, Yamaha Motor New Zealand, Pirelli NZ, Ward Demolition, Aon, ICG, Kawasaki NZ, Blue Wing Honda, Raptor, Yamalube Yamaha Racing and TransDiesel Ltd.
Championship leaders after round three at Fernhill on Sunday are:
MX1 class: 1. Australia’s Kirk Gibbs, 211 points; 2. Mount Maunganui’s Cody Cooper, 206; 3. Auckland’s Hamish Harwood, 182; 4. Hamilton’s Kayne Lamont, 149; 5. Taupo’s Brad Groombridge, 138.
MX2 class: 1. 2. Mangakino’s Maximus Purvis, 183 points; Mount Maunganui’s Josiah Natzke, 179; 3. Oparau’s James Scott, 172; 4. Christchurch’s Dylan Walsh 161; 5. Australia’s Caleb Ward, 143.
Under-19 class: 1. Oparau’s James Scott, 225 points; 2. Australia’s Riley Ward, 184; 3. Auckland’s Cobie Bourke, 164.
125c class: 1. Tauranga’s Brodie Connolly, 222 points; 2. Christchurch’s Marshall Phillips, 158; 3. Tauranga’s Madoc Dixon, 157; 4. Auckland’s Cobie Bourke, 153; 5. Rongotea’s Zac Jillings, 132.
2020 FOX New Zealand Motocross Championships calendar:
Round 1 – Balclutha, Saturday, February 1;
Round 2 – Rotorua, Sunday, February 23;
Round 3 – Hawke’s Bay, Sunday, March 1;
Round 4 – Taupo, Sunday, March 15.
Credit: Words and photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com
