Riders detail their day at the Bathurst round of the 2015 Australian Supercross Championship. Team and privateer competitors can submit comments to [email protected] prior to the Wednesday after events for inclusion in the post-event Quotebook feature.

SX1

Image: Jeff Crow.

Kirk Gibbs (KTM Motocross Racing Team) – 4th overall:
Bathurst was a reasonable start to the championship I guess. The track was pretty brutal today and after the US trip I’ve had a little less than two weeks on the bike for supercross. I got off to a great start, and was sitting in third on the first lap when Reardon got past me. I started getting a little bit of arm pump at about lap 10 and I had some trouble with my goggles fogging up because of the cold, but overall I’m reasonably happy. I felt like I rode decent, but I also feel like we can make some huge improvements over the next few weeks.

Luke Styke (KTM Motocross Racing Team) – 7th overall:
It was a bit of a struggle for me all day; just me and the bike weren’t as one tonight. I didn’t have the feel that I needed and the track was pretty tricky – it was sandy and it rutted out everywhere. It was definitely good to get the first one out the way though and I kind of felt better the more laps I did around the track. It just took me a bit too long to get going, but we’ve got some things to work on now and I can make that my worst result all year. We are going to Jimboomba next weekend and I’ve had a bit of seat time on that track, so hopefully things will be much better for me.

Daniel Reardon (CDR Yamaha) – 2nd overall:
Second place is a good way to start any series and even more important in a short six round championship and on a track that was tough to ride at 100 percent. I felt pretty good all day but also felt there were some things I need to improve on as it was my first supercross race in a few seasons. So, all up, a pretty positive night and hoping to make more steps forward again next week in Queensland where the race isn’t too far from my house.

Kade Mosig (CDR Yamaha) – 5th overall:
Top five is a reasonable start and it was good to get a race under the belt and get the real race feel and intensity that you just can’t replicate in practice. It wasn’t perfect from me but on the whole it was a solid start and something I can build off in the coming rounds.

Adam Monea (NPS Monster Energy Kawasaki) – 10th overall:
I was so keen to get this first round underway especially after all of the testing with the new bikes. We went alright in the heat races but the main event itself was pretty terrible. I had a crash and was playing catch-up after that so I think I did well to finish where I did. It goes without saying that the bikes look awesome. They are really out there and it’s cool to see the team going the extra mile to change it up.

Dylan Long (NPS Monster Energy Kawasaki) – DNF:
Unlucky is all I can say for round one of the supercross championship. I got caught in a pile-up on a jump out of the second corner and went down, which forced me out of the main event. I can’t wait for next round already though.

Matt Moss (Team Motul Suzuki) – 1st overall:
That final was actually a bit of a weird race. I pulled all my tear-offs on the opening lap which made things a bit daunting as there was not much light out there as it was. I played it smart, I knew even if they got onto the back of me it was going to be tough to pass. I felt good out there and felt I was in control of the race, I knew If I needed to turn it up and go I could go. It was amazing to be able to get that win for Jay, Jess and the team. It would be great to clean-sweep the series again for those guys and have them go out on a high.

Kale Makeham (Team Motul Suzuki) – 13th overall:
I started the day of feeling good and was getting the track dialed when I messed up a rhythm section. I didn’t actually crash, I just over extended my ankle and RACESAFE said I have torn some ligaments in there. I was able to have it strapped and got through the night and did the best I could to salvage some points. I got caught up in a pile up after someone crashed in front of me on the first lap, which did not help things. We will go back home and rest up for the week and hopefully be back in action next Saturday.

Lawson Bopping (Peter Stevens DPH Yamaha) – 8th overall:
I had a great start in my heat race and lead most of it but had a little crash near end but still got the win. The final didn’t really go to plan. I had a few issues and couldn’t ride the way I wanted to and ended up eighth. I’m really looking forward to Jimboomba and will focus all my energy on the main race.

SX2

Image: Jeff Crow.

Luke Clout (Serco Yamaha) – 2nd overall:
It was good to get the first round out of the way and be up on the podium. My preparation has been a bit all over the place because of my call up to race at the Motocross of Nations but I still felt I raced the main event well and can take not only some good points, but also some confidence from it. Jimmy was riding well and I saw a few things that he was doing that was faster, so I will practice that during the week and hopefully I can reverse the result at round two this weekend.

Jed Beaton (Serco Yamaha) – 15th overall:
It wasn’t a great night for me as I made too many mistakes and crashed a couple of times. But the positive was that I was able to gain experience in supercross on a proper race track and I feel now I know what to expect and can be better prepared for the coming rounds. It’s a six round series so my goal is to improve every round and I’m sure I will be a much better rider at the end of the series than I am now.

Caleb Ward (KTM) – 9th overall:
That was my first ever supercross race. I was pretty nervous at the start, it was a pretty technical track with a bit of rain and stuff and soft dirt, it was pretty slippery in a few spots but I got through it all. I think I could have been top five, on the first lap I was in fourth, and rider pushed me off and I couldn’t hit the finish jump on the first lap, and had to roll around the outside of it because I was going to get landed on, so I lost heaps of positions and then someone made a mistake on the triple and I ended up going off the track there as well. So I lost a heap of spots and ended up back in 13th on the first lap. It’s pretty wild out there so you just try and get through it clean! I actually had a lot of fun towards the end of the main event. I found my flow and got into good rhythm. The hardest part is hitting big jumps and corners right behind other people and you’ve kind of got to trust in their ability and take a bit of a risk and hope for the best. The racing is a bit closer for sure, there was a few block passes and you’ve kind of got to look out for loose cannons going off all over the place, but I think in another few rounds or so I will be a lot more confident and trying to go for race wins.

Luke Arbon (SD3 Husqvarna) – 3rd overall:
It feels so good to be finishing back up on the box and leaving the track happy, not wondering what’s wrong with me. It’s great to ride a bike like I know I can and the way I know my body can perform. I went out in qualifying and qualified second when it was pissing down rain, so that gave me a bit of a vibe. Then I got the whole shot and lead every lap in my heat, and just felt comfortable. In the main I just rode a little bit tight but still ended up on the podium, so it’s good to get that one out the way. I got a decent start and came out second behind Clout, he was manning up and hitting the whoops pretty hard so he was pulling away, but then I would sort of catch him a bit in a section. I ended up making a mistake crossing over to the start straight again and Decotis got me there, but I ironed it all out and rode around smooth on a track which was super gnarly, so I came out alright. I’ve only been back onto five weeks so I told myself that I would be happy with top five in Bathurst, so to get third was awesome. Now my other goal is to finish on the podium every round, and I don’t see any reason to not do that.

Nathan Crawford (Husqvarna) – 11th overall:
I felt really good in our first ride on the track but once timed qualifying came around the track was really wet and when they repaired the track they kind of just pushed mud over the ruts and made them difficult to see. I had big crash in my heat race just from catching the mud in my foot pegs and that. I banged up my ribs a little bit and hit my head, so I toughed out the main events to grab a few points because my head was really sore, but I’m just going to be working this week get back to where I was before that crash. And I’m going to redeem myself at the starch out of him.

Geran Stapleton (Wilson MX Penrite Honda) – 5th overall:
I’m pretty happy with how my weekend went, I did feel that I could have gone a bit better but all in all it’s not a bad result for round one. The conditions were really tough, but I actually enjoyed myself out there. “I’m a bit sore now but I’m staying in Queensland this week, so we’ll have a couple more days on the bike and then be ready for this weekend.

Luke Wilson (Wilson MX Penrite Honda):
It was not my weekend at round one, but I’m just going to keep pushing forward and looking towards next weekend. One of the positives from the weekend though was that we have an awesome set-up on the Honda, so even though I didn’t have a great night, the bike handled perfectly. I’ll be taking the lessons out of last weekend, and fingers crossed I can turn things around at round two.

Jackson Richardson (Wilson MX Penrite Honda) – 4th overall:
I feel pretty good with my result from the weekend – I struggled a little bit with the track, but everyone did with the conditions. I wanted to get through the first round safe and to now be in the hunt for the championship is pretty cool. I know what improvements I need to make, so hopefully we can change things up a bit and I’ll be able to step things up again at the next round.

Jake Williams (Wilson MX Penrite Honda) – 21st overall:
It was a pretty tough weekend to be honest. I had a huge crash and was lucky to ride at all. I’m felling pretty sore and sorry for myself now that’s for sure. I managed to make it in to the main which was good, but it was more about surviving the race than anything else. “We have a few days now to get ready for the next round, so I’m just trying to do as much recovery as possible so I can be as close to 100 percent for Jimboomba this weekend.

Jesse Madden (Raceline Pirelli Suzuki) – 12th overall:
The results don’t show on paper, but myself and the team are stoked with how I went on the weekend. Stepping up into the SX2 class, we really weren’t sure where I would be, but to get a third in my heat and then be running inside the top 10 for most of the main was a solid effort. I have a lot more confidence now, and it’s good to know where I stand in the bigger class. Even with the changing track conditions and with it being wet, the bike handled awesome. The Raceline guys did an awesome job. I’ll just be putting in more training this week and hopefully I can step things up again at Jimboomba this weekend.