A selection of riders detail their day at Broadford’s third round of the 2016 Motul MX Nationals. Team and privateer competitors can submit comments to [email protected] prior to the Wednesday after events for inclusion in the post-event Quotebook feature.

MX1

Image: MXN.

Matt Moss (National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team) – 4th overall:
It was a brutal track and I felt I rode well in the first race. The second race didn’t quite go to plan even though I finished in a strong position. I made some big mistakes and nearly went down and that tightened me up and I couldn’t find my groove again. All in all it was a good weekend and you can’t complain about finishing such a tough day with two thirds. Having the next three weeks off will do me good and ensure I’m ready for the next round.

Dan Reardon (CDR Yamaha) – 7th overall:
It was a tough day for all riders out there. It was so soft and muddy in the morning but it dried to a one-lined, super-rutty track that was extremely rough so it was so easy to go down. It wasn’t my greatest day, but considering the conditions it was okay and I feel like things are starting to come together. I’m sixth now in points and the next few tracks are some of my favourites, so hopefully I can continue to gain some more positions in the coming weeks.

Dean Ferris (CDR Yamaha) – 2nd overall:
Good and bad day for me in a lot of ways. The first race wasn’t good and it took me far too long to adjust to the track and the difficult conditions. It wasn’t until the last three or four laps that I was able to work things out and understand what I needed to do. So moto two was far better and the way I think I should ride. I was able to get to the front early and focus on what I needed to do and not by ducking and dodging roost. My lines were good and the bike worked well. Thank you to everyone at the CDR Yamaha team who worked so hard in trying conditions. The bike was bulletproof with thanks to the team keeping it in top shape all day.

Kirk Gibbs (KTM Motocross Racing Team) – 1st overall:
The track was pretty tough and though it wasn’t too physical, it was pretty technical – you had to really be onto it. You also had to get good starts and put yourself in really good positions, and I felt like I did that. My second start wasn’t quite as good, but I felt like I rode pretty solid and hit my marks. My first year in 2013, the track was pretty similar, it was just having that rain overnight. It got really one-lineish, which makes it really hard to pass. I’m glad to come away from there with relatively good results and points. I’m still chasing that first race win, but obviously I’ll take an overall! I’m trying to be really consistent and battle with the top guys every weekend, because they are going to do the same, I just want to be there every moto, and I’ve been able to do that so far.

Todd Waters (Wilson’s Coolair Motul Factory Suzuki) – 3rd overall:
In the first race, I felt like I rode how I should have. I’ve been training hard and the bike is good, so especially in those conditions it was awesome to get the win in moto one. I really felt like it was going to be my day to be honest. In the second race Kade Mosig crashed in front of me and I just landed straight on top of him – I really had no where to go and I just hope he’s okay. I got back up and got back to fourth, but even though I was catching the front guys I just ran out of time to make it happen. I knew I needed to pass third place for the overall in race two and I just couldn’t get it done which was a bit disappointing, but it’s good to know that our speed is there and we’ve finished on the podium again. The last two races before the break are sand races which I’m really excited about, so hopefully we can set ourselves up well and put ourselves in contention for the championship.

Luke Wilson (Wilson’s Coolair Motul Factory Suzuki) – 13th overall:
I’m pretty happy with 13th overall, especially being my first round back from injury. I wasn’t exactly happy with the way that I rode today, the track didn’t really work for me and I struggled out there all day, especially with that bad luck in the first race. In the second race everything was great with the bike, but I just didn’t bring it to the table. There’s no excuses, so I’m just going to look ahead to round four and hopefully step things up there. As a team the goal is always to finish every race, and we managed to grab some points and do that today, so although it’s not the best day result wise, we’re happy to take the positives out of round three.

Brett Metcalfe (SD3 Husqvarna) – 5th overall:
It was just unfortunate, yesterday we walked the track and it looked amazing, but we had a lot of rain and the track this morning was atrocious. Really heavy mud. I actually had a good start in the first moto, but somebody stalled their bike at the end of a rut and I got stuck behind them so I got relegated back to 11th or something. I was able to find a little momentum and start to make some moves, but the track was very difficult to pass on. Very one-lined. It was a challenge. Good starts definitely would have paid today, and I didn’t get them. I’m a little bit frustrated about today for sure. Murray Bridge is my last round with the SD3 Husqvarna team, so I’ll definitely knuckle down for the next two weeks and try to come away with a good result.

Jay Wilson (Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team) – 8th overall:
There were a lot of positives to take out of round three. As a team we’ve made some great progress with the bike and we’re content with how things ended up. In race one I was quite happy with the way I was riding and it was just a shame that lapped riders got in the way and held me up. We have the speed in the early stages of the moto, so I’m just working on being able to keep that up on the CRF450 for the entire race. At the moment I’m learning every time we go to the races, so it’s great to get another round under my belt, and we’re happy with the direction we’re going in with the bike and the team.

Dylan Long (Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team) – 6th overall:
Things went not too bad for me at Broadford. The track was pretty wet in some spots which made things interesting, but we had another good round on the Honda. I didn’t have the best race in moto one, but in moto two I was able to stay consistent and finish in fifth position. For me, this was a much better result and it gives me a lot more confidence knowing that we can finish up there. As a team we’ve learnt a lot these past few rounds, and I think we’re in a pretty good position now, so we’re looking forward to getting back out there at Murray Bridge.

Lawson Bopping (DPH Motorsport Yamaha) – 19th overall:
I struggled with energy levels. I felt okay on the first couple of laps, but by the end I was just circulating. I am hoping to get some tests done this week and will hopefully know more.

MX2

Image: MXN.

Jed Beaton (DPH Motorsport Yamaha) – 1st overall:
Awesome day for me! My starts were a lot better and the track was very technical, it suited my style and felt super-comfortable.

Kyle Webster (CRF Honda Racing) – 2nd overall:
I’m really rapt with today. Conditions were really tricky today, so I just want to thank CRF Honda Racing and all our great sponsors and supporters. The change to Honda this year has been a really good one for me and I want to thank everyone that helps get me to the start line and in particular my mechanic Mick for his huge commitment.

Dylan Wills (Raceline Pirelli KTM) – 6th overall:
Sixth overall today was a big step forward from where we were last time. I still haven’t put it all together but definitely a positive day. I would have had 6-6 today but for a crash on the second last lap. But it is what it is, I have to take the positives away, and I came in here with a few goals, and a new attitude, looking to put a bit less pressure on myself, and I had a good go today and had a smile on my face. It was a good round, the track was pretty gnarly, but we’re getting there. It was real wet in that first moto but I was second off the start so that made it heaps easier.

Jake Moss (National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team) – 5th overall:
That opening moto was hell. I had a couple of crashes that weren’t my fault – the lappers were bad and I really had to pick and choose where to pass, but I was really happy with third place. In the second moto I focused on staying consistent and not crashing and that helped me finish the day in fifth overall.

Caleb Ward (KTM Motocross Racing Team) – 21st Overall:
Obviously it was a pretty horrible day, it always can be worse I guess, but I went from having a decent points lead to being 30 points down just due to weather conditions and the track, so obviously that sucks. Basically one bad start just wrecked my entire day because everything tumbled downhill from there, there wasn’t a lot that I could do about it. In the first moto I stuffed up my jump out of the gate and I ended up a fair way back. I was making my way through, but because the track was so muddy, I ended up having a mechanical and DNF’d – it was no-one’s fault. In the second I had a horrible gate pick, I got a reasonable start, but was too far to the inside and got pinched off. I was making my way through fairly good and was into sixth or seventh, when Rykers highsided right in front of me when I was like in third gear pinned. I hit his bike and went straight over the handlebars and head first into the ground, which was pretty much like concrete right there. So what should have been a day with two top five finishes, became a DNF and a 15th. A horrible day, but I’m looking forward to the next few rounds and tracks where I’ve had a bit of success in the past.

Luke Arbon (SD3 Husqvarna) – 3rd overall:
The first moto for us was wild today because I don’t think people did very many practice laps and the track was just disgusting! It was a battle to get up some of the hills! I got a half decent start but just rode a little bit too tentatively, and ended up eighth, but I didn’t crash and that was the main thing. In the second moto I got a good start but once Jed passed me I tagged onto him for as long as I could and pulled a bit of a gap on third and rode my own race to the end. The track was pretty crazy so I was just happy for it to be over, pretty much. There’s a lot of fast guys this year so just being up there every week is the big thing.

Nathan Crawford (Husqvarna) – 4th overall:
Consistency was key today. That track in moto one was an absolute catastrophe. It actually looked pretty good on Saturday, and could have done with a little bit of rain, but clearly not the amount it had. It was one of those days where things could have gone wrong in a big way, so to come out three points away from the championship lead is something I’m pretty happy with, despite not finishing on the box. Now we move on to some tracks which are a bit more my style and see how we go once we hit the loamier, more sandy style tracks.

Wilson Todd (Serco Yamaha) – 8th overall:
10-6 isn’t where I wanted to finish this weekend. Once I crashed in the first race, I struggled to regain the same speed and then in race two I was behind the eight ball from the start with the first turn crash. I just have to stop the little mistakes and aim for a top five finish every race and build some consistency in my racing.

Wade Hunter (Serco Yamaha) – 7th overall:
It was a pretty nasty track to ride today and it each moto it was something completely different each time. Race one was just full on mud while the second moto the track had dried, but it was rough, hard-packed and slippery so it wasn’t easy at any time. I felt I made some progress today and I was happy with the second moto. Hopefully, I can use that race to turn my season around and starting racking up good results at every round from now until the end of the championship.