Race winners Harwood and Todd complete the podium in Queensland.
Image: Foremost Media.
Yamalube Yamaha Racing team’s Jay Wilson has broken through to claim a season-first MX2 overall victory at Gladstone’s penultimate round of the Pirelli MX Nationals in Queensland.
New Zealand champion Hamish Harwood (Davey Motorsports KTM) came out on top in a frantic opening MX2 moto for the round, holding Aaron Tanti (Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing) at bay to win by 2.306s.
Third was an inspired ride from Wilson despite going down momentarily in the mid-stages, while teammate Richie Evans – leader of the moto at one point – registered a strong ride for fourth.
DPH Husqvarna’s Dylan Wills rode to fifth place, as the top 10 was completed by Wilson Todd (Serco Yamaha), early leader Jy Roberts (Husqvarna), Ricky Latimer (Honda Ride Red), Cody Dyce (Empire Motorsports Yamaha) and Jayden Rykers (Raceline Pirelli KTM).
It was points-leader Todd who shot out front early, but went down on the opening lap and he had to fight hard to recover for sixth by race’s end. The luckless Kyle Webster (Penrite Pirelli CRF Honda Racing) was in contention during the opening portion of the race, however it appeared a bike problem caused him to plummet back to P19 in yet more disappointment for the Western Australian.
Red plate-holder Todd rebounded in the second MX2 moto of the round in central Queensland, fending off Wilson for a 1.563s victory in what eventuated as a two-rider race this afternoon. As a result, Wilson’s consistent 3-2 scorecard was enough to hand him an emotion-charged overall for round nine of the year.
Behind them in race two, near 30 seconds in arrears, was a resurgent Webster ahead of Tanti, as Harwood bounced back from a minor fall to claim a deserved fifth. Sixth was another credible ride from Evans, as Dyce, Kale Makeham (Penrite Pirelli CRF Honda Racing), Rykers and Roberts were the top 10 finishers.
Overall it was Wilson who scored his first round win since the 2015 season, joined on the podium by moto winners Harwood and Todd. It will be Todd that enters Coolum in the box-seat for the championship, which will go down to the wire next Sunday on the Sunshine Coast.
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