ProMX 2024 was one for the history books, with MX1 rivals – and training partners – Kyle Webster and Jed Beaton locked in a tie after 17 races, but in the end it was Webster that would reign supreme on countback and earn Boost Mobile Honda Racing its first premier class title. MotoOnline caught up with both riders after the final motos of the season for this Debrief interview.

MX1 champion

Image: Foremost Media.

Kyle, congratulations mate, you’re the 2024 MX1 champion. What a day, you didn’t make it easy for yourself. Let’s start with the injury yesterday, are you okay?

I think so, I need to go get some scans and stuff tomorrow up here in Brisbane with Steve Andrews and see where we’re at. But yeah, not exactly how I wanted this weekend to go, but nevertheless, we made it happen. I can’t touch too much on the injury until I find out what’s wrong with it.

It looks pretty swollen from here.

It wasn’t actually that it was painful like it is, but it was more so the fact that after a few laps, I couldn’t feel my hand anymore. So that was the issue that I had today. Moving forward, I’m not too sure how long, or whatever it is, but I’ll find out tomorrow hopefully and we’ll go from there.

In the last few rounds, the racing between you and Jed [Beaton] has been phenomenal, and on and off the track you guys are very respectful. When you crashed yesterday and all of this happened, was there a sense of ‘oh boy’?

Like you said, the racing between Jed and I has been very respectful, which has been good. The points have been so tight all year and it’s made it hard, but after yesterday and seeing everyone from Racesafe, I was a little bit nervous because I didn’t know how it was going to go. I was actually worried about the pain more, but then after riding a few laps, my hand went numb, so that’s what it shifted to throughout the day. It was hard, this track is not very forgiving as it is, so to not feel my throttle hand and not being able to feel the front brake, made it tough through the moto. But, it was one of those things, it was do or die unfortunately, I was either going to make it happen or crash trying. It was one of those days.

In moto two, did you kind of know where you needed to be on the track, and were you counting that or looking for messages on the pit board? How was that information being relayed to you?

I knew where I needed to come, obviously, we wanted to finish fourth or better to not tie on points. But I knew that if we came fifth, I would tie with Jed, but I’d get the win on moto wins or overall wins or something. So once I knew I was back in fifth, I was really struggling to connect the track together, but I knew I needed to stay there. There was no wiggle room, which wasn’t the best feeling, but it was fine. The boys had it on the pit board and whatnot, but I really wasn’t reading it too much, I just knew where I was at.

Has it set in yet? You know, the last few years you’ve had injuries, you’ve had the red plate and race wins, but it hasn’t been something that’s eventuated. But now it has, and not only that but the whole team at Honda Racing Australia, what you guys achieved today is absolutely extraordinary. Has it set in yet?

I don’t know that it’s set in yet, I feel like my hand has made me think about that a bit as well. It’ll set in, we’ll get there. Obviously, I’m so stoked for the team, they can’t ask for much more really. It’s been an unbelievable season for them, and the whole team, everyone who works day in and day out to make this happen. It’s been incredible really, so I just felt like for what they’ve done for us and what we’ve all worked so hard for, so it’s just a big special thank you to Yarrive [Konsky] and the whole team.

You’re meant to be flying out to the US this week to begin training and prepping for MXoN. That’s obviously now going to depend on your hand and the extent of that injury, just take us through that.

Yeah, I’m supposed to head off this week and start getting into it for nations on the 250, but I’m just going to have to see I guess. Like I said, once I get a scan tomorrow and we see where we’re at, we’ll go from there. Hopefully, it’s nothing too crazy and it’s just a few days of swelling. Once that swelling goes down I don’t think I’ll have too many issues, bit I just hope it doesn’t keep coming back. But the best guy in the business for hands and upper limbs is here, so we’ll go see him tomorrow and make a plan from there.

Congratulations, Kyle. You did what you set out to do, you ticked a lot of boxes this season. Your starts have been amazing, you’ve put it all together, and the racing between you and Jed has been amazing also. It’s been an awesome year.

I think this year has been my best, and I had a really good year on the 250 when I won that championship. But covid kind of killed that and I never really got to experience the last round jitters or that moment altogether. So I’ve just wished for that ever since that day, so it feels nice to finally get to that, even though I was shitting myself all day, and since last night pretty much. Now that we’re here though, feels good.

We’ve seen over the last week also that you’ve signed a contract extension to stay at this team. We know there were talks about heading to Europe and things like that, but it sounds like you’ve kind of made Honda Racing Australia home for the foreseeable future.

Yeah if I’m racing here there’s nowhere else I’d rather be, like look at it right now, it’s unbelievable. It’s just such a big happy family over here, and I feel like everyone second-guesses it when there are so many riders under one team, but it works. Everyone here makes it happen. I was stoked that Yarrive, Tony [Hinton] and everyone from Honda gave me a contract extension. I think with the overseas stuff, if something came up, Yarrive is that kind of person that he’d want me to chase it, and I know that I’ll always have a home here while things are going well.

Is there still an endeavour for that? Is that something that you still want to tick?

I think it’s something that everyone wants to tick off. But now that I’m a bit older now, it’s a little bit harder. I can’t just go over there and ride for anyone for anything, I have a few obligations here that I need to make work, but I’d love to. If something came up, like even just doing those AMA rounds this year was such a cool experience. That’s the things Yarrive allows me to do with and helps me make happen. He organised all of that and literally said we’re going to do it. So those things mean a lot to me, and he knows how much I want to experience that, and like I said, he makes it happen. So there’s nowhere else I’d rather be while I’m here.

Good luck with the hand, we’ll wait for an announcement there. Hopefully, you can start your journey for MXoN now and add to your successful year.

We’ll see what the hand does, and yeah, I’m really looking forward to the next six weeks of prepping on the 250 and getting into it at Matterly Basin. Hopefully, this doesn’t put too much of a strain on things, but I don’t think it’s going to.

MX1 winner

Image: Foremost Media.

Top step of the podium here at Queensland Moto Park, Jed Beaton. Jed, you said earlier in the week that all you could do this weekend was go out and win both motos and see what happened behind you. You did exactly what you needed to do, and this thing ended in a tie. I don’t think we’ve ever had a title go down to a countback. Obviously, right now it sucks for you, but there are a lot of boxes ticked this year, take us through today.

Yeah, today was really good. I couldn’t do much better, other than get a better start in moto one and have to come back through the pack. But yeah, I felt pretty good all weekend, it’s just really unfortunate. I was so consistent all year, I was inside the top two every single race except for the one race where I went down, and that cost me. If I’d been first or second in that race, I would’ve had more points. It’s a year of what could’ve been, but at the end of the day my riding is good and I feel healthy and solid, so I’m already looking forward to next year.

That performance today, it wasn’t a simple win. You went out there and really stamped your statement on it. That’s got to give you a sense of confidence and you’d have to be happy to end the year like that, right?

Yeah, we don’t race motocross for another six or seven months now, so it’s nice to drag a bit of confidence from it. But at the end of the day, it’s a long way away. I’m going to go back and work on things that I need to work on in the off-season and come back a better rider next year. That’s all I can do. What I really need to focus on is having consistent starts and just always being there, I think that’ll make my life a lot easier.

Do you think that was a factor in how this championship played out?

Yes and no. When you have a bad start you put yourself in a bad situation, and if you look at the start statistics from this year, I think Kyle had nearly every holeshot. He just puts himself in good positions early out of the gate and stays out of all the shit that happens. So if I can be like that, it’s going to make my days a whole lot easier. From all the superpole results, I know my speed is good, I just need to be able to bring it out.

When you made the pass on Kyle in that opening race, it’s like both lines joined together. It looked close on TV. From your perspective, how close was that?

Yeah, I’d say it was pretty close. We’re battling for a championship, there’s a lot on the line today. I think we race hard but fair, so it’s been really good all year and obviously, it came down to one day, and today, you push a little bit harder and be a little more aggressive than normal. At the end of the day, it is a championship that you’re going for.

What’s next for you – a couple of days off and into supercross training? Are you excited for that?

I actually am quite excited. I’ll start riding it pretty much straight away. The weather is looking pretty good at home and the track is ready to go, so I think I’ll get straight into it. I’m actually excited to get back in and re-learn it. It’s been quite a while, but yeah I’m quite excited about it. So it should be good.

It’s only a bit over a month until Redcliffe I think, so enjoy the next few days off and we’ll see you at supercross!

Cheers, thank you.