In front of a packed Kayo Stadium, the 2024 Fox Australian Supercross Championship (AUSX) got off to an epic start in the Moreton Bay region in a double-header staged over Saturday and Sunday. MotoOnline answers the primary questions that emerged from the weekend in this edition of Q&A.

Image: Foremost Media.

Q: Two rounds and a bunch of different results in the pro classes. What can we read into how the weekend unfolded?

A: The key takeaway is that neither the SX1 nor the SX2 championships are a given. In SX1, defending champion Dean Wilson (SCT Honda Racing) looked at his smooth-and-fast best on Sunday, launching to the front of both finals early and starting his 2024 campaign with a perfect 1-1 result. Changes to the whoops between rounds one and two saw Wilson’s advantage reduced, producing much tighter racing and allowing Joey Savatgy (NAPA Auto Parts Honda Racing) to take the round victory and championship lead. He carries a two-point lead into Wollongong. The two internationals and third-placed Luke Clout were clearly the best SX1 racers all weekend and you’d expect the championship to be awarded to one of those three, judging by the current form guide. In SX2, the main theme was the sheer unpredictability of the racing. While round wins went to Honda Racing pairing Noah Ferguson and Shane McElrath, they had average nights at the rounds they didn’t win – McElrath finished Saturday eighth overall, and Ferguson struggled to 13th overall on Sunday. Those results and chaotic racing mean just eight points separate the top nine in the SX2 standings.

Q: Who performed better than expected?

A: Having not raced supercross in near 10 years, there were some questions as to how CDR Yamaha Monster Energy’s Jed Beaton would perform in the indoor settings. If Redcliffe is anything to go by, Beaton is going to be solid. It got off to a slightly shaky start when he crashed out of P4 midway through Saturday’s first final and crossed the line in 10th, but he steadied the ship with a P6 in the second of the double-header finals for seventh overall. Sunday was a more trouble-free run for the former MXGP regular, as he banked a solid 5-4 result for fourth overall, and moved up to P4 in the standings. Off the back of a bruising Motocross of Nations and having not raced AUSX before, Kiwi Brodie Connolly (Polyflor Honda Racing) was also an unknown quantity. The reigning national MX2 champion was impressive in SX2, where he briefly led three of the four finals over the two days and showed plenty of speed. Crashes and errors hindered his overall performance, but his 5-5 round results in a class that had mixed fortunes for most riders sees him now holding down P3 in the championship. Also in the SX2 class, nobody picked Noah Ferguson (Boost Mobile Honda Racing) to win the opener, when Reid Taylor (Empire Kawasaki) and Ryder Kingsford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing) also came firing out of the blocks on Saturday to finish second and third overall for the night.

Q: What happened with the whoops?

A: Saturday saw Wilson and Ferguson on top of the SX1 and SX2 podiums, which came after they were two of the only riders to actually get on top of the technical whoop section and blitz them more often than not. It was ideal for passing and ultimately quicker than the jump line, but come Sunday, they were scaled back and made a lot more simple whether you were skimming or jumping them. The racing, you could argue, was better for the change, but those who were managing them on night one were understandably questioning the situation.

Image: Foremost Media.

Q: Who has work to do before Wollongong?

A: While the two opening Redcliffe rounds saw the stocks of several riders increase, that always comes at the expense of others. Former champion Matt Moss endured a frustrating weekend, especially as he’d signed with the CDR Yamaha Monster Energy team for the five-round championship and entered as a legitimate SX1 favourite. Moss posted P4 results in the first final of both nights, but crashed heavily in Saturday’s second final to register a 21st place result, then went down again early in Sunday’s second main event to eventually finish 11th. He sits a lowly ninth in the standings and is already a full 25 points off the leader Savatgy, so a snappy turnaround will be critical. It’s a similar story for Kaleb Barham in the SX2 class. Based on previous performances, the Yamalube Yamaha Racing rider was expected to push for top fives at a minimum, but his campaign got off to a horror start when he DNF’d Saturday’s first final. He recovered to finish P7 in the second, then struggled to move his way forward on Sunday, finishing with 9-8 results. After two rounds he sits 11th in the standings, with plenty of work to do over the rest of the series.

Q: Is Honda Racing’s super-team performing as good as expected?

A: The powerhouse Honda Racing organisation owned by Yarrive Konsky has gone all-in on AUSX 2024. The team has won both championships the past two years, with Justin Brayton (2022) and Wilson (2023) in SX1 and Max Anstie (2022/2023) in SX2. With an eight-rider roster across all classes, the team is targeting a cross-class podium red-wash and already achieved an SX2 sweep in round two with McElrath, Cole Thompson and Alex Larwood. After two heated nights of competition, Honda Racing riders hold down five of the top six spots in SX2, despite some big dramas on Saturday night when Thompson mistimed a pass and took down Brodie Connolly and McElrath in a three-rider pile-up, which quickly went viral on social media for all the wrong reasons. Luckily, Ferguson was able to storm to a breakout first victory for the team. SX1 is also on track with Wilson and Savatgy setting themselves as the early benchmark for the rest of the field, while former ProMX champion Aaron Tanti currently sits P5 after the first two rounds. Impressive, certainly, but the red corner has to play their cards right across all five rounds.

Image: Foremost Media.

Q: Will Luke Clout be satisfied with his early form?

A: Despite showing his share of promise during the outdoors, ProMX was a somewhat frustrating campaign for Clout and his new Empire Kawasaki team. After ending last year’s AUSX championship with a win at Marvel Stadium, Clout had targeted this year’s supercross series for some redemption. We didn’t have to wait long to see him return to his winning ways, as he held off a fierce attack from Savatgy and Wilson to win Sunday’s opening final. Clout backed up his P3 podium on Saturday with a runner-up result the following day, putting him well and truly in the mix for this year’s title. Clout was easily the best of the Australian SX1 racers at Redcliffe and he’ll take a lot of confidence from that performance into the remaining three rounds.

Q: Whose results on paper didn’t tell the full story of how well they rode?

A: Fresh off a successful trip to the US, KTM Racing Team’s Kayden Minear entered the AUSX billed as one of the SX2 championship threats. He started both rounds strongly with two wire-to-wire heat race wins, but his finals were relatively quiet affairs. He finished a consistent sixth overall on both nights, courtesy of 7-6 and 8-7 efforts over the four races, but with the way the results transpired, he finds himself ninth in the standings. Froth Honda Racing’s Alex Larwood also looked in convincing form. His starts were next-level and he placed himself in prime position to earn some valuable points, but a series of errors in Saturday’s opening final saw him drop to 20th. The South Australian rebounded for P3 in the second final to finish the night ninth overall, before improving greatly on Sunday to finish 2-3 and land on the round podium. Heading into Wollongong, Larwood sits sixth overall.

Q: How was the broadcast package received?

A: For the most part, the new broadcast package – now on Kayo Freebies in Australia – appeared to be polished, without being perfect. Having five-time Australian Supercross Champion Brayton in the booth as the expert analyst was a power-move – JB was the consummate professional and provided viewers with some intelligent insights as the action unfolded. The lack of a live on-screen position tracker was a letdown that many fans voiced on social media, which was likely related to technical issues experienced with the timing system across the weekend. Not idea, of course, and something that shouldn’t happen in 2024 with the experience of all associated. Still, it was a solid start that they will manage to build upon.