MOTOREX KTM:
Seventeen year old aboriginal supercross racer Tye Simmonds has become a household name on the WA dirt bike calendar, as the youngster dominated many famed events in the state throughout 2009, including the Natural Terrain Motocross Championship at Byford in March, Manjimup Shoot out in May, and the Pro Lites class of the Australian Motocross Championship at Wanneroo in June.
Now for the Supercross season, Simmonds has put himself in unfamiliar territory stepping up to ride the KTM 450 SX-F in the premier Pro Open class, being the youngest factory rider in the senior competitive line up. With two rounds already taken place, Simmonds has ruffled feathers and turned heads battling with riders far more experienced to finish fifth at the opening round in Launceston, and third at the second round in Geelong.
As round three heads to Perth’s Burswood Dome this Saturday, 31 October, Simmonds is confident to continue his dominance on WA soil.
Commenting on his racing to date Simmonds said, “It’s been an amazing ride so far in the Pro Open class of Super X, and I’m really happy with my position against riders well into their 20s, who have all experienced professional racing in the elite American series.
“What’s helping me progress is the different race formats, promoters Global Action Sports has introduced into Super X, instead of the usual 20 lap final. These varied formats allow for fast and intense battles, giving less experienced riders a chance to go out hard, and mix it with riders who have experienced the American circuits like Chad Reed, Jay Marmont, and Daniel Reardon.
“I was happy with my third place podium in the Pro Open at the second round in Geelong, but I still have a lot to learn in riding the KTM 450 SX-F, and also about my competition in such a senior class, but I’m certainly enjoying the ride.
“It was awesome to go head to head with Chad Reed in the man-on-man format at round two in Geelong, and although he beat me by a bike length just before the chequered flag, I lead for most of the sprint lap, and it pumped me up for the final.
“My race team, Motorex KTM have their headquarters in Welshpool (WA), so I have spent a lot of time racing at many WA events, and I have been really successful this year winning pretty much all events I have entered in the state. This has given me quite a good fan base for WA, and no doubt the local support getting behind me on race day will help me strive harder for a podium.
“I’m going to Causeway KTM at Victoria Park on Thursday this week (29 Oct) with my Motorex KTM team mate, Kade Mosig between 5pm and 6pm to meet fans, sign autographs and give-away tickets to Saturday night’s Burswood Dome event, so hopefully I will get to meet a few of the locals who have been so supportive throughout the year.”
Causeway KTM is located at Unit 2, 115 Albany Hwy, Victoria Park. For further details on the Motorex KTM Racing team visit on Thursday 29 October call Causeway KTM on 08 9355 0500.
Simmonds team mate Kade Mosig injured his knee in the Pro Lites class at round two of Super X in Geelong, and awaits MRI results before determining his condition to enter the Perth round.
The Monster Energy Australasian Super X format for Perth will consist of a Round Robin circuit with three rounds with three heats of 10 riders in each round. Each heat will be five laps each, giving a total of nine races per round. Each heat will also consist of a different list of riders, so they will be pitted against different riders each time. The riders with highest accumulative points from the heats make the 12 rider, eight lap final.