Yamaha Motor Australia press release:

Yamaha Active8 Yamalube Racings’ Michael Driscoll has claimed a class win at a weather affected 2019 Hattah Desert race, ran over the weekend.
Driscoll took the win in the up to 250cc 4 stroke class on his WR250F after four gruelling laps of the Hattah course. The day started in perfect conditions, with the sandy racing surface moist and fast but all hell broke loose not long after the start when a massive cloud band moved over the area and dumped over 30mm of rain in 15minutes.

It took the perfect course where lap times were around the 30 minute mark to a quagmire that left riders battling for survival more than a dirt bike race. With the rain continuing to fall, competitors unable to circulate and the medical team unable to move around the circuit, officials decided to shorten the race to just four laps, just half the usual distance.

Regardless of the conditions, Driscoll was well in control of his division after a common sense start for him but he soon gained the lead and never let it go in a strong performance for the 19 year old off road gun.

“I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry after all that,” Driscoll states on his return to the Yamaha pit area. “I was so looking forward to this race and I know how much work everyone on the team put in for it, so it was such a shame to have these conditions to race in.

“The bikes are destroyed and it was sketchy getting around out there as the rain, the mud, the bog holes as well as fallen or stranded riders meant it was like riding through a mine field.

“It was good to get the class win and tick off another goal for the season but I feel for the guys having to clean all this mess up and get our team bikes back into good condition again. Thank you to them and all our team sponsors for a huge effort that will still be going long after this weekend is over.”

Claiming second in his class and a very impressive third outright was Josh Green on board the WR450F. Contesting the 251 to 450cc 4 stroke class, Green was in good form all weekend and despite a heavy fall on lap two, Green soldier on for top result in typical Josh Green style.

“This race is always one of the toughest of the year in dry conditions so when you add a heap of rain, it just becomes even tougher,” Green begins. “My first lap was pretty good but then on lap two, with the track getting hammered by the rain, I went over the ‘bars as I tried to plough through a deep, boggy spot.

“I have done some damage to my wrist and I will need to get hat checked out this week as its really sore now but while I was still warm and had some grip strength, I kept on going. If it had gone the full distance, I’m not sure if the wrist would have held up but I was fortunate to get to the finish line with a good result.

“Thanks to the team again. They earned their money from this event,” Green ends.

Unfortunately the day didn’t go well for Luke Styke who suffered from in the wet conditions that saw his bike drowned and waterlogged and had to withdraw.

In the junior events, ran on the Saturday, Yamaha again posted good results across several of the categories. Blake Hollis finished second in the 14-15 years 250cc division on his YZ250F, while Jake Cannon also finished second, just .299 behind the winner in the 85cc small wheel class.