With near 250 entries and headlined by an assortment of class and outright winners from previous years, the 2024 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) presented by MXstore is shaping up to be one of the most competitive yet. Opening in Roma, Queensland, this weekend, this series is the very breeding ground of some of the best exports the nation has ever had.

Since its 2007 inception, an enormous number of superstars have competed in the AORC, including two-time Dakar Rally winner Toby Price, International Six-Day Enduro (ISDE) individual winners Daniel Sanders and Daniel Milner, four-time EnduroGP champion Stefan Merriman, multiple Finke Desert Race and Australasian Safari champion Ben Grabham – and many more.

Like the beginning of every AORC campaign, there is massive intrigue on who can seamlessly slip into a winning groove when the racing gets underway in Roma. And with a huge catalogue of men’s, women’s and junior classes, the competition will be fierce as the seasoned stars of enduro go into battle with the new wave of emerging talent.

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Milner is one of the evergreens in the paddock. In 2024, the Victorian returns to AORC after two difficult seasons in Europe. And he’s out to prove a point – straight back into the ultra-competitive E2 class with backing from his former AORC suitor, KTM, but this time within his own DM31 Racing program.

Thirty riders will contest the E2 class in Roma and, while the returning multi-time champion Milner will undoubtedly be a towering presence, the roster is exceptional with the likes of Australian Four-Day Enduro winner Jonte Reynders (Motul Pirelli Sherco), Andy Wilksch (Beta Motorcycles Enduro Team), last year’s EJ champion Will Dennett (ShopYamaha Off-Road Racing), Beau Ralston (Empire Kawasaki) and Ben Kearns (Beta Ballards Xtread Off-Road Race Team) waiting for him.

Reynders, who was the in-form rider at the tail end of 2023, is shaping as Milner’s biggest threat as he embarks on a sixth year with Sherco. Whatever eventuates after 12 rounds – ending in Nowra on 14-15 September – there will be a new E2 champion crowned in 2024 following the retirement of reigning number one Josh Green.

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Meanwhile, bLU cRU-supported Cooper Sheidow (Yamaha), Riley McGillivray (KTM) and Jessica Gardiner (JGR Ballards Yamaha) will begin their E1, E3 and EW title defences this weekend, with all three classes following the hard-fought narrative of E2.

ShopYamaha’s Kyron Bacon is the E1 favourite, though, with the Tasmanian consistently the fastest enduro rider in Australia over the last two seasons – and he impressed with a superb cameo in EnduroGP late last year. A mid-year injury in 2023 derailed Bacon’s E1 – and unofficial outright – defence, but he’ll be out for redemption in 2024.

Korey McMahon (GASGAS), New Zealander Tom Buxton (DM31 Racing KTM) and Will Price (Empire Kawasaki) are also in the 11-rider E1 mix, the latter making a gritty return after a major incident in the latter stages of last year. Watch how they stack up outright as well, because the Milner vs Bacon vs Reynders battle is an intriguing storyline in itself.

The E3 class features a plethora of new names including Billy Hargy (Simford Group Husqvarna), but the talent runs deep with riders like Fraser Higlett (Beta Motorcycles Enduro Team), Jye Dickson (Beta Motorcycles Enduro Team), Patrick McGillivray (KTM), Luke Chella (KTM) and Tom Vance (Sherco) all looking to make early dents in Riley McGillivray’s title defence.

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EW is shaping as an intriguing match-up too, with the multi-time champion Gardiner set to feel the heat from her teenage prodigy understudy, Danielle McDonald (Yamaha). McDonald dominated the AORC JG class in 2023 before stunning the off-road world with a breakout performance at the ISDE in Argentina as part of the second-placed Australian Women’s team.

The EJ junior class is a talent-packed ground for Australia’s next wave of off-road talent, where Yamaha-backed Jett Yarnold’s chances of success have been elevated even further after the two riders who finished in front of him last year – Dennett and Hargy – have now moved onto the senior ranks.

In the typical AORC way, though, the battles will be intense across all classes in Roma – 16 in total including more juniors, Masters and Veterans – with racing to be held over a Sprint format. Entry is free for spectators on both days, so if you’re in the region, it’s certainly worth taking some time out to check out the action (Emoh Ruo Road, Euthulla).