The Australian Off Road Championship will undergo major revisions for 2011. Will Toby Price be back to defend his crown?

The 2011 Australian Off Road Championship will be run in conjunction with State Enduro Championship events in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.

Motorcycling Australia revealed the news today, the series set to feature 10 rounds spread over five separate weekends during the season.

Speaking about the championship, MA CEO David White said that when the entire industry was hit by the Global Financial Crisis, the Australian Off Road Championship took a serious blow.

“Towards the end of 2009 we received late notice that the former promoter of the championship did not intend to continue with the Series in 2010,” White said.

“The series faced a number of challenges, not limited to the Global Financial Crisis and the flow-on effects on sponsor and team budgets, in addition to low riders entries.

“With no time to find a promoter for 2010, MA committed $120,000 in emergency funding to the championship, ensuring that financially it could go ahead. A small but dedicated group stepped up in order to ensure there was a national championship in 2010 and for that MA is extremely grateful.

“In addition to volunteering their services and putting in countless hours of hard-work, this group produced an outstanding Series despite constant battles with the weather.

“The volunteers weren’t alone with a group of very generous sponsors doing what they could, despite economic pressures, to keep the championship going on an exceptionally tight budget.

“Without these people, as well as the dedicated competitors, the 2010 Australian Off Road Championship would never have happened and MA would like to extend a massive thank-you to everyone involved.”

White went on to say it was vital for the future of the Championship to create a solid foundation to enable the Series to develop.

“Throughout 2010 MA was able to examine the Australian Off Road Championship more closely, and it was decided it would be inappropriate to contract this Australian championship to a sole promoter owing to the economic viability of the Series and current economic climate,” he said.

“A return to grassroots events promotion and empowering the clubs to take ownership of the championship will provide us with an opportunity to build solid foundations for the long-term benefit of this series.

“I acknowledge that procedurally things could have been handled better internally regarding the championship – however we have always maintained that the series would go ahead in 2011, it was merely a question of what form the championship would be in.

“Unfortunately there was no quick fix, and to appoint a sole promoter to run the championship was not a viable option at that stage, and it will take several years of dedication and hard-work for us to build the championship up again – just as it will take several years for the industry to recover.”

Looking ahead, White said he was hopeful the industry could see a return to independent promotion of the AORC by 2013.

“While the championship will be closely monitored throughout 2011, it is hoped that 2012 will see a mix of shared rounds with State Championship events, and some individually promoted rounds,” White said.

“The success of this will again be closely monitored, and depending on the outcome, a tender process will be implemented for a Promoter to run both the AORC and the A4DE in 2013.

“MA is committed to ensuring the survival of the AORC, however its success and long-term future is largely dependent on factors beyond our control.

“The on-going effects of the economy on the motorcycle industry, the viability of the Series for an individual promoter and even the number of entries, will all be contributing factors to the overall success of the championship in the long-term.

“If, upon examination in 2012, the series is not yet viable it may continue in its current form for a longer period of time.

“On behalf of MA I would like to thank the entire off-road community for banding together to ensure the 2010 championship went ahead and hope that by continuing to work together the AORC will get back on track.”

Yamaha Australia have once again come onboard as naming rights sponsor for the 2011 AORC.

Yamaha Australia motorsport manager Ray Howard said that it was pleased to be a part of the AORC in 2011.

“Yamaha Australia is pleased to once again, throw its support behind the AORC,” Howard said. “We see the sponsorship of this event as essential in supporting off-road motorcycle sport from a grassroots level, and it forms part of our ongoing policy to support and foster off road racing – a vital part of our customer base.”

The National Championship classes will be as per GCR 25.14.3 of the 2011 Manual of Motorcycle Sport (MoMS), featuring E1, E2, E3, Veterans, Masters, Women’s, J1, J2 and J3.

There will be no support classes at the National Championship

More information on how the series will work – specifically relating to supplementary regulations, entry forms and national rider numbers will be made available once finalised.

2011 Australian Off Road Championship Calendar

Date – Round – State
26-27 February – Rd1 and 2 – NSW
19–20 March – Rd3 and 4 – QLD
18–19 June – Rd5 and 6 – NSW
9–10 July – Rd7 and 8 – VIC
27 – 28 August – Rd9 and 10 – SA