MOTORCYCLING AUSTRALIA:

Australia has captured the Nations Trophy at the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand, after 85cc rider Jay Wilson became the country’s first ever Motocross World Champion, while 125cc rider Tye Simmonds finished second in his class to ensure the title for Australia.

The Nations Trophy is awarded after taking into account the best result for one individual rider in each of the two classes, and Australia took out the overall title ahead of Italy and New Zealand.

Simmonds won Race Two but American Eli Tomac was crowned the 125cc Junior Motocross World Champion by finishing second in the race after he had earlier captured the Race One victory.

Meanwhile, an emotional Wilson was completely lost for words after finishing the 85cc Race Two in third place, ensuring the title after his Race One victory earlier in the day.
Fellow Australian Dylan Long also featured on the podium, finishing third in the 85cc class.

Fifteen year-old Jay Wilson has cemented his place in Australian folklore by becoming the country’s first ever World Champion in the discipline of Motocross when he captured the 85cc Junior Motocross title at the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship held in Taupo, New Zealand.

This was the first time Motorcycling Australia had ever sent a team to the FIM Junior Motocross World Championship, and Wilson claimed the 85cc Championship aboard his KTM after finishing first and third in the two Final races held at the Digger McEwen Motocross Park.

Fellow Aussie Dylan Long also managed to attain a podium position by finishing third overall, while French rider Dylan Ferrandis – who clocked the fastest qualifying time yesterday by over four seconds – was forced to withdraw from the competition after injuring his arm during the morning Practice session, throwing the race wide open for the remainder of the field.

Wilson blitzed the field in Race One, defeating Long into second place by over eight seconds, with Hayden Mellross completing an Aussie trifecta with third place a further eight seconds adrift.

Wilson finished third in Race Two behind Italian Samuele Bernadini and Holland’s Michaboy de Waal, which was enough to secure the Championship for the young New South Welshman who was completely lost for words as the fulfilment of a life-long dream had been realised.

“It’s amazing, I don’t know if this is real or not… I’m just speechless at the moment, I never thought I’d be here right now,” an ecstatic Wilson said.

“The whole weekend went great, I got a good start in the first Moto then in the second Moto the gate jumped a bit on me and I didn’t get the reaction time I wanted to.

“I got back up though, battled for first before crashing, and then managed to get back to third… and now here I am.”

Bernadini’s Race Two victory secured him second position on the podium, while Long finished Race Two in seventh position which enabled him to achieve third overall.

“It’s been a lot of fun being here in New Zealand,” Long said.

“I had a really good ride in the first [Moto] after a bad start, and then in the second race I got another bad start.

“I worked my way up a little bit before crashing twice, but overall I was really happy with my weekend,” Long concluded.

Mellross capped off a fine weekend of racing by finishing in fourth position, while Scott Mann and Luke Clout finished 9th and 10th respectively to give Australia five of the top ten placings.

Joel Dinsdale ended up in 19th spot while Dale Fear finished 21st despite a DNF in Race Two when he experienced bike issues which forced him to retire from the race.

Jarred Jeffcoat unfortunately suffered a knee injury from a fall late in Race One which ended his 2009 World Championship campaign, the youngster being forced out of both races.

Australian rider Tye Simmonds has claimed second position in the 125cc class at the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship held in Taupo, New Zealand over the weekend.

Simmonds displayed his World class talent to lead from start to finish and claim a sensational victory in Race Two on Sunday, but fast-finishing Eli Tomac’s second placing – coupled with his Race One win – was enough to secure the Championship for the highly-rated American rising star.

After finishing second in the Pro Lites class at the 2009 Australian Motocross Championship, the boy from Bourke, NSW, entered the competition full of confidence and was thrilled to have qualified in pole position for Sunday’s final races despite struggling with arm pump for the majority of the weekend.

Simmonds was left wondering what might have been, however, after finishing third in Race One behind Tomac and New Zealand rider Hamish Dobbyn.

“Yeah I suppose if only I was able to pass Hamish in that first race,” Simmonds lamented.

In Race Two, Simmonds dominated the entire race but unfortunately had no control over what Tomac was doing behind him – which was to use his exceptional speed to reign in the rest of the field and finish in second place.

“I felt really good [in Race Two],” Simmonds said, “I didn’t get arm pump which helped out a lot, it meant I could focus on my own thing.

“I had a bit of a gap on Eli at the start but he slowly wound me in over the whole Moto, but it was great just to ride my own race and he kept me honest which was great.

“I’m second in the World for Australia, I think we’ll take that for sure,” a satisfied Simmonds concluded.

Recently crowned Australian Under 19 Motocross Champion Luke Styke rode a sensational second race which elevated him into fourth position overall in the 125cc class, while a trio of other Australians – Harley Quinlan, Josh Cachia and Ross Beaton – finished in places seven through nine respectively.

Jason Reed finished 11^th and Dylan Peterson recovered from a forgettable opening race to end up in 14th, while Matt Phillips was the next best Australian in 22^nd place.

Australia’s attendance at the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship represented the first time Motorcycling Australia (MA) has sent a team to the event, and the result has been nothing short of astounding with Australia claiming the Nations Trophy at the Championship by virtue of having the combined two fastest riders from both the 125cc and 85cc class.

Jay Wilson’s victory in the 85cc class was Australia’s first ever Motocross World Championship and certainly a moment to savour, while Tye Simmonds’ second placing in the 125cc class – and his fierce battle with eventual Champion Eli Tomac – hopefully lays the foundation for what could become an enthralling rivalry for many years to come.

Australian Team Coach Greg Moss was ecstatic with the overall results in Taupo.

“Things couldn’t have gone much better,” a delighted Moss said.

“I felt for Tye with the arm pump in that first race, but he went out and showed them [in the second race] – he beat the World Champion in that race and you’re only as good as your last race.

“So I feel a bit for Tye and other than that it would have been a clean sweep – but we’ve won as a team, so Aussie Aussie Aussie!”

Motorcycling Australia President Ron Kivovitch was another MA representative on hand at Taupo’s Digger McEwen Motocross Park over the weekend, and he was equally as thrilled with the outcome.

“What a great day – not only did we get a World Championship, we got second place in another one as well,” Kivovitch said.

“I’m very pleased for the team because they put it together very well indeed.

“We got a World Champion and that’s great, but every rider out there today deserves credit because they all rode well, from the fastest to the slowest, and it was really good to watch.

“The Juniors are our future and if we don’t look after Juniors now we won’t have Seniors in the future, so they are a very important part of the sport.”

Junior Development has certainly been a major focus for MA in the recent past, and Cameron Schueber is currently the Chairman of MA’s Junior Development Commission.

“We’ve put a lot into the development of Motocross in probably the last 14-15 months, and the work in the lead up has paid off,” Schueber said.

“A huge thank you goes to the Australian Government and Motorcycling Austraila for backing us and getting our team here.

“I was hoping for a podium so that funds could potentially be put aside for future years and teams, but this result has just blown me away,” Schueber concluded.

Click here for full results from both classes at the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship.

Be sure to visit the Motorcycling Australia website for all of the news, results, photo galleries, interviews and more from the 2009 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand at www.ma.org.au/2009worldjuniormx.