Just a month after the final 2006 Big Day Out concert was held at Perth's Claremont Showground, the good
vibes will be rekindled at the historic venue this Saturday night for round two of the Australian
Supercross Championship (Supercross Masters).
This time, instead of Kings of Leon, Sleater-Kinney, Wolfmother, Iggy & The Stooges and The Mars Volta
providing the buzz, the artists appearing on March 25 will include
Daniel Reardon (Team Kawasaki KX450F),
Craig Anderson (No Fear Honda CRF450R),
Troy Carroll (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ250),
Daryl Hurley
(Shift Motul Suzuki RM-Z450) and stylish American
Tim Weigand (Motorex KTM 250SXF/450SX).
This will be the first-ever Australian Supercross Championship round in Perth, which will be a momentous occasion
for one marque in particular ‰ÛÒ KTM. The local arm of the Austrian manufacturer has been based in Welshpool (WA)
for over 25 years, during which time national-level road racing and motocross events have been regular occurrences in
WA ‰ÛÒ but not supercross.
Now the time has arrived, and a diehard band of supporters (groupies?) will be on location to see Weigand and his
Motorex KTM teammate
Daniel McCoy (450SX) attempt to cut a swathe on the outdoor arena.
Weigand is currently running second in the top-flight SX Open class, 1pt behind Reardon, after he won two of the three
races in Adelaide on February 11. He's also become something of a WA specialist since he started racing in Australia,
having won a couple of motocross events in 2005, including the famed Manjimup Cosy Creek Classic (nee Manjimup 15000).
"I have had a lot of luck racing in WA, and I hope to make this weekend a double victory for Motorex KTM ‰ÛÒ especially
with the event taking place in its own backyard," said Weigand. "This will be only my second supercross race in Australia.
"The track at round one took me by surprise, in that how tight they are compared to the USA. With that in mind, I have
been riding on some tighter circuits in preparation for this weekend."
KTM's factory team dominated the supercross scene in the early part of this century, clinching the SX Open title in
2001-2002 (Anderson) and 2003 (
Jay Marmont).
Meanwhile, Boyd also showed in Adelaide that he's back in the groove after an injury-hit 2005, but the rider with
the most runs on the SX Open board is Reardon, whose elevation into the factory Kawasaki team has already met with
instant success.
The 20-year-old, who's forgone a chance of defending the SX Lite title to move into SX Open, was the only rider to
finish on the podium in all three Adelaide races, as he recorded Kawasaki's first win overall since
Chad Reed
way back in 2001.
However, the unusual nomenclature used in the Australian Supercross Championship means that he only leads SX Open by 1pt,
so he will have to maintain his momentum at Claremont ‰ÛÒ which can sometimes be difficult in the unpredictable world
of supercross.
Reardon will be challenged from all quarters this Saturday, with Victorian
Cheyne Boyd (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ450F),
Anderson, Shift Motul Suzuki teamsters
Luke Burkhart (RM-Z450) and
Daryl Hurley (RM-Z450),
Cody Cooper
(No Fear Honda CR250),
Matt Moss (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ250),
Danny Ham (Axis Motorsports CRF450R),
Shane Metcalfe (Seven M2R Racing CRF450R) and defending champion Carroll out to annex the SX Open lead.
Hurley, who was on track to reach the SX Open pinnacle in 2005 before a year-ending knee injury, has swapped his
two-stroke RM250 for the four-stroke RM-Z450 at Claremont, emboldened by Burkhart's performance in Adelaide ‰ÛÒ
fifth overall behind Reardon, Weigand, Boyd and Anderson.
Only last weekend, Hurley cleaned up in a major motocross event in his native New Zealand, so he will be primed
to continue the good form on Australian soil.
As for Carroll, the four-time Australian champion (2002-2003 SX Lite and 2004-2005 SX Open) suffered the ignominy
of finishing out of the points in Adelaide ‰ÛÒ his first such experience since the 2001 SX Lite season. The 26-year-old's
pedigree is such that the next underwhelming performance may not come for another five years ‰ÛÒ but he'll have to get a
wriggle on at Claremont to keep this campaign alive.
"I have left no stone unturned in getting my championship defence back on track," said Carroll "and I am going into
this weekend a lot more confident."
Carroll is one of only three top-flight riders still using the once ubiquitous two-stroke machinery. The others are
Moss and Cooper.
Twenty-nine riders will compete in SX Open this Saturday, where a series of qualifying races will decide who joins the
top 10 ranked riders from 2005 and Weigand in the three main races.
In
SX Lite, a massive 48 riders are entered, with a majority of the top brass already in the top eight, including
Mitchell Hoad (Team Kawasaki Australia KX250F, 8pts), 2004 champion
Cameron Taylor (Serco Yamaha YZ250F, 7pts),
Danny Anderson (No Fear Honda CRF250R, 6pts),
Troy Dorron (No Fear Honda CRF250R, 4pts)
and
Robbie Marshall (Serco Yamaha YZ250F, 3pts).
Bronte Holland (Electric KTM 250SXF, 5pts) and 16-year-old
Kade Mosig (Full Throttle Sports CRF250R, 1pt) were
also prominent in Adelaide, with the latter adapting to his new life in the senior ranks with ease.
Finally, Weigand is unlikely to be eliminated in the preliminaries for the second event running, which sets the scene
for a thrilling night of racing under lights.
Support races will also be held on Saturday night for juniors and clubman-level competitors.
Gates open at 3.00pm, with all the action commencing at 6.00pm.
Main Photo: SX Open points leader Daniel Reardon
Credit: Garry Morrow -
click28.com
Current standings (after one of five rounds):
SX Open (250cc 2T vs 450cc 4T)
1 Daniel Reardon, Qld, Kawasaki - 8pts
2 Tim Weigand, USA, KTM - 7
3 Cheyne Boyd, Vic, Yamaha - 6
4 Craig Anderson, NSW, Honda - 5
5 Luke Burkhart, NZ, Suzuki - 4
6 Cody Cooper, NZ, Honda - 3
7 Daniel McCoy, NSW, KTM - 2
8 Shane Metcalfe, SA, Honda - 1
SX Lite (125cc 2T vs 250cc 4T)
1 Mitchell Hoad, NSW, Kawasaki - 8
2 Cameron Taylor, Vic, Yamaha - 7
3 Danny Anderson, NSW, Honda - 6
4 Bronte Holland, Vic, KTM - 5
5 Troy Dorron, Vic, Honda - 4
6 Robbie Marshall, Qld, Yamaha - 3
7 Lewis Stewart, Vic, Honda - 2
8 Kade Mosig, Vic, Honda - 1
