CDR Yamaha‰Ûªs Chris Hollis finally broke the winning run of Motorex KTM Off-Road Racing Team‰Ûªs Toby Price in Round 9 of the 2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) in Kyogle on Saturday.
Hollis, who hadn‰Ûªt claimed an outright round win in exactly two years (Round 9, 2013 was his last) leading up to Saturday, ended Price‰Ûªs five-round winning streak which had been uninterrupted since Round 4 in Hedley.
The win to Hollis came after Saturday's Cross Country for the seniors was cancelled and instead replaced by sprints due to rain overnight playing havoc with the planned tracks.
Despite the soggy conditions, Hollis (also the E2 class winner) burst out of the blocks early to lead by over 13 seconds after three tests, before the series leader clawed his way back with the quickest time in three of the last four tests.
The win gives Hollis and the CDR Yamaha team a significant boost heading into the final rounds of the season, after enduring a campaign that has been less successful than they might have hoped up to this point.
Rounding out the top five was Price‰Ûªs fellow Motorex KTM Off-Road Racing teammates in Daniel Sanders and Tye Simmonds, followed by Husqvarna Off-Road Team‰Ûªs Lachlan Stanford.
Active8 Yamaha‰Ûªs Josh Green had a slightly disappointing day in the overall scheme of things (seventh outright on Saturday) after entering the round in second place, but still did enough to take out the E1 class.
In the Transmoto 19 & Under class, Bolton‰Ûªs KTM rider Tom Mason made a successful return to the AORC series after missing the Aratula rounds last month with a broken collarbone.
Mason took out the round (and now subsequently leads the class outright) ahead of Lyndon Snodgrass (Kawasaki Junior KX Squad) and Wil Ruprecht (MX1 Australia Suzuki Off-Road Team).
In the other classes, the Women‰Ûªs top three mirrored the results from the previous two rounds, with Yamaha Racing trio Tayla Jones, Jemma Wilson and Emelie Karlsson again making up the podium.
MX1 Australia Suzuki Off-Road Team‰Ûªs Trent Lean secured his fourth round win for the year in the Masters' class, while Yamaha Racing‰Ûªs Kirk Hutton made it nine in a row in the Veterans.
In the juniors, Husqvarna rider Fraser Higlett (J4) and Kawasaki Junior KX Squad‰Ûªs Mitchell Brierley (J2) again extended their lead in the outright standings with wins in their respective classes.
But the overall junior honours went to New South Wales rider Michael Driscoll, who stunned J3 class leader Josh Brierley to win the section by over 20 seconds.
The tenth round of the 2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship will take place in Kyogle on Sunday.
**Round 9 (Sprint) Outright Top 10**
1. Chris Hollis (CDR Yamaha, E2)
2. Toby Price (Motorex KTM Off-Road Team, E3)
3. Daniel Sanders (Motorex KTM Off-Road Team, E3)
4. Tye Simmonds (Motorex KTM Off-Road Team, E2)
5. Lachlan Stanford (Husqvarna Off-Road Team, E2)
6. Glenn Kearney (Husqvarna Off-Road Team, E3)
7. Josh Green (Active8 Yamaha, E1)
8. Scott Keegan (Husqvarna Privateer, E3)
9. Stefan Granquist (Yamaha Privateer, E3)
10. Geoff Braico (KTM Privateer, E2)
Top Image: CDR Yamaha's Chris Hollis took out his first outright win in two years in Round 9 of the 2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship in Kyogle on Saturday
Credit: John Hamilton
