Supercross

Matt Moss Flawless Leading Home Suzuki 1-2

Gavin Faith increases SX2 points lead with come from behind win.

Author: Aaryn Minerds

Posted:

Sunday, October 19th, 2014

7:58 AM

Motul Suzuki's Matt Moss has continued his unbeaten run at the third round of the 2014 Australian Supercross Championships held at Phillip Island on Saturday the 18th of October.

After a full day of racing, Moss who topped qualifying by the smallest of margins ahead of team-mate Lawson Bopping lined up at the start gate for the late afternoon finale as the big favourite after winning all of his heat races during the day.

When the gates dropped on the main event, M.Moss wasted no time in making his race intentions clear, as the reigning champ rounded the first turn in the lead and set about running away for his third straight win of the season.

Behind M.Moss, it was NPS Monster Energy Kawasaki's Jake Moss and tem-mate Adam Monea who held down second and third place early with Penrite Oils Honda MX's Jay Marmont and Bopping also in the mix.

Bopping made short work of Marmont on lap two and by lap seven had worked his way into 3rd position passing Monea and set his sights on J.Moss in second, and quickly made the moved into second a lap and a half later.

In the mean time battles raged through the pack as KTM Racing's Kirk Gibbs worked his way into 4th place while further back Suzuki Privateer Sam Martin and DPH Yamaha's Kade Mosig went head to head in some close quarters racing action that had the two trading block passes on each other for 7th place, before Mosig was left on the wrong side of the berm at the end of the whoops on lap 12 before going on to suffer another couple of crashes that would leave him to finish the race in 15th.

Lawson Bopping continues his rapid rise on his return to racing with a second place finish - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

At the half way point of the race battling for the third position on track became hazards for a host of riders with many of the stars of Australian SX crashing while trying to make their way into the final podium position.

The first rider to hit the ground was Monea from 4th position, who was able to quickly recover and get back into the action in 7th. The next rider to go down was Gibbs again with the South Aussie like Monea able to recover reasonably quickly and only lose a handful of spots.

J.Moss also succumbed to the third place bogy as he came off second best in an exchange with Marmont, leaving the Kawasaki rider on the ground and effectively out of the event.

J.Moss' crash lifted Sam Martin into fourth position and into a chance at the podium before he to suffered a crash in the dying stages of the race leaving him to finish back in 7th.

SX1 Podium - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

Up front it continued to be smooth sailing for Matt Moss and Lawson Bopping as the Suzuki duo maintained a steady gap between them crossing the line at the end of 20 laps to give Suzuki a 1-2 result.

"It felt good to get another win," Moss told fullnoise.com.au live from the track after the afternoons main event.

"I did not really ride the way I wanted to, I had arm pump the whole way and I was not really hitting my marks each lap like I wanted to. But in saying that obviously I done what I needed to do.

Marmont held on to claim his first podium finish since the opening round of the 2013 Australian Supercross championship and showed that he still as a big time playing in Australian Supercross.

Adam Monea was able to take advantage of riders crashing after his fall to work his way back to a solid fourth place finish to maintain second in the championship standings. Gibbs finished in 5th spot with KTM Racing team mate and SX rookie Jesse Dobson rode a consistent 20 laps to finish in a fine 6th position at race end.

Martin held down 7th, with Husqvarna Racing's Josh Cachia in 8th, Suzuki privateer James Booth-Elliot in 9th, with Kieren Tisdale rounding out the top ten.

SX2

Kale Makehame lead the SX2 main event early - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

Kale Makeham continued his return to form in the SX2 class, jumping out of the gate in the main event and quickly taking the race lead through the whoops out of the first turn making the pass on Husqvarna's Ryan Marmont who earned the holeshot.

Other riders to jump out of the gate well included KTM mounted Brenden Harrison, Broadstix Honda's Taylor Potter and Raceline Suzuki supported Hayden Mellross who was a late inclusion into this years series.

The points leader coming in to the round, Penrite Oils Honda MX's Gavin Faith did not quite get the start he was looking for and finished the first lap down in 6th position. However the American made quick work of the riders in front of him and by lap five claimed the race lead from Makeham and never looked back going on to take his second straight win.

"I am feeling good after that win," Faith stated. "My speed is there my fitness is there and I feel as long as I put all the pieces together and don't make a major mistake all will be good.

Gavin Faith made quick work of the front runners moving from 6th to 1st in 4 laps - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

Another rider on the charge through the field was fellow American Kyle Peters who was burried well back in 9th position at the end of the opening lap aboard his Wilson MX Honda. Peters carved his way through the field into fourth position by lap six before getting into one of the battles of the race with Mellross for third position, with Peters eventually taking the spot on lap 13.

With Make sitting in a comfortable second position it looked as though Peters would have to settle for the final spot on the podium. That was until Makeham made a mistake at the end of the final lap, crashing in a big way and allowing Peters through to claim second position for an American and Honda 1-2.

Despite hitting the deck hard, Makeham quickly bounced to his feet to cross the line just two seconds behind Peters in third spot.

Mellross on his near stock Suzuki RM-Z 250 held on to finish 4th ahead of Harrison who slipped back through the field after a promising start. Marmont was able to hold SD3 Husqvarna's Luke Arbon at bay to finish 6th whith Raceline Suzuki's Geran Stapleton finishing 8th.

KTM Privateer Dylan Long finished 9th with Taylor Potter rounding out the top ten after crashing twice during the race.

SXD and Support

Brock McLeary won the battle of the KTM's in the SXD class - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

The SXD class provided the tightest and most spectacular racing throughout the day, with five KTM riders going bar to bar in all three races that was highlighted by plenty of bar banging action and take out moves.

Brock McLeary, Jack Simpson and Dylan Wills each claimed a race win, while Aaron Tanti and Tomas Ravenhorst both had thier chances to steal a win.

At the end of the day it was McLeary's 3-1-3 results that earned him the top spot on the podium ahead of Simpson and Wills.

"The track was tricky and technical but it was a lot like home, McLeary told Fullnoise.com.au. It was hard pack, it broke away and I felt at home on the bike.

"I am feeling really comfortable out there, we have kept the red plate and extended the points lead and will carry it into tomorrow."

In the Junior class it was Yamaha's Jordan Hill who proved to be the rider to beat, easily winning all the junior races, while Nic Bressan lead home Australian Freestyle star Cameron Sinclair in the SX1 and SX2 state cup.

The fourth round of racing will once again be held at Phillip Island on Sunday the 19th of October.

SX1 round Winner Matt Moss - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

SX1 Round 3 Results
1. Matt MOSS (NSW)
2. Lawson BOPPING (VIC)
3. Jay MARMONT (NSW)
4. Adam MONEA (VIC)
5. Kirk GIBBS (SA)
6. Jesse DOBSON (NSW)
7. Sam MARTIN
8. Josh CACHIA (VIC)
9. James BOOTH-ELLIOT
10. Kieren TISDALE
11. Justin CARAFA (VIC)
12. Keith TUCKER (USA)
13. Jake MOSS (NSW)
14. Chris CAMILLERI (VIC)
15. Kade MOSIG (VIC)
NC. Jack ZAHRA (WA)
DNF. Joel NEWTON (SA)

SX1 Championship Standings After Round 3 of 5
1. Matt MOSS (NSW) - 105
2. Adam MONEA (VIC) - 92
3. Lawson BOPPING (VIC) - 90
4. Kirk GIBBS (SA) - 84
5. Sam MARTIN Suzuki - 74
6. Jay MARMONT (NSW) - 72
7. Jake MOSS (NSW) - 68
8. Josh CACHIA (VIC) - 66
9. Kade MOSIG (VIC) - 65
10. Justin CARAFA (VIC) - 59
11. Kieren TISDALE - 56
12. Chris CAMILLERI (VIC) - 48
13. Jesse DOBSON (QLD) - 45
14. Daniel McCOY (VIC) - 42
15. Tim VARE (VIC) - 35
16. Jesse DOBSON (NSW) - 25
17. James BOOTH-ELLIOT - 22
18. Keith TUCKER (USA) - 19
19. Joel NEWTON (SA) - 16

SX2 Round Winner Gavin Faith - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

SX2 Round 3 Results
1. Gavin FAITH (USA)
2. Kyle PETERS (USA)
3. Kale MAKEHAM (VIC)
4. Hayden MELLROSS (NSW)
5. Brendan HARRISON (QLD)
6. Ryan MARMONT (NSW)
7. Luke ARBON (SA)
8. Geran STAPLETON (NSW)
9. Dylan LONG (VIC)
10. Taylor POTTER (VIC)
11. Jackson RICHARDSON (QLD)
12. Jake VELLA (VIC)
13. Luke WILSON (QLD)
14. John PRUTTI
15. Tristan DUNCAN
16. Tristan CACHIA (VIC)
17. Boyd HOCKING (VIC)
18. Jake WILLIAMS (VIC)
DNF. Ryan MITCHELL
DNF. Jordan DOUTCH

SX2 Championship Standings After Round 3 of 5
1. Gavin FAITH (USA) - 100
2. Kyle PETERS (USA) - 89
3. Brendan HARRISON (QLD) - 89
4. Kale MAKEHAM (VIC) - 79
5. Hayden MELLROSS (NSW) - 77
6. Taylor POTTER (VIC) - 77
7. Jackson RICHARDSON (QLD) - 74
8. Ryan MARMONT (NSW) - 69
9. Luke ARBON (SA) - 69
10. Geran STAPLETON (NSW) - 59
11. Luke WILSON (QLD) - 58
12. John PRUTTI - 53
13. Jake VELLA (VIC) - 50
14. Boyd HOCKING (VIC) - 47
15. Tristan DUNCAN - 43
16. Nick SUTHERLAND (NSW) - 43
17. Jake WILLIAMS (VIC) - 42
18. Lewis WOODS (VIC) - 26
19. Dylan LONG (VIC) - 22
20. Tristan CACHIA (VIC) - 15

SXD Round winner Brock McLeary - Credit: Aaryn Minerds

SXD Round 3 Results
1. Brock McLEARY (NSW) - 95
2. Jack SIMPSON (VIC) - 92
3. Dylan WILLS (NSW) - 89
4. Tomas RAVENHORST (VIC) - 88
5. Aaron TANTI (NSW) - 83
6. Izak MAULE (SA) - 77
7. Tim O'BRIEN - 70
8. Trent WHEATLEY (VIC) - 52

SXD Championship Standings After Round 3 of 5
1. Brock McLEARY (NSW) - 285
2. Jack SIMPSON (VIC) - 280
3. Dylan WILLS (NSW) - 277
4. Aaron TANTI (NSW) - 253
5. Tomas RAVENHORST (VIC) - 252

For Complete Results from rounds 3 including all junior and support classes - CLICK HERE