Australia Pro Motocross: Connolly MX2 Champ & Websters extends the lead in MX1 – Round 7 MX Farm

The Honda Racing camp couldn’t have asked for a much better day at the penultimate round of the 2024 Penrite Australian ProMX Championship, presented by AMX Superstores, at MX Farm in Gympie. Not only did Brodie Connolly wrap up the Pirelli MX2 series with a round to spare, but Thor MX1 championship leader Kyle Webster extended his lead to a more-comfortable 14 points.

Words | Press release

MX1 CLASS:

A 1-2 result was more than enough for Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Webster to take the round win and extend his championship points lead after a fast-paced day of Thor MX1 racing. Jed Beaton (CDR Yamaha Monster Energy) wrapped up the round in second overall, while the experienced Kirk Gibbs (GASGAS Racing Team) earned another round podium.

Webster’s title chances received a huge shot in the arm by logging a 2.8-second win in the opening MX1 moto, while Beaton had to scramble to sixth after going down in a first-turn crash and remounting in last position.

A moto two victory from Beaton ensured he minimised the championship points loss from the first race, and carries confidence into the next weekend’s final round.

In the points chase, Webster now holds a 14-point lead over Beaton (346 to 332), while Crawford remains third (275).

Top 10 Overall Results:

#96 Kyle Webster (Honda) 1-2
#14 Jed Beaton (Yamaha) 6-1
#5 Kirk Gibbs (GasGas) 4-3
#4 Luke Clout (Kawasaki) 2-5
#8 Zachary Watson (Husqvarna) 7-6
#145 Maximus Purvis (Yamaha) 11-4
#47 Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 9-7
#485 Caleb Ward (Husqvarna) 8-9
#199 Nathan Crawford (KTM) 3-16
#20 Wilson Todd (Honda) 10-8

Top 10 Standings post Round 7 of 8:

#96 Kyle Webster (Honda) 346
#14 Jed Beaton (Yamaha) 332
#199 Nathan Crawford (KTM) 275
#5 Kirk Gibbs (GasGas) 257
#47 Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 219
#4 Luke Clout (Kawasaki) 210
#24 Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki) 195
#8 Zachary Watson (Husqvarna) 181
#81 Joel Evans (Yamaha) 140
#1 Dean Ferris (Yamaha) 104

MX2 CLASS: CONNOLLY CHAMPION

Polyflor Honda Racing’s Connolly has been crowned the first champion of 2024 after another 1-1 round result at the rolling MX Farm circuit, extending Honda’s domination of the class for another year. Rounding out the podium for the day were Rhys Budd (Raceline Husqvarna Racing) and Froth Honda Racing’s Alex Larwood.

A leaderboard shake-up in the opening MX2 moto saw Connolly land a killer blow to his rivals, and all but secure the 2024 championship. It was Williams who jumped into early lead by grabbing the holeshot, but two laps later he bobbled in a rutted turn and allowed Connolly to take the lead and walk away with a 3.363-second victory.

MX Farm regulars Williams and Jack Kukas (Husqvarna) put in the rides of their careers to stay within sight of Connolly and finish on the moto podium. Behind them, Jack Mather (Raceline Husqvarna Racing) also chalked up his best MX2 result with a hard-fought P4, ahead of Yamalube Yamaha Racing’s Jayce Cosford.

Championship hopefuls Kingsford and Noah Ferguson (Boost Mobile Honda Racing) had a torrid time of it, finishing the opening moto 11th and 12th respectively.

Later, Connolly claimed the 2024 MX2 championship by winning the second moto.

It was Husqvarna-mounted Brock Flynn who snatched the holeshot, but he was quickly shuffled back by Connolly and Budd, who then went on to finish the moto first and second. Larwood put in a gritty performance to move from 15th to third on a track that was difficult to pass on, beating Ferguson and Minear to the line.

Top 10 MX2 Overall: