Kyle Webster and Alex Larwood wins in Murray Bridge – Australia Pro Motocross Round 5

Murray Bridge’s fifth round of the 2024 Penrite ProMX Championship, presented by AMX Superstores, was another strong day out for red riders, headlined by Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Kyle Webster clean-sweeping the Thor MX1 motos and extending his points lead.

Words | Press release

The factory Honda Racing team also claimed the top two positions of the Pirelli MX2 class – Alex Larwood taking the overall on countback from his series-leading team-mate, Brodie Connolly

450 CLASS:

Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s championship leader Kyle Webster made it three round wins in a row, with a convincing double-moto victory at Murray Bridge.

CDR Yamaha Monster Energy’s Jed Beaton threw down an absolute stormer of a lap-time to take the AMX Superstores Pole Shootout. Beaton’s fastest lap of 1m46.021s eclipsed Webster’s best effort by 2.022s and set the early tone for the day, as Empire Kawasaki’s Luke Clout finished just behind Webster as third-fastest.

GASGAS Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs made a late-race pass on Metcalfe for the final step on the podium, while Nathan Crawford (KTM Racing Team) limited the damage from a P9 start to finish fifth.

Webster completed a statement double-victory weekend by claiming the second moto by 5.9 seconds over his arch-rival. A great start by Gibbs saw him grab the holeshot, but Webster wasted no time moving to the front and holding a two- to three-second gap overall Beaton for most of the race, before extending that buffer in the final laps.

Gibbs finished a well-earned third behind Beaton – and P3 for the round – ahead of Crawford, with international Honda guest Lars van Berkel putting in an impressive fifth-place performance.

The double-moto sweep means Webster has stretched out a seven-point lead over Beaton in the point standings (252 points to 245), while Crawford remains third on 210.

450 RESULTS:

Top 10 Overall:

#96 Kyle Webster (Honda) 1-1
#14 Jed Beaton (Yamaha) 2-2
#5 Kirk Gibbs (GasGas) 3-3
#199 Nathan Crawford (KTM) 5-4
#24 Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki) 4-7
#9 Lars Van Berkel (Honda) 7-5
#47 Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 6-6
#8 Zachary Watson (Husqvarna) 9-8
#81 Joel Evans (Yamaha) 8-9
#174 Sam Larsen (Yamaha) 11-10

Top 10 Standings post Round 5 of 8:

#96 Kyle Webster (Honda) 252
#14 Jed Beaton (Yamaha) 245
#199 Nathan Crawford (KTM) 210
#5 Kirk Gibbs (GasGas) 188
#47 Todd Waters (Husqvarna) 162
#24 Brett Metcalfe (Kawasaki) 153
#4 Luke Clout (Kawasaki) 146
#8 Zachary Watson (Husqvarna) 124
#81 Joel Evans (Yamaha) 118
#1 Dean Ferris (Yamaha) 104

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A second-moto victory saw Froth Honda Racing’s South Australian local Alex Larwood leave Murray Bridge with the Pirelli MX2 round win, tied on points with his Honda team-mate Brodie Connolly, while Kayden Minear (KTM Racing Team) put in a gritty performance to finish third overall.

In the opening MX2 moto, series leader Connolly overcame a P8 start to win by a comfortable 19 seconds. Husqvarna-mounted Brock Flynn tore off the start to grab the holeshot and led for three laps, but a spectacular tangle between himself and Minear during a battle for the lead opened the door for Connolly to take charge.

The Kiwi clocked off consistent, fast laps to take the win over Larwood, who also had to work hard to get past the early front-runners. Budd crossed the line in third after holding off a relentless battle from Flynn, while Minear staged a remarkable comeback from his heavy crash to finish P5

*Alex Larwood first win of the season – Image: AUSPROMX Media*

The second MX2 moto win went to Larwood, who put in a relaxed, devastatingly-fast performance on his way to the round victory.

Connolly scored the holeshot, but dropped his bike in the second turn and allowed Larwood to power past and grab a memorable moto – and round – win by 8.44 seconds. Red plate-holder Connolly rapidly worked his way from 25th back into P2, but even he couldn’t match Larwood’s speed and had to settle for the runner-up spot.

In the championship standings, Connolly has again extended his points lead to 30 points over Kingsford (222 points to 192), with Ferguson just two points further back.

250 RESULTS:

Top 10 Overall: