With the 2019 Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) set to get underway at the end of February, alongside round one of the World Superbike Championship (WSBK), Troy Bayliss will ride with the number he started his racing career with, 32, aboard his DesmoSport Ducati.
32 was also the number Troy ran on the GSE Ducati 996RS he piloted to British Superbike Championship victory in 1999.
Troy then went on to an incredible career on the world stage using the now iconic 21, Troy now finds himself unable to use it in the 2019 ASBK season as Josh Waters has the right to use the number. The three-time World Champion will instead return to the race number that launched his international racing career, 32.
While 21 will remain synonymous with the name Troy Bayliss, with merchandise, branding and the famous TB21 signature, it’s not the first time Bayliss has ridden with a number other than 21. Taking the number 32 from racing in Australia to the British Superbike Championship (BSB), before switching to 21 with the support of Davide Tardozzi when he arrived in the WSBK paddock, Bayliss also went on to use the number 12 through his days in MotoGP and of course the number 1 plate as the World Champion.
Troy Bayliss leads Ruben Xaus and Andrew Pitt here in 2006
Troy Bayliss
“32 is the number I started racing with and it feels fitting to go back to it while I’m back in the Australian championship. I’ve had a lot of success as 21, and it’s a shame I won’t be running it in 2019, but it was with 32 on my bikes in Australia that I was originally noticed on the world stage, so I’m pretty excited to see it on the front of the DesmoSport Ducati in 2019. I feel like I’m going full circle a bit.”
Troy Herfoss and Troy Bayliss on the grid in 2018 – Image by Rob Mott
Troy will ride the new Ducati Panigale V4R for the first time later this week as the team aims to achieve a competitive set-up with the new bike. Whether they ride the new V4R at the opening round or not will be decided only once they establish a competitive base with the new bike.
DesmoSport Ducati know they have race winning speed with the Ducati Panigale 1299R Final Edition. It is yet to be seen if the new V4R will be as immediately competitive as the big twin. Limited parts and bodywork availability for the new bike are also a factor, Troy will ride the V4R this season, and that might be at the opening round, but will not be confirmed until the team have spent more time on the bike ahead of the World Superbike weekend late in February.
With the first round of the 2019 championship now only weeks away, the entire DesmoSport Ducati team is working hard to hit the ground running after a strong finish to the 2018 season, taking race wins and third overall in the Championship.
Price hangs onto third overall as compatriot Young advances.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Pablo Quintanilla has regained control of the Dakar Rally after claiming victory on stage six of the gruelling event.
With the rally now past the halfway stage and heading back towards the host city of Lima, stage six covered some of the same ground as previous stages, boasting 838 kilometres in total distance including a 336-kilometre timed special.
Lodging a time of 3h50m47s, Quintanilla narrowly edged Monster Energy Honda Team’s Kevin Benavides by a slender 1m52s, while defending champion Matthias Walkner (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) closed out the top three.
Fourth went to Australia’s Toby Price (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), who’s still encountering issues with his injured wrist, followed by Adrien van Beveren (Yamalube Yamaha Rally). Overall in the classification it’s Quintanilla ahead of Ricky Brabec (Monster Energy Honda Team), Price, Benavides and van Beveren.
Aussie Dakar rookie Ben Young (KTM) is now ranked 60th after finishing up 55th in the stage, while compatriots James Ferguson (KTM) and Rodney Faggotter (Yamalube Yamaha Rally) have been ruled out of the competition.
Stage seven of the 2019 Dakar Rally comprises the first looped timed special of the event, with riders covering 323 kilometres against the clock near the town of San Juan de Marcona.
Hoy ha tocado sufrir y aguantar las vaciladas de este fenómeno!!
Me ha pasado por encima😅
Empezamos cardio, un pasito más en la recuperación!💪🏼 Today was time to suffer and tolerate his jokes!
He has beaten me! 😅
We have started cardio, another important step for the recovery! 13,5km + 550m #Fita973
The opening round of AMA Supercross for 2019 at Anaheim saw competitors battle muddy conditions. For round two in Arizona conditions were fine and clear as they were under the roof of the State Farm Stadium at Glendale, despite that the track still certainly presented its challenges.
State Farm Stadium at Glendale – AMA Supercross 2019 Round Two
Some fireworks had unfolded earler in the heat races when Dean Wilson and Justin Barcia had some stern words with each other after the pair clashed in Heat Race One. That opening Heat was one by Marvin Musquin ahead of Cole Seely.
Chad Reed qualified 11th before finishing second in his Heat to Justin Brayton, and thus the Aussie legend was promoted straight through to the Main. Ken Roczen qualified P9 and finished eighth in his heat race to narrowly qualify for the Main without having to endure LCQ.
AMA Supercross 2019 – Round Two – Glendale – 450 Main
Malcolm Stewart rode strong at the series opener and that form looked to have followed him to Arizona with third place in his heat race. Unfortunately the 26-year-old crashed heavily 15-minutes remaining of the 450 Main which put him out of the running. The fall was heavy and caused the race to be stopped while Ken Roczen had a handy lead over Anderson and Musquin. Stewart was later diagnosed with a broken femur.
Roczen would rue the race being stopped as he had scored an amazing holeshot in the first attempt at running the Main and looked as though he was running away with it.
Jason Anderson didn’t really fire at the A1 season opener but the reigning Supercross Champion looked to have a lot more fire in his belly. Some judged that to be too much fire in his belly when the Husqvarna man made a hard pass on Roczen that took the German down.
The Honda man managed to remount and salvage third place after being passed by Anderson, Baggett and Musquin while he was on the ground. Roczen got back past Musquin for third but his challenge for the win ended with that pass by Anderson. To help offset some of that disappointment Roczen can take heart that he now leads the 2019 AMA Supercross Championship on 44-points.
Jason Anderson was rounded up by Baggett in the closing stages of the race and the KTM man then went on to walk away from the defending champion to an almost easy win. Anderson gave up the fight as soon as he was passed by Baggett, electing instead to take a safe P2 and the 23-points it came with. Anderson is now seventh on the points table.
Glendale marked the first 450 Main win for the 26-year-old Californian and promotes the KTM rider to fourth in the championship standings.
Blake Baggett – P1
“It’s good to just be able to feel good enough to run behind Jason [Anderson] and you know, I’ve had weekends where I can run with those guys and some weekends they just leave me in the dust, so it feels good to finally get my whole program together and be able to run with those guys. I’ve got to keep things rolling, it hasn’t hit me yet that I finally got a 450 win!”
Jason Anderson – P2
“This was a good weekend. I was able to ride the Main better than last week. I had a section that I didn’t think I was great in, so I didn’t want to put myself in a position to go down and lose points. I took the second and I’ll go from there.”
Eli Tomac had to take on the LCQ in order to make the 450 Main Event after the reigning AMA Motocross Champion suffered a problem with the rear wheel of his KX450F in the heat race. There was a massive pile-up during the LCQ that Tomac managed to avoid but Savatgy got caught up in the incident and thus missed the Main.
Tomac though rode well in the main to claim fourth place ahead of Marvin Musquin and Anaheim 1 winner Justin Barcia. Tomac is now third on the points table, three-points adrift of second placed Barcia.
Justin Brayton finished seventh ahead of Dean Wilson and Cole Seely while Cooper Webb rounded out the top ten.
Chad Reed bagged nine-points from his 14th place finish, coming home four-seconds behind Yoshimura Suzuki team-mate Justin Hill.
AMA Supercross 2019 450 Round Two Main Event Results
Blake Baggett – KTM
Jason Anderson – Husqvarna +5.847
Ken Roczen – Honda +8.148
Eli Tomac – Kawasaki +10.650
Marvin Musquin – KTM +12.034
Justin Barcia – Yamaha +12.844
Justin Brayton – Honda +14.650
Dean Wilson – Husqvarna +16.992
Cole Seely – Honda +21.168
Cooper Webb – KTM +23.442
Aaron Plessinger – Yamaha +24.690
Vince Friese – Honda +29.977
Justin Hill – Suzuki +30.666
Chad Reed – Suzuki +34.443
Justin Bogle – KTM +56.357
Kyle Chisholm – Suzuki +63.895
Alex Ray – Suzuki +1 lap
Carlen Gardner – Honda +1 lap
Ben Lamay – Honda +1 lap
Ronnie Stewart – Husqvarna +1 lap
AMA Supercross 2019 Championship Points
Ken Roczen 44
Justin Barcia 43
Eli Tomac 40
Blake Baggett 37
Dean Wilson 34
Marvin Musquin 33
Jason Anderson 32
Cooper Webb 31
Aaron Plessinger 29
Justin Brayton 28
Cole Seely 27
Chad Reed 23
Vince Friese 21
Justin Hill 18
Malcolm Stewart 17
Round Two – Glendale – 250 West Main
Round Two – Glendale – 250 West Main
Adam Cianciarulo jumped out to an early lead in the 250 Main and by half race distance had built up a healthy five-second buffer over Shane McElrath.
Shane McElrath
By race end Cianciarulo had doubled that gap out to almost ten-seconds while Colt Nicholds overhauled Shane McElrath in the latter half of the race to claim the second spot on the rostrum.
Nichols retains the series lead while Cianciarulo’s win promoted him up to second on the series leaderboard.
Colt Nichols – Race P2 – Championship P1
“The bike was great. It felt really, really good all day. We made a few changes to the suspension before the night program and that helped a lot. The track was just so dry and you had to be really, really patient. I was trying not to rush everything, but sometimes I kind of rushed it and made a few little mistakes. That’s all right though. I still salvaged a second, so I’m really happy to leave with the points lead and will get ready for next weekend.”
Australian privateer Tomas Ravenhorst piloted his KTM to 26th in qualifying to make it into the top 40 cut that progressed through to the heat races. Ravenhorst then finished tenth in his heat race which meant he narrowly missed the cut for automatic progression to the 250 Main. Ravenhorst then had a difficult LCQ in which he finished 15th and thus missed out on the Main, despite running inside the LCQ top ten for most of the LCQ.
AMA Supercross 2019 250 Western Round Two Main Event Results
Adam Cianciarulo – Kawasaki
Colt Nichols – Yamaha +9.557
Shane McElrath – KTM +13.919
RJ Hampshire – Honda +15.007
James Decotis – Suzuki +28.681
Dylan Ferrandis – Yamaha +36.520
Chris Blose – Husqvarna +51.927
Sean Cantrell – KTM +54.672
Garrett Marchbanks – Kawasaki +55.925
Michael Mosiman – Husqvarna +60.157
AMA Supercross 2019 250 Western Round Two Main Event Results Adam Cianciarulo – Kawasaki Colt Nichols – Yamaha +9.557 Shane McElrath – KTM +13.919
AMA Supercross 2019 250 Western Championship Points
Reed 14th as Cianciarulo breaks through for 250SX West victory.
Image: Supplied.
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM’s Blake Baggett has earned a stunning career-first 450SX main event victory at Glendale’s second round of the 2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross and FIM World Championship, in what proved to be an eventful night in Arizona.
The initial main was red-flagged just a number of laps in when Malcolm Stewart (Smarttop Bull Frog Spas MotoConcepts Honda) suffered a heavy fall at the end of the whoop section, which ultimately saw the race restarted with riders lining up in single file on the main straight led by Ken Roczen (Honda HRC).
Reigning champion Jason Anderson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) forced the issue on Roczen upon restarting, taking down the number 94 for the top spot, however it was only a matter of time before Baggett charged his way by to take the win.
Roczen recovered for third, granting him the championship lead, finishing ahead of Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki) and Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), as Australian Chad Reed (JGRMX Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing) wound up in 14th position.
In the 250SX West category, Pro Circuit Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo broke through for victory, clinching a commanding 9.557s win over Colt Nichols (Monster Energy Yamalube Star Racing Yamaha), who still maintains control of the championship.
Third was credited to Shane McElrath (Troy Lee Designs Red Bull KTM) followed by RJ Hampshire (Geico Honda) and Jimmy Decotis (JGRMX Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing), while Australian Tomas Ravenhorst (Husqvarna) fell short of qualifying for the main event.
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship heads to Anaheim next weekend for round three of the 17-stop series.
Dakar riders have taken stock of their progress so far during the first half of Dakar 2019, tried to regenerate their bodies and rejuvenate their machines, during their well-earned Saturday rest day at the Arequipa bivouac.
Dakar 2019
In reality though it was far from a rest day, as riders did not have much time to relax, instead they had to study their road-books and plan for the remainder of Dakar 2019. Then at 1700 in the evening they had to then set out for the new bivouac in Camaná, some 175 kilometres from Arequipa, from where they will begin the final assault with the Dakar heading into the home straight for the conclusive week. Competitors were barely able to savour more than a few hours relaxation on Saturday.
Dakar 2019
So far it has been a series of ups and downs for the Honda camp at Dakar 2019.
Monster Energy Honda
Paulo Gonçalves was forced to retire from the race with a head injury and a suspected broken right hand. Stage one winner Joan Barreda had also made a premature exit. Thus before the midway point of Dakar two of Honda’s main strike force are out of the running. At the opposite end of the ledger though, Honda currently leak Dakar 2019 thanks to the efforts of 27-year-old American Ricky Brabec.
Raul Castells – Monster Energy Honda Team Manager
“We have five days left where everything can happen, it is a cliché but it is true. Even if we are ahead, everything can happen. We will take it day by day. We will look to finish each day as far forward as possible to have a chance of victory. We are focused on not making mistakes and in which all the riders can return to the bivouac each stage. Nacho is riding a very good race, he lost a little time but he is still doing a very good bit of team work. Kevin took the first part a little more calmly to figure out which way the race was going, which I think is a very successful strategy. On the other hand, Ricky has pushed from the first day and now is leading the overall standings. The two are doing very well and have options.”
Monster Energy Honda
Ricky Brabec – P1
“Rest day is always good. It’s good to recharge the batteries. I’m leading the Dakar. I’m one of the only American riders to ever have led the Dakar except for maybe Robby Gordon. It feels pretty good. It’s going to be a big fight between me and Kevin as the week goes on. The two Monster Energy Honda Team riders want to win. I think it will be a battle between us until the end.”
Ricky Brabec’s CRF450 Rally gets a washdown
Sam Sunderland’s stage win on Friday elevated him to second overall, just less than one minute from the lead. Feeling fit and confident, the 2017 Dakar winner is ready to push during the second half of the rally.
Sam Sunderland – P2
“So far, the race has been really, really hard. The navigation, the nature of the stages with the Fesh-Fesh, the rocks, mass-start days and all the little changes they have thrown into the mix – it’s all come together to make it a very different Dakar and seriously tough. The final five days are going to be the same or even trickier, strategy is difficult as you don’t know what the next stage is going to bring. All we can do is take each day as it comes and go from there. Coming into the race I expected many more kilometres in the dunes, but the organisers have certainly thrown everything else at us as well. I’m happy with my position, second overall going into the second week is of course great, but the nature of the race has made everything very close. I am still feeling good and the bike is great so if I can keep on doing what I’m doing, hopefully that will put me somewhere close next Thursday.”
Sam Sunderland gets some foot love
Husqvarna’s Pablo Quintanilla has so far been a force to be reckoned with during this year’s event. Following a well calculated plan, the Chilean rally star has arrived at the Rest Day holding on to a solid third position in the event’s provisional overall standings. Enjoying a well-deserved day of rest today at the Arequipa bivouac, Pablo is excited to keep battling during the second week of the Dakar, which starts tomorrow.
Dakar 2019
Pablo Quintanilla – P3
“I am really happy with my performance during the first week of this Dakar. I’ve had some good results in some stages. For me it was also important to reach the Rest Day inside the top five and have a good starting position for stage six. It looks like my strategy from Friday worked out quite well, now I have a great starting position for tomorrow. This gives me the opportunity to make up a lot of time in the overall and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s stage. My bike is running great and I’m enjoying my riding here in Peru. I really like the landscape and the terrain here. A podium result would be good but, honestly, I’m focused on the overall victory. This is my main goal for this Dakar and I am motivated to keep fighting to make it happen.”
Pablo Quintanilla
The 2019 Dakar Rally has been a tough one for Toby Price. Despite nursing a wrist that he broke only a few weeks before the Dakar, the determined Aussie has gritted his teeth and ridden through the pain to place fourth overall at the rally’s halfway point.
Toby Price – P4
“So far my favourite part of the rally has been today, the rest day! No seriously, it’s been a good rally so far. I’m still in the fight and in fourth, just three minutes off the lead – if you told me that a few weeks ago I would have been quite happy. It’s been tough, every day I’m riding in pain a little and I suppose the injury is always in the back of your mind no matter what. The simple fact is, you’ve always got to be in it to win it, you can’t quit, you can’t stop, you can never give up. It doesn’t really matter where I finish, top 10, top five or on the podium, I know I will have given it my all and ridden my hardest.”
Toby Price
Overcoming the added pressure of the first few days, Adrien Van Beveren is now looking to show his full potential on the second week of the Dakar. Enjoying a mistake-free race, Adrien is now fifth overall and less than seven minutes behind the provisional overall leader.
Adrien Van Beveren – P5
“Everything is working well for me at the moment. I’m very satisfied with my results from the first week and I’m looking forward to the second one. I’ve felt fatigued on the first few days, but that was mostly due to the pre-race stress. Once I got over that, I could start racing the way I know. This Dakar is different to any other in the past. The pace is really fast and in many stages we’re racing alongside each other for pretty much most of the day. These are quite stressful conditions but I’m managing the pressure quite well. Physically I’m strong at the moment. For the second week, I want to retain that same momentum so that I can be able to fight for the big goal that is to win the Dakar. We all know that the second week will be even harder, but I am confident in my abilities.”
Adrien Van Beveren
30-year-old Argentinian Kevin Benavides has been enjoying a steady rally thus far and has managed to keep his nose clean enough to rank sixth on the leaderboard at this midway point of Dakar 2019.
Kevin Benavides – P6
“He finished the first week with a good balance and now we are preparing everything for the second. It will be five very hard days of navigation and off-piste. We will have to be vigilant and know where to attack. We will try to be as focused as possible to be able to do our best and achieve my goal, which is to win the Dakar. The seven riders in front of us are have times very close to each other, so we all have the option of winning.”
Kevin Benavides
Enjoying a successful rally so far, Matthias Walkner currently lies in seventh overall with a stage win under his belt. A hard landing from a drop-off on stage four couldn’t even slow his pace. The defending champion is happy with his performance so far and keen to attack the second week of racing.
Matthias Walkner – P7
“The Dakar Rally is like no other and this year we have seen it’s different again. The average speed on the stages has been high and it has made strategy tricky to work out. Opening the piste has been tough as we have seen, but at the same time it’s important to keep an eye on your competitors to see what they are doing, too. The first week has been good, day three was beautiful. The weather was good and the route took us through some beautiful valleys and over the dunes. The stages in general have been good, dusty in places and very, very fast. Now on the second half of the rally we will go back and cover some of the areas we have ridden already. I think it will affect the pace again as you can’t always follow the tracks on the ground, you have to rely on your road book completely. If the rally finished now with me in seventh place, of course I would be unhappy with my position but I would be happy with how I have ridden – I have done my very best on every single day and that feels good.”
Matthias Walkner
Delivering Yamaha its first stage victory at this year’s Dakar by winning stage three, Xavier de Soultrait is now eighth in the provisional overall. Physically and mentally strong, the rider from France is looking to take advantage of his acute navigational skills as the race enters it hardest part this coming week.
Xavier de Soultrait – P8
“So far I’ve won one stage and finished second in another one and I’m really happy about that. I might have lost some time on stage four, but this is part of the game. I feel I’m in a great place right now for the rest of the race. I’m doing quite well with my navigation and I think this is my strong point this year. During the second week, we’re all expecting navigation to be even trickier and I want to turn this into my advantage. The race is intense and there are stages where it’s hard to make passes. Fortunately, I’ve had zero issues so far. I’m strong physically and my bike is running great. If everything goes according to plan, I know I can fight for the overall victory and that’s where my eyes are set.”
Xavier de Soultrait with teammate Van Beveren
In just his second participation in the world’s toughest rally, Andrew Short has battled with many of the motorcycle class’ top contenders. Securing a career best fifth place result on the second day of the marathon stage, the American racer is currently 10th in the provisional overall standings.
Andrew Short – P10
“The first part of this rally went quite well for me. I expected more sand dunes, but it turned out to be more tricky than that. There was a lot of fesh-fesh and some technical bits in the mountains. My body is in a great shape right now and I’ve recovered well from some crashes I had during the first week. I’m looking forward to the second part of this rally. Hopefully I can stay smooth and steady and keep my momentum to finish strong. Today I’m preparing for the upcoming days and it’s quite important to have a strategy for the stages to come. It’s also crucial to rest. My position at the moment is decent and hopefully I can improve on it during the second week of racing here in Peru.”
Pablo Quintanilla (left) with Andrew Short (right)
Laia Sanz has put in strong performances on the first five stages and is looking to better her position during the latter half of the race. Despite recovering from illness coming into the rally, Sanz has ridden extremely well to lie just inside the top 20 at the halfway marker.
Laia Sanz – P19
“The main thing I have learned this Dakar is that I can still surprise myself in what I can accomplish when I put my mind to it. I wasn’t 100 percent coming into the race and the first couple of days took me a while to feel comfortable and get into a good rhythm, the last three days have been great though. My pace has improved and I am much happier on the bike, despite the stages being so tough. My goal for next week is to continue as I have been and hopefully, I can improve my position a little. It’s going to be tough for me, the conditions this year don’t suit me so well as the stages are often about speed and not so much the navigation. I’ll try my best and as we know anything can happen at Dakar so if I can make it into the top 15, I’ll be happy.”
Laia Sanz gives TP a haircut
Sunday’s stage, which heads out from the bivouac in Camaná, will have a total of 839 kilometres before reaching the camp in San Juan de Marcona. On the way competitors face 317 kilometres against the clock.
Jordi Viladoms (KTM Rally Team Manager)
“We knew from the very beginning the 2019 Dakar Rally would be one of very high intensity. Obviously, that has been the case, all the riders are really close and many different things happen each day that can throw off our strategy. Opening the piste is a big disadvantage and can result in a lot of time lost, we need to be mindful of that and adjust things. The race is so unpredictable, following a plan like that simply isn’t possible so we have to take each day as it comes. We go into the second half of the rally with Sam near the front, some guys in the middle and some further back so we have the positions covered. In my opinion the next three stages are going to be extremely important, the final two are a lot shorter and will make it harder to make up time if we need to. We’ll have a good idea of where we are after day eight. Every single one of our riders is performing very well. Sam is fit and I think can push next week and really fight for the win, Matthias the same – he’s so strong on his navigation and he has found a great rhythm, Toby is hurting but is so strong physically and mentally, we just need to make sure he doesn’t risk too much. Luciano and Laia are riding very well and of course Mario has been brilliant. The marathon stage is always a very important part of the rally and Mario was great assisting with all the bikes and attending the briefings. He’s taken on the father’s role for the riders, so a big thank you to him. We are definitely in a good position to fight for the podium places and the win of the rally. The next few days will be crucial, but we will do what we do best and hopefully we’ll be successful.”
2019 Dakar Rally Outright Standings after Stage Five
RABEC Ricky 15 USA Monster Energy Honda Team Honda 16:51’34
SUNDERLAND Sam 14 GBR Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +00’59
QUINTANILLA Pablo 6 CHI Rockstar Husqvarna Factory Racing Husqvarna +02’52
PRICE Toby 3 AUS Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +03’21
VAN BEVEREN Adrien 4 FRA Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Yamaha +06’36
BENAVIDES Kevin 47 ARG Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +09’01
WALKNER Matthias 1 AUT Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +09’17
DE SOULTRAIT Xavier 18 FRA Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Yamaha +18’37
SVITKO Stefan 11 SLO Slovnaft Team KTM +26’28
SHORT Andrew 29 USA Rockstar Husqvarna Factory Racing Husqvarna +27’54
Australia’s top three riders, including a World Champion, reigning Australian Champion and determined up-and-comer battled it out for glory at Loxford Park Speedway, Kurri Kurri yesterday evening. Fans didn’t need to wait for the A Final though, with history already made when Max Fricke produced enough points in his final heats to make defeat impossible.
Max Fricke
The Finale
Temperatures well into the high 30’s all evening at the final round of the series. The mounting pressure on the Kurri Kurri Speedway Club to maintain the track, alongside the pressure on riders to maintain their cool were major factors throughout the evening. Jaimon Lidsey reflected this mounting pressure, retiring from his fourth heat of the evening. Lidsey otherwise had a difficult run at Round 5 of the 2019 Australian Senior Solo Speedway Championship, scoring three seconds and a third-place finish, ending the Championship in seventh place on 45 points. Settling in behind Lidsey in eighth-place was Nick Morris, also on 45 points, who finished his heats with a win, plus three seconds and a third.
Taking out sixth place in the 2019 Championship was Brady Kurtz, a late bloomer in the Championship but one to keep an eye out for in next year’s Championship! Kurtz had an eventful evening, taking out two wins, two seconds and a fourth-place finish, which qualified him into the B Final. Scoring a total of 51 points, Kurtz just couldn’t hold onto the momentum, finishing the qualifier in fourth place. Ahead of Kurtz in fifth place overall was Jack Holder, with 52 points. Fiery and jesting in nature, Holder maintained his position in the finals but simply couldn’t push past the three Kings, Rohan Tungate, Chris Holder and Fricke, to make it onto the podium. Upon the close of Round 5, Holder had to be content with a qualification into the B Final, plus one win, two seconds and two thirds during his heats.
Coming in at fourth overall was Sam Masters, who made himself a dominant figure throughout this entire season. Masters’ efforts tonight with three wins, one second and one third place finish qualified him straight into the A Final. Masters closed off the Championship on 53 points and a third-place finish in the A Final, and will no doubt be a huge feature in next year’s Championship season!
Well ahead on 70 points and taking his well earnt place in third was Chris Holder, who fought tooth and nail throughout the Championship to take out the bronze. Keeping his fans on the edge of their seats during Round 5, Holder nabbed two wins and three second place finishes during his heats to qualify into the B Final. Up against his younger brother, Kurtz and Morris, there was simply no stopping Holder on his campaign to land himself into the A Final. Holder’s hunger for gold though could not match up to Rohan Tungate, Masters or Fricke in the A Final, and he settled instead for a fourth-place finish and enough points to comfortably land in third place overall.
Six points behind first and indisputably the fastest rider on track, reigning Champion Tungate took out second place overall in the Championship with 77 points. Tungate delivered an unforgettable performance at Kurri Kurri, winning all his respective heats and just too fast for Fricke in the A Final. Blazing a trail like a demon at the handlebars, Tungate was a ferocious competitor all evening but that six-point lead maintained by Fricke just couldn’t be beat.
Rohan Tungate
“I came out with a plan and everything went to accordingly. I did everything I could and won all my races, so I achieved my goal in the end! Max rode well all meeting and all series, and you simply can’t take that away from him. I can sleep well knowing I rode him hard, and so did Chris. It’s been a hard Championship, and Max fought hard for it, so he deserves it,” explained Tungate, reflecting on the closing round of the Championship.
In first place, on 83 points, was 22-year-old Fricke. Adding the Australian Senior Solo Speedway Champion title to his already impressive CV has done nothing to impact his humility, with the Mansfield local quick to remind himself and his fans that the goal of a World Championship is a long way into the future. Fricke finished Round 5 off with four wins and one second place finish during his heats, and a second-place finish in the A Final behind the lightning fast Tungate.
Max Fricke
“There’s some great talent that have won the Championship in the past, so it’s an honour to have my name on the list. It’s been a really close championship between myself, Rohan and Chris right from the get-go. It’s been a great Championship and I am unbelievably happy to now be named the Champion. All the clubs have done such a great job this championship and everything has worked out really well! I hope to look to add a GP World Championship but I think that’s a long way into the future, so I just need to continue improving and hopefully a goal like that can be achievable.”
If it wasn’t for the ride-sharing and mountain and wriggly route options on our TomTom Rider 550 GPS we might never have discovered a hidden gem of a mountain road.
Riding partner and map expert Peter “Worldmapman” Davis recently reviewed the TomTom Rider 550 for us and has been using it now for some time.
Usually one of our riding group decides where to go and then leads the pack. It’s usually me and I’ve almost run out of routes in the South East Queensland area.
I think I know every twisting, winding scenic roads in this region. But I was wrong.
TomTom decides
“Plan a thrill’ with TomTom Rider 550
This time we decided to put the TomTom unit to the test and let it decide a route for us.
Since it was hot, we thought a ride up to Toowoomba at the top of the Great Dividing Range would give us a respite from the heat.
So we put that in as one waypoint, plus Hampton and Flagstone Creek.
You can select the waypoints by typing in a place name or simply pressing a point on the screen to drop a waypoint “flag”.
We then selected a return journey with maximum mountain and winding roads options. There are two levels of each and we chose the top levels.
That increased an out-and-back journey on the highway from about 160km to about 250km.
Because we were riding cruisers, we chose the “avoid dirt roads” option. You can also choose to avoid toll roads, highways and even roadworks in the settings menu.
Sharing a gem
Sharing a route is easy
Route selected, we shared it among ourselves either with other TomTom GPS units or via their MyDrive app platform on their phones.
Sharing a route like this is great because it means you don’t have to bother about corner-man systems as riders can’t get lost.
You can plan your route on the GPS unit, or on the TomTom MyDrive app on your phone or your computer. Each allows you to share with other TomTom users via Bluetooth, email or message.
When we headed off on the Brisbane Valley Highway TomTom almost immediately took us off the highway on to back roads.
TomTom will include scenic back roads
This led us the long way round to Esk before heading up the only sealed road to Hampton.
In fact, it even bypassed some of Esk.
Peter says a good tip in selecting waypoints on this sort of route is to never select a town’s CBD or the name of a town.
Following the route
Always select a waypoint on a road past the town. That will actually throw in a nice little deviation and avoid sending you down every suburban street.
In fact, you should even start your journey out of town or it may take you on a wild goose chase around the suburbs first.
The great thing about the TomTom Rider 550 is that you can change your mind along the way.
If you decide to go into town for a coffee or toilet stop, just head on in and the unit recalculates the route very quickly.
In fact, it is the fastest of any unit Peter has used in his extensive mapping career.
You can also add more waypoints, or change the winding road option from super wriggly to less wiggly or to the fastest or most direct route if you are getting tired and want to head home.
Wriggly route
All it takes is a touch of a button on the screen.
If you decide to bypass a waypoint, the unit will try to recalculate you back to it, so it’s a good idea to delete the waypoint by going to your list of stops and deleting it.
Gem discovered
We largely followed the directions, but also chose to ignore them a little and explore.
But we are glad we did not ignore its advice when we came down the Range on Flagstone Creek Rd.
It pointed left on to Blanchview Rd which we have done before and enjoyed, so we followed.
Silver Pinch Rd is a gem
But shortly after TomTom took us right on to Silver Pinch Rd which looks almost like someone’s driveway. We’ve ignored this road in the past … but not today.
Just as well as it is a real rider’s gem.
It traverses several narrow ridges past Table Top Mountain, overlooking beautiful fertile farmland with jaw-dropping views on either side.
The road really does wriggle along and it seems it has only recently been paved along its entirety until it becomes Topps Rd and ends at the T junction with the Back Flagstone Creek Rd.
What a rollercoaster of a road it is with plenty of elevation, looping corners, esses and switchbacks.
We enjoyed it so much we stopped along the way for photos and doubled back a bit to ride some sections again.
Consequently we ended up running a little behind our schedule return time.
So at Laidley we simply decided to switch to the shortest destination and head home.
When we got home, we shared photos and maps with each other via MyDrive so we can do it again another time … maybe in a reverse direction.
You can do that by simply shuffling the order of the waypoints. Just drag and drop the last stop to the top and make the rest of the changes accordingly.
Peter Fonda famously throws away his watch in the cult 1969 movie Easy Rider, starting a fad with riders and other travellers to discard their watches and disregard the constraints of time.
A watch is a symbol of “the man”, society and capitalism that constrain us.
Motorcycles are freedom machines that allow us to escape the rigours of timekeeping.
In a hilarious parody of the famous Easy Rider scene, John Travolta and his buddies throw away their mobile phones before a cross-country ride in the 2007 movie Wild Hogs.
“You don’t need a GPS to discover America; you need a bike and you need the road, ok? Freedom,” says Travolta.
Exactly!
There are no deadlines on the open road. Even sunset is no limit.
So there really is no need for a watch. Besides, you can’t see it under your jacket sleeve and gloves when riding.
Besides, most bikes these days have clocks, although I have my bike’s screen set to the trip meter, rather than the clock.
Time collaborations
Yet motorcycle companies have had a long association with watch companies over time.
The latest is the Ducati-Locman collection with prices ranging from €299 to €598.
Other motorcycle manufacturers have had similar exclusive watches in recent years so devoted fans can wear their “heart” on their sleeve – or wrist!
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