Webmaster posted on August 08, 2010 22:36
Holding on to his number-one plate is looking more and more probable for reigning Yamaha Australian Off-Road Champion, Toby Price, who took the round nine win in “ideal conditions” at Kapunda (SA) today.
Price, 22, of the Motorex KTM Off-Road Team, was the first rider across the finish line in today’s 2.5-hour cross-country race (round nine of twelve in the championship).
Price took today’s Outright and Yamaha Championship E2 Class victories - his fifth from six rounds - by 39-seconds over closest rival, teammate, Ben Grabham (Pirelli Championship E3 Class winner).
“The track, the venue here at Kapunda is unreal... by far the best [AORC] we’ve had so far,” Price said.
“Conditions were perfect out here today. The owner’s have a really good set-up and we’re very thankful to come out and tear around out here.
“Today’s race went well for me. I got off to a good start, was sitting third, and then around the first lap moved into second and then before the first lap finished, got in the front.
“Just put my head down and twisted the throttle to try and pull a gap and it all turned out really good. I think I kept a minute lead the whole way through.”
To watch video interviews go to www.aorcracing.com.au
Hot on Ben Grabham’s heels (seven-seconds back) for third Outright and second in Champ E2 was Ballard’s Wellard Yamaha’s Stefan Merriman (who was the victor of round eight. Three rounds have been canceled this year due to rain).
Merriman, 37, was suffering from tendonitis in his clutch hand. An injury which, against his hopes, had “affected his speed”.
Next rider across the line this afternoon was GP Industries Championship E1 Class point’s leader Jarrod Bewley in fourth and first in class.
Fellow E1 flyer, Yamaha rider Ben Burrell, was just over 1.5-minutes behind Bewley, coming fifth and rounding out the E1 class podium.
Today’s top-five Outright finished within three-minutes of Price.
The first rider in the second wave of finishers: Victorian Mitcham Harper (BPL Race Team), finished 5:59.10 off Price for sixth Outright and a commendable second in Championship E3.
Just two-seconds behind was Honda racer AJ Roberts in seventh Outright and third in the hotly contested E2 class.
Traveling across the Tasman Sea to attend the race paid off for New Zealanders Rory Mead and Karl Power, who landed eighth and ninth Outright respectively.
Yamaha’s Kirk Hutton rounded out the top-10 and the Champ E3 Class podium.
South Australians Ivan Long and Rhyce Ahola continued their intense battle for Expert, finishing 16th and 17th Outright respectively and one-two in the Expert Outright stakes.
In the morning event (Juniors), Lachlan Terry finished nine-seconds in front of Dylan Hickling for the Outright win.
Tomorrow’s round 10 will be run in ‘sprint’ format, which sees competitors start one-at-a-time and complete one lap at a time, doing several heats in the day.
The AORC are fantastic for spectators, with nail-biting action and the chance to get up close and personal with the stars of Australian enduro racing. Gates at the property (located 6km’s south of Kapunda on the Kapunda-Greenock Rd) will open to the public at 9am tomorrow. Admission is just $5.00/adult, children under 14 are FREE.
The next stop for the championship will the second day of the Barossa Bar Banger on August 8th at Kapunda (Barossa Valley, SA). The finale, the Boxing Roo Yamaha AORC, will be held September 4th and 5th at Cherrabah Resort (near Warwick, QLD).
MA would like to thank the sponsors of the 2010 Yamaha AORC: YAMAHA, MOTUL, PIRELLI, RK CHAINS, ENDURA, POLISPORT, ADB MAGAZINE, BALLARD’S OFF-ROAD and GP INDUSTRIES.
Yamaha AORC round 10
Where: Property located 6km’s south of Kapunda on the Kapunda-Greenock Rd
When: August 8th
Time: Gates open 9am
Tickets: Available at the gate.
Cost: $5.00/adult, children under 14 are FREE
Yamaha AORC Round 9
Top-10 Outright
1. Toby Price Class: E2
2. Ben Grabham E3
3. Stefan Merriman E2
4. Jared Bewley E1
5. Ben Burrell E1
6. Mitcham Harper E3
7. AJ Roberts E2
8. Rory Mead E1
9. Karl Power E1
10. Kirk Hutton E3
Yamaha AORC Top-10 Outright (after round eight)
1. Toby Price Points: 122
2. Jarrod Bewley 100
3. Ben Grabham 92
4. Stefan Merriman 83 (2nd in E2)
5. Kirk Hutton 51 (2nd in E3)
6. AJ Roberts 47
7. Mitchell Bowen 47
8. Luka Bussa 47
9. Ben Burrell 41
10. Jason Davis 39