Chris Hollis came out on top.
The sport of Enduro-X has now well and truly arrived in Australia with Round 1 of the newly formed Australian Enduro-X Nationals firing into life!
The much anticipated three-round series kicked off yesterday in Brisbane at the iconic Archerfield Speedway. Only a short drive from the cities’ central business district and within easy reach of enduro fans, the stage had been set for a world class event and the seven-hour program did not disappoint.
Heat races in the morning would see multiple winners across all classes and the thrills and spills of Enduro-X racing left viewers on the edge of their seats for each and every race.
In the headline Pro class, Toby Price provided a fairytale return to racing with a qualifying heat win. With a serious injury ruling the fan-favourite out of competition in 2013, his return generated a serious buzz amongst all in attendance. The Motorex KTM hero was back.
He certainly wasn’t the only rider in form however.
Reigning Australia Off-Road champion Daniel Milner asserted himself early, rocketing his way out of the start gates and taking his CDR Yamaha to the front of both his heat races. Milner’s new team-mate Chris Hollis and 2013 Enduro-X victor Peter Boyle were also found at the head of the pack and established themselves as serious contenders heading into the finals.
A notable first heat performance from Victorian Daniel Sanders left many in awe along with Active8 Yamaha’s Stefan Granquist who despite some bad luck, was quietly logging some very fast lap times aboard his YZ250 two stroke.
The excitement was certainly not left to the professional’s however and as the finals began to take place, the support classes came into their own with a crowd pleasing mix stand-out rides.
The Women’s class in particular left many on their feet with tight fought battles across the entire field.
Ballard’s Sherco rider Jessica Gardiner brought her world-beating form to Brisbane and despite her share of challenges, proved too good for the competition. A solid win over Flair Motosports rider Kristie McKinnon and Highway Performance KTM’s Tayla Jones gives Gardiner a slight edge in points but the field is very tight.
In the Expert class, it was privateer Jesse Kistler who beat out some very established competition to take a surprising but well-earned victory.
Champion of the future Tom Mason managed to turn plenty of head’s throughout the day as well and despite racing in a support class, the 16 year-old went modestly about logging lap times equivalent to that the more experienced Pros. The Bolton’s KTM rider will absolutely be one to watch as the series continues.
Owen Lock and Blake Hall took out the Over 35’s and Clubman classes respectively while Ruben Chadwick provided an unlikely but impressive victory in the junior class.
With all support classes done and dusted the fan’s converged on the in-track spectator point’s for the headline races of the day.
First came the Pro-Shootout and with a cool $500 up for grabs, the single-lap sprint format saw Australia’s best off-road racers on the absolute edge.
With the top-ten starting order based on a reverse of the days’ fastest laps, excitement was at fever pitch to see who could rise to the occasion and beat the odds.
Ultimately, Toby Price would continue his incredible return to racing and take a confidence inspiring victory over the CDR duo of Milner and Hollis.
The script was now in place for some incredible racing in the final races of the day, the three pro-class finals.
As the gate dropped on the first final it became clear that Daniel Milner was hungry for victory with a massive holeshot on his YZ250F.
KTM mounted Peter Boyle had other idea’s however and quickly worked his way to the front, where he would stay for the remainder of the race.
Crossing the line less than a second behind was a hard charging Chris Hollis while shootout winner Price would hang on for third.
Despite a fall, Milner collected himself and pushed through for a solid fourth.
The second of three finals provided a classic display of Enduro-X unpredictability as final one winner Peter Boyle ran into trouble mid-race and could only muster a sixth place finish.
This left the door open for a flying Daniel Milner who would again collect the holeshot, this time however holding on for an impressive victory.
Hollis and Price would log second and third respectively which (much to the crowd’s delight) meant the overall would ultimately come down to the third and final race.
As if the crowd hadn’t already been treated to an absolutely stellar show, the third and final main event saw yet another Daniel Milner holeshot and an absolute nail biter of a battle for first place!
Toby Price had been incredibly impressive in his return to racing and with consistent third place finishes in the first two finals, he remained a lurking threat for the overall however it would require a mistake on the lead riders behalf as CDR Yamaha’s Hollis and Milner stretched out a lead and went wheel for wheel for first place honours.
In one of the great battles of the day, the two team mates provided an amazing show for the appreciative crowd, running literally side by side in sections of the track as the jostled for the lead.
When the dust settled, it was Chris Hollis who rose to the occasion to take an emphatic win over his hard charging teammate. His 2-2-1 score granted him the overall and his consistency signalled that he is going to be in this till the very last final.
Milner was very impressive all day and is clearly one of the fastest rider’s in the series. With a dominating season behind him it is assured that he will return at round two hungry and capable of victory. His consistent holeshots were a standout in a talented field and when combined with his smooth style, will make him hard to beat this year.
Third Placed Toby Price is absolutely back and his strong return will no doubt send warning signs to his opposition as the once dominant rider readies himself for the second round of the series.
He seems to have gelled with the KTM350 and will be a threat from here on out.
With an extremely successful Round 1 of the Australian Enduro-X Nationals in the books, the focus now turns to Round 2 in Sydney where lightning fast locals will have their chance to match it with the best Australia has to offer.
For more information on Round 2 and how you can be involved, head to: http://www.enduro-x.com.au/
For full results head to: http://www.mylaps.com/en/events/985674
For exclusive event coverage: https://www.facebook.com/pages/RDE-HQ/268863356551137
