Bay of Plenty’s Cohen Chase can’t wait to kick-start his Yamaha YZ125 for the “experience of a lifetime”.

The 16-year-old Taupo rider is eager to impress when he lines up to race at the Junior Motocross World Championships near Bastogne, in Belgium, this weekend (August 9-10).

The BikesportNZ.com-backed rider said it was “going to be huge”.

“I am very excited. I really can’t wait,” said Chase, a year 11 pupil at Taupo’s Tauhara College who was recently-crowned national junior 250cc motocross champion.

New Zealand motocross riders have for long had a solid reputation on the world stage, thanks mainly to the respective motocross world championship careers of riders such as Taranaki brothers Darryll and Shayne King, Motueka’s Josh Coppins and Taupo’s Ben Townley, each of whom have each stepped onto the podium at the ultimate level of the sport in the past decade or so.

However, with the retirement of these Kiwi legends, the appearance of New Zealand riders in Europe has been infrequent over the past couple of seasons.

But Chase and fellow Kiwi youngster Josiah Natzke, from Hamilton, hope they can change that when they step up to the start line at Bastogne this weekend.

Both Chase and Natzke (CMR Red Bull KTM) have huge reputations in New Zealand and it is quite possible that the two Kiwi heroes will impress in Belgium.

Chase said he had been doing all that he could to prepare for his first big European outing and he would be giving it his all on Sunday.

“I’m confident I’ll qualify and, if I can achieve a top 10 result in the racing, I’ll be stoked,” said the BikesportNZ.com-backed rider.

Chase’s lead-in to the event has been fraught with difficulties, with a few technical bike issues to sort out and then he was struck with a mystery illness, but his preparations are now back on course and he’s feeling strong again.

“It is going to be massive fun and a great experience. It is one step above what it was like to race in Australia.

“I have had some wonderful support from Yamaha and my other sponsors too and nobody is putting any pressure on me.”

Chase typically races the Yamaha YZ250F four-stroke bike in his domestic campaigns at home, but he will be racing a Yamaha YZ125 two-stroke in Belgium.

“That’s just the format for that event. I’ve been riding a lot on the YZ125 lately and I love it, so I’m feeling quite confident.

“I want to thank my sponsors … FOX, Total Oil and Goldentyres and we thank the public too, who have hugely contributed towards making this happen with the purchase of raffles tickets and by making donations.”

Chase is no stranger to tough international competition, having raced with great success in New Caledonia and in Australia in recent years. He finished fourth overall in the junior 250cc nationals across the Tasman earlier this season, missing out on a podium spot by just one point.

Former GP rider Coppins, the manager of the Altherm JCR Yamaha Race Team in New Zealand, said the Junior Motocross World Championships experience would be an “eye-opener” for Chase and Natzke.

“These young men have massive potential and they will learn a great deal from this trip. They will learn if this is the step they want to take in their careers,” he said.

© Words and photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com

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