Queenstown motocross racer Scott Columb was given the hard word by his race team boss just after Christmas, ‘shape up or ship out’.

He shaped up.

With patchy form leading up to the start of the New Zealand Motocross Championships, Columb was not among those fancied to win the MX1 crown this season and his boss at the Altherm JCR Yamaha Racing Team, Motueka’s former Grand Prix star Josh Coppins, took him aside to lay down the law on New Year’s Eve.

It seemed to work a treat because Columb has since been on the podium at every major event he’s raced – winning the annual King of the Mountain motocross in Taranaki three weeks ago and then finishing third in class at the annual New Zealand Motocross Grand Prix at Woodville a fortnight ago.

The highlight came with his winning the day at the first of four rounds of the New Zealand Motocross Championships in Taranaki on Sunday.

The 31-year-old Columb took his Yamaha YZ450F to finish third in the first of three MX1 class races on Sunday, behind team-mate Kade Mosig and another Australian visitor Kirk Gibbs (KTM), but then he stepped it up a notch to convincingly win the next two races at the Barrett Road Motorcycle Park facility, on the outskirts of New Plymouth.

At the end of the day, Columb’s 3-1-1 score-card gave him an eight-point overall win over Gibbs (2-4-2), with Rotorua’s John Phillips (The Honda Shop Racing Team) finishing 6-2-4 and taking the third step on the podium, another seven points further back.

Columb’s response was perfect for a man who had been so close to being dropped from the high-profile factory team.

“Josh told me I’d better shape up or I was out, and he’s got every right to say that to me,” said Columb.

“But it has been tough for me because I work as a tour guide and Christmas is a very busy time for me. I didn’t start training on the bike properly until January.

“I was expected to be on the podium every time I raced, but I wasn’t. It’s a pressure situation because, in this sport, if you don’t perform there is always someone else ready to step into the position and replace you.

“My first race today didn’t really go to plan. I was back in about 10th after the start and had to fight my way up to finish third. Winning the next two races was fantastic, of course.”

Coppins was naturally delighted with the weekend.

“You could say it was a perfect weekend for the team. Mosig won the first MX1 race and Scott won the next two, that’s a clean sweep in the class.

“I was Scott’s biggest critic before Christmas and he has obviously responded excellently.”

The Yamaha contingent celebrated a clean sweep in Taranaki at the weekend with Australian visitor Jay Wilson (Altherm JCR Yamaha YZ250F) topping the MX2 (250cc) class, ahead of Amberley’s Micah McGoldrick (Timaru Honda CRF250), and Taupo’s Cohen Chase (Total BikesportNZ.com Yamaha YZ125) winning the 125cc division, ahead of defending champion Josiah Natzke (CMR Red Bull KTM 125), of Hamilton.

There is still a long way to go, with three rounds – nine races – in each class still required to settle the issue, but it has certainly been a solid start for these men.

The series now heads to Pleasant Point, near Timaru, for round two in just under two weeks’ time, on February 22.

Round three is set for Rotorua on March 8, with the fourth and final round is at Pukekohe on March 15.

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

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